Shanna's Story
OotP Premiere and Hand/Wand/Footprint Ceremony - July 07
I'm Shanna and I'm an 18-year-old girl from LA. I was really excited when I heard there would be a Harry Potter premiere in LA because I've always been envious of the New Yorkers who get to go to the premiere every year. I figured I'd camp out overnight for a good spot, because who knew if I'd ever get this opportunity again? On Saturday, my little sister Marissa and I made a sign for Daniel:
When we first got there early Sunday morning, (1am ish), we sat with these people in line and talked to them. One of the girls had sharpies so she helped us make this cute sign for Emma on the back.
Waiting in line was not so bad at all. It wasn't cold or anything, and there were so many fun, cool people in line to talk to. I'd say the worst part was feeling anxious and on edge, wondering if I would get a good spot in front and if I would actually get autographs and pictures. I was amazed at how far some people came for the premiere. I met people from New Jersey, Utah, Maryland, Texas, New York, England, and Brazil who came just for the premiere. These two girls work for a Brazilian website called Potterish and they came to America for like, only 3 days just for the premiere!
Finally, we were allowed to get inside the barricades! We still had a few hours of waiting left but the TV cameras amused us. Whenever they would walk by with a camera, the crowd would start cheering wildly. Our sign attracted a lot of attention from the cameras and we got interviewed by some of the news crews. It was really funny because this Chinese station interviewed us about Dan and asked us to say the most silly, embarassing things! Like, "Dan, you broke my heart! Dan, will you marry me! Dan I wanna have your babies! Dan, you're the man!" I really wanted to see it on TV, but I dont get any Chinese stations. We taped the sign to the barricade so people could see the Dan side.
So eventually people started arriving. Whenever a limo or big black SUV would pull up, the crowd would all start screaming madly. But then the door would open and some old man or old lady would walk out (producers or studio people maybe?) and everyone would groan all disappointed!
He walked down the line of fans, hugging and signing autographs. He was wearing a Harry potter shirt with a picture of Dan on it, which I thought was cute. He hugged every single one of my friends, and me and my sister Marissa! He even gave my friend Abby a kiss on the cheek! And he signed the magazine Marissa was holding out at him.
Everyone started chanting, "Weasley is our King!" Rupert did an interview later where he said he heard it and was really flattered. When he got near me, he had this big smile on his face and his eyes were so blue and pretty!
While we're on the subject of Rupert, a couple days later, on Tuesday, a friend called the house saying he had seen me in the newspaper. He knew I had gone to the premiere, so maybe he was keeping his eyes out for me, but I'm surprised he recognized it since you cant see my face. Here it is:
And here is a close up of the picture:
I'm the blonde one in the sunglasses and pink shirt. Marissa is more visible in the picture though, because she's right in front in the brown ponytail, sunglasses, and light pink hoodie. But you can see his arm around me, actually hugging me! Ooh la la! And he's smiling and looking at me! Or if not at me, over my shoulder at Marissa
At this point, my whole group was in a mad rush to flip the sign over, because it was still showing the Dan side. So we were all screaming and ripping at the sign frantically so it took me a few seconds before I could start taking pictures. I touched her arm, and Marissa got her to sign the TeenVogue.
She seemed really sweet, smiling and waving, and she signed autographs for practically everyone.
Right as she was moving past my group, we all picked up the chant, "Emma is amazing, Emma is amazing...." like the sign. It seemed like at least a hundred people were chanting with us, which was so cool! I looked over and she was laughing. Also, I didnt actually notice this myself but my friends told me later that her dad was there and he took a picture of our sign! I hope he showed it to her!
That's my hand holding my video camera. She's signing and laughing at our sign for her!
We watched from a distance as each of the stars, one by one, was interviewed for Entertainment Tonight. So I got about 50 shots of Emma's back, which was slightly annoying.
So at this point we had Rupert's signature as well as Emma's. All that was missing was Dan's. BUT we never got it. Never even came close, because he never came to where we were.
The only time I really saw him was when he was being interviewed, unfortunately.
Other actors came to the premiere as well. Miley Cyrus, (aka Hannah Montana) was there with her family. Ashley Tisdale was there, Andrea Bowen from Desperate Housewives, Melissa Joan Hart. None of them greeted the fans or signed pictures, though, so we barely saw them. Here's Miley from the back, being interviewed.
I still had one more chance to see everyone, because the next day was the ceremony where the stars put their hands, feet, and wands in cement. So I went home, showered, slept, and got there bright and early the next morning (around 3am). After another long night of waiting, we finally got to go inside. It was fun because a lot of fans from yesterday came again today, so I made some new friends!
Anyway, Emma's cute little brother Alex was there!
He's the dude in the green. I think he's 14. Some girls in the audience called something out to him, I couldnt hear what they said, but he smiled and waved. I think he was embarassed though, because he turned red and his body language indicated he was uncomfortable and he walked inside right after that.
I saw Rupert's brother James, who also had his own little fanbase of screaming girls at the event. There he is. No ginger hair.
And at last, the trio!
My friends and I were still holding up the sign! It was awesome because both Dan and Emma noticed the sign and responded to it!
We saw Dan nudge Emma and point out the "EMMA IS EM-AZING!" sign to her. She covered her face as if she were embarassed and then waved to us. She did it again later in the ceremony when we were shaking the sign again.
When we waved the sign that read "DAN BLOW US A KISS?!" Dan actually blew a kiss! First he just smiled and waved but then he really blew us a kiss! He also did it again later on but it was a smaller kiss. Like he just moved his arm a little bit as opposed to before.
Well, there they are! I really hope there's a premiere in LA again next year.
I was talking to the Brazilian girls after it was over and one of the girls told me she was freaking out and yelling at Dan, "You're amazing, you're amazing, you're amazing" and he actually held her hand and said, "No, you're amazing!" And she told me that she was waving the flag and got Rupert to say "Hi Brazil!" on video camera.
Hehe, there was one girl who made a sign that said "I love you Elijah!" but then she crossed out Elijah and wrote "Dan." Apparently people always confuse Harry Potter with Frodo, and one time he was in a crowd and they all thought he was Elijah Wood and so he started signing autographs like that.
And more Emma:
In the picture above, is it just me or is the guy on the left her dad?
So in conclusion, it was a fantastic experience. We see the actors in movies and in pictures but getting to see them way up close and interact with them was wonderful and unforgettable. There were some parts that I didn't like so much, like all the waiting, and sometimes the crowd got a little too pushy, but overall I had a blast, and I would absolutely do it again next year!
When we first got there early Sunday morning, (1am ish), we sat with these people in line and talked to them. One of the girls had sharpies so she helped us make this cute sign for Emma on the back.
Waiting in line was not so bad at all. It wasn't cold or anything, and there were so many fun, cool people in line to talk to. I'd say the worst part was feeling anxious and on edge, wondering if I would get a good spot in front and if I would actually get autographs and pictures. I was amazed at how far some people came for the premiere. I met people from New Jersey, Utah, Maryland, Texas, New York, England, and Brazil who came just for the premiere. These two girls work for a Brazilian website called Potterish and they came to America for like, only 3 days just for the premiere!
I'm the one on the far right in the pink. My sister is the second from the left. The other 2 are the Brazilian girls!
Finally, we were allowed to get inside the barricades! We still had a few hours of waiting left but the TV cameras amused us. Whenever they would walk by with a camera, the crowd would start cheering wildly. Our sign attracted a lot of attention from the cameras and we got interviewed by some of the news crews. It was really funny because this Chinese station interviewed us about Dan and asked us to say the most silly, embarassing things! Like, "Dan, you broke my heart! Dan, will you marry me! Dan I wanna have your babies! Dan, you're the man!" I really wanted to see it on TV, but I dont get any Chinese stations. We taped the sign to the barricade so people could see the Dan side.
So eventually people started arriving. Whenever a limo or big black SUV would pull up, the crowd would all start screaming madly. But then the door would open and some old man or old lady would walk out (producers or studio people maybe?) and everyone would groan all disappointed!
But then Rupert walked out! As soon as we saw his red hair, everyone went nuts. LA is known for having some of the craziest fans in the world, and these people were no exception. They were completely hysterical!
He walked down the line of fans, hugging and signing autographs. He was wearing a Harry potter shirt with a picture of Dan on it, which I thought was cute. He hugged every single one of my friends, and me and my sister Marissa! He even gave my friend Abby a kiss on the cheek! And he signed the magazine Marissa was holding out at him.
Everyone started chanting, "Weasley is our King!" Rupert did an interview later where he said he heard it and was really flattered. When he got near me, he had this big smile on his face and his eyes were so blue and pretty!
While we're on the subject of Rupert, a couple days later, on Tuesday, a friend called the house saying he had seen me in the newspaper. He knew I had gone to the premiere, so maybe he was keeping his eyes out for me, but I'm surprised he recognized it since you cant see my face. Here it is:
And here is a close up of the picture:
I'm the blonde one in the sunglasses and pink shirt. Marissa is more visible in the picture though, because she's right in front in the brown ponytail, sunglasses, and light pink hoodie. But you can see his arm around me, actually hugging me! Ooh la la! And he's smiling and looking at me! Or if not at me, over my shoulder at Marissa
After a few more minutes of waiting..... Emma arrived!
At this point, my whole group was in a mad rush to flip the sign over, because it was still showing the Dan side. So we were all screaming and ripping at the sign frantically so it took me a few seconds before I could start taking pictures. I touched her arm, and Marissa got her to sign the TeenVogue.
She seemed really sweet, smiling and waving, and she signed autographs for practically everyone.
Right as she was moving past my group, we all picked up the chant, "Emma is amazing, Emma is amazing...." like the sign. It seemed like at least a hundred people were chanting with us, which was so cool! I looked over and she was laughing. Also, I didnt actually notice this myself but my friends told me later that her dad was there and he took a picture of our sign! I hope he showed it to her!
That's my hand holding my video camera. She's signing and laughing at our sign for her!
We watched from a distance as each of the stars, one by one, was interviewed for Entertainment Tonight. So I got about 50 shots of Emma's back, which was slightly annoying.
So at this point we had Rupert's signature as well as Emma's. All that was missing was Dan's. BUT we never got it. Never even came close, because he never came to where we were.
The only time I really saw him was when he was being interviewed, unfortunately.
Other actors came to the premiere as well. Miley Cyrus, (aka Hannah Montana) was there with her family. Ashley Tisdale was there, Andrea Bowen from Desperate Housewives, Melissa Joan Hart. None of them greeted the fans or signed pictures, though, so we barely saw them. Here's Miley from the back, being interviewed.
I still had one more chance to see everyone, because the next day was the ceremony where the stars put their hands, feet, and wands in cement. So I went home, showered, slept, and got there bright and early the next morning (around 3am). After another long night of waiting, we finally got to go inside. It was fun because a lot of fans from yesterday came again today, so I made some new friends!
Anyway, Emma's cute little brother Alex was there!
He's the dude in the green. I think he's 14. Some girls in the audience called something out to him, I couldnt hear what they said, but he smiled and waved. I think he was embarassed though, because he turned red and his body language indicated he was uncomfortable and he walked inside right after that.
I saw Rupert's brother James, who also had his own little fanbase of screaming girls at the event. There he is. No ginger hair.
And at last, the trio!
My friends and I were still holding up the sign! It was awesome because both Dan and Emma noticed the sign and responded to it!
We saw Dan nudge Emma and point out the "EMMA IS EM-AZING!" sign to her. She covered her face as if she were embarassed and then waved to us. She did it again later in the ceremony when we were shaking the sign again.
When we waved the sign that read "DAN BLOW US A KISS?!" Dan actually blew a kiss! First he just smiled and waved but then he really blew us a kiss! He also did it again later on but it was a smaller kiss. Like he just moved his arm a little bit as opposed to before.
Well, there they are! I really hope there's a premiere in LA again next year.
Oh, and people I met sent me their pictures from the second day too. The next few pictures are the ones they took. They got way closer to Dan than I did...
I was talking to the Brazilian girls after it was over and one of the girls told me she was freaking out and yelling at Dan, "You're amazing, you're amazing, you're amazing" and he actually held her hand and said, "No, you're amazing!" And she told me that she was waving the flag and got Rupert to say "Hi Brazil!" on video camera.
Hehe, there was one girl who made a sign that said "I love you Elijah!" but then she crossed out Elijah and wrote "Dan." Apparently people always confuse Harry Potter with Frodo, and one time he was in a crowd and they all thought he was Elijah Wood and so he started signing autographs like that.
And more Emma:
In the picture above, is it just me or is the guy on the left her dad?
So in conclusion, it was a fantastic experience. We see the actors in movies and in pictures but getting to see them way up close and interact with them was wonderful and unforgettable. There were some parts that I didn't like so much, like all the waiting, and sometimes the crowd got a little too pushy, but overall I had a blast, and I would absolutely do it again next year!
