All In A Day’s Work at NBC4-Washington

ESloanBlog2PixABy Dean’s Intern Ellana Sloan at NBC4-Washington

I came in Thursday morning to find out that we were shooting promotion commercials for NBC4 and Storm Team 4. Not only was the opportunity to witness an NBC-specific shoot with a full crew and talent beyond incredible, but also these specific spots will be aired during the opening night of the Olympics. Five minutes into talking with various people on the set (who, to my surprise, were thrilled to share their vast experience with me), I was asked to be in the first Storm Team promo. Although it was simply my backside that appeared on camera as I walked over to hand meteorologist Chuck Bell a piece of paper, it felt like such a big responsibility and honor. Later on, I got to be the person who “marked” each scene with the slat, and I swear it was my calling. Even though it was bit stressful since, as we all know, time is money, being able to slate each scene was stunning.

When they were just shooting b-roll and thus didn’t need someone to slate each take, I got to stand in for the talent to ensure the scene was well lit and perfect so that the actual meteorologists did not have to waste any time. I assumed the role of ‘the’ Lauren Ricketts, and I was nearly starstruck. A few times, the camera operator called me Lauren, and I wasn’t the least bit offended. After we wrapped up our weather spots, we headed to our next shoot, which was taking place outdoors off of Abemarle Street. Here, we recorded Chris Lawrence and Pat Muse, the anchors of the 4 o’clock show.

The time spent in between shoots with the anchors, although brief, was lovely as well. They were really interested in hearing about how I enjoyed NBC4. The branding message that NBC4 is always working for you runs whether the cameras are on or off, and that’s something that really resonated with me. Lastly, around 7:30 pm, we shot Jim Handly and Wendy Rieger off of Wisconsin, right by Cactus Cantina and Barcelona. Here, the streets were extremely crowded, people were super interested as to why were filming, and we as a crew were truly racing with the remaining daylight. Fortunately, we were able to finish their shots, promoting the news at 5, as well as manage to not make too much of disruption to the local restaurants. Around 9 pm, we wrapped up the shoot, helped reload all the equipment, and headed back to the station. It was a twelve-hour day—twelve hours that I wouldn’t trade for the world.