It is crazy to believe that after 10 years of building her body of work, we are finally counting down the days until the premier of Georgia’s new show “Wild Food” on Destination America! If you haven’t already heard, the show premiers Saturday, June 23rd at 10pm EST/9pm CT.
As a way to give you some sneak peeks into the making of the show, we asked some of the wonderful cast and crew members a series of questions which we’ll be posting here daily. Today it’s our Supervising Producer, Joanna Shapiro!
What Georgia has to say about her:
I have known Joanna longer than anyone else on the show. Since childhood in fact! In a way, she is responsible for this whole show coming to life, because she is the one who first connected me and Melinda Cea, the Executive Producer, show runner and co-creator. Having Joanna be a part of the show was a huge blessing and comfort for me. Being on the road filming away from the comforts of your every day life can be lonely, and knowing I had one of my best friends there with me made it SO much fun. She brings a calming wise presence to any situation she is in, and I know she always wants the best for me.
Meet the Crew and Cast of Wild Food: Q&A with Joanna Shapiro:
What’s the wildest food you’ve ever tried?
Deep fried alligator. Although I’m not really sure that counts… Doesn’t deep frying kind of make everything taste the same?
What’s something people would be surprised to know about Georgia?
She’s very thoughtful. On the day before we started shooting, when the producers were super busy getting ready for the next day, Georgia went to Cafe du Monde and brought us back fresh beignets so we could have a little taste of New Orleans while we worked into the night. It also lead to a huge laugh when I bit into one and powdered sugar flew everywhere. I think there may still be some sugar imbedded in the hotel couch I was sitting on.
Do you have a favorite moment from filming the pilot?
I think my favorite moment was actually from the scout before we started filming. Before Georgia arrived in Louisiana, producers and our DP went out on a night time bow fishing expedition to see what would be required to film it. Just like he did when we were filming, Captain Blake was yelling out fish he was spotting in the water, and it was all very intense and exciting. You’ll get a real taste of that same intensity in Georgia’s bow fishing expedition on the show.
What’s the thing someone MUST do while visiting New Orleans?
Definitely Cafe du Monde for beignets and Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop Bar for drinks. There’s rich history in both places. Or just walk around the French Quarter and absorb all the history everywhere you look.
What does Manual Literacy mean to you and how do you practice it in your life?
To me, it means being able to create something with your own hands. I’m not sure I really do practice a lot of that in my own life – cooking, maybe? Or maybe those times when I’ve figured out how to fix something on my own… It’s a very satisfying feeling.
What was your biggest laugh while filming?
I loved how Jeff and Kimmie were constantly joking around with Georgia, as well as all of us behind the scenes. I think I was laughing the whole shoot.
