The next installment in the our sorta monthly feature "A Day in the Life" features John Herrera, our script coordinator-- and new dad! John's day begins early but kicks into high gear in the afternoon, which is where we start...
4:13PM: I awake with a start to find that the blaring alarm
clock I couldn’t snooze in my dream is actually the dulcet voice of our
Writers’ PA, Meghan, trying to rouse me. Jaime is on his way down the hall with
the production draft of our next episode. Crap. I perk up quickly and answer
every one of Jaime’s questions about the revision with a confident “Sure… of
course…no problem!” Jaime heads out as I wonder how long I’ve been asleep.
4:15PM-6:15PM: I run a computer typo check followed by a careful read of the script. (The computer is a lot dumber than it looks. It misses even more typos than I do.) If Meghan or Margaret, our Writers’ assistant isn’t too busy I may ask them to check typos too because 1. I’m anal. And 2. They’re smarter than I am. Satisfied with formatting and having worked out any possible logic issues with Jaime (credit to our writers who make very few mistakes – typo or otherwise), I proceed with the production side of the coordinator process.
First: scene numbers. This may sound like a small thing, but
every production department will use these numbers to track the script. If I
mislabel or improperly delete a number there could be an angry phone call from
Vancouver. And while an “angry
call from Vancouver” feels like a love letter compared to, say, an “angry call
from Burbank” it’s still something to be avoided. Last, I create the first prep
documents of the episode: the Cast List and Set List that will help each
department plan and budget.
6:45PM: Having double and triple-checked everything, I
distribute the document to all departments, taking care not to bump RETURN
early and accidentally send everyone -- from Colin Ferguson to Syfy Executive VP Mark Stern -- an email
without a script attached. (Yes, I
have done this before.) Once all is sent, I send Jaime his script file back for
more revisions, take a breath and wait a few minutes to see if anyone has issues
with anything in the script. With
luck, all is well in Vancouver, everyone is happily reading, and I can relax
until the next revision. Ahhhhhh.
6:46PM: Before I can finish that exhale, CoEP Todd Sharp
requests a list of all episodes that include a certain character. As this may affect whether we get the
amazing guest cast Todd’s working on, I turn that around right away.
8:01PM: After reworking our script status report, a document that tracks our progress in writing scripts, the phone rings. It’s Tina, my wife, wondering when I’ll be home. Good news! It won’t be a late night. I’ll be home for “bath time.”
8:45PM: Before you go getting any ideas, (this is a family
show, after all) “bath time” involves my 10 month-old cutie pie, Sofia, who
greets me with a pureed, peach-stained grin from ear to ear each time I walk in
the door before my delectable wife gives me a kiss and I realize what an
exceptionally awesome life I live. Sofi and I play for a few minutes before she
gets in the bath.
9:10PM: Bath time, story and kiss goodnight complete, I
check work emails. I’m in luck. Production received the draft and they’ve
already generated a prep schedule.
The Network has our other draft and will schedule notes with us
tomorrow. It’s time to eat, exhale and relax and…
12:08AM: Baby’s crying. Time to be a good husband and acknowledge I can actually
hear the baby crying instead of pretending only car alarms can awake men from
their slumber.
12:09AM: Checking emails again. Worrying about that typo I
realize I forgot to fix on page 43.
12:12AM: ZZZZZZzzzzzz…
3:23AM: Baby’s crying again. This time I pretend I can’t hear her. Don’t tell Tina.
5:04AM: I run like I’ve never run before on the gym treadmill,
buff athletes, man and woman alike marvel at my form and stamina as they walk
by. I feel confident, powerful,
handsome—BEEEEEEP!
6:05AM: My alarm goes off for real. Turns out I was dreaming
that last part.
7:00-9:30AM: I meet with Nina, my writing partner to work-before-work. Hat tip to the Eureka-folk and their story break techniques I’ve handily adopted. Then time to jump onto the 101 Freeway (or as I prefer to call it, “The Most Interesting Highway I’ve Ever Met”) toward the Eureka writers’ office.
10:00AM: I settle in to what must be the best view to be had by any script coordinator in the business (sunsets in the west, the Capitol Records Building, the scenic Gower Gulch strip mall), eat some breakfast and find a Clearance Memo in my inbox about the script we just submitted. Looks like that Fargo nude scene needs a lot less nudity. (You might be surprised how often we get nailed for nudity… quite the randy bunch we are.)
11:00AM-3:15PM: A new revision on the episode now shooting,
a writers draft is ready, the editors need final script files from the
premiere… business as usual.
3:16PM: I collapse in a heap on my desk. Writers come and go
thinking I’m just consumed by a very intense typo pass.
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