The Text

The Text Clearly an experimental film.

A 48-minute long take is, by definition, an experiment. And usually, the issue with experiments is that everything unrelated to the experiment itself gets thrown out the window. But in this case, the character dynamics, tension, humor, and humanity take precedence over the technique-which, in turn, fully serves the story.

And the story itself is just the right mix of light and weighty. More importantly, it has rhythm-because when you shoot in a single take, you have no choice but to find the pacing in the scene itself, since you can't tweak it in the edit.

The Text was made by Joel Haver as part of his annual "Movies Shot During the Oscars" film festival, which encourages young filmmakers to shoot their own movies during the broadcast of the Academy Awards. Filmed entirely in one shot with no hidden cuts, The Text was a dramedy starring actor and content creator Dax Flame as a guy who sent an excruciatingly embarrassing text while drunk at his friend's 30th birthday party. Reeling with embarrassment, things only worsened when he showed the text to his friends, who tried to unpack and analyze his poor decision.

With a deceptively simple premise, The Text drew viewers in through cringe humor but became oddly effective as each character's insecurities and vulnerabilities slowly revealed themselves. At swift 48-minutes in length, The Text was a sharp and funny story whose continuous shot style felt all the more impressive considering it was made over the course of one night. In many ways, The Text exemplifies the best of Haver's unique work ethic, showing that even with such limited resources and time, the result was a highly satisfying, entertaining, and, at times, poignant movie.