Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/957795
DGA QUARTERLY 21 "We have a coroner and grief counselor standing by," explained stage manager Jerri Churchill. "That's how I know this is real." Churchill, standing by to film Skyscraper Live with Nik Wallenda, the 2013 television special during which Wallenda completed high-wire walks between 50-plus-story skyscrapers in Chicago, knew immediately that she would remember this night. As for her usual day-to-day as head stage manager for America's Funniest Home Videos, it involves coordinating rehearsals and the filming of two shows a day in front of a live audience. "My goal is to always be the most well-prepared person on the set, and to make sure everything moves quickly and smoothly with no baubles or hiccups," she says. Churchill's preparedness allows her "to make the job of the host as easy as possible while filming," and served her well on that cold night in 2013 when her stage was the size of a tightrope. Though working on Skyscraper Live is unforgettable even years later, Churchill loves working on AFHV. "My overall phi- losophy about my work is this," she says. "To be entertained is to be happy and to be happy is to be at peace. I like to think that when we contribute to a project that entertains people, that makes people laugh, we are contributing a little to world peace." —BECCA NADLER Maintaining the Tightrope Between Scariest and Funniest Jerri Churchill | Stage Manager Marty Eli Schwartz loves his job. "Even having done it for as long as I have, my adrenaline rises when I get on set"—this from a man who worked as a stunt performer earlier in his career. The 1st AD's day begins the night before. Schwartz studies the call sheet and shooting schedule and pulls the pages for the next day. "I wake up and I have everything in my head that's going to take place or needs to take place that day," he says. For Schwartz, making sure the actors feel comfortable is all part of the job as an AD. "It gives them the ability to give the best performance that they can," he explains, "their perfor- mance depends on how you run a set." Recently, Schwartz worked on FX's Feud, about the con- flict behind Robert Aldrich's Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? "You have two very highly acclaimed actresses pitted against each other," says Schwartz, referring as much to Susan Sarandon and Jessica Lange as to their on-screen characters of Bette Davis and Joan Crawford. "Susan and Jessica kept them- selves from each other, because they didn't want to come off as being friendly," he recalls. "As an AD, you can help by under- standing what they're going through and how they prepare." —BRANDON KYLE GOCO Schwartz's Comfort Zone Marty Eli Schwartz | 1st AD