In He’s Watching You, we follow Cameron, a teenage high school student still reeling from his father’s death. As bodies slowly start to drop, suspicions start growing, and all signs are starting to point to him. When mysterious VHS tapes start showing up, Cameron must race against time to figure out who is behind these tapes before more people are killed.
For the release of He’s Watching You, we talked with the executive producer/actor Jan Luis Castellanos. Castellanos portrays Cameron in the film. Throughout our conversation, we discussed his transition into producing, how his work as a producer informed his approach to his performance in the film, and playing a character outside his type as a brand-new challenge.
This interview contains some spoilers from He’s Watching You.
You both act, but you’re also a producer on this project, He’s Watching You. How did you come to be involved in the film, and were you brought on as a producer first?
I met a couple of people on this project that I did. It was called Saint Clare, and it was another thriller. It was really fun. I met people who knew the director, and we had this like idea that we were toying around [with]. He wanted to make a movie. So, essentially, I was brought in as a producer to kind of help facilitate that whole process. It took a while, and it was really my first time, diving into the deep end, into the feature-producing side, because I had done short films. I just wanted to put something together on my own and bring it from the ground up.
I had my manager, who is also a producer, and Jordan [Foss], who was also the director of the film. He wrote the script, and we were able to put the financing together, bring people on board, handle the logistics, and work on the script. And I’m trying to navigate both sides, as an actor, and trying not to be biased.
It was a really, really huge learning experience, honestly, from A through Z. It was my first time getting a different perspective as an actor. I got to really understand what was right and what was wrong. For the first time, other than just performing, [where I thought of], okay, this might look better on the camera, you know, logistically, or on the frame, or, okay, if we just shoot it like this, we are going to be on time and on budget. So I had this, okay, use your mindset as an actor.
I’ll be honest, producing as a role is sort of nebulous. We never really quite know what producing entails, because it can be so many different things. What did you find to be the biggest difference and the biggest challenge between producing a short film and a feature?
When I was doing all of this, you just don’t know if you’re producing anything really at the end of the day. You throw yourself at the deep end. When I was doing my short film, it was just me, a couple of friends, and we had a story we wanted to tell. It was a much bigger story, but we just took a small chunk of it, and we were like, let’s just see what the heck it is that we’re writing. And we just had our friends with cameras, our friends who were PAs, just people who had worked and had a bit of experience. It was like a crew of like 14 people that helped do a short film over two days, and we banged it out. And it was really, really fun. It just felt more like a home project.
And I think that was a big difference going into the feature side, because now you’re dealing with 300 people. Not only are you a producer on it, but you’re also the main actor, same as the short film, but in a short film, you’re collaborating a lot more, trying to figure [things] out. There’s no one watching you, saying, ” Hey, there’s a lot of money on the line here. You have to do it perfectly.
I think that was like, super, super fun, but on the feature side, you kind of had like, this, “Oh my god, hold on. I gotta get this right.” And on top of that, trying to turn off that other side of, like, “Hey, let me just not try to get too much involved in what’s happening as a producer, while I’m doing the role.” I want to focus on this, on my job as an executive producer, which has come to this moment already. I had done the work to make this happen with the rest of the team. Now it’s my job to act in it. So that was my primary focus. I try not to let that get in between us too much.
That is an incredibly relatable struggle, because I find myself too analytical in the creative process a lot of the time, and turning it off is super tricky. So that’s an incredibly relatable.
No, really, it is true. And like me, I don’t know if you believe in astrology, I’m a Virgo.
Oh, same.
We’re perfectionists. So it’s just like, don’t show me, don’t tell me. Just tell me it’s good because if I start looking at it, I’m gonna be like, no! Maybe we can’t afford to do it again. Both experiences have been super fun, though. It’s a privilege to be making movies. There’s never anything negative about it. Honestly, even just producing it is even crazier because you get a great opportunity as an actor. That’s fantastic.
But then, when you start really trying to say, hey, I want to put something together from scratch and get it out there to the world, and now I see this thing on, like, Apple TV, I’m like, wow. This was literally just a thought. And to me, that was like a big wow moment, because in the beginning of my career, I was waiting for people to give me these opportunities. And now I realize, I’m like, wow, I can actually create them myself, too. To continue to do that…It’s going to be a blessing in the future.
There’s something about creating the piece that also opens up opportunities for others, which is very fulfilling.
Yeah, and I think I’m thinking about that a lot more than I was before now, because I grew up with people that I see so many people that are just so talented. They don’t really get the opportunities to go out there and really showcase their talent to the world. And these are my friends, so when I’m producing movies now, I go, oh, I think they’ll be great for this role, and they’ll be great for this role. The whole thing is cast in my head, and as you said, it just gives a lot more people opportunities.
If you don’t take it the traditional route and you’re creating it because you love the craft, just to see how people, how you can help people get involved and actually do something that they really, really love, because there are a lot of them out there.
Diving further into the creative side, when you were approaching the role of Caleb, there’s so much going on in his inner world. From his dad’s passing to the bullying and also just living life, can you talk a little bit about exploring the character? And how being a writer and creator yourself impacted or influenced your approach in the process?
With Cameron, it was a really interesting approach. Number one, it was not only the first time I was producing a film. It was also the first time that I was actually in the forefront of one. To me, that was a challenge. I loved every single moment of it, because I was just telling myself, like, “Okay, I want to make this a bit different. I want to challenge myself.”
The script is telling me things that may or may not normally happen to the other characters that I have played, in comparison to whatever I have done in the past, the jocks or whatever. To be on the other side of that, it was a bit of a challenge. So I had to be a bit more meek, and, yeah, you know, I had to kind of write this whole backstory creatively. I had to have deep conversations with Jordan as to why he wrote certain things, and just trying to really be creative with my body, maybe the way that I spoke, a little bit, the way that I walked, and just to try and fit what was comfortable in Cameron’s skin.
It wasn’t necessarily choices I premeditated. These were things that, when they said action, just kind of came to light. It wasn’t like, “I’m gonna do this, I’m gonna do that.” I just started developing these layers on him throughout the whole story and his backstory. I kept writing and trying to dig deep into it. And then when my first day on set, I remember we had that conversation, it was just more like, I like what you’re doing. Where’d this come from? And honestly, I just don’t know. I just feel like this is him.
So we kind of had to build this arc for him. Him being meek, getting bullied, experiencing the loss of his father. But also maturing and coming into his own skin. It’s a coming-of-age story of him really trying to find himself and say, “You know what? Like, I’m tired of that, of dealing with this, that past? I’m tired of getting bullied. I need to now take ownership into my own hands and be the person I’m supposed to be right now. Because it seems to me like I’m the only one who cares about this.” So I tried to build that arc as subtly as possible. That was kind of my thought process.
What ended up being the most challenging scene to shoot, both from an actor’s perspective and from a producer’s perspective, since you were wearing both of those hats?
Hands down, it was, for me, probably one of the greatest experiences, yet one of the most challenging was that night scene where I’m tied to a pole. I just remember the first take we did. We didn’t rehearse anything. We didn’t do anything. You can’t really rehearse that. There’s just so much emotion happening in that scene that when you’re like, practicing on how to keep your hands tied, which they really are not. They just have handcuffs on, but it was me who had to keep my hands together behind this pole, because they’re not really tied for safety reasons.
But then you’re screaming at the top of your lungs and all these things. You’re just setting up the shot, you’re blocking the shot, everything. And to me, that was a huge, huge challenge. I had to do that back to back to back, which was really, really fun. But I remember that first take, like, Jordan just let it roll. When I was abandoned there for a second, I was just like screaming because I thought I was gonna die, and crying. I just remember seeing the whole crew, the whole set, just quiet, and we just all just took it all in until that cut moment. And we just knew we had done something really, really cool there.
Read more: ‘He’s Watching You Review’
We shot that from like 10 PM to 7 AM. We were up all night, and just before that, we had a day shoot. You’re just jet lagging yourself in the same place, yeah. Now, this was also where a part of an actor and a producer blended a little bit, because yes, you understand lighting and all these things, but you’re trying to make this scene, because this is the only night you have it.
So, you’re trying to encourage your cast members to be on the same wavelength as you. Because maybe they’re not producers. You’re trying to maybe help with blocking a little better and speed up the process. You’re trying to deliver better, opposed to just taking your time as much as you normally would as an actor. And you want to make sure you are prepared. You have this in the back of your mind that, like, wow, before the sun comes up, we need to make sure we have this shot, this shot and this shot. After all, if the sun comes up, this is the only shot that we may be able to afford to have a peak of sunlight.
Again, basic stuff, but your brain changes a little bit. I mean, I’ve seen that change in me from when I started just as an actor to producing films. Going back to my point, that was my favorite scene to shoot, because it was the most challenging,
Including on the producing side?
Yeah.
What did being in Cameron’s skin teach you about yourself, because he was so different from what you’ve played before?
That’s a really, really good question. It taught me, if I’m being honest with you, that I could do things, behave in ways that I didn’t know I was capable of. It allowed me to fall more and more in love with my craft as an actor and appreciate it a bit more. When you’re looking into your heroes and how they do it and how they talk about it and their process, you admire it, and you just hope you can come somewhere close to any of that. So, for me to feel like I did, in my own way…I knew it was something completely different from myself.
I became more confident in my craft. I remember speaking to an acting coach at the beginning of my career. He gave me one piece of advice. He was just saying, “Listen, you haven’t booked anything yet, so just go out and be yourself.” So that’s what I did. At the beginning of my career, I wasn’t trying to play a specific way or do this in a specific way. It was more like just learn how to act and be yourself throughout that process.
I got jobs because of that. And this was one of the first times I really took a different approach to create something that was not me but had an essence of myself.
Cameron is in high school, and there’s something about being older and playing that particular age group that’s so fascinating. We’ve lived that age. I’m assuming you’ve shot this in your late 20s, but can you talk a little bit about revisiting that headspace?
I thought about this. I think the approach of being in that headspace actually helps, because I felt like, in comparison to other stuff, the performances are just a bit more mature. They feel more grounded, like how you would actually be in high school, because you bring this experience back where maybe you’re not, I don’t know, going to overact or whatever. You are kind of jaded. You’re kind of jaded about it. But a lot of kids are jaded in high school. That energy really translates perfectly. So that wasn’t like my intent or anything, but I think that might have helped – being a lot more mature to play young and deal with that environment and those circumstances.
And sort of having that understanding of, well, this is likely what’s going on in his head, because we’ve already gone through all that.
Yeah, he has so many good moments. Not to spoil the movie or anything, but just him putting his head in a locker. These are choices that are just like, okay, great, hiding in the bathroom, crying, and these things, and being alone. These are just moments that I’m really a big fan of, because these aren’t your regular choices. So we just wanted to try and take it a different way in terms of his reactions and how he was as a person. So, yeah, fantastic stuff. I mean, Jordan’s a really great director. Really.
What are you hoping viewers take away from He’s Watching You?
I’m hoping that people see that movies are alive again. That these things exist still because I feel like the industry is just in a weird place. More than just the movie itself, I want people to take away that, not to make it about me or anything, but that these things are possible. In the way the industry is, in the status of the industry today, somebody who is up and coming can go ahead and make movies still. I think that’s really, really powerful, and I think that’s really important in today’s age, because there’s just so much opportunity that is missing. It shows you that you can create these things.
And in terms of the movie’s message, it’s a thriller. It’s a fun movie. You go watch it. You enjoy the movies. It’s a slasher. You may laugh, you may jump. It’s great energy, so it’s there to entertain you, and that’s what we do.
Is there anything you’re working on right now that you can talk about for people to keep their eyes out for?
The news was out, I think a couple of months ago, but I’m doing the biopic of Héctor Camacho. I’m really excited about that again, as a producer. And even more hands-on than I have been on this other project. We’re getting ready. We’re starting production this year, so I’m really, really excited. As a producer, you’re putting all the pieces together with the rest of the team. You’re learning as you go and doing a deep, deep dive into this character now, little by little.
I’m happy to be surrounded by great people who believe in the stories that we all want to tell collectively. And it’s a privilege for me to just honestly call this my job. We’re lucky sometimes. That’s the reality.
He’s Watching You is now playing in select theaters and is available to stream on Apple TV and Prime Video. Watch the trailer below. This interview has been edited for clarity.
Images courtesy of Vertical.
