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After making it through one of those frustrating mornings, Hadlee was finally standing at the entrance of the Atlantic Aviation terminal Teterboro. She’d done a bit of theater and a couple of commercials, but somehow Someone thought she’d be right for a new romantic comedy and had her do a test read -through over Zoom the night before. And now here she was. Five minutes early for her first flight on a corporate jet.

“Good morning Ms. Halverson!”

He had the look of a newly graduated RISD student, but in a uniform that hinted of airplanes without looking like something you’d see on a United flight. He seemed out of place, but she realized she was out of place too. Maybe that’s how he knew who she was.

“Hello?”

He smiled and took the small suitcase she’d been pulling.

“Mr Winston’s already here. I’ll get you onboard and we’ll be wheels up in ten minutes.” He smiled again and extended his hand “I’m Sam. I’ll be your steward today.” She knew they don’t teach smiling at RISD.

“Give me a couple of minutes to use the restroom”

Mr Winston? As in the producer and studio chief Gregory P Winston?! OH MY GOD! She’d dressed differently if she’d known, but at least she could put on some makeup.

Back outside she struggled with her handbag as she tried to offer a slightly more formal greeting.

“Hi Sam. I didn’t know Mr Winston would be flying.”

Sam led her to the jet. Outside the terminal the air smelled of kerosene and a smaller jet painted in bright green, taxied in to the next slot. This jet was much larger and was mostly white without any corporate markings. Climbing the stairway, she looked back on the surroundings. She’d only been in California once as a kid. Was her life going to change this time? Was she ready for it?

“Take this seat Ms Halverson” Sam said as he pointed to a window seat with legroom far beyond what she’d ever had. She settled in and was wishing she’d taken the that half-finished novel out of her suitcase when Sam returned with a small aluminum and dark glass box maybe eight inches on a side. He set it down on the seat next to her and proceeded to open a hatch and remove what looked like a toy airplane seat.

“Mr Winston’s seat. He wants to interview you.” He said as he slid it onto a metal plate she hadn’t noticed in the white seat next to her.

Her head was spinning as she heard it snap into place. Downsized? Was he a one of them? As she watched in amazement a little door opened and a trim silver haired man who looked to be in his fifties stepped out.

A FIVE INCH TALL silver haired man! He turned and called up to her.

“I’m Greg Winston Ms Halverson. I hope you don’t mind dispensing with the formality of a handshake. And please, just Greg.”

Damnit! She caught herself starring. She’d never seen a downsized person this close up. So tiny.. smaller than her Barbie dolls. He moved just like a real person. Of course she knew he was a real person, but the cognitive dissonance was strong. Finally she realized she needed to acknowledge him.

“Hadlee… just call me that.”

So nervous. ‘don’t blow this one up Hadlee’ she told herself.

“Ever seen a downsized person before Hadlee?”

She could feel herself sweating now.

“Umm.. not really.. Not close.. Sorry for ..”

“I’m used to it.” he laughed “Living with giants like you took some getting used to, but like anything else it quickly becomes normal. I downsized when I took over the studio four years ago. The last guy’s serving twenty years for doing what powerful studio executives and producers are infamous for. I decided I could remove any threat by downsizing. I’ve just never made a big deal of it. My wife couldn’t deal with it, so we divorced six months after shrinking.”

“I’m.. so sorry Greg”

“We’d grown apart anyway. She got the house, too much money, and the dog. Poor Max was confused by all of this. Anyway.. you wouldn’t believe the downsized place you can build for five million. And I’m dating again. Life’s better than it’s been in years.”

The cabin door closed and one of the one of the engines started quickly followed by the other. Hadlee was wondering what dating meant.

“Captain Townsend here. Once we get airborne it’ll be four hours and thirty minutes to Burbank. We’ll climb to forty four thousand feet and expect smooth sailing all the way. I’ll let you know when we’re on final approach.”

Soon they were climbing faster than any commercial flight she’d been on.

“I won’t bother you the whole time Hadlee, but I want to get a sense of your background. Grace Long heard you read a short story in Symphony Space a few months ago. She was so impressed she went to a couple of plays you were in. You have a great voice! Her word set off all of this. Sam will bring out a script with a few scenes marked. Don’t worry.. I’ll leave you by yourself, but then I’d like to hear you.”

She was confused. Normally a reading is with other actors.

A too-long period of silence went by. Then he must have read her mind - or at least her face.

“Ah! I should have explained. You’ll be doing it with me. Twenty years ago I was acting full time. It’s a romcom about a woman your age who ends up dating a downsized artist as the result of a software problem with a dating app. If it flies it’ll be an ensemble cast of four or five. I know the script well enough to do a few scenes with you.”

She was a fast study, but with Gregory Winston? He had a best actor academy award and was known for both improv and method acting.

“I’d been thinking about this kind of show for two years to introduce more people to the idea. There’s sizeism and discrimination. That’s where Hollywood can make a difference. Two months ago one of my favorite show runner’s pitched the idea. I bought in. We decided to go with a well known actor and some strong unknowns. That’s where you come in. Without all that makeup, you’ll really look the part.”

“Maybe my inexperience with downsizing is actually useful?”

She heard him laugh.

“A good actor can pull off a lot. But back to you. What’s your story? Tell me anything you think might be relevant.”

There was still a knot in her stomach, but he seemed so unthreatening and friendly. She started into her story knowing not to embellish anything. There was no way anything in her life would impress him and somehow she had to let him know that she wasn't biased even though she knew she had a little.

Description
After making it through one of those frustrating mornings, Hadlee was finally standing at the entrance of the Atlantic Aviation terminal Teterboro. She’d done a bit of theater and a couple of commercials, but somehow Someone thought she’d be right for a new romantic comedy and had her do a test read -through over Zoom the night before. And now here she was. Five minutes early for her first flight on a corporate jet.

“Good morning Ms. Halverson!”

He had the look of a newly graduated RISD student, but in a uniform that hinted of airplanes without looking like something you’d see on a United flight. He seemed out of place, but she realized she was out of place too. Maybe that’s how he knew who she was.

“Hello?”

He smiled and took the small suitcase she’d been pulling.

“Mr Winston’s already here. I’ll get you onboard and we’ll be wheels up in ten minutes.” He smiled again and extended his hand “I’m Sam. I’ll be your steward today.” She knew they don’t teach smiling at RISD.

“Give me a couple of minutes to use the restroom”

Mr Winston? As in the producer and studio chief Gregory P Winston?! OH MY GOD! She’d dressed differently if she’d known, but at least she could put on some makeup.

Back outside she struggled with her handbag as she tried to offer a slightly more formal greeting.

“Hi Sam. I didn’t know Mr Winston would be flying.”

Sam led her to the jet. Outside the terminal the air smelled of kerosene and a smaller jet painted in bright green, taxied in to the next slot. This jet was much larger and was mostly white without any corporate markings. Climbing the stairway, she looked back on the surroundings. She’d only been in California once as a kid. Was her life going to change this time? Was she ready for it?

“Take this seat Ms Halverson” Sam said as he pointed to a window seat with legroom far beyond what she’d ever had. She settled in and was wishing she’d taken the that half-finished novel out of her suitcase when Sam returned with a small aluminum and dark glass box maybe eight inches on a side. He set it down on the seat next to her and proceeded to open a hatch and remove what looked like a toy airplane seat.

“Mr Winston’s seat. He wants to interview you.” He said as he slid it onto a metal plate she hadn’t noticed in the white seat next to her.

Her head was spinning as she heard it snap into place. Downsized? Was he a one of them? As she watched in amazement a little door opened and a trim silver haired man who looked to be in his fifties stepped out.

A FIVE INCH TALL silver haired man! He turned and called up to her.

“I’m Greg Winston Ms Halverson. I hope you don’t mind dispensing with the formality of a handshake. And please, just Greg.”

Damnit! She caught herself starring. She’d never seen a downsized person this close up. So tiny.. smaller than her Barbie dolls. He moved just like a real person. Of course she knew he was a real person, but the cognitive dissonance was strong. Finally she realized she needed to acknowledge him.

“Hadlee… just call me that.”

So nervous. ‘don’t blow this one up Hadlee’ she told herself.

“Ever seen a downsized person before Hadlee?”

She could feel herself sweating now.

“Umm.. not really.. Not close.. Sorry for ..”

“I’m used to it.” he laughed “Living with giants like you took some getting used to, but like anything else it quickly becomes normal. I downsized when I took over the studio four years ago. The last guy’s serving twenty years for doing what powerful studio executives and producers are infamous for. I decided I could remove any threat by downsizing. I’ve just never made a big deal of it. My wife couldn’t deal with it, so we divorced six months after shrinking.”

“I’m.. so sorry Greg”

“We’d grown apart anyway. She got the house, too much money, and the dog. Poor Max was confused by all of this. Anyway.. you wouldn’t believe the downsized place you can build for five million. And I’m dating again. Life’s better than it’s been in years.”

The cabin door closed and one of the one of the engines started quickly followed by the other. Hadlee was wondering what dating meant.

“Captain Townsend here. Once we get airborne it’ll be four hours and thirty minutes to Burbank. We’ll climb to forty four thousand feet and expect smooth sailing all the way. I’ll let you know when we’re on final approach.”

Soon they were climbing faster than any commercial flight she’d been on.

“I won’t bother you the whole time Hadlee, but I want to get a sense of your background. Grace Long heard you read a short story in Symphony Space a few months ago. She was so impressed she went to a couple of plays you were in. You have a great voice! Her word set off all of this. Sam will bring out a script with a few scenes marked. Don’t worry.. I’ll leave you by yourself, but then I’d like to hear you.”

She was confused. Normally a reading is with other actors.

A too-long period of silence went by. Then he must have read her mind - or at least her face.

“Ah! I should have explained. You’ll be doing it with me. Twenty years ago I was acting full time. It’s a romcom about a woman your age who ends up dating a downsized artist as the result of a software problem with a dating app. If it flies it’ll be an ensemble cast of four or five. I know the script well enough to do a few scenes with you.”

She was a fast study, but with Gregory Winston? He had a best actor academy award and was known for both improv and method acting.

“I’d been thinking about this kind of show for two years to introduce more people to the idea. There’s sizeism and discrimination. That’s where Hollywood can make a difference. Two months ago one of my favorite show runner’s pitched the idea. I bought in. We decided to go with a well known actor and some strong unknowns. That’s where you come in. Without all that makeup, you’ll really look the part.”

“Maybe my inexperience with downsizing is actually useful?”

She heard him laugh.

“A good actor can pull off a lot. But back to you. What’s your story? Tell me anything you think might be relevant.”

There was still a knot in her stomach, but he seemed so unthreatening and friendly. She started into her story knowing not to embellish anything. There was no way anything in her life would impress him and somehow she had to let him know that she wasn't biased even though she knew she had a little.