Laura Peterson is a Dallas College Richland College alumna and a former editor-in-chief of the Richland Chronicle from 2012 to 2013. She now embarks on a new journey in Hollywood, appearing in the Netflix documentary “Why Dinosaurs?” as Laura Garsea, “Clever Fangirl.”
Peterson credits her social media presence, which “helped lead to the movie opportunity.” Her Instagram account, which has over 35,000 followers, is dedicated to all things dinosaurs and the movie “Jurassic Park.” She recalled starting her account for a school project and deciding what to niche in. She chose dinosaurs because her parents introduced them to her.
“My mom would read me this book called ‘Danny and the Dinosaur.’ My dad showed me “Jurassic Park” as I got older. I loved it. Both of those got me so fascinated and interested in dinosaurs.”
During her studies, Peterson originally had planned to study business but changed her mind when she joined the Richland Chronicle. “I think the Chronicle definitely helped me get back to my roots on what I love to do,” she said. She had always had an interest in the media and remembers being the editor during her elementary trips to Enterprise City, a small town run by students. Peterson now works in digital marketing and reminisces about her time at the Richland Chronicle.
“I definitely think being on the Richland Chronicle has really helped me in the professional setting and then also on the fun side and social media.” She said that this is where she learned some of the skills that she now uses day to day in her workplace like cold calling, note taking, quick thinking and communicating well.
Moving on to “Why Dinosaurs?,” Peterson was contacted by the producer of the film, Tony Pinto in 2020, at the height of COVID-19, to be interviewed about her love of dinosaurs and “Jurassic Park.” She was hesitant at first.
“I almost said no. So, I let this stranger into our house, and he interviewed me. It was so nice, so great and we just talked dinosaurs.” Three years later, she got a call and it’s the producer informing her that the documentary was finished, and she was invited to the Hollywood premiere. She called the full-circle moment a once-in-a-lifetime event and described it as an intimate setting where she was able to talk with many influential people like Glen Mcintosh, animation supervisor for “Jurassic World,” the 2015 sequel to “Jurassic Park” (1993). The 90-minute “Why Dinosaurs?” documentary is listed on the IMDb website as a June 1, 2024 release.
For more updates on the documentary go to Whydinosaurs.com and to follow Peterson on her dino adventures, you can find her on Instagram as @cleverfangirl.
