Jessie's Debby Ryan Reflects on Her 'Fulfilling,' Landmark Directing Debut

Matt Webb Mitovich

August 20, 2014, 10:00 AM

Jessie's Debby Ryan Reflects on Her 'Fulfilling,' Landmark Directing Debut

For this Friday’s episode of Jessie, Debby Ryan not only starred as the titular nanny but also served as director — making her, at age 21, the youngest female to ever helm a Disney Channel project.

In the above exclusive featurette, Ryan (who also is a producer on the show) reflects on the road that led to her Jessie directing debut, discusses some of the decisions one must make when shaping a sitcom, and all in all hails the experience as “the most fulfilling thing I’ve ever done.”

“We knew Debby would do a good job, but she far exceeded even our expectations,” Jessie creator Pamela Eells tells TVLine. “She did a fantastic job as a first-time director. She was calm, cool, collected, brought out all the comedy, and handled everything like a total pro. We were so incredibly proud of her.”

As for the episode itself: Titled “Coffee Talk” and airing Friday at 8/7c, it finds Emma and Zuri competing to be Jessie’s VIP guest at a concert, while Bertram becomes infatuated with his new talking coffee maker. (Hey, everybody loves somebody.)