New Brunswick woman directs episode of ‘The Good Doctor’

A New Brunswick-born director is looking forward to seeing her name in the credits of a popular American TV show.

Cayman Grant of St. Martin’s, N.B., had the chance to call the shots on an upcoming episode of “The Good Doctor” thanks to a directing program at ABC-Disney.

“As part of the DGE program they want you to shadow an episode before you shoot your episode, so I was able to shadow my mentor Mike Listo on episode 5 to 10 for ‘The Good Doctor’,” said Grant.

“It’s the first year that they guaranteed episodes to those who participated and there were six of us in this year’s program.”

This isn’t Grant’s first foray into the film industry; she’s an award-winning director.

“I have an Emmy for doing a documentary, 30 for 30 on ESPN, called ‘Playing For The Mob.’ I’ve directed several short films and I’ve done a piece for the NBC ‘Meet the Press’,” she said.

Grant says she was looking for her break into episodic television and the ABC-Disney mentorship was an excellent opportunity to show a major network what she has to offer, especially when it comes to breaking down barriers in a male-dominated field.

“It’s the best thing that ever happened to me because in the end it’s about the storytelling and the more you understand about story, about characters, emotional through-lines and the journey of a character, the better director you’ll be. So for me, it’s made me a better director,” said Grant.

Grant hopes her positive experience with the mentorship program will result in further opportunities in the industry.

“I have tons of calls, I have lots of meetings, I have tons of things going on right now,” she said.

“There’s a lot of great things happening so I’m really excited.”

Now, she’s excitedly waiting for her episode to hit the airwaves and reflecting on her time behind the camera.

“How grateful I am that I got to have that experience, I just know how lucky I am. It’s a dream job. It’s what I always wanted to do, so what I took away is that the dream finally came true,” she said.

Grant’s episode of “The Good Doctor” will air April 4.