My 15 Minutes of Fame

It has been said that every person will get fifteen minutes of fame in their lifetime. I think I just got mine last week!

A couple of months ago, our hospital shut down our Transitional Care Center and since then, those rooms have been left stripped and empty. So when Verizon needed a hospital setting to film a commercial for their new medical communication technology, our hospital volunteered our TCC unit. The producers also asked, however, if there was a nurse available who would like to help out and earn a little money.

I was the nurse lucky enough to be chosen! My manager called out to the front desk one day and I just happened to be the one to answer. Apparently the commercial involved filming someone putting monitors on a pregnant "patient" and they thought they might as well ask for someone who would actually know what they were doing rather than simply getting an extra to pretend. So, they would just need about an afternoon of my time and I would be compensated. So I said, "Heck Yes!" Ok, actually, I just said, "yeah," but you get the idea.

So last week I got a sneak peek at how the world of film operates. And actually, a lot of it was just sitting around, watching, and waiting. Nevertheless, I enjoyed myself. I was introduced to everyone as "The Nurse" and not only was a in a scene myself, but I was considered the consultant to make sure everything looked realistic. "Heather, what else would you have in a delivery room?" "Heather, would a nurse be allowed to wear earrings like this?" "Heather, how does this patient look in the wheelchair? Should she be wearing socks?" It made me feel pretty important, if not a little intimidated. (I'm still mad I forgot to have them put admission bracelets on the patient.)

There sure was a lot of equipment involved, too. Two suitcases just full of snacks for the cast and crew! The director sat on a metal bar on a "dolly" with the camera and the guy designated as the "dolly grip" was in charge of pushing the whole set up on the tracks for a nice, smooth shot. (I even got to try it once!) In my scene, I just had to adjust the monitors on my patient and look up at the screen and pretend I was pointing something out to her. It was kind of awkward because you have to "act natural" even though you know someone is not only watching you but zooming in on you, too! The good thing was, I really did just pretend she was my patient and struck up the usual small talk. And even though I had to readjust that monitor about fifty times (a little slower this time! Now, just adjust the one monitor. Now look up at the screen when I say, "look!" Ok, let's do it again!), we did have a real conversation and I think that's what made it look real, too. I didn't get to see what they filmed, but I did get the nice compliment from one crew member that I did better than some of the hired extras they've seen. Of course, I'd have to say that the nicest compliment came from the make-up artist, because when she saw me she said, "Oh, you look great! Your hair and eyes are great. We'll just add a little powder and lip gloss." It's gotta make you feel pretty good when the professional can't add much to you!

So, anyway, it was definitely interesting and pretty fun (not to mention the pay was quite good, too). It will probably only be shown on the internet, and it sounded to me like it was mostly for Verizon's own salespeople as they pitch their product to doctors and hospitals. However, I certainly hope I will get to see it myself and if I can, I will certainly link it to the blog. All in all, it was a good experience, but I don't think I'll quit my day job.