Snake wrangler? Intimacy coordinator? 5 odd jobs in Georgia film.

Georgia’s film industry employs tens of thousands of people every year. Here are five who have carved their own unique niche.

Kim Mross

Snake Wrangler

Removes snakes from outdoor film shoots, and sometimes provides her own for filming.

I get to a movie set an hour before shooting and catch snakes, from nonvenomous guys to copperheads and rattlesnakes. For The Piano Lesson, there’s a scene in a Georgia creek, and I’m just off camera, maybe 10 feet away from the actors, waiting for water moccasins. My first job was on Tag, and it just took off, with the highlight being six years on The Walking Dead. I sometimes bring my own snakes; my bull snake Victor has more IMDb credits than I do. The film industry talks about safety, but I was appalled with how little precaution they took in the wild, with wranglers who had no certifications or just killed snakes. I am a Master Naturalist, and to me, a venomous snake on set is no different than a loaded gun. I grew up loving Georgia’s nature, and I’ve always felt comfortable around snakes. Maybe it’s that no one gives them a chance. When I’m out in the woods [for a scene], the fear and fascination of snakes has the whole set watching. I’ve never had a bad day on set. I’m outdoors, doing what I love, and working with a crew to preserve nature.

Photograph by Ben Rollins

Elisa Carlson

Southern Dialect Coach

Helps actors master the subtle nuances of accents, especially the tricky intonations unique to the American South.

I worked on a movie prepping actors for Southern dialect, and the producer told the director, “Oh, they can’t sound too Southern, or people won’t like them.” People have a stereotype around it. My family’s from all over Georgia, so growing up I started to pick out the little differences between the accents. But I studied classical theater and realized if I sounded like a Southerner, that wasn’t always going to serve me, so I learned the International Phonetic Alphabet and worked on a variety of dialects—Irish, Scottish, French. One of the nice things is when you’re working on a Southern dialect in Atlanta, it’s all around you. I’ll tell an actor, “You need to have lunch with this guy from electrics,” or “Go to a service at Ebenezer Baptist.” I’ve worked with actors who said, “I grew up in Australia; I never thought I’d be doing a Southern dialect in America!”

Photograph by Ben Rollins

Carole Kaboya

Child Actor Coach

Trains children and teenagers to hone both their performance skills and their confidence.

Coaching kids isn’t just about the acting—they’re already great storytellers—it’s also about teaching them set etiquette and giving them permission to speak up for themselves. I tell them, I will help you work on your three c’s: your craft, your career, and your confidence. My focus is really on helping to develop the confidence and mental health of young actors. To me, there’s nothing greater than sitting behind the camera and seeing the director under their breath go, Wow, this kid is so good. As a coach, I’m sitting there thinking, all I had to do was push that confidence button.

Photograph by Ben Rollins

Elizabeth Grove

Horror Film Food Stylist

Creates edible props for film shoots through her company, Edible FX—specializing in the creepy, crawly, or downright rotten.

I love that FX [special effects] allows me to weave through all the departments. If they need edible underwear, is that a prop? Nope, it’s wardrobe. Oh, the actress has to bite someone’s face off? That’s hair and makeup. Actually, he bites her face, and the blood gets in her mouth and she starts coughing? That’s props and food styling. I make a proprietary blood recipe that’s edible, made fresh, and totally healthy—and it’s vegan. I got a call from [the AMC show] Interview with the Vampire; they said, “Can you ship us eight gallons of your fake blood?” You should have seen the FedEx guy’s face when I went to send that to New Orleans.

Photograph by Ben Rollins

Kristina Arjona

Intimacy Coordinator

Works on set with actors performing sexual or nude scenes to protect their safety, comfort, and privacy.

I was working as an actor and director, and I had experiences on set with scenes of sexual violence not being filmed safely, so I started at a grassroots level trying to help change things in Georgia. Now I’m certified and SAG-AFTRA accredited as an intimacy coordinator. I also work as a mental health coordinator, a newer job that helps cast and crew navigate difficult or traumatizing shoots. The #MeToo movement has really put an emphasis on caring more about how we handle these things. It’s about normalizing the communication, so that actors and crew never find themselves in a bad situation. Making sure everyone feels comfortable on set brings me so much joy.

This article appears in our November 2024 issue.

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