Work Text:
TITLE: 10 Things Alex Claremont-Diaz Can’t Live Without
LENGTH: 14m 33 s (fourteen minutes and thirty-three seconds)
STATUS: Final Draft, Ready for Publication
PROJECTED PUB DATE: November 1, 2022
CAMERA A, a center shot. FSOTUS ALEX Claremont-Diaz is sitting behind the table, grinning at the camera. He is dressed in a fitted, short-sleeved navy blue polo-cut sweater. The open v-neck cut of the sweater reveals a gold chain around his neck which disappears into the sweater. ALEX is also wearing gold stud earrings in the shape of tiny, three-dimensional stars, along with a thin, braided gold ring on his right ring finger. On his right hand, he wears an Apple watch in a gold stainless steel case, paired with the gold stainless steel band. With the same hand he is holding up a toiletry bag, black with a Han Solo pattern.
ALEX
This was a birthday present from Nora. She thought it was funny for…reasons. Jokes on her though because I’m always happy to admire Harrison Ford’s figure. [grins]
ALEX sets the bag down on the table and pulls the zipper open. The contents are not visible to the camera, though ALEX grins down at what he sees.
ALEX
Henry will probably react to this video by blushing and calling me a reprobate or a demon or something.
TITLE CARD, video of ALEX introducing himself is framed with a psychedelic border video.
ALEX
Hi GQ, I’m Alex Claremont-Diaz and I’m here to talk with you about my ten essentials and also remind y’all to vote in the midterm elections on November 6th.
TITLE CARD, BACKGROUND is a video clip of close-up shots of an iPhone. There are several more shots of the phone from different angles. The iPhone is space gray and has a clear but scuffed case. White TEXT layover reads “ACD ESSENTIALS”. In the last shot, white TEXT layover reads “iPhone”.
Switch to CAMERA A, a center shot. ALEX’s iPhone slides into frame from the left, ALEX stops it with his left hand.
ALEX
I am Gen Z. So that means my phone is an extension of my body and I don’t go anywhere without it. Like I don’t remember the last time I went somewhere without it being within like ten feet of me.
ALEX
My favorite app is probably still Twitter. I enjoyed Instagram for a long time but honestly now there’s so many ads and things that I just don’t care about. I just kind of log on and scroll for like four posts, hit an ad, go to my notifications and see if my friends have tagged me in anything.
Switch to CAMERA B, left close-up shot of ALEX’s phone in his hand as he waves it around while he talks.
ALEX
I’ve never been able to shut up so Twitter is kind of my shit. I’m gonna be so pissed if Elon fucks it up.
TITLE CARD, BACKGROUND is a video clip of close-up shots of an unlabelled to-go coffee cup from several angles. White TEXT layover reads “Coffee”.
Switch to CAMERA A center shot of ALEX reaching below the table, pulling out the to-go cup and taking a long sip. He places the cup on the table, clothes his eyes, and breathes deeply.
ALEX
I start my day with coffee. And then have another one from a cafe after my first class of the day. And then usually have another one in the early afternoon. My evening-slash-nighttime cup has started to fade because Henry is concerned about my heart but it’s pretty non-negotiable for me during midterms and finals.
ALEX
I take my coffee with one sugar and some cinnamon. Henry jokes that when he makes it for me in the morning there’s love in there too, and it really is the best one of the day.
ALEX
I’m not like a major coffee snob or anything, but I try to go local when possible for sure.
TITLE CARD, BACKGROUND is a video clip of close-up shots of a tajín bottle from several angles. White TEXT layover reads “Tajín”.
Switch to CAMERA A center shot of ALEX the bottle slowly rolling across the table on its side. ALEX stops it with his left hand and firmly places it upright on the table in one fluid motion. The label is not facing the camera, then he twists it slightly to the right so it’s visible.
ALEX
I’m really not married to this particular spice, it’s more spices and hot sauce in general. But tajín is such a staple for Mexican households so I chose to represent my need for seasoning with this bottle today.
ALEX
I actually do travel with this now when I go to England. It doesn’t always match what we’re eating perfectly, but unless we're having a curry it always makes whatever we’re eating more interesting. I think I’ve converted Bea over to it.
ALEX
I do have a very high spice tolerance. Honestly my dream interview is Hot Ones, I’m just waiting for them to contact me. I would love to make Henry do it too. He’s naturally good at everything, but I would love to beat him in a spice challenge.
TITLE CARD, BACKGROUND is a video clip of close-up shots of the earrings and ring ALEX has been seen wearing so far from several angles, the earrings’ gold surfaces reflecting the surroundings, while the thin wires of the gold ring are less shiny. White TEXT layover reads “Jewelry”.
Switch to CAMERA A center shot of ALEX picking up his ring that was previously on his right ring finger.
ALEX
There are two things which led me to getting into jewelry. One was coming out. Being out kind of pushed me to think more about how I presented myself and why I presented myself a certain way, because there were all these pieces about like [air quotes] “Why we should’ve known he was gay the whole time” or whatever.
Switch to CAMERA B, left close-up shot of ALEX, who is speaking passionately with both hands.
ALEX
Which like one, I’m not gay, I’m bi. Please stop the bi-erasure. Two, I didn’t even know the whole time, even if June and Nora did. But I certainly wasn’t dropping hints in my fashion choices, at least not on purpose. And while I’ve always been a little adventurous, we do have like stylists and whatever, especially to approve stuff for major events.
Switch to CAMERA A, center shot.
ALEX
Anyways, I worked pretty hard to ignore all the bullshit. But bringing it back to what I mentioned before, and keeping this monologue short, I started to realize I had kind of stuffed myself into a box in a lot of ways in order to project this… [air quotes] “All-American boy” image, and I realized that I need to [ticking off on fingers] one, dress for myself and what I found cool and interesting and two, show that there are a lot of ways to be [air quotes] “All-American.”
ALEX
Which pretty much leads me to the second thing that got me into jewelry from this kind of quarter-life crisis about my queerness. Percy Okonjo is one of the most fashionable people I know and I talked about wanting to push myself a bit more. So he immediately came up without about a million ideas. One of the few I said yes to was getting my ears pierced.
Switch to CAMERA B, left close-up shot of ALEX.
ALEX
June was very excited, and then disappointed, when I was not bothered by the pain.
Switch to CAMERA A, center shot of ALEX.
ALEX
I think everyone is very grateful that they have a very easy gift to give me for the foreseeable future. The Texas gold stars I’m currently wearing were a birthday present from my mom.
ALEX
I also really like the idea of rings, but I haven’t quite integrated them into my everyday wear yet. This [holds up ring to camera] is a recent gift from Nora, which was found at a flea market from this little old lady. Nora liked that there are three strands, representing June, Nora, and me, and I had mentioned wanting to get into rings the week before.
ALEX
My necklace is probably one of my true essentials, and while y’all can admire the chain it’s mostly for me and Henry.
TITLE CARD, BACKGROUND is a video clip of close-up shots of Percy Jackson and the Battle of the Labyrinth . The copy is clearly worn from having been read several times. White TEXT layover reads “Book”.
Switch to CAMERA A center shot of the book sliding in from the left. It doesn’t quite make it all the way to ALEX, who picks it up and holds the cover up to the camera.
ALEX
I always travel with a book, but my guilty pleasure is re-reading my favorite books from childhood. I was really into fantasy and science fiction growing up.
ALEX
For a long time Prisoner of Azkaban was my comfort book but I don’t really like to give that author more attention, and Rick Riordan is dope. I’ve been re-reading Percy Jackson over the last few months on planes and I’m up to the fourth one now.
ALEX
Everyone in our generation knows all about Greek mythology because of this man.
ALEX
Oh and I can’t wait for the Disney Plus show!
TITLE CARD, BACKGROUND is a video clip of close-up shots of Stan Smiths with navy accents from several angles. White TEXT layover reads “Sneakers”.
Switch to CAMERA A center shot of ALEX reaching below the table, pulling out the Stan Smiths and placing them on the table.
ALEX
Don’t worry, I’m not about to stink up the place. I’ve still got shoes on.
ALEX
Everyone needs a pair of white, leather sneakers. I happen to have several pairs. Stan Smiths are one of my favorites and these ones caught my eye because of the navy accents compared to the usual green.
ALEX
I’m currently wearing the Reebok retros that have come back into style [turns to his right, raises right foot reveals white, leather Reeboks that he’s wearing with tan chinos]. I also have some Nike Cortez’s and though I’m not usually into high tops I did jump on the Nike Blazer trend and really like how they look.
TITLE CARD, BACKGROUND is a video clip of close-up shots of a toiletry bag, black with a Han Solo pattern from various angles. White TEXT layover reads “Toiletry Bag”.
Switch to CAMERA A center shot of ALEX with the toiletry bag to his right. He picks it up with his right hand, resting his elbow on the table.
ALEX
This was a birthday present from Nora. She thought it was funny for…reasons. Jokes on her though because I’m always happy to admire Harrison Ford’s figure.
ALEX sets the bag down on the table and pulls the zipper open. The contents are not visible to the camera, though ALEX grins down at what he sees.
Switch to CAMERA B, left close-up shot of ALEX.
ALEX
Henry will probably react to this video by blushing and calling me a reprobate or a demon or something.
Switch to CAMERA A, center shot.
ALEX
I mean obviously I have the staples.
ALEX begins pulling items out of the bag and placing them on the table.
ALEX
Toothbrush, toothpaste, deodorant, floss…which I could be better about using. Travel shampoo and conditioner. My razor broke a while ago and I’ve stolen Henry’s ever since because they’re nicer.
ALEX reaches in to get something else from his toiletry bag, but pauses. He grins up at the camera mischievously. Then he pulls out a travel-sized bottle of something, label covered by his hands.
ALEX
And lube of course. [winks]
ALEX
Everyone in the world knows I have sex anyways [shrugs]. Plus, normalize gay sex and teaching about safe sex and lube is a very important part of safe sex. So. Call me a reprobate if you must [winks]. I’ve been called worse.
TITLE CARD, BACKGROUND is a video clip of close-up shots of an Apple watch in a gold stainless steel case, paired with the gold stainless steel band, shown from several angles. White TEXT layover reads “Apple Watch”.
Switch to CAMERA A center shot of ALEX propping his right arm up on his elbow in front of his torso, with the back of his hand in a fist towards the camera so the camera can see the watch face, which is a simple digital face with stars in the background.
ALEX
When these first came out I thought they were kind of stupid. And honestly at the time they kind of were, but now they’ve worked on them a lot and as someone who is often expected to wear a watch that looks nice but who also runs for exercise who is also a multitasker addicted to their phone, the Apple Watch is perfect.
ALEX
Wasn’t that beautiful? Sponsor me!
Switch to CAMERA B, left close-up shot of ALEX and his wrist.
ALEX
Today I wanted to look nice so I went with the stainless steel gold band which matches the face, but I also have a black one I wear a lot that is good for everyday stuff and sweat and whatever.
Switch to CAMERA A, center shot.
ALEX
I do have a dressy watch for super nice occasions. Arthur Fox got to keep some of the Omega Seamaster watches from each of his films as James Bond. Philip got one of them when he turned 18, and Henry got the one Arthur wore after he died. For my birthday Catherine gave me the one Arthur had intended to be Henry’s. It means a lot and I’m kind of a chaotic person so usually it’s in a case at home unless we’re going to something pretty fancy.
TITLE CARD, BACKGROUND is a video clip of close-up shots of a worn, navy sweatshirt which reads “Oxford” in white letters across the chest. White TEXT layover reads “sweatshirt”.
Switch to CAMERA A center shot of ALEX catching the sweatshirt being through to him from the left. He grins as he holds one of the sleeves to his cheek, then faces the camera directly again.
ALEX
If Henry is still mad from earlier this will hopefully erase that. This is my favorite sweatshirt, it goes with me pretty much everywhere.
ALEX
Obviously at some point this belonged to Henry in his Oxford days. Now he only gets to wear it when I want it to smell like him again.
ALEX
I kind of like that it swallows me, when we’re apart for whatever reason it’s like he’s giving me a hug.
TITLE CARD, BACKGROUND is a video clip of close-up shots of a black Herschel backpack from several angles. White TEXT layover reads “Backpack”.
Switch to CAMERA A center shot of ALEX reaching down and plopping the backpack down to his right.
ALEX
The classic Herschel backpack is such a staple. I kind of like how clean and simple it is, like a kid’s drawing of a backpack. What I also like about this one is that it can be casual and professional at the same time. Big fan of the professional backpack.
Switch to CAMERA B, left close-up shot of ALEX.
ALEX
I’m kinda cheating by bringing like four more items within the backpack.
Switch to CAMERA A, ALEX tilts the bag towards him and glimpses inside. He begins to pull out items, starting with a MacBook Air in a navy case, covered in stickers. The stickers include: NYU Law, Claremont 2020, a Human Rights Campaign logo, the Mexican and US flags crossed over each other, and a drawing of Prince Henry as Princess Leia.
ALEX
Obviously the number one thing is my laptop. The MacBook Air is light, which is nice, since I have to bring it everywhere. Most of my readings for law school are online these days. It’s also hard to do Zoom meetings and multitask on your phone. I’m not as involved with White House stuff these days, but I helped some people running for Congress this summer before I went back to school. Which is why you need to vote November 6th! These people are working so hard to make our country a better place.
ALEX reaches into his bag and pulls out a notebook and then a few pens.
ALEX
I have the very bad habit of just keeping pens loose in the bottom of my bag. But I do try to take handwritten notes.
ALEX pulls out a glasses case.
ALEX
I don’t wear my glasses as much as I should, but I always wear them when I read now. It helps that Henry likes them.
ALEX pulls the zipper on the small pocket on the outside of the bag. He pulls out an AirPods case.
ALEX
AirPods of course, these are just the basic ones. I know some people have issues with them being comfortable or staying in but these work for me.
ALEX reaches back in and pulls out chapstick and what looks like a wet wipe packet.
ALEX
And of course chapstick and…more lube. I was a Boy Scout, they taught me to always be prepared.
Switch to CAMERA A center shot of ALEX with all of his essentials in front of him.
ALEX
I’m Alex and these have been my ten things that I can’t live without. Don’t forget to vote this Tuesday, November 6th!