I think I'll be full for the next 2 days...
I thought I was doing really good yesterday, only putting a little on my plate, not having seconds, only a tiny sliver of dessert... Fail. I was so full I thought I would burst.
I love Thanksgiving!!
I also love shooting on movies! Monday and Tuesday were looong days, but a lot of fun. Monday, my call time was at 6am (bleh). I went and got my hair teased to the heavens and some lovely orangey-pink lipstick and I was on my way to set. The really cool thing was that all of the wardrobe was vintage and authentic 1962 clothing.
For the most part, it was just like filming on a TV show, except the hours were much longer. We were on set around 9:30 am and, though we had two 10 minute breaks, we didn't break for lunch until 4:30... sheesh.
Tuesday was more of the same, call time being at 8am and lunch again at 4:30. The good thing about working that long is all the bonus pay and overtime that will be on my paycheck!
While I was filming on Tuesday, I got a call for a fitting to be a 1950's housewife on the show Cold Case. If all goes well at the fitting, I'll be filming on Wednesday. As for the weekend, pretty much all the offices are closed and there isn't a whole lot of filming going on.
So, this weekend will be a nice, relaxing one... yay!
28 November 2008
23 November 2008
Episodes
This is what I know for now about the episodes I've filmed on...
Private Practice: The working title for the episode was "Acceptance". From what I can tell of the new titles, I think it will be the episode called "Know when to fold" which airs Dec 10th, but don't quote me on it!
Grey's Anatomy: I have no idea what the working title or the actual title was/is for the episode I'll be in. I do know it's the episode that Derek's mother comes to visit, so I'll keep an eye out for spoilers and hopefully have more info before the air date.
Lie to Me: That is not the actual name of the show, only the working title. They haven't released the title yet, so it might change. I'll listen for that and update. I know I filmed on the pilot, so once the show's name is released, that episode won't be hard to find!
Medium: I know I filmed on episode 9 or 10. They were doing a whole linking flashback thing between the episodes... But, Medium hasn't even started yet, so keep that on the back burner.
Will update as soon as I know anything!!
Private Practice: The working title for the episode was "Acceptance". From what I can tell of the new titles, I think it will be the episode called "Know when to fold" which airs Dec 10th, but don't quote me on it!
Grey's Anatomy: I have no idea what the working title or the actual title was/is for the episode I'll be in. I do know it's the episode that Derek's mother comes to visit, so I'll keep an eye out for spoilers and hopefully have more info before the air date.
Lie to Me: That is not the actual name of the show, only the working title. They haven't released the title yet, so it might change. I'll listen for that and update. I know I filmed on the pilot, so once the show's name is released, that episode won't be hard to find!
Medium: I know I filmed on episode 9 or 10. They were doing a whole linking flashback thing between the episodes... But, Medium hasn't even started yet, so keep that on the back burner.
Will update as soon as I know anything!!
Workin' it
Yesterday afternoon I got the call... this morning I got all the info... I got cast in A Single Man! Woohoo! I'm background in a college scene in the 1960's, like I said... and that's pretty much all I know!
I do know that I have to put my hair in rollers every morning before coming to set, so that's going to be HILARIOUS driving down the freeway at 5am! The only bad this is that we're filming at the Rose Bowl, which is in Pasadena... roughly an hour and a half away from me. Boooo! BUT the good news is that I'm going to bunk with Allison and Diane for the days that I"ll be filming because they live right next to Pasadena, in Monrovia. Sweet! So I won't have to get up at 3am and be out of the house by 4am *phew*
So, it's off to Target for hot rollers and pantyhose, then on to Monrovia!!
I do know that I have to put my hair in rollers every morning before coming to set, so that's going to be HILARIOUS driving down the freeway at 5am! The only bad this is that we're filming at the Rose Bowl, which is in Pasadena... roughly an hour and a half away from me. Boooo! BUT the good news is that I'm going to bunk with Allison and Diane for the days that I"ll be filming because they live right next to Pasadena, in Monrovia. Sweet! So I won't have to get up at 3am and be out of the house by 4am *phew*
So, it's off to Target for hot rollers and pantyhose, then on to Monrovia!!
19 November 2008
Here is a link to my Picasa web album with some of the headshots from yesterday. I'd love feedback if you have a moment!!
Thanks!
http://picasaweb.google.com/pwrovryou/Headshots17Nov?authkey=KJZlSjw6_f4#5270498170742687634
Thanks!
http://picasaweb.google.com/pwrovryou/Headshots17Nov?authkey=KJZlSjw6_f4#5270498170742687634
Belly up and settle in... This is going to be a long one...
What a week!
Of course, I could hardly sleep the night before, but Wednesday morning came, and I was up at 5:45am to get ready to head to set. Because traffic is so erratic here, I left an hour and a half early just in case anything happened on the roads. I have learned, however, to avoid the highway (especially the 405) at all costs most hours of the day. Trip and Marilynn told me a super secret back way to get to Raleigh Studios where PP films, so I was all set. I got to the studio a half an hour or so early and waited to be checked in by Ben, one of the AD's (I think). There is such a complex hierarchy on set that I don't know if I'll ever have it figured out!
Well, we went to wardrobe and got "wardrobed up" as they call it and then proceeded to sit around for 2 hours. Luckily, I brought a book! I chatted to a bit with a girl named Renee and another girl named LaShaun. Then, they got called to set, so it was just my book and me.
After another hour or so, the rest of the extras were called to set. I was a little nervous, not knowing what to expect, but I knew that as long as I could follow instructions, I'd be ok!
The secene was in the ER, and all I was told was "start here and by the time so and so crosses here, be in this spot."
Ok...
So the first couple times around were just rehearsal, so I walked (with purpose) around the set, trying to look important (too bad I was wearing pink capris, a pink polo and a purple smock. Hard to look important...). After the first 2 actual takes, I realised that I wasn't doing the exact same actions... uh oh. The number one key to being background is consistancy! DUH! Luckily, I hadn't changed my path (how and where I walked), I only added a stop at the desk in the middle of the room to pick up a file (very official, I know. I'm that good.) By the 4th take or so, I was zooming around the set, had my timing down pat and everything was going smoothly. Then, the 1st AD called for the shot to be "tighter". Now, in my theater trained brain, tighter means to pick up your cues, get the dead air out of the scene, etc. So what did I do? Walked faster, of course. After 2 takes of that, I realised I was the only one walking faster, and a take later still, I realised that tighter simply means they are zooming the camera in on the scene. Oops.
That lesson learned, we were sent to lunch.
After lunch, it was more of the same in a different scene. Except I knew not to walk faster, add actions or walk too loudly when the camera is rolling. Sheesh.
After the extras were wrapped, I called in and submitted myself for Grey's Anatomy, which filmed Wednesday. Within 10 minutes, I got a call back and was booked on Grey's! The only down part to being booked on these 2 shows is that I can't be back on the show for 30 days. They have to cycle out the faces, you know.
My call for Grey's on Thursday was 2:30 pm, so I was able to get some stuff done around the house and do some work for Marilynn. When I got there and checked in with the 2nd 2nd Asst. Director (I think!) I went to wardrobe and got my scrubs for the day (sooo comfy!) and then we were sent to lunch from 3 - 4! Whaaat?
We all sat around and weren't called to set until 7:30pm. Getting paid for sitting around is cool, but not when you sit around for 5 hours! Luckily, thanks to Marilynn's sage advice, I brought a camp chair with me, so I was at least comfortable while sitting around doing nothing. Renee was on set again, so we chatted more, but she ended up leaving early for another event.
When we finally got on set, Tyne Daly was there at a guest star (she's playing Derek's mother in the episode). I only really knew her as Mama Rose from the first broadway revival of Gypsy, but she's so much more than that, I was informed by one of the "talkers" on set. No, a talker is not a paid position in the filming process. Usually it's a fellow extra who can't, won't, doesn't EVER shut up between takes. If I didn't think I'd get in trouble, I would have run away screaming.
So, aside from the fact that it took 3 hours to film 4 minues of the particular scene we were working on,(I was in a couple different parts of the scene, so hopefully I won't be edited out entirely!) it was very similar to working on PP. Except, I actually watch Grey's... every week. It was a tiny bit surreal to be working in such close proximity to the actors I've been watching on TV for a year, but cool. The only time on set I thought my heart would fall out of my butt was when Denny Ducette (played by Jeffrey Dean Thomas) walked on set. If you don't watch Grey's, Denny was a patient in season 3. He and Izzy were engaged, but he died. It was completely heartbreaking, and she still loves him, and his ghost has been showing up the last couple episodes... weird. Other than that, pretty much the entire cast was on set and I never felt a twinge of "fan-itis". Of course, I've never been an autograph hound (who cares?) or a crazed fan of anyone. Of course, had it been Bernadette Peters on set, I probably would not have been able to breathe for the 3 hours we filmed.
We were supposed to be done filming by 9pm, so I booked myself on a show called "Lie to Me", which was filming its pilot on Friday. The call was for 5am, but I figured I'd be home and in bed by 10:30, right? Wrong. We weren't wrapped until 11:30 from Grey's, which meant I wasn't home and in bed until 1am. Not to mention, I'd agreed to bring a bike to set (I borrowed Marilynn's, and had to borrow Trip's Land Rover to put it in.). Luckily, by the time I got home, the call time had changed from 5am to 6:30am, which meant I didn't have to get up at 3:30 anymore!
In the morning, I hauled the bike out of the garage, pumped up the tires, wrestled it into the Land Rover, played musical cars to get out of the driveway, and headed down to Cal State Long Beach for filming. Let me tell you, 6am in CA is COLD. Luckily, the show takes place in DC in Autumn, so we had to wear pants, sweaters, scarves and coats. That was all fun and games until about 10:30am when it was 80 degrees. Even that wouldn't have been so bad if I was just cruising around the set on my bike (the breeze was heaven) but they 2nd AD had me at the top of a grassy hill, racing down it at the top of the scene. Again, not so bad (nice breeze going down) except for the part where production would call for the scene to be reset, and I had to take the bike back up the hill, but walking it up wasn't fast enough so I had to rocket propel myself back up the hill on the bike in a suede coat and wool scarf in southern California in 80 degree weather no less than 11 times.
...or maybe I just complain too much.
Either way, after that scene most of the extras (myself included) sat around for 4 hours before being wrapped right after lunch. Good times.
I spent the rest of the day doing a whole lot of nothing before peeling my contacts off of my eyes and going to bed about the same time as many toddlers.
Saturday morning I woke up, called the casting agencies and submitted myself for a rush call (a last minute replacement if someone goes home or doesn't show up to set) for the show "Medium". 15 or so minutes later, I got a call asking if I could go to set ASAP. So, I finished my Cheerios, gathered my business attire and headed to West Hollywood.
That was a nice easy day because all I had to do was ride a escalator in one shot, stand on a landing and talk to another extra for another shot, and cross a courtyard to sit at a table in the last shot. I ran into (not literally) a guy that I worked with on Grey's named Jerome, so we chatted and exchanged tips on casting agencies, headshots and biz stuff.
All in all, I got to set at 11, was wrapped at 3:30 and got paid for 8 hours of work. Wicked.
Monday, I had a fitting for a extra role in a feature film called "A Single Man". If they like me, I'll be hired for a 3 day call next week. Sweet! The hair girl loved my hair and the costumer seemed to have fun dressing me up to look like a 1960's preppy collegiate. Hopefully I'll get a call in the next few days if they want to hire me! Cross your fingers!
Yesterday, I finally had my headshots with Steven. They came out really well, and we are planning another shoot in a different location with different looks and hair. We also want to do a shoot on a trampoline, but the trouble is finding someone with a huge trampoline...
Some people have wondered, but so far my tattoo's have not been an issue. My turtle has been covered by shoes and if I don't have long sleeves on, I just put a flesh covered band-aid on my wrist. Only a fellow extra noticed the band-aid and asked about it. Tattoos are such a norm that it's really no big deal to have one or 7 of them. I did notice when I was on the Grey's set, that a couple of the actors have large, noticeable tattoos on their arms, which I'm guessing they CG out of the shot (if they're not wearing a lab coat). So, I'm not worried about Harvey holding me back from being an A-lister!
Of course, I could hardly sleep the night before, but Wednesday morning came, and I was up at 5:45am to get ready to head to set. Because traffic is so erratic here, I left an hour and a half early just in case anything happened on the roads. I have learned, however, to avoid the highway (especially the 405) at all costs most hours of the day. Trip and Marilynn told me a super secret back way to get to Raleigh Studios where PP films, so I was all set. I got to the studio a half an hour or so early and waited to be checked in by Ben, one of the AD's (I think). There is such a complex hierarchy on set that I don't know if I'll ever have it figured out!
Well, we went to wardrobe and got "wardrobed up" as they call it and then proceeded to sit around for 2 hours. Luckily, I brought a book! I chatted to a bit with a girl named Renee and another girl named LaShaun. Then, they got called to set, so it was just my book and me.
After another hour or so, the rest of the extras were called to set. I was a little nervous, not knowing what to expect, but I knew that as long as I could follow instructions, I'd be ok!
The secene was in the ER, and all I was told was "start here and by the time so and so crosses here, be in this spot."
Ok...
So the first couple times around were just rehearsal, so I walked (with purpose) around the set, trying to look important (too bad I was wearing pink capris, a pink polo and a purple smock. Hard to look important...). After the first 2 actual takes, I realised that I wasn't doing the exact same actions... uh oh. The number one key to being background is consistancy! DUH! Luckily, I hadn't changed my path (how and where I walked), I only added a stop at the desk in the middle of the room to pick up a file (very official, I know. I'm that good.) By the 4th take or so, I was zooming around the set, had my timing down pat and everything was going smoothly. Then, the 1st AD called for the shot to be "tighter". Now, in my theater trained brain, tighter means to pick up your cues, get the dead air out of the scene, etc. So what did I do? Walked faster, of course. After 2 takes of that, I realised I was the only one walking faster, and a take later still, I realised that tighter simply means they are zooming the camera in on the scene. Oops.
That lesson learned, we were sent to lunch.
After lunch, it was more of the same in a different scene. Except I knew not to walk faster, add actions or walk too loudly when the camera is rolling. Sheesh.
After the extras were wrapped, I called in and submitted myself for Grey's Anatomy, which filmed Wednesday. Within 10 minutes, I got a call back and was booked on Grey's! The only down part to being booked on these 2 shows is that I can't be back on the show for 30 days. They have to cycle out the faces, you know.
My call for Grey's on Thursday was 2:30 pm, so I was able to get some stuff done around the house and do some work for Marilynn. When I got there and checked in with the 2nd 2nd Asst. Director (I think!) I went to wardrobe and got my scrubs for the day (sooo comfy!) and then we were sent to lunch from 3 - 4! Whaaat?
We all sat around and weren't called to set until 7:30pm. Getting paid for sitting around is cool, but not when you sit around for 5 hours! Luckily, thanks to Marilynn's sage advice, I brought a camp chair with me, so I was at least comfortable while sitting around doing nothing. Renee was on set again, so we chatted more, but she ended up leaving early for another event.
When we finally got on set, Tyne Daly was there at a guest star (she's playing Derek's mother in the episode). I only really knew her as Mama Rose from the first broadway revival of Gypsy, but she's so much more than that, I was informed by one of the "talkers" on set. No, a talker is not a paid position in the filming process. Usually it's a fellow extra who can't, won't, doesn't EVER shut up between takes. If I didn't think I'd get in trouble, I would have run away screaming.
So, aside from the fact that it took 3 hours to film 4 minues of the particular scene we were working on,(I was in a couple different parts of the scene, so hopefully I won't be edited out entirely!) it was very similar to working on PP. Except, I actually watch Grey's... every week. It was a tiny bit surreal to be working in such close proximity to the actors I've been watching on TV for a year, but cool. The only time on set I thought my heart would fall out of my butt was when Denny Ducette (played by Jeffrey Dean Thomas) walked on set. If you don't watch Grey's, Denny was a patient in season 3. He and Izzy were engaged, but he died. It was completely heartbreaking, and she still loves him, and his ghost has been showing up the last couple episodes... weird. Other than that, pretty much the entire cast was on set and I never felt a twinge of "fan-itis". Of course, I've never been an autograph hound (who cares?) or a crazed fan of anyone. Of course, had it been Bernadette Peters on set, I probably would not have been able to breathe for the 3 hours we filmed.
We were supposed to be done filming by 9pm, so I booked myself on a show called "Lie to Me", which was filming its pilot on Friday. The call was for 5am, but I figured I'd be home and in bed by 10:30, right? Wrong. We weren't wrapped until 11:30 from Grey's, which meant I wasn't home and in bed until 1am. Not to mention, I'd agreed to bring a bike to set (I borrowed Marilynn's, and had to borrow Trip's Land Rover to put it in.). Luckily, by the time I got home, the call time had changed from 5am to 6:30am, which meant I didn't have to get up at 3:30 anymore!
In the morning, I hauled the bike out of the garage, pumped up the tires, wrestled it into the Land Rover, played musical cars to get out of the driveway, and headed down to Cal State Long Beach for filming. Let me tell you, 6am in CA is COLD. Luckily, the show takes place in DC in Autumn, so we had to wear pants, sweaters, scarves and coats. That was all fun and games until about 10:30am when it was 80 degrees. Even that wouldn't have been so bad if I was just cruising around the set on my bike (the breeze was heaven) but they 2nd AD had me at the top of a grassy hill, racing down it at the top of the scene. Again, not so bad (nice breeze going down) except for the part where production would call for the scene to be reset, and I had to take the bike back up the hill, but walking it up wasn't fast enough so I had to rocket propel myself back up the hill on the bike in a suede coat and wool scarf in southern California in 80 degree weather no less than 11 times.
...or maybe I just complain too much.
Either way, after that scene most of the extras (myself included) sat around for 4 hours before being wrapped right after lunch. Good times.
I spent the rest of the day doing a whole lot of nothing before peeling my contacts off of my eyes and going to bed about the same time as many toddlers.
Saturday morning I woke up, called the casting agencies and submitted myself for a rush call (a last minute replacement if someone goes home or doesn't show up to set) for the show "Medium". 15 or so minutes later, I got a call asking if I could go to set ASAP. So, I finished my Cheerios, gathered my business attire and headed to West Hollywood.
That was a nice easy day because all I had to do was ride a escalator in one shot, stand on a landing and talk to another extra for another shot, and cross a courtyard to sit at a table in the last shot. I ran into (not literally) a guy that I worked with on Grey's named Jerome, so we chatted and exchanged tips on casting agencies, headshots and biz stuff.
All in all, I got to set at 11, was wrapped at 3:30 and got paid for 8 hours of work. Wicked.
Monday, I had a fitting for a extra role in a feature film called "A Single Man". If they like me, I'll be hired for a 3 day call next week. Sweet! The hair girl loved my hair and the costumer seemed to have fun dressing me up to look like a 1960's preppy collegiate. Hopefully I'll get a call in the next few days if they want to hire me! Cross your fingers!
Yesterday, I finally had my headshots with Steven. They came out really well, and we are planning another shoot in a different location with different looks and hair. We also want to do a shoot on a trampoline, but the trouble is finding someone with a huge trampoline...
Some people have wondered, but so far my tattoo's have not been an issue. My turtle has been covered by shoes and if I don't have long sleeves on, I just put a flesh covered band-aid on my wrist. Only a fellow extra noticed the band-aid and asked about it. Tattoos are such a norm that it's really no big deal to have one or 7 of them. I did notice when I was on the Grey's set, that a couple of the actors have large, noticeable tattoos on their arms, which I'm guessing they CG out of the shot (if they're not wearing a lab coat). So, I'm not worried about Harvey holding me back from being an A-lister!
11 November 2008
Off to a good start!
Well, I made all of the appropriate calls to the casting agencies today... to no avail! There were a couple roles I could have put in for, but nothing that I was exactly right for. For example, I was a little too old for one role, not blonde for another one. It's a bummer when you fit most of the criteria, except for one detail. Sure, I could have submitted myself for consideration, but I decided not to. So many people submit themselves for roles that they are "mostly" right for and the casting directors get really upset because it wastes their time too look at people who don't fit exactly what they're looking to cast. Understandable.
Turns out it's a good thing I didn't submit for anything because about an hour ago, I got a call from Jeff Olan Casting wanting to know if I'm available to film on the set of Private Practice tomorrow!
Heck yeah, I am! I was supposed to have my headshots done, but I called Steven and he said we could do it Saturday, and besides, he scratched his eye today and is feeling pretty miserable. Poor guy.
So, all I know right now is that I'm going to be in two scenes as a candy striper. I think I'll be wearing scrubs, but I'm not sure. The casting lady gave me a number to call after 8pm to get the rest of the details. Hopefully at least one of the scenes I'm in will make the final production cut!
All in all, I'm embarrassingly excited!
Wouldn't you be? ;oP
Turns out it's a good thing I didn't submit for anything because about an hour ago, I got a call from Jeff Olan Casting wanting to know if I'm available to film on the set of Private Practice tomorrow!
Heck yeah, I am! I was supposed to have my headshots done, but I called Steven and he said we could do it Saturday, and besides, he scratched his eye today and is feeling pretty miserable. Poor guy.
So, all I know right now is that I'm going to be in two scenes as a candy striper. I think I'll be wearing scrubs, but I'm not sure. The casting lady gave me a number to call after 8pm to get the rest of the details. Hopefully at least one of the scenes I'm in will make the final production cut!
All in all, I'm embarrassingly excited!
Wouldn't you be? ;oP
Starting the slow climb
Yesterday was a long, yet productive day. I got up fairly early and got ready to head out to submit myself to casting agencies.
For those who don't know (I only just learned this myself) casting agencies book background actors ("extras") for TV shows, movies and commercials. This is not the same as having an agent, however. Basically the way it works is, I call the hotline and if there are any jobs that match my character description (18-28 caucasian female, etc) then I call the number provided and submit myself for the casting. A casting director then reviews my file, along with every other submission and chooses from that list who he/she wants to cast for the show. These are not speaking roles or anything. These are the random people you see milling about, taking up space in the backgroung of scenes. Nonetheless, they are paid roles, so that's a good thing!
So, I left the house a little before 10 yesterday morning and made my way up to Burbank to the first agency on my list, "Central Casting". They are one of, if not the biggest casting agencies in L.A., so naturally everybody and their third cousin registers with them. They are only open for registration for one hour Mon, Wed and Fri for the non union actors, like myself. Well, after driving around looking for parking for half an hour (not kidding), I got in line with the 200 other people waiting to register. Like a smartie, I had my paperwork filled out beforehand, so I didn't have to wait in an additional line. It took about an hour and 40 min to get thru the line, in which time I chatted with the people around me, gleaned some good info from them, and exchanged email addresses with a lawyer-turned-part-time-soon-to-be-full-time-actor, Michael.
After my paperwork was reviewed and stamped, I was sent over to have my picture taken for the casting database. They do accept headshots, but apparently casting directors prefer to see on-the-spot digital pictures (and sometimes even polariods. ew.). Again, like a smartie (and with good advice from Marilynn) I wore a cute lacy tanktop and also brought a business-like jacket and my glasses with me so I could have 2 pictures taken, offering 2 different "looks".
After Central, I headed to Jeff Olan Casting in Sherman Oaks. Thinking I would be there for another hour or more, if it was anything like Central, I put 4 quarters in the meter (which is an hour's worth of time). Wouldn't you know, I was in and out of there in 13 minutes!!! Paperwork, picture and out the door! What a waste of $.75!
Grumbling about the injustice of it all, I got in my car and headed to West Hollywood (on Sunset Blvd, even!) to the third and final casting agency of the day; Prime Casting. Again, I spent less than 20 minutes registering and being photographed, but this time I was lucky enough to find parking in an Office Depot parking lot less than a block away.
So, one step closer and $95 poorer on my path to fame, I felt quite satisfied with my accomplishments thus far in the day, and I headed down to Culver City to meet Josh's dad, Mike for lunch. He flies for SkyWest, had a wicked long layover in L.A., so we met and had lunch at Islands Restaurant, chatted for a bit and then he headed off for the airport, and I headed home.
For dinner, I met up with my friend, Steven, at the P.F. Chang's at the Third Streer Promenade in Santa Monica. Steven is a good friend of mine from VA and an amazing photographer. He'll be doing my headshots tomorrow, so we discussed looks and hair, etc for the shoot. The best part was the free dinner we got because Steven works at PF's and his manager comp'd our whole meal! Sweet!
For those who don't know (I only just learned this myself) casting agencies book background actors ("extras") for TV shows, movies and commercials. This is not the same as having an agent, however. Basically the way it works is, I call the hotline and if there are any jobs that match my character description (18-28 caucasian female, etc) then I call the number provided and submit myself for the casting. A casting director then reviews my file, along with every other submission and chooses from that list who he/she wants to cast for the show. These are not speaking roles or anything. These are the random people you see milling about, taking up space in the backgroung of scenes. Nonetheless, they are paid roles, so that's a good thing!
So, I left the house a little before 10 yesterday morning and made my way up to Burbank to the first agency on my list, "Central Casting". They are one of, if not the biggest casting agencies in L.A., so naturally everybody and their third cousin registers with them. They are only open for registration for one hour Mon, Wed and Fri for the non union actors, like myself. Well, after driving around looking for parking for half an hour (not kidding), I got in line with the 200 other people waiting to register. Like a smartie, I had my paperwork filled out beforehand, so I didn't have to wait in an additional line. It took about an hour and 40 min to get thru the line, in which time I chatted with the people around me, gleaned some good info from them, and exchanged email addresses with a lawyer-turned-part-time-soon-to-be-full-time-actor, Michael.
After my paperwork was reviewed and stamped, I was sent over to have my picture taken for the casting database. They do accept headshots, but apparently casting directors prefer to see on-the-spot digital pictures (and sometimes even polariods. ew.). Again, like a smartie (and with good advice from Marilynn) I wore a cute lacy tanktop and also brought a business-like jacket and my glasses with me so I could have 2 pictures taken, offering 2 different "looks".
After Central, I headed to Jeff Olan Casting in Sherman Oaks. Thinking I would be there for another hour or more, if it was anything like Central, I put 4 quarters in the meter (which is an hour's worth of time). Wouldn't you know, I was in and out of there in 13 minutes!!! Paperwork, picture and out the door! What a waste of $.75!
Grumbling about the injustice of it all, I got in my car and headed to West Hollywood (on Sunset Blvd, even!) to the third and final casting agency of the day; Prime Casting. Again, I spent less than 20 minutes registering and being photographed, but this time I was lucky enough to find parking in an Office Depot parking lot less than a block away.
So, one step closer and $95 poorer on my path to fame, I felt quite satisfied with my accomplishments thus far in the day, and I headed down to Culver City to meet Josh's dad, Mike for lunch. He flies for SkyWest, had a wicked long layover in L.A., so we met and had lunch at Islands Restaurant, chatted for a bit and then he headed off for the airport, and I headed home.
For dinner, I met up with my friend, Steven, at the P.F. Chang's at the Third Streer Promenade in Santa Monica. Steven is a good friend of mine from VA and an amazing photographer. He'll be doing my headshots tomorrow, so we discussed looks and hair, etc for the shoot. The best part was the free dinner we got because Steven works at PF's and his manager comp'd our whole meal! Sweet!
06 November 2008
Halloween pictures!
The 20 Minute Geisha...
Amelia Earhart...
and a Genie...
Amelia Earhart...
and a Genie...
I know that sounds like the beginning of a joke, but sadly, it isn't.
These are the fantasmic costumes of myself, Allison and Diane at Diane's parents Halloween dinner.
These are the fantasmic costumes of myself, Allison and Diane at Diane's parents Halloween dinner.
01 November 2008
It begins...
I can't say that it's really sunk in yet that I live here.
I live in LA.
Weird. I feel like I worked forever to get here and when the time finally came, it was over so fast. The trip flew by (partly thanks to the 80 mph speed limit on I-10 in Texas and New Mexico!); most of my things are unpacked and put away; I know how to get around to the basic places I need (the beach, grocery store, airport, beach, etc...). It's all so in my face but still so surreal.
On Monday, I'll start work as my cousin Marilynn's assistant. I'll also call my friend Steven to arrange my headshots, register my name on every casting and background site, check out commercial acting and improv classes, search for an agent and an acting coach... Thus begins the long, arduous process of becoming an A-lister.
I met a woman at one of 2 Halloween parties I went to yesterday (more later) and she asked me what I moved to L.A. for, and before I thought about my reply, an answer flew out of my mouth that surprised us both. Normally, when people ask me why I decided to move to L.A., or what I'll be doing here, I have a long, drawn-out answer about acting, etc. This time my answer was simply, "To become famous".
Easy, right?
We'll see!
Yesterday, Marilynn and I spent most of the day running errands while she showed me all the hot spots in town (namely Michaels, Costco and Home Depot). In the afternoon, we headed to a pumpkin carving party with some friends of hers in a ridiculously swanky house. I snacked and chatted a bit there before heading over to Allison and Diane's house to get ready to go to another party (see? I'm already living the life!).
Allison made me into what we like to call "the 20 minute Geisha" (pictures to follow) and we headed to Diane's parent's house for a scrumptious Halloween dinner. I got to meet all if Diane's family and walk the craziest decorated street I've ever seen! Allison dressed as Amelia Earhart and Diane was a genie (complete with an authentic turban that Allison tied on Diane's head after watching a how-to video on youtube).
After dinner, and before we all slipped into a food coma, Allison, Diane and I headed back to their house to watch "Nightmare Before Christmas" until we all passed out.
I love Halloween.
I live in LA.
Weird. I feel like I worked forever to get here and when the time finally came, it was over so fast. The trip flew by (partly thanks to the 80 mph speed limit on I-10 in Texas and New Mexico!); most of my things are unpacked and put away; I know how to get around to the basic places I need (the beach, grocery store, airport, beach, etc...). It's all so in my face but still so surreal.
On Monday, I'll start work as my cousin Marilynn's assistant. I'll also call my friend Steven to arrange my headshots, register my name on every casting and background site, check out commercial acting and improv classes, search for an agent and an acting coach... Thus begins the long, arduous process of becoming an A-lister.
I met a woman at one of 2 Halloween parties I went to yesterday (more later) and she asked me what I moved to L.A. for, and before I thought about my reply, an answer flew out of my mouth that surprised us both. Normally, when people ask me why I decided to move to L.A., or what I'll be doing here, I have a long, drawn-out answer about acting, etc. This time my answer was simply, "To become famous".
Easy, right?
We'll see!
Yesterday, Marilynn and I spent most of the day running errands while she showed me all the hot spots in town (namely Michaels, Costco and Home Depot). In the afternoon, we headed to a pumpkin carving party with some friends of hers in a ridiculously swanky house. I snacked and chatted a bit there before heading over to Allison and Diane's house to get ready to go to another party (see? I'm already living the life!).
Allison made me into what we like to call "the 20 minute Geisha" (pictures to follow) and we headed to Diane's parent's house for a scrumptious Halloween dinner. I got to meet all if Diane's family and walk the craziest decorated street I've ever seen! Allison dressed as Amelia Earhart and Diane was a genie (complete with an authentic turban that Allison tied on Diane's head after watching a how-to video on youtube).
After dinner, and before we all slipped into a food coma, Allison, Diane and I headed back to their house to watch "Nightmare Before Christmas" until we all passed out.
I love Halloween.
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