The one about the Brave red carpet

I went to the world premiere of the Pixar film Brave in Hollywood last week, and let’s just get one thing straight first: after living in in Los Angeles my entire childhood and finally attending my first RED carpet event 20 years after moving away, the red carpet was green.

photo credit: Disney

See how there are two sides of that rope? I walked on the less important side of it.

I didn’t know what to write about this event that would not make you like me less, so I’m going to stick with the questions that Heather asked me.

Did you buy a new dress?

Nope, I wore a dress I’ve had for 10 years.

How did it feel to be dressed as a fancy person at a movie theater? Was the theater comfy?

The venue was the Dolby Theater where the Oscars are held (recently known as the Kodak Theater). Fancy fancy. There were celebs, paparazzi, and an after party where I couldn’t find a table and ate standing up until my forearm ached.

I love this question, by the way, because when it was happening it felt 100% fine, but looking back I’d say I do prefer not wearing Spanx, a strapless bra, and contact lenses at the movies. But I fit right in, so if that’s what you’re asking, it was all good.

photo cropped in half because otherwise my head would be too small to identify

Who is that dude? (I sent this picture to Heather.)

That is David, who blogs at The Daddy Complex. He was one of 25 other bloggers on the trip. Don’t look at his site right now because he’s also talking about Brave and you might feel overwhelmed. Look at it tomorrow when he’s talking about his twins again. I do give him mad props for wearing a kilt to the event, and look how I treated him like a Scottish prop for my amusement. Sorry, David.

Were you making awkward small talk?

Sometimes, yes. I was envious of the Pixar employees for whom it was really a victory celebration, complete with bagpipe acknowledgements. For me, as a member of the media, it was more like being at the swanky Bar Mitzvah party of someone I didn’t know (growing up in LA, some of the Bar Mitzvahs were pretty fabulous). At one point I ran into the parents of one of Scarlett’s friends, one of whom works at Pixar, so that was a nice surprise.

photo credit: caryn bailey

Inspired by the film’s protagonist, I channeled my fierce independence and wandered off alone to an activity station where you could shoot a bow and arrow. My first shot was a bulls-eye, and my next two were darn close.

Did you see any celebrities?

Yes, I saw many who I couldn’t identify but whose status I understood due to the number of people who were taking their picture. The person I felt the greatest impulse to hug was Angela from The Office. Kevin Nealon would have been a close second, but he had a lady friend with zero body fat linking her sculpted arm to his arm. I saw Allison Janney, too. I said nothing to any of them.

Should I take my kids to see the movie even though it’s PG?

Yes, because I know you are Pixar-obsessed and will not rest until you see it, but since they’re under 8, I think you should read my post Brave: Do kids need a “good” scare? on BabyCenter first.

Every kid has a different tolerance for intensity on the screen and Scarlett and Julian are pretty sensitive. I told them the entire plot already so that they would not be quite as startled during the movie. Julian (7 1/2) wants to go, but Scarlett is going to skip it.

I was treated to this experience by the folks at Disney, and I am one million percent grateful for the opportunity to have been there.

Author
Recent Posts

Whitney

RookieMoms.com co-founder Whitney lives with her husband, son, and daughter in the San Francisco Bay Area where she writes about parenting, crafts, and activities that moms can do with babies in tow. She and Heather also publish 510Families.com, a site for East Bay parents.