Filming the scene where Andy floats away in the Sumo suit was challenging due to improvised dialogues and safety precautions.
The coal walk scene was achieved by burying a light box with yellow and orange gels, and Jenna Fischer's emotional speech was scripted and memorized.
Deep dives
Summary of Podcast Episode
Michael is invited to interview for a job opening at corporate and decides to take his employees to the beach for a series of challenges to determine his successor. Pam uses this opportunity to take notes on everyone's character. The challenges include an egg race, hot dog eating contest, sumo wrestling, and a coal walk. During the coal walk, Pam summons the courage to express her feelings for Jim. The episode is filled with beach-themed activities and behind-the-scenes stories about filming at the location.
Filming the Floating Away Scene
Filming the scene where Andy floats away was challenging because it was difficult not to laugh, especially because Ed Helms was improvising some of the dialogue as he floated away. They had discussions about how far out in the water Ed should be to maintain visibility, and there was a safety meeting before the scene where water snakes were mentioned. They used a rowboat to pull Ed behind, and he was in the water for quite a while as they worked on the shot.
Creating the Coal Walk and Pam's Speech
The coal walk scene was achieved by burying a light box with yellow and orange gels in the ground, topped with lava rocks. Gas lines with small flickers of real fire were also added. For safety, rainn Wilson wore a wetsuit under his sumo suit, and Jenna Fischer's feet were sore from running on lava rocks. Pam's emotional speech was fully scripted, and Jenna spent a lot of time memorizing it to deliver it word for word. The reactions of the cast members, including John Krasinski and Rashida Jones, were great, and the tag scene on the bus was added in editing for a fun ending.
This week we're breaking down Beach Games. Writer, Jen Celotta sends us her memories from this episode. From the 'Survivor' theme to the challenges that went into shooting Andy floating away in the Sumo suit, we get all of the behind the scenes details! Then, we dive into the hilarious hot dog eating contest and Angela schools us with her basketball knowledge. Finally, we answer fan questions about the hot coal walking scene, and discuss Pam's new found courage to tell the truth to Jim.