Filming

Being quite close to "Hollywood", the suburbs where I live is used quite often in both television in movies.  From the time I was in kindergarten, I've watched my city as the setting of various shows and films.  The "Industry" has boomed here, and we now have several studios.  Many have taken to calling it "Hollywood North" as you can find a film crew set up somewhere on any given day.  So it was no surprise when earlier this week, we got notice at school that there would be filming taking place for the television show SWAT in the neighborhood closing a couple of our streets.  In addition, they wanted us all to be aware that there would be several "police" vehicles on the premises as well as "armed officers" shooting their "weapons" so we didn't call a lockdown.
I am not a starstruck person and driving past filming  doesn't make me even slow down.  The only emotion I usually have over it is irritation when the street I'm trying to turn onto is blocked or the gas station I want to use is closed due to filming.  However, since I watch the show SWAT and like it, my interest was peaked at the notice.  I remember as a kid watching the first SWAT television show with my dad back in the late 70s.  When it premiered last year, I recorded it due to those memories with my dad.  I watched the whole season over the summer and really enjoyed it.  It's an entertaining police drama...my favorite!
When the notice came out, some of the kids asked about it and there was some excitement over my explanation, some of the kids had even seen the show.  So on the day of the filming I told them I'd take them out to see what we could see at the end of the day.  Our school property is huge and the back part, where the playground is, is surrounded by a tall metal fence.  We walked out towards the street until we got to that fence to take a look.  There wasn't a lot to see from where we were as most of the street the school is on was being used for trailers, security, and craft services (food).  However, along the corner of the fence we could see the street that runs perpendicular and there were police cars, and a lot of people milling around as they do.  We spent about 5 minutes looking and talking about what we saw.  A member of the crew walked up to the fence at that time and called me over.  I thought I might be told we were in the way or something.  Instead, he asked me if we'd like to meet the actors.  Ummmmm, ok!
When the cast of the show came out to see us, they seemed genuinely as excited to meet the kids as we were to meet them.  They were so kind, shaking hands and talking with the kids.

I had not planned on this happening at all, so had left my phone in the classroom when I picked up the kids from lunch to walk them over.  Thankfully, we have a yard supervisor who loves the be "in the know" and she followed us out to the back of the school. When we found out they were coming over, she whipped out her phone.  

 

 

The cast spent several minutes with us before saying their goodbyes.  The kids haven't stopped talking about it since...neither has their teacher.