Prep Day

In what has become a rare occurrence since my soap days, I am doing a few-day Associate Directing gig. It's not that I don't want them. They are just few and far between these days. And if there is one thing (well, actually, there are lots of things) that I have learned over a few years in the freelance world, it is that "Avid Editor" opens a lot more doors than "Associate Director." So I have become largely an editor, branching out across editing platforms and across formats, spending hours in small rooms communing with a computer.
 
Yet, every so often, an AD job pops up, and more important, pops up for me. And it's hard to resist the collaboration with a director. It's hard to resist the challenge of coordinating cameras and making an organized plan out of an artistic vision. It's hard to pass up the opportunity to sit in a different kind of small, dark room. Once upon a time, I moved daily between AD and Editor, a setup that ensured I never tired of either. And while the AD gig at hand will be only a blip in my "now" life, it is a lovely reminder of what was and what can be, of the fact that we never really have to settle for how people see us, as long as we are able to keep looking and to see ourselves in other ways. As I did in my soap days, I will likely go back to the edit room with new eyes and new enthusiasm. And that is, perhaps, one of the best things about stepping out once in a while. We are never exactly the same when we go back.