Behind the scenes
photo by gabe
Did I ever tell you about the time I filmed a TV commercial?!
I had been keeping it a little secret but now it’s time as at any moment you may be seeing my face plastered over your tv, if you haven’t already.
I wanted to give you a glimpse of what it looked like from my perspective. A little behind the scene, if you will.
First, let’s start with how it all came about. I was contacted by a research company through my blog. They had asked if I would be willing to test out an unnamed dish washing detergent, if I agreed they would send a free sample pack. Sold.
I knew from the beginning that there was a possibility of my mug ending up on tv but it was a long shot and honestly I was satisfied with the opportunity to sample some new detergent. Since becoming a mom and having to run the dishwasher multiple times a day I’ve come to realize that it’s the little triumphs throughout the day that make life easier. Clean dishes is indeed one of those triumphs.
Within a couple of days I received the product. I had stockpiled some dishes – you know, for research’s sake, not due to laziness. I followed the instructions that read, “Do not pre-rinse.” I put some of my most difficult dirty dishes to the test. A pan that was coated thick with dried-on egg, a pot that had simmered cowboy beans all day and was left over night so that the interior of the pan was no longer visible and what remained was a thick coating of petrified beans. And a large dutch-oven that had spend the whole day braising pork shoulder.
photo by gabe
From the moment I opened up the dishwasher that ran with the sample detergent, I was sold. Dishes that typically sat in the sink all day to soak were now spotless having simply placed them in the dishwasher straight from the stove.
I tested the product for one week with each load I broke all the cardinal sins of how to properly clean dishes. I overloaded, I left crusty food on the plates, I didn’t soak the red dyed wine glasses or pre-scrub the ring of dried coffee stains that marks most of our mugs by the end of one day. The consistency remained. The moment the dishwasher hushed marking the end of its cycle I eagerly opened its door, letting the last moments of the drying cycle fog my glasses. And every time I was impressed. My wine glasses shimmered like I never knew they could and that dreaded egg pan that has caused many rifts in my marriage as we casually argued over who would have egg-pan-clean-up duty came out egg-free. Marriage saved.
Over a skype-interview with the research company I gave an honest and glowing review. In the background the kids were competing for my attention and the dishwasher was running its second load of the day.
A few days later I was informed that I had been selected to be in the commercial for this product.
Wha?!
From that point it was a whirlwind. One week later we all met at my parent’s house (where we host many of our cooking classes) to film. At 6 am I woke up and looked out the window to see a swarm of people unloading a large moving truck filled with lighting equipment. I went back in bed and soaked in that moment and prayed that I would stop shaking by the time the girl with the black and white marker snapped that slate and called “action”.
The crew was immensely kind, calming my nerves and encouraging me even though I was a bit camera-awkward. I wasn’t given a script. Everything that I said was sincere as I talked about my experience during the week of testing.
The most thrilling part of the day was that my brother, a very talented cinematographer, was manning the second camera. There was one point where it felt like it was just my brother and I, even though there were twenty others standing close by.
He was filming me as I was taking pictures of a salad I had just composed. He directed me to “stand-up then slowly crouch down while taking pictures.” As I snapped away my mind flashed to him as a 12-year-old running around the house with my dad’s giant camcorder. He was filming me then as he was now. I was a shy child but loved any chance to be center stage. We were filming a mock newscast. I was the journalist on the scene interviewing my dad about whatever dramatic news worthy event we had made-up.
That broadcast clings in my memory as a rare moment when I wasn’t just his pesky younger sister that constantly tried to vie for his attention and in the process would completely annoy him (I get it, I was pesky). He’s five years older, with that age gap I always looked up to him for guidance and lessons in all things “cool”. My entire life, even now as I’m 29 and he’s 34, I look to him for his thumbs up. In adulthood I have tried to step out of the shadow of little sister and into the realm of equal, friend, and simply sister. Now, I am happy to call my brother a friend.
In that moment during the shoot we were both living out childhood fantasies. We were working together, as peers. He was fulfilling his calling and I was doing something that I love. In that moment we had the rare opportunity for our paths to collide – I felt that same giddy joy as I did when I was 7.
In an instant it was done. Gabe and I quickly packed up our family and left for Seattle as I had to rush back to teach a class that night.
As quickly as it all happened it was over and it felt like a dream. Since that day I have continually asked myself, “did that really happen?” But now as it airs I am once again faced with the nervous shakes and praying for them to subside as I did on my bed that morning.
I am so grateful for the opportunity and I stand behind the product that is the star of the commercial. I’m afraid, however, that I may have been caught with the bug. The being-in-front-of-a-camera bug. That’s not true, that bug has always been in there but I suppressed it. Everyday life seems just so mundane. I’m only kidding, mostly. I am so honored to have been a part and thankful to the crew for making it such a fun day and for my family who happily played with my children enabling me to have some fun in front of a camera.
This is something I have never done before. Rarely do I promote a product on the blog, unless it is something that I love. Which is the very reason why I agreed to do the commercial. The majority of my day is spent caring for a family of five. Much of that is cleaning up after them, which I’ll be honest, I’m a horrible cleaner. Dishes pile up, as does the laundry and the long list of items to be dusted, scrubbed, put away and swept up. Anything that can make that burden slightly lighter I will cling on to. I know I am not alone in this and felt that you all should know that this product, Finish Quantum, works incredibly well. It has replaced my old detergent and I have no intention of going back. It makes my job a little easier and helps me quickly get back to the job of dirtying dishes – which I enjoy doing and do it quite well.
Disclosure: Opinion expressed prior to disclosure of manufacturer and product “Finish Quantum®”. Appeared in a TV commercial after product use. Compensated for endorsement.
