Picking up from last time –
I loved striking! It’s so right in the sweet spot of things I love. I get to walk around all day and talk to people? I get to feel like I’m part of something bigger than myself? Sign me up!
People have talked before about how wonderful it’s been to walk picket lines in the past.
(The writers’ strike of ’07 – ’08 is still talked about today. Sometimes people make it sound so magical, that part of me wishes I could’ve been around for it)
(It also sounds like a terrible time for Hollywood. So, I think the general consensus is everyone wishes it wouldn’t have happened. But you know, if it was indeed gonna happen, I bet it was a pretty magical time to be around. Aaaaaanyway…)
The picket line was exactly what everyone said it would be in all their magical talks and memories of picket lines. I met a number of new people there. I saw many of my old friends from Shahs of Sunset. I got to hear interesting stories from people, both new and old friends.
The sense of camaraderie was wonderful. We enjoyed hearing updates whenever there were any. And when there weren’t, speculation was happening here and there among colleagues. What else are you gonna do when you walk around for hours everyday waiting to hear when you get to work again?
As a sweet added bonus, the union gave out some free swag and all the free food we could handle.
There were parts of the strike that felt mildly weird to take part in – such as when we had chants going of, “Shame on Bravo. Shame on NBC!” I had thoughts run through my head of, “I had my very first TV job with NBC. And Bravo let me do my first ever professional edit. Now I’m out here chanting against them?”
Sure, it felt a little weird. But even people/entities you love falter sometimes. And when they do, there are consequences. I had the time of my life working on Shahs of Sunset. I always tell people that working for Ryan Seacrest Productions (which runs the show) was one of the best jobs I’ve ever had!
Most of the people in the picket line felt the same way. None of the editors had any ill will. They just wanted their health insurance and such. (Can you even imagine the amount of hassle we’d save in this world if we just had universal healthcare in America? Don’t even get me started.)
I’ll finish out this post next time with how the strike panned out.