Casting Director Renee Godbout on the Writers' Guild of America Strike

So I've already talked about what's to come now that the writer's strike is over but felt inspired by Greg Garcia, the creator/head writer of My Name is Earl to share how I spent those long strike induced free days. I'm not sure if you heard but the talented Greg decided to get a job as a cashier at a fast food restaurant. He worked there for a month, now how's that for respecting every profession. Mine wasn't nearly as creative but I thought I'd share it anyways.

When the strike first started, Gossip Girl still had 2 episodes that were written in a hurry and ready to produce. We shot those and wrapped up for our winter break in the beginning of December. We had all hoped the strike would be over after the holidays but as we're all fully aware that never happened. December was spent enjoying the holidays with friends and family down in North Carolina. My golf game is definitely improving. In January I had already scheduled a cruise of the Mexican Riviera so that knocked off the very beginning of the month. Then it was back in the office and no TV show to work on. I entered actors into our database and put together a nifty little binder for Gossip Girl full of actors who are able to portray high school students. There was always mail to open and head shots to file. Then I started to get bored. Luckily I had Wednesdays to drive up to our Connecticut office and register local CT talent. I work out of the CT Film Center, which has a great group of people working there and is a nice change of scenery.

At the end of January and into February there wasn't much else to do so I spent less time in the office and more time catching up on my DVR. There are an awful lot of TV shows I thought would be good and set to tape and never actually watched. I recently sat down to watch The Sarah Connor Chronicles and actually feel it's a decent show. The pilot was directed by David Nutter who I worked with on the pilot for the short-lived series Traveler. That show was never given a good chance and it certainly deserved it. Just when I had caught up on everything worth watching, I got the good news that the strike was over. Thank god, I was about to check out reality TV. Now I'm prepping Gossip Girl and a new movie starring Robert DeNiro. The spring looks to be very busy so I guess it's a good thing I took the time to see my family in January. I don't think I'll be seeing them again anytime soon.

This article may not be entirely educational or inspiring, but I did prove that if you don't take advantage of the free time you are given, you'll never become a better golfer.

Renee Godbout - Freelance Casting Director. Renee Godbout recently worked on the first season of The CW's popular teen show Gossip Girl at Grant Wilfey Casting. Some past projects include 2 seasons of Law & Order: Criminal Intent, the pilot for Dirty Sexy Money, and the upcoming Jonathan Demme-directed Dancing with Shiva.