Skip to Content
Talkhouse home
Talkhouse home
Film

Anna Roisman Got Bored and Made a Shot-for-Shot Remake of Home Alone

When you're stuck in your apartment with your boyfriend, the only sane decision is to really channel Kevin McCallister.

2:00 PM EDT on April 24, 2020

I have been quarantined with my boyfriend Jared for well over a month now. We've mostly gotten along, but do dream of a day when we can have a bigger apartment (or house? do people still have those?) so that we can have our own space. The thing about being quarantined with someone is that you start to want to be home alone. And that's when the idea hit: what if we did a shot-for-shot remake of the iconic scene from Home Alone, but instead of making my family disappear, I made my boyfriend disappear?! Luckily Jared is a huge fan of Home Alone and didn't take this "alone" thing personally.

We love making parodies (he produced I, Nancy, a parody of I, Tonya that I wrote and we shot a few years ago.) So we planned a full nine-hour shoot day in our apartment. Is that insane? Yes! It wasn't easy, and I'm surprised we made it through! We kept saying how helpful it'd be to have a PA around, since we had to do everything from sound to camera to lights. But we've done it before! The last time we shot something very dumb in our apartment, it got into the Tribeca Film Festival (have you seen Owen Wilson Dates Himself?), so we persevered and made it happen. Jared has an incredible eye and edited it to look as close to the original shots as he could, given our limited resources and old phone cameras. But putting this video out in quarantine felt great because we made something fun that people can relate to! I've gotten sweet messages from people saying that it brightened their dark day! That's worth carrying lights around my apartment for no pay. I don't think my parents have watched it yet, but that's OK. As long as Chris Columbus has and plans to hire us, we'll be fine!

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

Related Stories

The Little Train That Finally Came Home

The remarkable 40-year story of how Adam Rifkin finally brought to the screen his mother's Western, Last Train to Fortune, which is out now.

September 18, 2026

Chemical Come-down and August in the Water

Writer-director Avalon Fast, newly named one of the "25 New Faces of Independent Film," shares a personal story about the 1995 Japanese supernatural drama.

September 16, 2026

Three Great Things: Thomasin McKenzie

The award-winning New Zealand actress, who is currently starring in The Uprising, shares her love of crosswords, dogs and her new favorite read.

September 11, 2026

Holding It In

Filmmaker Shannon Plumb looks back on her summer, a transitional time of limbo and waiting ...

September 10, 2026

The Moment That Nearly Broke Us

Filmmakers Amanda and Michael Drexton chart the creative highs and lows that led to their Soderbergh-endorsed breakout debut feature, Sour Party.

Three Great Things: Kevin Macdonald

The Oscar-winning director, whose new film The Runner is now streaming, on his love of Lonesome Dove, Los Angeles and Leonard Cohen.

September 3, 2026