CPA on set.

• Position: Finalentry

Joseph G. Emanuele, CPA is a principal in the Forensic and Financial Services Group at Hemming Morse, but he only landed in this professional role after a crazy plot twist in his career arc. His first job was working as a stagehand for the San Francisco Opera and on the sets of movies like "True Lies" and "Mars Attacks!" We interviewed our protagonist to hear more about this dramatic career change.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

How did you end up being a stagehand?

I had a friend in the business in the San Francisco Bay Area who helped me get my foot in the door. As I was just out of college, what he did every day seemed much more exciting than what I was doing. I started at the San Francisco Opera and gradually gained experience in film work. I later became a member of the Hollywood set lighting technicians local union and worked in Los Angeles. If you work hard and people like you, you get the next show, which is not very different from an accounting practice.

What does a stagehand do?

Almost too much to list. Anything behind the scenes in live theater, television and feature films. You also will see them working on trade shows, conferences, etc. Different groups are assigned different tasks, such as scenery, lighting, props, etc. Some people specialize at some point in their career, but many arc good at a variety of specialties.

What are some of the more interesting sets you've worked on?

I spent many years at the San Francisco Opera, which was interesting and awe inspiring because of the scale of the shows and the talent; think Pavarotti, Domingo, etc. At the other extreme on the artistic scale would be "Mars Attacks!," because it was a big budget film with chartered jets, a huge all-star cast and an aggressive shooting schedule. I also worked on the crew that shot all the snow scenes in "True Lies." We took over Boreal Ridge ski area for several nights and had a lot of fun with snowmobiles and helicopters. I spent some time doing special effects shots at Lucasfilm for films like "The Hunt for Red October," "Die Hard 2" and some others.

Did you get to socialize with any stars? Whom have you met?

A little bit. I worked on three movies with Pierce Brosnan and he was always very nice. John Travolta was very nice on "Phenomenon" and I was on the same dance floor as him dancing to "Staying Alive" at the wrap party. One highlight was going to a Halloween party at the home of director John Carpenter while we were working on "Village of the Damned."...