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B u s y D a y
JAN 2020
Today's weather was decent as the sun was shining brightly and there was a cool breeze blowing now and then as I stepped out of the car, dusting off my pants before I shut the door and entered the work building. I arrived at work just as I said I would, clocking in the system before I began to make coffee for everyone. I hummed a song while doing so as I heard footsteps entering the room and turning around seeing that it was Malik who looked good in his business-causal attire.
"You seem to be in a good mood," He grinned, as his eyes seemed to never leave mine. Malik wore a blue striped button-down long sleeve shirt, with some buttons unbuttoned, white slacks, tan suede Oxford shoes, tan blazer as he accessorized with a nice leather wristwatch, glasses and his hair looked clean cut. He just knew he looked good the way he talked as moved over to me extending his arms out for a hug, "Ms. Davidson."
"I am," I replied, trying to keep myself together, as I caught a whiff of his cologne that made me want to melt right in his arms yet I kept myself busy by making sure all of the tops on the coffee were sturdy, giving him a friendly smile and hug which made me hold my breath for a few seconds as I stepped back. "How are you this morning, Mr. Porter?"
"I'm feeling better seeing you," He chuckled, probably noticing the effect that he had on me. If he didn't notice, then I was doing a good job of hiding my facial expressions on my face. Instead of reacting he gave me one of his charming smiles as he started to turn out of the room. "I'll let you continue, you look nice by the way..."
As he left, I found myself smiling weirdly again.
I got that out of my thoughts, going to the elevator and pressed the button as I got inside the elevator and waited until I got to the second floor. As I walked in the hallways of the second floor, I knocked on the door and allowed in; I walked inside the room with a smile on my face.
"Good morning everyone, here's your morning coffee." I greeted all of the workers in the writer's room, putting everyone's coffee in front of them. Most of them were speaking to one another not noticing that I put a coffee in front of them as for others they all replied in a union.
I smiled at them all, retrieving the tray from the table and turned on my heels as I got ready to exit out of the room to only be called upon by Mr. McKnight, of course, who looked his best every day. He seemed like the type to wear a suit on the off days though there wasn't anything wrong with it as he looked his best in suits.
"Before you go, Davidson," Mr. McKnight called. "I would like for you to set up the auditions room again as we're going to be getting ready for the auditions."
"Already on it." I smiled, leaving out of the room as I shut the door and was bumped into someone that I was waiting for. "Good morning Leandra."
I didn't let her reply as I watched her face expression hold shock before I got back on the elevator, leaving her speechless. I couldn't help it, seeing her look shocked and surprised every time I showed up earlier than her; it made it fun to me.
I was also mighty surprised that she or Issac didn't show up for Terrell's party because they were all friends priors before I even arrived at the company.
Instead of dwelling on it, I got back on the first floor using the elevator before going to my desk, to get started on my duties. I had to make more copies for scripts, manage the paperwork being the timesheets, scripts, and contracts, amongst other paperwork, read and send emails, make phone calls, manage the audition's room, sort and distribute mail and delivery, compiling and updating client paperwork as well as updating client lists.
It was so much to do before the auditions were going to happen. I got started on making copies of the scripts that I had inside of my folder. I felt like it was my fifth script that I copied as I hoped that I had enough ink to print all these papers out.
As I let the papers print, I had to get the keys to go into the storage room to get more paper for the printer and I put it in the printer going back over to the desk, turning on the computer so that I can start on my next task being to check the emails. There were so many emails as I viewed the first one, noticing it was a submission for a screenplay.
Whether it was a good screenplay or not, Mr. McKnight didn't care until they signed the release form, own all their rights, following the rules that were suggested to follow on the company's website. So, I professionally replied to the email telling the writer to get an agent, sign the release form since the company doesn't accept unsolicited scripts and send it to us with their one-page synopsis as well as reading the company's rules on the website.
I ended it by adding the company's address, P.O. Box address, email address, and phone number.
I had to do that for a lot of writers and replied to many of emails to actors and actress's agents regarding the movie auditions explaining that we, the production company, would inform them when the auditions are over and give them a call to tell them that they were cast or not.
As I finished reading and checking the emails, I went over to the printer to see if the scripts were finished printing and it was, so I gathered all the papers together going to the desk to slide them all into the folder before getting started on printing the timesheets that were going to take some time so I decided to keep doing tasks at the same time is to make phone calls.
I checked the list of numbers on the sheet that was presented in front of me, scanning the sheet; I dialed the first number on the list and waited patiently for the person on the other line to answer. We discussed the movie locations, the budget, what the company will be able to shoot at, the prices of the places in LA to shoot at, and so much more as I also called others.
I wrote down everything that we discussed in case I missed anything else so that I could show Mr. McKnight and the production crew. Moving on to my next task, I checked on the papers being printed that were done and got ready to set the room up for the auditions. As I took the papers out of the printer, I took out the ink that was used and added in the other one as I heard the phone ringing so I rushed over the phone picking it up and answered it.
"Hello, Breanna Davidson of Freedream Film Productions speaking, can I help you?"
"Hi Breanna, I'm calling to ask when does the company want the movie equipment?" The person on the line queried.
"We're still in the process of movie auditions, so I'll make sure to let Mr. McKnight call you soon as we're finalizing everything from the auditions." I said, "But, can I have your name and number sir?"
He told me his name was Reginald Parker and gave me both his personal and company number that I wrote down neatly on a paper before he told me to have a good day.
"You too, sir," I said, ending the phone call.
I continued to the computer, gathering all the papers together. I began to print the contracts to hand out to everyone in the meeting. Once I completed that, I had everything together in the folder and moved to the auditions room to set it up for the auditions.
I made sure to put the papers and pens in the middle of the table including mini iPads as I trailed off to the break room to retrieve the water bottles and fruit to have in the auditions room on the countertop. I turned on the projector, along with the microphone. Once I made that I completed the setup, I rushed over to my desk to get my folder to take to Mr. McKnight's office.
As I was getting everything situated to go to the elevator, I heard footsteps entering the company building which led me to plaster a smile on my face. As the person's footsteps appeared closer, I took the seat in the chair and waited for the person to reach over to my desk.
"Good morning, delivery packages for Brandon A. McKnight?" The delivery guy named Victor read, holding device for me to put in my signature.
"Morning," I smiled nodding my head at the name, as I accepted the device to sign in my name. I quickly signed my name in cursive and handed it back to him. "Here, have a good day, sir."
The delivery guy named Victor grinned, took the device after placing the two big packages on my desk. "Have a good day, ma'am."
As the delivery guy left the building, I stared at the package before dialing Mr. McKnight's office.
"Yes?" He answered on the first ring.
"You have two big packages here," I told him.
"Good! Send it to my office, have you completed the copied papers that I requested from you, Davidson?" He questioned.
"Yes, I have," I replied, placing the folder on top of the two big packages. "I'll send everything up."
"Thanks." He hung up the phone.
I rolled my eyes, putting the phone down as I ambled over to the elevator and pressed the button. It didn't take me long getting to the second floor as I noticed Mr. McKnight's door was opened yet I still chose to place a knock on the door.
"Come in," Mr. McKnight insisted, gesturing me with his hands as he sat behind his desk with a pen in his hands. "Excuse my desk."
Stepping inside the office, I noticed the clutter that scattered all over his desk. It was a pet peeve of mine since my school days of having a messy desk yet I left it in my thoughts as I walked over to his desk to sit the packages and the folder down.
"Uh...Mr. McKnight, I set the audition's room up for you," I stated, holding my hands at my sides. "I also spoke to the vendor about the equipment, they wanted to know when do we want the equipment because they have it, and I told them that you'd give them a call after auditions."
I showed him the number and name by opening the folder and pointing to it on the paper before shutting it to exit out of the room.
"Davidson!?"
I turned my head, wondering if I missed something in the folder.
"Keep up the good work around here." He commented, leaving it at that as I stepped out of the office.
I couldn't help but smile.
.
.
.
It was now time for auditions as the room was filled with the production crew as well as Leandra and I. I stood in the back with my clipboard and pens, with my walkie talkie on my hip as I waited for Mr. McKnight to officially start the introduction.
"Good afternoon everyone!" Mr. McKnight's deep voice uttered, as a smile crossed his face. "Today is the last day of auditions for Moments of Devotion..."
I was thrilled being able to watch the auditions of the actors and actresses as I couldn't wait for the production process to begin.
"Davidson and Hendricks, you know the drills so send in number one." He concluded.
I nodded my head, leaving out of the room with Leandra following shortly behind to get the first actor. I glanced down at the paper seeing the first name on the list.
"First-person, Bryan Washington, they're all ready for you," I called out his name, seeing the guy reading over the lines before he paused; looking at me since he heard his name was called upon. He then stood up gathering his portfolio and script as his agent/manager followed. "Follow me."
I led him to the auditions room, as he let out a breather.
"Good luck."
He turned to stare at me and winked, heading inside of the room with his agent/manager. Waiting a few minutes until I entered the room, I stood in the corner as I wanted to see the auditions yet not be in the way of anyone.
"Please look into the camera lens and state your full name, age, and the agency that is representing you." Mr. McKnight instructed, opening his portfolio.
"I'm Bryan James Washington, I'm twenty-four years old and the agency that is representing me is TAB Agency Inc," Bryan answered.
"What character will you be portraying?" Mr. McKnight asked.
"Marc Thompson," Bryan confirmed.
"Thanks, you may start from page twenty, line eight," Raheem stated. "For now, Mrs. Terry will be reading the lines of Denise."
Bryan turned the pages of the script, as he seemed to be confident.
"Why do you make things so difficult all the time, woman?" Bryan started to read the line with so much passion. "I'm trying here yet you don't see!"
"What do you want from me, Marc? Let's start there." Mrs. Terry read the lines of Denise. "Tell me the truth, you don't even speak about your feelings or emotions with me... but I'm the one being difficult?"
"There you go. I thought that I wouldn't have to speak about my feelings since I'm showing you actions..." Bryan sighed in the portrayal of Marc, not even reading the script anymore as he got so deep into the character. "You don't believe me? I'm making time for you with my crazy schedule, I plan dates for us all the time. I went to your family gatherings, went to every single one of your work events, didn't miss one Denise. What are you not seeing? I've been here this entire time, supporting you."
In this part, Denise was supposed to be stunned as she didn't notice that he was always there. She thought he did it as a friend.
"And it's my fault that I didn't know?" Mrs. Terry continued the lines of Denise. "I honestly thought that you were doing all those things as my friend since our first date didn't work out; I thought we were just friends..."
"Our first date?" Bryan in the portrayal of Marc chuckled. "I admit it was awkward, being that we both haven't been in the dating scene for quite a while but it wasn't so bad either. I still thought about giving it another go until you seemed to be over it pretty fast so I decided to do the same. I still don't see how you didn't see all the things I was doing for you and still thought of me being around as friends."
"I didn't know and right now," Mrs. Terry said in the voice of Denise. "I think we should wait it out. The way things ended with Maleah and Zion, I don't think we can work out."
"Are you serious, Denise?" Bryan replied in the tone of Marc. "You're comparing their relationship to ours? We're different individuals—just because they ended things badly will not mean it'll be the same for us, Denise."
"You're not getting it, Marc." Angelina shook her head, as she kept the scene going as Denise. "They were so close before they dated. So close and once they started a relationship; it seemed to take a huge turn for them. Now they don't even want to be around one another or even mention one another. Marc, as much as I have strong feelings for you, I can't and I won't try to go through that. Why does a black woman have to experience toxicity to have a relationship? Toxicity in a relationship is a dealbreaker for me and being afraid of dealing with it; I will remain single, I'm sorry."
"So that's it? You're going to keep your feelings from me because you're afraid?" Bryan continued to read the lines of Marc with so much passion and hurt in his eyes. "Cool, I will not pressure you into doing something you do not want to do. But, to protect my feelings, I'll have to distance myself from you until it ends. Always remember this though, Denise Marie Chambers, I really and truly loved you."
The next part showed in the script that Denise broke down, she watched him leave her house without turning back as she thought it would've ended differently.
As for Bryan's portrayal of Marc, I found it to be so vivid and beautiful. He performed with so much emotion, passion, and pain in what the character was feeling. It was like he was Marc and going through these problems. I knew Mr. McKnight and the production crew was going to keep a poker face but they had to see the performance the way I saw it.
"Now, do you have a monologue prepared for us?" Mrs. Terry questioned him, checking things off of her paperwork.
"I do ma'am," Marc replied. "I'll be performing a monologue from Boyz in the Hood, the Gentrification scene."
"You can start now." Mr. McKnight conferred.
As he begins, I found him a standout from the previous actors I've watched and I was sure that he was going to make it to the callbacks. I stepped out of the room to switch positions with Leandra.
"It's about time." Leandra frowned, ambling inside of the room.
I took her position being to walk the hallways. I checked on the actors and actresses in the room going over their lines from the script and continued my walk in the hallway.
I wished we could have our phones while we worked since it was boring walking back and forth to check on the people that were getting ready for the auditions. To bypass the time; I hummed the song that's been stuck in my head all this morning, I Don't Wanna by the late Aaliyah.
"Let me find out you have pipes, Davidson." A familiar voice uttered.
I turned around, noticing it was Raheem.
"Hey, is the auditions over?" I wondered, clearing my throat.
"Nah, I'm just going to the bathroom." He stated, moving to the bathroom.
I nodded my head watching him head to the men's bathroom, before inverting my attention on to the door that Bryan walked out of. The facial expression on his face was a bit of joy and satisfaction. It was obvious that he felt confident about his acting skills in the auditions.
Remembering that I had to hand him the sign-in sheet to put his name and time; I sauntered towards him with the clipboard in my hand and forced a smile on my face.
"Hi, Bryan, are you done with the auditions?" I asked him for reassurance.
"Yes, ma'am." He replied.
"Okay, well just sign in your name and your time, then you'll be on your way out," I told him.
He grabbed the pen, signing in his name and the time before hanging it back to me. I wished him good luck again and he left the building.
The auditions seemed to go by fast since I figured Mr. McKnight and the production crew had their eyes on their cast for the movie or it was heading in the right direction since there were going to be callbacks happening. Surprisingly, I didn't have to go pick up the food from the restaurant since Mr. McKnight ordered the food from UberEats which I was truly grateful for.
It led me to complete all of my tasks for the day and clocking out to get ready to cash my check since I was going to be shopping with the girls. Turning off the computer and setting the walkie talkie along with the iPad on Leandra's desk on the second floor, I was good to go.