Young Pirates Vie in Contest

One, two, three. The video camera starts recording and at the snap of a finger each child, by turn, immediately assumes the role of a pirate.

"Garrrr!!! I'm a pirate," said Andrew Granier, a Dunsmore Elementary School student.

"Now use the sword like a pirate," urged the cameraman.

Andrew began to defend himself from an imaginary bad guy in front of him. With a toy sword in hand, his agile body twisted, turned, jumped and stabbed at the air.

The cameraman, fascinated, watched the child's every move and encouraged him to do more. "Now, sing and dance to the pirate song. Very good."

Andrew was taking part in a special event last Saturday at Albertsons in Tujunga. The store invited neighborhood children to dress up as pirates and audition for an Albertsons commercial and a $10,000 dollar cash prize.

The footage of the children would later be judged by a panel from the supermarket and advertising agency. One winner would be chosen based on his or her costume, personality and enthusiasm.

In the hot afternoon sun Amanda Granier patiently watched her make-believe pirate son audition before the camera.

When asked how she found out about the audition she said, "I just happened to be here shopping. Then we saw the pirates trying out for a commercial so the kids thought it would be cool to try out for a pirate commercial," she said. "They need to act like pirates."

After the audition Andrew went back to being a kid and told the Valley Sun that he learned about pirates through "pirate books and the movie 'Pirates of the Caribbean'."