A Dabble in Showbiz

Last week my daughter was chosen as an extra for the Dear Eleanor film. It is a coming of age story about two girls in 1962 driving cross-country to meet Eleanor Roosevelt.  Recently, I had a dream that I was still on set. We were on break and I was ordering a burrito for lunch with the crew (it looked very tasty by the way). Obviously, I’m still processing my experience of being a stage mom from last week.

My star eating a late lunch at the Denver Diner after a long day of filming

Having my daughter act as an extra was a great experience and one I will not soon forget. The best way to describe being on set is that it's similar to the organized chaos of camping: packing up, unpacking, piles of equipment everywhere, people gingerly stepping over each other, eating late, things not always going as planned, meeting people, changing in a bathroom stall, making do with what you’ve got, hot, dusty and often a wet environment while trying to stay clean, eating off of paper plates, quiet hours, curious and sometimes obnoxious onlookers/neighbors.

Spending time with the cast and crew was fun, friendly, professional, at times stressful, serious and very bonding. My daughter of course, loved it. Having to shoot a scene repeatedly from the back, then again from the front while staying in character and looking fabulous just isn’t my thing. I will stick with writing. But I understand and have a great respect for people who are willing to put in the incredibly hard work and dedication it takes to follow their dream and help tell a good story no matter the medium. As a novelist, THAT is something I will always support and get on board with!

If you want to read more about the Dear Eleanor film follow the tweets here.