By Carol Badaracco Padgett
LaQuanda Plantt knows how fortunate she is—and she loves her work in the film and television industry. The Dunwoody, Georgia-area resident is production supervisor for CBS’s new hit soap opera, “Beyond the Gates.”
We sat down with Plantt to learn more about the popular series, her role as production supervisor, and the acclaimed soap’s intense production schedule. What resulted is a must-read dive into one of Georgia’s hottest productions by one of its crucial key players.
“Beyond the Gates” is a production with a lot of firsts – the first soap opera in Georgia, the first new soap anywhere in 25 years, and the first soap with a predominantly Black cast. What elements of the show especially stand out from your perspective on the set every day as production supervisor?
Plantt: All of it, because it’s different from any other show I’ve been a part of. It’s the first soap shot in Georgia, so there was really no blueprint, and we really didn’t know how to go about working on a soap opera. And yet, the producers come from shows like “General Hospital,” “Days of Our Lives” and “One Life to Live,” and they have decades of experience. So we were really just following their lead.
It’s very fast-paced. I want to say that maybe the only person that’s probably as fast is Tyler Perry Studios here in Atlanta, as well. We shoot up to six episodes a week. So that took some getting used to.
We’re a multi-cam show, as well, so we shoot with 3-5 cameras depending on what we’re shooting at one time.
We also have a team that comes from film, TV, some may come from sports, broadcasting and live television, as well. So we just have a collective of people coming together to create this show and just figuring it out along the way.
Tell us a bit about how you came to your role and what it’s like. And also, were there other productions you’d worked on that helped you prepare for the day-to-day rigors of a soap?
Plantt: You know what … no. I’ve been on this show since July 30, 2024, and I was hired as a coordinator. And so, I have experience coordinating, but once I started this show, I just jumped in. I’m also a producer, and I’ve produced a few independent films.
I’m also a mom of two boys. So I always have that go-getter, make-it-happen type of attitude. I know if something needs to be done, and I do what I can to get it done. And in a very small period of time, I was promoted to supervisor. I guess my bosses saw the hard work that I was putting in, and they gave me a bump. And I just kind of dove right on in. And I think it made sense to them to bump me up instead of bringing in someone new who didn’t know this lane, or this world, or this genre at all.
Read more at Funwoody
