Why did I ever go on TV?...05:58 Nov 13 2008
Times Read: 1,483
With all the talk on the forums about the latest Don Henrie parade and the Tyra Banks show...Lord Noctem expressed his opinion that he'd not ever go on tv, something about it...and I got to thinking...it's been at least 4 years since National Geographic aired it's Taboo special on blood.
Not just vampires and blood, but blood rites, multi-culturally.
So why did I do it...how did I feel then about this whole event???
Well, I remember being asked, by a very trusted friend in Shadowlore. I suppose it was my talent for communication, but I was never uneasy about putting myself out there like that. I was, at the time, unhappily married, about to end that, and having alot of domestic issues. In fact, my husband and in-laws wanted to have me admitted, lol. I knew my family or my friends might see it someday, and yet, I wasn't worried.
No, it wasn't like I went around either, declaring, "hey, I'm gonna be a tv star!"- I never advertized that.
I know it was a group of about 6 of us, myself and my donor, and 4 others who were vamp- all primarily via blood, but we all also use the pranic energy in other ways. The Nat'l Geo team was actually very pleasant to work with, and they were genuinely interested in learning about us, about the community, about vamps. One or two of them were a tad scared, but open-minded.
My donor and I were first filmed on our own for a feeding session. She had been my donor for some time, and was clean as a whistle. I used a lancet, and they did detailed shots, alot. Unfortunately it also happened to be in Philadelphia during a Dracula's Ball event weekend. Now, I like that event, I have friends who attend, and I like some of the music...but I have never been a huge fan of the promoter, or the fictional allure and overall guise the event has. Of course they filmed there, which in our opinions was a huge mistake...but the team DID have their assignment.
They had a team of professionals in the history of blood rites and vampirism, as well as medical professionals....in the aired piece, they came across not so well as we had hoped...
The second filming session was in Virginia, where the rest lived...it was a quiet weekend amongst friends. Nothing special, no big events.
They did individual interviews, and then interraction shots, and then a feeding. Four of us, feeding from blood as well as pranic energy. It's was funny how awkward the team got, as if they too were sensing the energy shifts...and some of the equipment malfunctioned at a high-energy point, but overall, the tone, the mood, the results were all down-to-earth vampiric bits. Not all of us were goth, one looked like a nice mom, a plain jane, shoot I don't even remember what I wore...whatever.
It was a great weekend for us all, and we got to feed alot to boot!!! YAY!
The head of the filming crew called us all a few months later, to let us know the airdate. She expressed concern over her bosses approach to the show and how the bigwhigs wanted it to present- NOT AT ALL where the filming crew and creative head wanted to go. I don't think we knew what to expect by that point, we only hoped for as factual a representation as we could get. After all, none of us were part of any big House, Cult, Clan, etc. on the bs factor.
The show aired with many other familiar faces in the community- some who were very undesirable in our eyes, who drew a bad taste to the way were were seen. The big bosses at Nat'l Geo wanted drama, mystery, a tint of too much fantasy.
Oh well, what could we don? nothing!
Not alot happened to us after the show...we got alot of compliments for other friends, but the majority of us in our circle were unhappy with the overall finished piece.
For the past 4 years, it has had little effect on my life, other than the occasional, "Hey, were you on some vampire show?"
I would do it again, if the show ended up not glorifying the drama, the back-stabbing, the infighting, the cultishness, the 'you have to belong to a clan or a big famous community group....myself and my friends only wanted to inform other who were awakening or willing to learn about being Kin in a comfy drama-free way...
Maybe someday one of us not-so-power hungry vamps will get to make a show that will accomplish all of that , and more!
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