He tapped on my shoulder and handed me a small black bag. I stared back at him with big brown eyes that stretched until my eyebrows touched. Before my coworker could explain, the bag crackled and my boss’s voice came in clearly. I quickly unzipped the bag and pulled out a walkie-talkie.
“For you,” Ucief told me.
“For me?” I asked with a deer in the headlights look still plastered across my face.
“You work for us, you get a radio. You’re part of the team,” Ucief replied.
I was part of the team. The small production staff of Apex Advertising that was orchestrating the chaos of a commercial set around me. I pinned the radio to my purse and went to work.
Despite the anecdotal experiences on the blog and fruit oriented facebook statuses that my last two weeks in Ghana have consisted of, I actually do go to work everyday. Or at the very least I take my book and unfinished cell phone game to the Apex Advertising Production house. Apex focuses on TV commercials and to date hasn’t quite figured out what to do with me when we’re not filming. Luckily I was recently able to change that precedent.
This weekend, while my housemates whole heartedly celebrated Jolleen and Shawna’s birthdays, I woke up at 3:30 every morning to go to work. We filmed a commercial for Vodaphone, a large phone company commonly associated with the color red.
The commercial was a mini series made up of three, 45 second commercials that told a story about a family forgetting their grandfather at home while embarking on a journey and using Vodafone products to retrieve him. The plot was a real thriller.
The first day filming took place in a small village not too far from Accra called Sassabi. No one on the crew had been there before so we stopped often to ask for directions.
“Oh Sassabi, yes yes. Drive two kilometers and a foot then sharp turn right and you’ll be there,” one helpful passerby told us.
The village turned out to be about three miles from where he told us it would be.
In preparation for the long day of filming my co-workers had warned me that days would be tiring and that I couldn’t fall asleep on the job. I had put my game face on and was really ready to buckle down, which is why I was caught off guard when the first two hours of the filming were spent in the preparation and eating of breakfast. I’ll forever be a fan of long working days that start with scrambled eggs, sugar rolls, and freshly squeezed pineapple juice.
During the three days of production, I was very much an intern. I fetched people when they were needed on set, helped move objects, and readied extras to ensure a smooth take. However, I also got to sit with the director and watch each take being filmed and provide input to make the scene even better. It was great to be involved so much more after a week of sitting in the office and reading Scar Tissue with breaks that included eating mangoes and playing Super Jewel Quest on my cell phone.
Sassabi highlights included getting to help in the creative directing of each set, watching the villagers secretly take pictures of the Obruni (me) on set, and watch as the pieces of a commercial came together.
Day two we went to Tema. We filmed at a train station that was surprisingly clean. The train was painted the colors of the Ghana flag with big stars on every door. It still continues to amaze me that we were able to rent a train, a conductor, and four train stations to have at our disposal for three days.
Tema was my busiest day. The Vodaphone Icons ( three girls who won a singing competition much like American Idol) were on set and we had to dress and style them to look like rock stars. They were defiantly a little upset that I didn’t know who they were. I also helped to set each scene with the necessary extras. I assisted the creative director as she needed throughout the three days of production. Eventually she trusted me enough to leave me with the director giving creative input while she would wander off to check on makeup and style.
Day three we began at Tema and then continued on the train, filming as we drove. We spent some time at a town called Asoprochona that was incredibly picturesque with beach side benches along the rail road.
During my final day of filming a got a proposal. The tradition continues. This time it was by an older Nigerian man who came up to me while I was working with my Creative director.
“Hey Sweetheart can I get your number,” he asked.
“I’m sorry no, I’m at work,” I spit out quickly.
“I just want to take you home and take care of you forever. You remind me of my future Indian wife,” he said.
By this point Salimi, the Creative director, was furious. My soft spoken co-worker raised her voice to a decent yell in Twi until the Nigerian man scattered away- his ego was clearly wounded.
Three days of production were tiring and stole one of two leisurely weekends we’re given on the program. However, I learned a lot and got to be very involved in the filming process. I finally felt like more than a piece of furniture at the Apex house. I finally felt like an Intern – part of the team.
–Neethu
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