Stephen Graham has reunited with his Boiling Point director Philip Barantini, with the duo taking on an even more ambitious project than that film.
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While that movie, which led to a sequel series on BBC One, was filmed entirely in one take, their new Netflix show Adolescence takes a similar approach but over four episodes - each episode is just made up of one shot.
It may sound like a stressful, high-pressure way in which to film, and Graham has suggested as much in an interview with the latest issue of Radio Times magazine.
Mark Stanley as Paulie Miller, Owen Cooper as Jamie Miller and Stephen Graham as Eddie Miller in Adolescence. Netflix
"Doing this you combine both disciplines, theatre and television," Graham said. "Without sounding too pretentious, it’s the most Zen and in the moment you can ever be as an actor.
"You have to be ready and in that moment to carry it right the way through – the intensity, the ups, the downs, the highs, the lows.
"You have to have worked it out with your director and with your other actors, and you have to really have an understanding of where it may go and what it might be, but also allow different things to pop in or pop out, like someone forgetting a line, or doing something unexpected."
Barantini also spoke with Radio Times magazine about the process, and explained why he has found himself so drawn to the method of filming.
"Personally, I find myself watching things, and it could be brilliant but I’ve got one eye on my phone, so you have to really grab me," he explained.
"I think what the one-shot does is makes you sit up and you can’t take your eyes off it, because if you do blink for a second you miss something. It draws the audience in.
"It’s like going to a play. If you go to a play, you can’t be on your phone, yeah? And so you’ve got to pay attention to everything."
James Hibbs is a Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering programmes across both streaming platforms and linear channels. He previously worked in PR, first for a B2B agency and subsequently for international TV production company Fremantle. He possesses a BA in English and Theatre Studies and an NCTJ Level 5 Diploma in Journalism.
