Beautiful Brooke Shields and I… and a Teleprompter!
Teleprompter at “La-Z-Boy” shoot with Brooke Shields
By Michael Gonzalez, Producer/Talent/ Webcasting Executive/ Teleprompter Operator for AMC.
Not too far in the distant past, I did a series of commercials for “La-Z-Boy” starring the beautiful and talented, Brooke Shields. The first day of shooting took place at the Grand Opening of the Flagship La-Z-Boy store in Paramus, New Jersey.
Brooke Shields on a “La-Z-Boy”
It was a far drive and began early in the morning. It was a very different type of shoot from a logistical standpoint. Brooke would be walking all around the new furniture store talking into the camera about the rebirth of La-Z-Boy. This meant my preparation with additional VGA extensions for a physically long action shot would come into effect.
I always like positioning myself close to the talent so we can work closely and I can make sure I’m in close range to make any needed adjustments to the script. By the end of the three long but very exciting days, Brooke and I became pretty close. She shared stories about her life and I about mine, as well as my experience as an actor in NYC.
She had very sound ideas about the actual shoot. We made several adjustments throughout the days as we went from close ups, to medium shots to long shots, etc. We spoke a lot in between adjusting the font size of her script between takes. I must say, Brooke Shields was stunning in person, genuinely caring and had this glow to her that lit up the room.
It was a real honor to work with such a down to earth superstar!