As it turned out, they already were, and she had to wait half an hour before they allowed her on set to find the third assistant director. He was slouched in a chair when she found him, studying the shooting schedule for the day. He opened the envelope and saw that it was the script changes for the day that had to be delivered to all the actors and the principal director. She had seen the list of actors working on the film, and wondered if she’d see any of the stars. She guessed that they were probably in their dressing rooms.
He sent her to another assistant to give the script changes to, and the girl thanked her pleasantly and asked her if she was new. The third assistant director had hardly looked at her.
“I’m a summer intern,” Antonia said softly. “Today is my first day.” She was scared, but excited to be there. And she didn’t want to make any mistakes on the first day.
“That’s how I started too.” The girl smiled at her. “Good luck!” Antonia thanked her, and made her way back to the office. She got lost twice and had to double back, but she got back to the main office an hour after she’d left.
“Mission accomplished,” she reported to the woman in the pink blouse. She sent her on a similar mission to another set, where a different movie was being made.
She was sent out four times in the sweltering heat by lunchtime. She felt wilted by the time she got back to the office after her fourth delivery, but at least it was cool there.
They gave her a heavy metal box to deliver after that, with a padlock on it. It was money for one of the directors on set. The woman in charge of her told her she could go to the employees’ commissary for lunch after she made the delivery, and to be back in an hour. It didn’t give her much time to eat since it took so long to get around. The studio was as big as a small city, or so it seemed, as she hiked across hot pavement and found the studio where she was supposed to go. They took the box from her, and she headed for the commissary. She had seen signs along the way.
It was a giant tent, with a whole cooking area, long tables with plated food on them, and refrigerated cases with salads and dairy products, and another one filled with drinks. There were at least a dozen people setting up the food. She took a salad and a bottle of water and went to sit at one of the tables. And a few minutes later, a good-looking blond boy came and sat down across from her, with a hamburger and a Coke on his tray. She wondered if he was an actor. He was handsome enough to be one. There were attractive people everywhere, and it was impossible to guess what their jobs were.
“Mind if I sit down?” he asked her after he did, and smiled at her, and she shook her head and ate her salad. She noticed that he was wearing a striped T-shirt and jeans, and sandals. He looked like he was going to the beach. He seemed very confident. He dropped a script on the table, and ate his hamburger. She guessed him to be about her age. She could sense him watching her, and she finally got up the courage to ask him the burning question.
“Are you an actor?”
“Yes, but not here. I’m a drama student at Northwestern. I’m a summer intern. What about you?”
“I’m a summer intern too. From NYU.” They smiled at each other and the coincidence that they wound up at the same table on their first day.
“It’s a fantastic place, isn’t it? I hope I get to make a movie here one day,” he said hopefully.
“Me too. I want to be a screenwriter,” she said shyly. He was surprised she wasn’t an actress. She was pretty enough to be.
They chatted for a few minutes while they ate lunch, and finished quickly. “I have to get back to work,” she said, and he did too. “I have to go to the main office.”
“Me too,” he said easily, “I’ll walk with you.” She tried to match his strides as they walked back, and she could feel the back of her dress getting damp in the hot sun. “I’m Jeff Blake by the way.” She introduced herself, and they arrived at the main office five minutes later. She was beginning to know her way around. He reported to a different person and was sent out on an errand immediately, while she waited for her next assignment. At least she knew one person now. The boy from Northwestern was undeniably handsome, and had been pleasant to talk to. They were both awestruck by their surroundings.
Her next mission was easier. She was to report to the movie set she’d been hired for, and ask what they needed her to do. The woman in charge of her had wanted to see if she was reliable first, and she had been so far, and came back quickly each time and didn’t dawdle. She seemed bright and efficient. The interns were often smarter than the employees, and they tried harder.