Is there a future in acting?

This is a periodic journal of events in my episodic career as an actor. I say episodic, because there's nothing really very regular about it.

So far I've done extras work in major features, and small roles in independent film. I'm willing to do the background work in major film, since it's a paying proposition, and there's the opportunity to see the best at work. Background work in unpaid film is just not something I'm willing to do.

Locations have been Ohio, Connecticut, Kentucky, Illinois and Michigan. I'm willing to go to NYC, NJ or Chicago for an extras role--even if I only break even. Cleveland is still problematic, although it got a little better in the Summer of 2011.

Michigan has been the place to go. I spent more than a month in Detroit, Ypsilanti and New Baltimore in 2010 on four different film productions. Real Steel was the biggest and most challenging: four different background characters in three different scenes.

In 2011, it was Oz: The Great and Powerful (see more below). Almost two solid months of work. I lived in Michigan for that one.

But Governor Rick Snyder worked hard to get film credits withdrawn, and (if history is any guide) that will be the death knell of the film industry there.

Strangely enough, my most recurrent role is that of the undead or zombie. You can read more about that here: The Secret Zombie Diaries.

Enough for now.

Fun Time with the Kings of Summer

If Wednesday's audition was ungodly bad, Friday's filming was terrific! The casting director (from Orlando, FL, I believe) put out an urgent casting call for an older gentleman for the film: "Toy's House" (later renamed "Kings of Summer"). I sent pics and resume, and she told me to report Friday the 13th at a hospital in the east side of Cleveland. I had a scruffy beard, but she said to keep it -- but to bring a razor just in case.

I always check IMDB for info, and found that Megan Mullally was one of the actors. The scene would be in an elevator, and I fantasized how great it would be to be in a scene with Megan Mullally -- and in an elevator!

I talked with Rance Martin and Terry Wylie in holding, but Terry left shortly.

After five hours or so, I finally got wardrobe and make-up. I would be in a wheel chair, being pulled into the elevator.  Basically got a tee-shirt, hospital gown, robe and flip-flops. I met the nurse who would transport me, but unfortunately cannot recall her name. Then we were called to set about 8:30 PM (I got to holding and signed in at 1:30 PM, knowing I would be a little early). At set they gave me a [fake] IV for a drip and oxygen mask. Not too much of me will be seen.

So the scene goes a little bit like this: two younger actors go onboard the elevator, then the nurse pulls me in. The first time in I saw a cute woman with red hair -- it was Megan Mullally! Dreams come true!! The elevator didn't want to cooperate, however.

I can't say too much more, except that there were 12 takes. But we got it right eventually. It should be a very funny scene in the movie! While not grand, this is the type of work I enjoy doing -- at least for now.

Underdogs

Auditioned for "Underdogs" last Wednesday. A youth football feature filming in Canton, OH. Lillian Pyles just sighed when I walked in the door. Then she wanted to add about four or five new lines to the read (despite the fact that she sent me the scripts that very morning). "You can take a few minutes downstairs to learn them," she said.

I've been on sets (many times) when the actors don't know their lines after having had them a week. Just too busy, I guess. But five or ten minutes just isn't going to work for an old actor like me. I told her I learned the lines she sent me. "Okay fine, we'll go with what you have." Even at that, it threw the entire audition off. And she only let me read the lines once (it's been my experience that even bored casting directors generally allow for more).

I'm sure it was a waste of time for both of us.

NYC: I'm Back

After "Oz: The Great and Powerful," my next big adventure was "Boardwalk Empire," starring Steve Buscemi. Grant Wilfley Casting handles extras casting, and I routinely submit. GWC has a policy of hiring only from the Tri-State area (NY, NJ and CT), however, but I keep trying. My last gig with them was "Taking Chance," the story of Chance Phelps, killed in Iraq. He was brought back to Dubois, WY for burial, and my scene was the community memorial service in Dubois High School. A school in NJ stood in for Dubois, and actors were needed who looked like "Midwestern types." I fit the description.

I'm not sure if there was a criterion for "Boardwalk Empire." So far I have been in a speakeasy scene, and an awards ceremony in Enoch "Nucky" Thompson's Catholic Church. I can't say too much more until the episode aires. I was both in the congregation, and later reception. Sitting in church, cross-overs for the reception. The church, by the way, was in Brooklyn.

The speakeasy scene was even better - I sat right next to Nucky's table in the speakeasy. I do have at a small chance to be seen in the scene (but you can take nothing for granted in film and TV).

The Players Club next to Gramercy Park in Gramercy was the location. 

For my role, I bought the glasses at Mr. Fun's, but despite their incredibly low cost (about $3.00), they were very good for the period. I had my hair specially cut for authenticity, and it was re-cut on set by make-up ("We can't use Ohio haircuts here," I was told). My hair was then glued down with "cement." It was as stiff as a wire brush.

Back to the future...

I can see that I haven't posted very much on this account lately. Too much work! The new deal now is: "Oz: The Great and Powerful." Thirty-two days on set since October 1!

"Oz: The Great and Powerful"

Alas, I can't say much (if anything), about it, and it doesn't make its premiere until March 8, 2013. That's more than one year from now! I think I can say that I'm a member of a select group of background actors who have their own make-up artists, and these make-up artists are the very best in the world.

My own artist is Howard Berger, who won an Academy Award for "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005)." When he's super busy, I've been with Bob Kurtzman, Craig Reardon, Mike Mills, Ozzy Alvarez, David Dupuis, Toni G, Jonathan Shrover, Mark Landon and Greg Funk. They're all the best of the best!

The cast is terrific. Michelle Williams, Mila Kunis, James Franco--and more. And there will be Munchkins!

Wish I could post a pic of my character, but I don't even have one. This is one tight set. You will love it, though.

The set is in Michigan, north of Detroit. Can't wait to get back!

School and Fun

My own life is a bit dull. The acting gigs are great, but i'm still usually just background. "Real" actors and crew sometimes think of us as set furniture. So every once and again, I'll copy pages from the blogs of my wife and children. My wife, Joanne, is in Kenya now. She's an AAC whiz (augmentative speech for those who lack vocal capacity--and even some who cannot do signing). She is in Kenya to share her knowledge. Here is a recent post:

Tuesday was Sapling Trust day. One of the Sapling Trust teachers had asked me to come and observe her class of three young children with autism. I spent quite a bit of time with her, gave her a few basic suggestions for encouraging communication, but concluded that what would be the most beneficial would be to have an assistant to help manage the wide variety of behaviors.

I then spent nearly an hour with a deaf 21-year-old artist/computer geek who was having a bit of a problem finding the drawing program that wold allow him to open a file he had created. I offered a few suggestions and from then on he was always 3-4 steps ahead of me. Using his flash drive, he was able to transfer the program to the appropriate user area, complete the required registration, re-install it, and open his file to show me a his rendering of an apartment complex. He also enjoys drawing cars and copying and designing commercial logos.

In Eunice's class, the morning's focus was on singing about action words - washing and wiping in particular. Each child got a chance to "wash" a towel in a basin of soapy water. The lesson became even more functional after a large amount of water was spilled on the floor, and we began singing about the teacher washing and wiping the floor.

I walked a couple of long blocks to a busier intersection where I could hail a tuk-tuk to take me to the Nakumatt Nyali , where I exchanged about $40 in Tanzanian currency into Kenyan shillings and met Stephanie. We walked to her house, had a lunch of rice and curry, and caught a matatu to Haller Park.

Haller Park is a green urban sanctuary. There are trails, snake exhibits, a 3:00 PM giraffe feeding one can participate in, crocodile and hippo feedings to watch (check out the monkeys sneaking in for their share) and a huge whale made entirely from discarded flip-flops.

Back at the house, Stephanie's mother shared home remedies that have been passed down in her family - I'm looking forward to trying the the one for sleep.

Another calming walk on the beach. The views were even more breathtaking today. We were able to walk way out because of the neap tide. Neap tides are particularly weak tides that occur twice a month - during the first and 3rd quarter moons - when the sun and moon are at right angles to each other. The sun cancels out much of the moon's gravitational pull, resulting in smaller differences between high and low tides (Thank you wiki answers!).

Looking back toward land

Jack, the neighbor's dog, accompanied us on all
our beach ramblings.

Back at the house, we washed the sand off our feet and left our flip-flops outside to dry.

Big Mistake.

When Stephanie's parents were ready to leave for town, only one flip-flop could be found. The usual canine suspects were rounded up and the sand pits were surveyed, but no flip-flop could be found.

I did several small buckets full of laundry at the Poly. Everything dried quickly with the help of the powerful ceiling fan, except for the final load of three items (2 needed the next day), which I had pinned up just before storm - and power outage - hit at 2:15 AM. 

Have I mentioned that Mombasa is hot? The kind of hot where sweat pours down your face after just a minute or two outside? The kind of hot where being inside without a fan almost constitutes abuse? Luckily the rain brought an immediate drop in temperature, so the absence of the fan was tolerable.

You can read more here: AAC in East Africa

Plague: Last Episode for the Season

Yesterday was filming for the final episode of the season of Plague: The Diary of Ben McReady. The location was Aviation High School, near Burke Lakefront Airport. The high school is abandoned now, but provided a good set.

We arrived just after 8:00 AM. I signed Joanne and me up for make-up, but I was kicked off before completing my first zombie. I had applied the make-up far too thickly. But Joanne did a superlative job, and it was good she was there: with far more zombies than my last shoot, Joanne, Gwen and Chialla Geib was the entire make-up department, joined by others temporarily during the day.

I was one of their first victims. Gwen put the prosthetics on first. She found a recipe online for pouring liquid latex on a cookie sheet, then pressing in small pieces of tissue paper or cotton balls. After it dries, it can be painted with regular latex paint. These she applied directly, not prepping the skin first with clown white cream, as she had done for episode seven. The clown white was added later, and this was Joanne's station. Joanne also did shading on the eyes and a little spiderwork on the face. Chialla did this as well, although for me she applied liquid blood, pouring into my hands an supervising the application on my head, face and shirt. The result was pretty convincing.

I basically hung out most of rest of the morning, then participated in another student film being made at the same time. Then I noticed a crowd gathered around an interior door, intently watching some activity within. I went over. It was a choreographer teaching about 16 students the steps for Michael Jackson's Thriller. I tried to mimic the movements, little knowing that I would be enlisted later.

Finally, we were called for the major scene of the day. Our cars had been randomly placed in the parking lot when we arrived. For this scene, the zombies were randomly placed around the cars. On "action" we were to mill about, until a family tried to run through us to safety. As they ran through, we grabbed at them, taking two or three down. Then we feasted, as only zombies can feast.

After major filming, Wendall called for volunteers, or at least, that's what I thought he was calling. He then lined us up. I was soon to learn that I, too, would be dancing to Thriller. A couple of times I tried to escape, but Ern kept reassuring me that it would be fine. Fortunately, I was in the back. I hope I didn't mess things up too much. Otherwise it should be very good.

It was a very good day.