Day 5

Name: Melissa Lawson

Profession: Student, Massachusetts College of Art

Location: Coolidge Corner Theater

Question: Why are you here? What led you here?

Answer: I’ve never been here before

The room was dark and voices were hushed. The curtain had not yet been drawn at Coolidge Corner Theater—Boston’s only non-profit independent cinema—but audience members still remained respectful of the century-old building’s grandeur. This wasn’t any old movie house. This was a palace built for the kings of comedy, the Fürsts of foreign films, and the sultans of Sundance winners.

For Melissa Lawson, this was a first.

There to see the award-winning film Up in the Air, Lawson was drawn from the Massachusetts College of Art “’cause I heard it was good, and Zach Galifianakis is in it, so I had to go see that.” This was also her first real experience in the theater, although she had been there once to catch Paranormal Activity only to find the showing was sold out.

A junior at MassArt, Lawson is pursuing her interest in fashion design in the hopes of becoming a full-time designer.

“It kinda takes up my whole life, so it’s really an intensive program,” she said. “Yeah, I wish it was really easy. I’m debating whether or not to go to New York, because that’s where everything is…. Somebody came to our school and told us we can’t stay in Boston if we want to do fashion, so I have to leave and go someplace.”

If she can’t find work in New York, Lawson has her eyes on returning home to Maryland.