{"id":1593,"date":"2020-11-06T18:54:25","date_gmt":"2020-11-06T18:54:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.mun.ca\/studentblog\/?p=1593"},"modified":"2020-11-06T18:54:25","modified_gmt":"2020-11-06T18:54:25","slug":"from-sociologist-to-actor-overnight","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.mun.ca\/studentblog\/from-sociologist-to-actor-overnight\/","title":{"rendered":"From Sociologist to Actor Overnight"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

This is the image printed on a beach towel you can purchase from allovershifts.com<\/a>. It\u2019s creatively called \u201cMutt Schitt Beach Towel\u201d and you\u2019re welcome.<\/em><\/p>\n

I recently applied to be a background film extra through Casting by Maggie, here in St. John\u2019s. I was looking for some paid work, so it was something completely separate from my grad work. But as luck should have it, I was selected to be a background actor on the best show ever for my research.<\/p>\n

Not only did I get to be on a popular television show but today I got to meet Mutt, Mutt Schitt. More accurately, I got to meet the man who plays Mutt on Schitt\u2019s Creek<\/em>. This was work, and I\u2019m used to being respectfully nonchalant around important people in my field. \u201cHi, I\u2019m Tim,\u201d he said with a genuine smile, \u201cnice to meet you,\u201d He greeted me and my fellow background actor individually at the first rehearsal. I am so glad it didn\u2019t occur to me that I might know the actors in the scene, otherwise I might not have managed to play it cool. If I had known walking onto the set of The Surrealtor<\/em> that, I would be within mere feet of Tim Rozon I would have fan-girled so hard. Have you seen<\/em> season one of Dany Levy\u2019s Schitt\u2019s Creek<\/em>? Needless to say, it features a lot<\/em> of Rozon, including numerous romantic plotlines and with an absolutely luxurious beard. To put it simply, Rozon is stunningly handsome. While in Background Holding with my fellow guard, I caught myself before describing Rozon and Tennille Read (his scene partner) as \u201cridiculously attractive human beings\u201d. They are, but I wasn\u2019t about to say that at their workplace (if confused about why that\u2019s not appropriate, google \u2018sexual harassment in the workplace\u2019).<\/p>\n

Thankfully, I was so awestruck by the experience of being on a real television filming set that I couldn\u2019t fully process the scene playing out before my eyes. Not only that, but I managed to not<\/em> recognize any of the people on set. Behind my mask \u2013 we only removed them for filming \u2013 I was smiling like an idiot because the experience was so unreal. If I had to choose a descriptor for how I feel right now, sitting in my living room after a long morning of work, it would be \u201cdeliriously happy\u201d. Every time my mask came off as the camera began rolling, I had to put my professional face on and focus every ounce of energy I had into not feeling the bitter cold, biting wind, and holding my poker face steady. After all, I\u2019d been tasked with looking like a guard, for a penitentiary no less! For those who know me well, I am certain they\u2019ll find this casting quite amusing. Originally, I was cast as a background construction worker but shooting plans changed due to weather, so I became a prison guard literally overnight.<\/p>\n

Watch for it, I may be in Episode #6 of The Surrealtor<\/em> if my scenes get airtime. Then, for those of you who have yet to witness my mask of serious focus, you can get a glimpse at a different side of this Sociologist.<\/p>\n

Overall, it was a delightful work experience in an up-beat, good-humoured workplace. It was a bit strange to see everyone wearing masks, but, honestly, it was stranger yet to see actors without them. Getting to be part of a production on the scale of The Surrealtor<\/em> is never something I could have dreamed! The whole experience was, pardon the pun, quite surreal, and I\u2019m pretty sure I won\u2019t believe it was<\/em> real until that pay cheque hits the bank. Production took excellent care of me from 5:42AM \u2013 exact time-keeping is important \u2013 until 11:30AM. On my way out, they checked in to ask how the day was and ensured I\u2019d properly dotted all the \u2018i\u2019s and crossed all the\u2018t\u2019s in my paperwork. One thing I love about working in the arts is that people want<\/em> other people to get paid; numerous folks on the crew stressed the importance of paperwork and submitting the necessary documents as soon as possible.<\/p>\n

By the way, that\u2019s a sample of what a qualitative sociologist can offer you: on-the-go analysis and a more thorough break-down once I get to a keyboard. If you think your work could benefit from my well-honed skills of observation and analysis, hit me up.<\/p>\n

Now, I need to emphasize why this experience was such a phenomenal opportunity for me, and it wasn\u2019t because I may get to be on TV. No, it\u2019s the subject matter of the show which blows my mind. Aptly named, The Surrealtor<\/em> is about an elite team of spectral-specializing realtors; they handle haunted and possessed houses which tend to fare poorly on the market. This also was the topic of my thesis research (which continues to consume my life; 2 years and counting!). With the onset of COVID-19, I was forced, unfortunately, to change my focus; I was investigating the lived experience of real estate agents who sell houses in which people have died (yes, actual Haunted Houses). Imagine if someone took your thesis topic, turned it into a TV show, happened to be filming in the city you live in, right down the road, and that you had the chance to be part of it. That\u2019s why this doesn\u2019t feel real – am I really not dreaming? Seriously?<\/p>\n

Grad school is a wild ride, and I\u2019m pleased to say that it only gets stranger and more unpredictable as you progress. Like all good rides it takes you through highs and lows; a roller coaster of textbooks, theory, self-discovery, stress, and soul-crushing anguish. As I have discovered through this process, what they say about what doesn\u2019t kill you is true. I\u2019ve adapted the phrase to my own journey: what doesn\u2019t kill you makes you stranger, and that, my love, makes you stronger. <\/em><\/p>\n

Stay spooky, y\u2019all, and remember to take your medication.<\/p>\n

Cheers,<\/p>\n

Shannon<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This is the image printed on a beach towel you can purchase from allovershifts.com. It\u2019s creatively called \u201cMutt Schitt Beach Towel\u201d and you\u2019re welcome. I recently applied to be a background film extra through Casting by Maggie, here in St. John\u2019s. I was looking for some paid work, so it was something completely separate from … [Read more…]<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":143,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"entry","1":"post","2":"publish","3":"author-shannon-pearson","4":"post-1593","6":"format-standard","7":"category-student-blog"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.mun.ca\/studentblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1593","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.mun.ca\/studentblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.mun.ca\/studentblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.mun.ca\/studentblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/143"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.mun.ca\/studentblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1593"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/wp.mun.ca\/studentblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1593\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1597,"href":"https:\/\/wp.mun.ca\/studentblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1593\/revisions\/1597"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp.mun.ca\/studentblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1593"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.mun.ca\/studentblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1593"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp.mun.ca\/studentblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1593"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}