Jen Celotta answers ‘Goodbye, Toby’ questions

Q. How did you manage to film Dwight and Angela’s sex scene without including her ever-so-pregnant belly? | Pam Scherbatsky

Jen: This was the work of the fantastic Paul Feig (director). He looked for places around the office that could conceal her belly but where we could also spot that it was Angela and then Dwight. It was Rainn’s idea to take his shirt off.

Fun Fact: Paul Feig also directed “Email Surveillance” — which was the first time Dwight and Angela were caught on camera in a compromising position (in Jim’s treehouse) — although Angela wasn’t pregnant then so the logistics were easier.

from tanster: here’s what Rainn Wilson had to say …

Rainn: We actually tooled all over the office looking for great love-making nooks. Copy machine. Creed’s desk. Michael’s desk. Mail cart. On the floor by the file cabinets … but came back around to the place that Paul Feig originally envisioned, which worked perfectly.

It was quite a challenge to hump Angela with her belly so enormous. I suggested referring to the Kama Sutra for some ideas, but was swiftly shot down.

There was another long discussion of whether I should have my glasses on or not. But we decided ‘glasses yes’ so there would be no confusion whatsoever about who was straddling America’s favorite accountant.

And yes, I enjoy taking my shirt off, especially if it’s for comedic effect.

Q. How long did it take to write the season finale? I know people always ask how long it takes to shoot an episode, but how long does it really take to write an [awesome] episode like that? | Sonni

Jen: Thanks. It took us about four or five days I think. We talked about the episode as a whole for a little while and then we divided up the acts to write.**

When we were done, we pasted it all together into a giant master draft and went through it to rewrite it and make cuts.

Usually we get about a week to write an episode — but it can vary depending on our schedule. Last year, we each wrote a script over our month-long hiatus in between seasons and that is the plan for this year as well — so we will get more time to turn the scripts around.

We’re busy at work breaking stories for Season 5 right now.

**It was during this section of our writing that I found out about the junk food drawer that exists in our Production Assistant’s desk. Last year we removed all of the candy from our kitchen in an attempt to be healthier, but Kevin let us in on the secret drawer and I ate a lot of Twizzlers during the writing of the finale. If this ends up in print, I’m sure the candy will be relocated again.

from tanster: thanks so much to Jen and the guest contributors! see y’all next season …

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Check out more Q&As in the Episode Q&A Archive. Essential reading for every Office super fan!

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49 comments

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1. 
   49. from himself, from the future  Mon. Jun. 2, 2008 | 3:28pm

   WOW. I promised myself I would not obsess about anything related to The Office until after my final exams…and it was a very rough few weeks, but OFFICETALLY MAKES IT ALL WORTH IT!!! It is so great to have such devoted fans (tanster) who will set up discussions with such amazing and talented writers. We are indeed very lucky fans : )
   Thanks again for all your willingness to share with us, and for giving me a nice happy light at the end of the tunnel of exam-taking!

2. 
   48. That's What She Said  Sun. Jun. 1, 2008 | 9:26pm

   Ahaha, that chair and trampoline leg made me laugh so hard!

3. 
   47. d.j.  Sat. May. 31, 2008 | 5:02pm

   Wow, I want to see the 73 minute rough cut! It’d be like a feature length version of The Office!

4. 
   46. chilistonite  Sat. May. 31, 2008 | 7:39am

   I have to admit that after the finale I was bitter about the lack of JAM nuptials – but reading Moses’ account of chair and trampoline leg just make me fall in love all over again. Thank you SO much Mike Schur!

5. 
   45. Brown Bear  Sat. May. 31, 2008 | 7:35am

   I do not normally laugh at stuff I read(I’m the type who finds the delivery of lines to be more amusing than the actual dialogue.) But wow, the “Chair” story definitely had me LOLing. Possibly even LMAOing.

6. 
   44. Lisa  Sat. May. 31, 2008 | 5:03am

   I am so excited and grateful that Jen answered my question. Thanks so much for doing all of this Tanster!

7. 
   43. Jessica  Fri. May. 30, 2008 | 9:48pm

   Wow the full finale was 70+ minutes long? I wonder what else we missed? DVD extra maybe??

8. 
   42. kat  Fri. May. 30, 2008 | 9:00pm

   holy gosh! Tanster, this is sooo awesome! I love how you put other tidbits from different castmembers!
   Thanks for all the effort you put into this website that satisfy my office craving!

9. 
   41. Jamey  Fri. May. 30, 2008 | 7:05pm

   Thanks Tanster for submitting my question! Thank you to Jen and Jenna for the response. It feels great to contribute.

10. 
    40. StephanieC  Fri. May. 30, 2008 | 6:50pm

    What great insight into the episode. Thanks for taking our questions Tanster, and thank you to the writers for answering them. :)

11. 
    39. MNFan  Fri. May. 30, 2008 | 6:35pm

    Thanks once again, Tanster, for putting this together. Also, BIG thanks to the awesome Jen Celotta (and guest contributors) for answering my question and all the rest! Craig, I think your band needs to book a gig in Minneapolis. ;)

    I have to agree with the earlier comment “It sounds silly, but this show brings a lot of joy to my life.” :)

12. 
    38. what's the dealio?  Fri. May. 30, 2008 | 5:49pm

    Goodbye Toby was so much fun to watch and rewatch, and it’s wonderful to learn about the making of it. These Q&As are so generous and just golden. Thanks so much! Jen Celotta can even make me laugh when she’s answering questions about an episode! No wonder the talking heads are always so great. The effort and care that goes into them is amazing.

13. 
    37. I like beets  Fri. May. 30, 2008 | 4:22pm

    Hahahahaha….”Chair”

14. 
    36. Tiffany  Fri. May. 30, 2008 | 2:51pm

    Thanks to the awesome input from Jen and the Office gang! And a special thanks to Tanster for organizing the Q&A! Office fans are so spoiled :)

    I was glad that they originally chose a badger… Go Wisconsin Badgers!!!

15. 
    35. jkfan9989  Fri. May. 30, 2008 | 2:06pm

    Big thanks to Tanster and Jen for these answers. It is so great that the writers do this for us fans.

    I literally do not know how I’m going to make it until Sept. 25th…

16. 
    34. spontaneous/dental/hydroplosion  Fri. May. 30, 2008 | 1:43pm

    Thank you so much everybody for a fantastic season finale and Q&A! This is one of my favorite features on the site and I have been eagerly awaiting these answers.

    I also enjoyed the recognition of Pam’s mad note taking skills – I started laughing so hard when she started writing after Toby’s answer to “Who do you think you are?”

17. 
    33. oaky afterbirth  Fri. May. 30, 2008 | 1:39pm

    THANK YOU!! i literally came to this site 10 times a day for this Q&A! you rock, TANSTER!!!

    btw, i hope they include the extended rough cut version of goodbye, toby on the DVD

18. 
    32. BlueJeanBaby  Fri. May. 30, 2008 | 1:19pm

    Jen, I feel the exact same way about deep fried Twinkies.

    Thanks Jen and Tanster. I absolutely love these Q&A’s!!

19. 
    31. Michelle  Fri. May. 30, 2008 | 12:59pm

    These Q&A’s are awesome! Thank you so much to Tanster, Jen, and all of the previous writers for doing this!

20. 
    30. nv  Fri. May. 30, 2008 | 12:42pm

    Thanks tanster, and also kudos to the Tallyheads for all these great questions (I haven’t been able to think of one yet!)

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