Thursday, Take Two

I wrote a lot last night. I talked about tons of stuff and I'm really sad that it disappeared. Usually it auto saves while I'm writing so even if I think it's gone, I can go back and get at least some of it. But this time the whole post got eaten. Very sad. I'm hoping I can reconstruct but even just the next day it's hard to recapture the feelings of each day. This is such a whirlwind adventure.

Ok let's see.  Yesterday she had two showcases- tv presenter and scene read. TV presenter went well. That's the kind where she goes into the camera room to film and we all sit in the big ballroom and watch her on screen. She read well and was able to make it look like she was just talking for the most point instead of having to stop at the end of the line and wait. I've seen celebrities do a worse job with TelePrompTer so I think it went okay. She got a script about eating s'mores so she had a good reference point for it and was able to sound authentic.

Scene read went well too, and I think she and all the girls around her should get extra points for professionalism. The girl right in front of her threw up everywhere just before she was about to go on. G said it was three inches from her shoes. They're about to walk on and all of a sudden things stop and the emcee says, we need #52's mother right now at the stage door!  We didn't find out what happened until afterwards. They put a chair over it and went on, G did her read, and in a few minutes 52 was able to rally and get hers done too.

I've just been so amazed and proud and impressed with my girl all the way around on this trip. She's being so responsible and organized with everything. When we leave the room she's got her bag with her notes and water and extra pens, wearing her number with her hair pulled back, and she's the one reminding me to grab the room key and my observer pass (which I forgot on Tuesday night and had to go back for because they wouldn't let me into the convention center.) she's learning so much and never complains.

I had more in the first post but I already forgot and now I'm  thinking about today. So I'll just go on to the next post I guess!

Dang.

I just wrote a huge post and blogger ate it. And now I'm tired. Argh!!!  I'll catch up tomorrow. So annoyed!

Day 3

Well, we've made it through another exhausting, rewarding, fabulous, tiring day. I'm realizing I didn't bring a single pair of shoes that are comfy. However, I DID pack the band aids and blister blocker that our team lead suggested, and those have saved my bacon.  Yay.

We attended several really informative seminars today conducted by various VIPs that gave us some great inside info. One of the biggest things I'm taking away from this is how much booking a job is about your look and not your performance. It could even be decided by an outside factor you never would think about. One guy told us a story about an audition where they all loved the actress- everyone agreed she gave an amazing performance. After she left they said, so she gets the job right? And the producer said no way. I loved her but she wears the same perfume as my ex-wife and I don't want to be around her that long. Like you could do anything about that?!  Crazy business. But so fun. G is loving it.

She had her first showcase today and she did really well. I think I was more nervous than she was. It's so weird to have been doing all this work for months and then it's over in twenty seconds. But at least we have on-camera under our belt and done.

Today we were going back to our room and happened to catch a fish feeding. There's a huge waterway inside the hotel with different aquatic exhibits. We got to see them feed these huge redfish some squid and shrimp and the guy told us all about the science that goes into keeping up a habitat of that size. It was pretty cool. Then he let us follow him down to the baby alligator area. Gatorland is nearby and the hotel has a contract to house some of the babies and then send them over there when they get too large. They had a tank with four one year olds. G got to hold one and pet it. She was super excited. She said its belly was very squishy, which I found odd. Anyway, I think that was the highlight of her day apart from her 20 seconds of on camera fame.

 His name is Peanut.  And he has a rubber band around his snout in case he gets any crazy ideas.

L got brave and came over to touch it while G was holding it, but she was not interested in holding it herself.  Oh no Gillian!  I just want to watch YOU hold him!  :)

She's got two more showcases  tomorrow- scene read and TelePrompTer. Again, she's excited about both and really looking forward to the day.

Oh and I didn't make the choir. :) no big deal. Only five people from our group did, and we have MANY very talented singers. I'm actually kind of glad not to have to work practices into our busy schedule.

Day 2

In bed in the dark again, listening to one girl snore while the other kicks me and says she isn't tired. She's lying. And when I kick her out of bed at 6:30 tomorrow morning she will be sorry. We had such a full day!  I don't see how she's still awake. My body is super tired and I'm glad to be off my feet but my brain hasn't shut down yet. Plus I never go to bed this early and my body thinks its central time instead of eastern.

No. Your itchy pj tag is an excuse, not the problem. Go to sleep already.

We got all registered today. The line was monstrous long and it took a long time, but we got it all done.  We also got to walk through all the areas where her showcases will be and make sure we know where to go and what to do, attended three seminars, watched part of a singing showcase, and I auditioned for the gospel choir. Productive day to say the least.  The girls got to practice runway modeling together, which they both enjoyed.

 
 Here's the runway.  It's much bigger than it looks here.  The tables with the yellow tablecloths are where the VIPs sit.  Families were back behind.  And they have the video on the big screen at the same time so you can still see even if you're way in the back.



We also spent some time going through the performer book we got at registration. It's got a headshot of every person here and where they're from, and also all the VIPs who are here. There's an autograph day later in the week but one of the little girls from Mississippi came up to G today and asked her to sign her book. She was super pleased.

G informs me I have hit the a 17 times since she started counting. The kid is evading sleep in a big way. Some people count sheep, we count As.

I'm excited to find out tomorrow if I get to sing in the choir. I didn't realize parents were allowed in so it's kinda fun.

Tomorrow we have team meeting, orientation, a seminar about commercial work, on camera showcase, and a meeting about her group improv showcase that's coming up later in the week. Should be another awesome and exhausting day.

They had an area set up with red carpet taped down and theater ropes so it looked fancy for picture taking.  She wanted to take one every day. 

It's Time to Shine!

We are here!!!  Travel day went very smoothly- we made it out on time, had seats on the plane next to other AMTC people, arrived in Orlando 25 minutes early, got the shuttle to the hotel with no problem and were able to get into our room right away. I really couldn't have asked for better. We had a couple hours to poke around while we waited for our roommates to arrive. The hotel is amazing. So huge and so beautiful!  One of the restaurants is on a big sailboat in the middle of an indoor lake. There are sting rays and alligators and huge koi. Not in the same waters. That would be sad for the koi I think. G and I had a great time beginning to explore. She wanted to hold my hand while we walked and said it was one of her most favorite days ever.

The roommates arrived and within minutes the girls were chattering away like old friends and holding hands on the way downstairs. We got a taxi and hit Publix to get groceries for the week. Paying for all of it was still less than the fancy New Years Eve buffet the hotel is offering tonight. I'm not up for a $90 dinner thanks. Not for just me and my kid.




I'm such a sucker for pictures of the back of walking kids.  I have no idea why they make me so happy, but this is how they were ten minutes after meeting.

And so now we are in the dark room working on trying to go to sleep while I hide the iPad under the covers and blog. It's nice to have evolved from having to hold a flashlight too. :) the girls need to get some good sleep so we can be ready to kick off the week with a bang tomorrow. We've got registration, team meetings, walk throughs and rehearsals, and a couple of seminars. Then on Wednesday morning she has her first showcase- on camera.

I'll be putting a couple pictures up on Facebook but my iPad is old and doesn't have a camera, while the phone does pics but is too small to type comfortably. Won't get the two together til I get home.

Well, it's not the new year for two more hours here, but it's good night time for us. Wishing my boys were here- then my day couldn't get more perfect. Great way to end 2012 and can't wait for an awesome start to 2013!

Dress Rehearsal

Okay!  Clap hands briskly and settle in for the long summary!  So much to see and so little time!

We leave for Orlando in 32 days.  Showcases are set and paid for, as is ALL of Shine, plus the plane tickets.  I am so very amazed and grateful at how God has worked through our finances in the last seven months.  We just have to pay the hotel bill and get through the week with our food and we're done.  I've contacted the Gaylord and they're allowing us to bring a griddle and toaster oven and hot pot so we can cook meals in our room.  I'm very excited.  I had feared not being able to find anything close by that we could grab to eat.  No hot meals for a week would have been very disheartening- even the best salad bar gets tiring after a few days.  This way I can pack our pancake mix for breakfasts and we can make grilled cheese and whatever else comes to mind.

We went to dress rehearsal a couple weeks ago and it was amazing as usual.  We got the flash drive with all the pictures from her photo shoot and I am staggered by them.  My daughter is beautiful.  She doesn't look nine years old at all.  Yet they still look innocent and sweet and age-appropriate.  Thankfully, I am not the one who had to decide among the 253 shots they took and figure out which to use.  They've chosen the shots for us- one for her commercial acting headshot, and then a small collection that they'll use as her modeling profile.  We'll get 25 copies of 2 of the shots, don't know which ones, when we get to Shine.  We then staple her resume to the back of them so we can give them to the VIPs and they'll have all her info in one spot.

Here are the ones they picked:

 This is the commercial headshot- the one that will be on the wall in the AMTC lobby next to all the other big success stories.  :)  Maybe.  At the very least it will be in the program book for Shine.

 I love this one so much I have no words.

 Full-length, playful, etc.

I like this one too.

They gave us ALL the shots on a flash drive.  I've almost dreaded going through them.  Lots of people want copies for Christmas presents and I am having terrible trouble picking.  I could stick to these, because they're awesome, but there are so many more good ones too, that for whatever reason didn't strike their fancy.

 I never really noticed that she has one dimple like my mom.

 This whole series is the one they took outside in the gazebo, in the pouring rain.  The light is a little funny in some of them, but overall I really like the effect.

 I like that this one shows off her booboo knee.  Still a real girl under all the artistry.

And although it's weird, this one reminds me of meerkats, the way they stand up all alert.  She loves those critters so I think it's okay to say.

She is going to perform in five showcases at Shine.  Photography, On Camera, Kids' Runway, Group Improv, and TV Presenter.  That list is pretty different from what we had tentatively planned before we went.  She had zero desire to do any kind of improv, and thought she might do cold read and scene read.  When we got there she practiced scene read and didn't like it, and decided not to do either one of the acting reads.  And even though I made props for her original commercial, that didn't go over well either so we scrapped it also.

 She's not old enough to do individual improv, and we thought she had to be ten to do group.  An eleven year old boy really wanted to practice, so they asked if she'd get up in a group just to help him practice even though she didn't plan to do it.  The four of them totally rocked it.  After she got done, the acting coach called her over and asked why on earth she wasn't planning to do group improv, because she's good at it and SHOULD.  We checked the rules and you have to be nine, not ten.  She was super encouraged by Chey telling her she did so well, so she signed up for it.  And she was told she was the best kid all day at TV presenter.  She loves the teleprompting practice we do.  She's getting pretty great at it, actually.  This is the practice they did- they filmed in the other room and then we got to watch on the screen afterwards.  I think at Shine we'll watch live, but it'll be the same way, where she is alone in the filming room and her performance is projected to the audience.



It's kind of hard to see and hear.  My phone won't zoom while it's taking video.

This is her runway practice.  Doesn't she look good?  She has such a fun walk.  You can tell she's enjoying herself.  It makes me laugh when there are people walking the runway who are primarily singers and HATE the idea of modeling.  It's obvious and painful.  But AMTC wants rounded performers and tries to ready them for everything.  Anyway this is definitely her favorite.  Then for Photography, they'll show two of those pictures up on the big screen over her while she walks the runway and does her slate.  "Gillian P, nine years old, and one interesting thing you should know about me is that I'm the catcher on my softball team."

I was extra super proud of myself because I chose all the outfits she wore all day, and not once did she get called out for wardrobe questions.  Ms Philipa loved her socks, liked all the looks, and all her clothes were approved.  Score one for mama paying attention, because I was way sweating the fact that her outfits weren't chosen at photo shoot like they should have been.

Oh, and sweet friend Emma got her shots back too, of course.  She's the one who owns the pink and navy shirts G is wearing in her photo look, and these are G's pink shoes here.  Don't know where they came up with the umbrella, but I LOVE this shot.  So fun.

So that's it!  We don't have any more official practices or workshops or anything until it's real.  She's practicing her monologue and her model stance and making sure her behavior is good.  It's almost here!!

Launch, Take Two, Day One

This past weekend we got to go to another launch weekend.  I'm so blessed that we live so close to an AMTC office.  Two more whirlwind days of training and learning and practicing, and now we've got some time off from classes.  Dress rehearsal is November 17 and we'll finalize everything then, and then December 31 we leave!  It's kinda surreal that it's getting so close after all the work we've been doing. 

Saturday we had a session with Jenn Gotzon, who was amazing.  We learned a lot of really good tips both for AMTC and for film and TV audtitions out in the real world.  She's so encouraging and always finds really positive things to say about what Gilly's doing, while at the same time telling you in clear terms how to get better.  I really liked her a lot. 

Session two was modeling- best tip David gave us was about professionalism.  "walk in and out with confidence no matter WHAT happens in between those two times.  Agents are looking for reasons you  might be difficult to work with, so don't give them any!"  They don't care as much if you mess up- what matters is how you deal with it.  Pick it up and keep going and finish.  Great advice for all situations!

The other thing he said was that for photo shoot, you should go home with specific outfits chosen for showcases.  Oh.  Fail.  I asked specifically and I didn't feel like I could repeat myself more without being a pushy stage mom.  I'm kind of annoyed about that, because they made me feel like it was no big deal and now it's like, no.  That's on you, you should have known better and now it's your fault that you don't have outfits picked.  The good thing is that we have dress rehearsal next month and we're supposed to bring outfits for every showcase and change into them, so if we pick ones that don't work, I'm certain they will let us know.

I really, REALLY loved the networking sessions this time.  Our team leader gave us some practical tips for Shine that are going to be super useful.  Writing them down for E & L, our roommates.  :)  It costs $5 each way to take a taxi to the grocery store, so we can get a week's worth of perishables and stuff for only the $10 extra in transportation fees.  There's a fridge and a coffeepot in our room, and downstairs in the coffeeshop there's a community microwave that we can use if we're willing to wait if necessary.  They recommend packing a whole suitcase of food if needed- instant oatmeal, ramen, mac and cheese, stuff like that so we can use the hot water from the coffee pot, and then protein bars and whatever else.  She said a cheeseburger in the hotel restaurant is $17, so if you're worried about paying for extra baggage fees, just weigh that one fee against how much those meals would cost if we had to buy them onsite.

Also buy blister blocker and bandaids, and don't wear new shoes that might be uncomfortable.  We'll be on our feet a lot. 

And there was tons of good info about how to write a resume and how to present and print and bring it. 

One of the acting coaches said something that really resonated with me.  She was talking about being a vessel used by God, and how we tend to think that means we have to be Noah or Joshua or Moses- one of the big guys.  She said, "yeah, but think about how it feels to be the bush.  Everybody remembers Moses, but that bush had the remnants of having been used mightily by God for a short time, to further Moses along on God's mission.  If you're the bush, your flame burns brightly for a short season, but you have the memories your entire life and you're just as important."

That made me teary.  

Here's some scene read practice with some good stage blocking advice from Andrea.  I like that G is learning so many different facets of acting.

More about day two later.