Above: Television commercial stars Corey Douglas and Brooke Pickering when they started out as SPC superheroes.By Sarah Schwager
THE cameras have continued to roll since Brooke Pickering first stole the limelight three years ago.
Seven-year-old Brooke has starred in a number of advertisements and catalogues in between her primary school studies.
When first reported in the Gazette aged four, Brooke had just starred in an SPC commercial as Superwoman.
She has since worked in Telstra, Sony and Target commercials and featured in a Comedy Inc sketch.
Brooke said she loved acting and modelling because it was “just a lot of fun”.
“And I get to have some days off school,” she said.
She said she did not mind the attention at her school, Beaconhills College in Berwick, where she is a grade two student, but had not enjoyed it when a boy yelled out in front of the whole school that she was a model.
“It’s a bad thing. Now everyone knows me,” she said.
Brooke said she wanted to continue modelling and acting.
“I want to be in McLeod’s Daughters,” she said.
Brooke’s mother, Sandra Pickering, said Brooke had loved acting from the start.
Ms Pickering said that at Brooke’s first role, for a Kmart catalogue, she had got up and sung a song when she was only supposed to stand there.
“She loves it,” she said.
“Sometimes she gets too much work. But she loves the attention. She lets me know when she’s had enough.”
Ms Pickering said the experience had been positive for Brooke.
“It’s a good opportunity for her,” she said.
“They get to see a lot, travel and get a glimpse of behind-the-scenes action.”
She said Brooke had so far saved $8000 for a holiday, perhaps to Disneyland.
“She puts a lot into it,” Mrs Pickering said.
“Her first two years were flat out.
“Since she’s been at school she hasn’t done so much. You can’t drop everything and go.”
Nar Nar Goon resident, 10-year-old Corey Douglas, started modelling at the same time as Brooke and also starred in an SPC commercial as Superman when he was seven.
He now stars in the Blue Scope Steel advertisements.
Corey said even though the work could be tedious sometimes, he enjoyed doing it.
“Everyone tells me when they see my ad they run out of the lounge-room and tell everyone in their family,” he said.
Corey’s mother Kerry Douglas said he was chosen for the ads after just one audition.
“They loved him,” Mrs Douglas said.
“He’s definitely not camera shy.”
