Look mom! We're Famous!
How it all started
An email. An email that I'm lucky I read because I was on sabbatical. It said there was a new show being filmed in Kansas City from the same production agency that brings us Queer Eye. Think "Marie Kondo meets Queer Eye, but Swedish and about death....kinda" I was immediately intrigued but tried to keep my hopes realistic. They said they needed a coffee trailer that would be their "Fika Truck" for each episode. I thought, "what the f*** is a FIKA?" I came to learn "fika" is Swedish for a coffee break and experience shared among friends. Since the show's hosts are all Swedish this was going to be their respite in every episode where they talk about the hero that week and discuss how best to move forward with that hero's journey while sharing a cup of coffee and a few sweets. I was ALL IN.
the show: The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning
The TV series, produced by Scout Productions and the brain child of Amy Poehler and magically orchestrated by showrunner J.J. Duncan is based on the book, "The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning: How to Free Yourself and Your Family from a Lifetime of Clutter" by Margareta Magnusson. The Peacock TV series chronicles the de-cluttering and decompressing journeys of 8 "heroes" as they strive to purge their home and simultaneously prepare, mourn, celebrate and grieve a death. Each episode is so thoughtful, captivating and encouraging. The Swedish hosts made death something to speak freely about, prepare for, celebrate and mourn. They didn't just de-clutter a space; but also de-cluttered a soul in each episode. The whole series was one massive smile and several streaming tears.
The Behind The Scenes
The Wild Way Coffee's role was two fold. One, show up and park the Camper exactly where the director and crew want. Step two, make delicious drinks for the whole cast & crew quickly before filming would begin. The first would prove trickier than I expected.
I was doing all kinds of crazy parking jobs. Parking in small driveways, popping curbs to park in grass lots, angling the Camper in specific ways, parking in a storage facility and my favorite; pushing the Camper into a trash dump with the help of five other people!
It was a riot to see where I was going to be parking that day. Sometimes with multiple locations each day. I can safely say I feel very comfortable parking a camper in a trash yard now; in case that ever comes in handy again.
Once parked, I would then quickly make coffees for the full cast & crew. Generally I'd make around 30-50 drinks each day, depending on how long I was scheduled to be on site. Right before filming I usually made the three Swedish hosts: Ella Engström, an organizer; Johan Svenson, a designer; and Katarina Blom, a psychologist an americano or latte to drink while filming. There were of course a few instances where making coffee was not possible. R.E. above info about the trash dump. But generally the hosts would be sipping on Wild Way coffee while having a chat about that week's hero while I was on the sidelines listening to the filming through headphones.
After filming would wrap I would make any last minute drinks, hitch up, and head back to our Warehouse and wait for my next call sheet. We usually filmed one day per week for about two months. It was an incredible experience working with the cast and crew. I was so honored to be a part of such an incredible show. And so thankful for the opportunity.
I was doing all kinds of crazy parking jobs. Parking in small driveways, popping curbs to park in grass lots, angling the Camper in specific ways, parking in a storage facility and my favorite; pushing the Camper into a trash dump with the help of five other people!
It was a riot to see where I was going to be parking that day. Sometimes with multiple locations each day. I can safely say I feel very comfortable parking a camper in a trash yard now; in case that ever comes in handy again.
Once parked, I would then quickly make coffees for the full cast & crew. Generally I'd make around 30-50 drinks each day, depending on how long I was scheduled to be on site. Right before filming I usually made the three Swedish hosts: Ella Engström, an organizer; Johan Svenson, a designer; and Katarina Blom, a psychologist an americano or latte to drink while filming. There were of course a few instances where making coffee was not possible. R.E. above info about the trash dump. But generally the hosts would be sipping on Wild Way coffee while having a chat about that week's hero while I was on the sidelines listening to the filming through headphones.
After filming would wrap I would make any last minute drinks, hitch up, and head back to our Warehouse and wait for my next call sheet. We usually filmed one day per week for about two months. It was an incredible experience working with the cast and crew. I was so honored to be a part of such an incredible show. And so thankful for the opportunity.
Now Streaming!
Now you know a bit of the behind-the-scenes and story, now is the perfect time to grab yourself a cup of coffee and a sweet treat and turn on Peacock's BEST new show, The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning!
Thanks for reading!
Christine Clutton
Serving KC COFFEE // Stay Wild // Kansas City
