Me as a Three-Act Play
Act I
Once upon a time, I was headed for a career in theatre. On stage… back stage… from reading scripts to the final cast party… I loved it all... for a while. Over time it became clear that my future in theatre would not be on stage. So I focused my energies on all the many components that go into developing, staging and supporting the on-stage efforts.
If you work in theatre, however, there’s something that eventually becomes clear… theatre is an actor’s medium. Maybe I thought working behind the scenes wouldn’t be creatively fulfilling enough. Who knows… it was a long time ago. I changed direction.
Act II
[I’m leaving out most of Act II because it’s not that important here. I’ve had some good times and some not-so-good times. Theatre isn’t the only career that gives one an opportunity to be creative and have a good time along the way.]
One day a friend called me to ask if I’d join her in taking a movie class. “Movie making?” I wanted to know. “No… movie watching.” So one little movie class turned into years of movie classes and a much greater appreciation of how and why some movies work… and some don’t. Movies are much more collaborative than plays. Good acting is only one of many critical components of a successful movie. Even though the movie “stars” get much of the credit in the press, the success of a movie depends on the successful collaboration of many creative artists. I could relate!
Act III
A chance encounter with some old friends and movie lovers lead to the start of my email movie “previews.” Before long, requests were coming in to be included on the email list. Many said they liked my previews because they were short. But over time, people started telling me they liked them because they found my write-ups were their most helpful tool for choosing movies they would enjoy. [More on that in another section.]
My mailing list eventually got so large that Mac Mail couldn’t easily handle the postings. So I upgraded to a networking site. It was only a matter of time before I’d upgrade to a website.
[I can’t write the conclusion of this play yet because I’m still living it. But for now, I’m happy to be back in the theater… even though this version is an “er” theater, rather than an “re” theatre.]
--Leslie Sisman
