Well, This Should Be Interesting....

To our Cast,

As per our conversation today, in Episode xxx, [redacted] will be recreating a dust storm. The Special Effects Department will be using FX Dirt which is considered the safest product available. Even though the material is non-hazardous and non-toxic, it can still be irritating to the eyes, nose and throat. Anyone with a history of asthma or other respiratory limitations should advise the production office. The FX Dirt will be used well within the the regulatory permissible exposure limits for nusiance particulates. A representative from Ellis Environmental, an outside testing company, will be on set during the heavy dust days monitoring the air to maintain a safe and healthful work environment.

[redacted] has blocked the scenes to minimize your exposure to this effect. We will be using stunt doubles in wide shots and only bring you in for closer shots. Our medic will be equipped with all materials to deal with this type of effect including having a portable eye wash station on set. If you experience any discomfort, please notify production or see the medic immediately. Attached please find the Material Safety Data Sheet for the FX Dirt.

All's Well That Ends Well

I am trying my first mobile blog post.

Am on the set of [redacted], and just heard that 11th hour is a go.
The two productions were nice enough to find a work around. Yowza!

This has been some crazy week, and it's only Thursday...

Insanity!

When it rains, it pours. I can't believe this is happening.

It turns out the reason the sure-thing callback for 11th Hour didn't materialize is that they were casting straight from tape.

And this afternoon I found out I was their choice, pending network approval.

And tonight I found out WE GOT THE OFFER! TWO BOOKINGS IN TWO DAYS!

And?.......

And there's a conflict with my shoot on [Redacted]. The 11th Hour gig, originally set to shoot only one day (on the 18th), now has an additional day of work (this coming Friday) which overlaps with a "hold" day for my current shoot.

Unbelievable.

So now my agent and manager have huddled and are going to try to finesse the situation with both production crews in the hopes that i won't have to turn down the second job.

I'm overjoyed, freaking out, stressing, and on pins and needles all at the same time. Won't know until sometime tomorrow if I can keep the second job, but when I know, I'll post it here.

Crazy, right?

Did You Ever Know That You're on "[redacted]"?

BOOKED IT!

My producer's session yesterday rocked. I am officially shooting a large co-star on [redacted] later this week! I found out last night that I was "their choice", as they say, and the deal was worked out today.

There is not a lot of room for negotiation on the compensation for what is, at the end of the day, a small but challenging role. But the casting office ([redacted]) is notoriously difficult to meet with and/or make an impression on, so this is a great victory—they are one of the better offices in LA and they cast a lot of stuff.

In deference to the show's producers, I'm not saying anything more about the role because they really are super-secretive.

Here's the bonus:with all the residual confidence from last night's session, I went in early this morning (9:15am!) for a nice role on a new CBS show, 11th hour, with Rufus Sewell. It felt like I nailed it—we'll see if anything transpires.

Suffice to say, things are picking up a little speed out here, and that's a huge relief. We can only hope they continue to do so, and aren't derailed by Alan Rosenberg's ridiculous lawsuit against SAG which was filed yesterday. Seriously, could someone give him his meds already? The guy is clearly delusional.

Catching Up

In Brief:

• The same casting director who cast me as the co-star videographer on Lie To Me called me in for a sweet guest-starring role on The Unit. I was to play a dickish father who selfishly puts others in danger during a chlorine gas leak situation. An amazing part with a great arc. Great audition, made it to producers, did not book the role. But this office clearly likes me, so that's good
• Was also called in for a comic role ("Kevin James type"—aka the King of Queens) on a new comedy, Better Off Ted. Felt I had to make a strong choice, and did. Showed up to the audition to see a room full of guys who actually look like Kevin James (i.e., blue collar, balding, 300 lb. types). Realized halfway through the audition that my strong choice was not remotely funny to the casting directors. They were very sweet, but I tanked. Oh well. It's gonna happen. I didn't lose my cool, and I didn't apologize. Sitcoms are just not going to be my strong point
• Took Jody to Sundance for a belated surprise birthday weekend. Saw nine films in three days. Two of them sucked, one was so-so, three were very good, and three were breathtaking. Not a bad batting average. Park City was beautiful and amazing—I really want to ski there now. Bonus points: The entire trip is a write-off for me! Keep your eyes open in the future for Amreeka, Afghan Star, and Mary and Max.
• Lastly, saw the premiere tonight of Loving Leah, the Hallmark TV movie I shot in September with Lauren Ambrose. On the down side, most of my scene (originally about 3 minutes) was cut. Or "slashed" is perhaps the better word. Down to about 10 seconds! On the good side, I am still in the movie, and when I appeared onscreen, the entire theater cracked up. The sight gag is that good. Bonus points: the director apologized, said the decision to cut came from Hallmark (they were afraid it might offend). He's going to try to get me the whole scene for my reel. Yay! Loving Leah airs Sunday night on CBS at 9pm eastern. Reprising my Law and Order success of a few years ago (Bible Story), I once again play an orthodox jew. But this time I'm actually a rabbi:

LIE TO ME, Part II

Okay. Since I now know that two or three of you are actually reading this (Hi, CMB!), I'll dish the goods.

The reason I was bummed for the latter part of the Lie To Me booking involves the actual shooting of my scene.

As I discussed at length a couple years ago, and a bit in the former Lie To Me post as well, co-star roles are less about the acting and more about the plot advancement.

So after two days of hanging around on a shoot that seemed perpetually behind schedule (but aren't they always?), we got to my scene on the third day. I played a videographer who is reluctant to turn over a tape from the wedding because he wants to try to profit from selling it to someone. It was a fine little role, one that I thought I'd nailed at the audition, and I was prepared to have my small but fun moment in the sun as we wound down the third day. "Character" is too strong a word for a 4-line part, but nonetheless, I'd figured one out—a guy who was understated and crafty and quietly steaming at the situation. It got me the part, and I was planning to stay true to my choices for that reason alone—maybe flesh the dude out a little, but generally stick to what had worked.

It was not to be.

We got set up for the scene. The director came in, looked at lighting, looked at getting the shot set. Pretty much ignored me and the other guys in the scene. Did not even introduce himself, which I guess is not that unusual, except I'm used to at least getting a handshake. The first AD put us on some marks, and we got ready to go.

Fine, so far, so good. I don't need to have my hand held.

We do a rehearsal. The director come over, says to me, "no no no no no. Much bigger, much more BLUSTERY. He's waving his arms around. This guy's a tough New Yorker, he's basically losing his temper in this scene....Alllllllright, let's SHOOT IT!"

Now, I know it's my job to take the note and turn on a dime. And I really had no problem with his direction. It was a very different take on the scene, but it was a perfectly reasonable one and I could see how it would go that way. And he's got to make the story work for him, so it's his call.

But I would have liked maybe ONE more rehearsal. Because going from "understated seething guy" to "blustery arm waving guy with an accent" is more than a little pivot. It's a shift. And on camera, the way everything gets magnified, if I don't do it very specifically and precisely, it's going to come out like a bad Pacino impersonation. So I'd have liked a moment to recalibrate.

But there was no moment to be had. We immediately ran through about 8 takes. The new guy landed in my body somewhere around the 4th one and felt pretty good and organic after that. Ahh, but by then we were no longer on my coverage. So my best crack at this dude was during the scenes where the focus was elsewhere; and my most hamhanded attempts at him were the ones where the camera was on me.

I dunno, it might be fine. But it kind of felt like ass. And it reminded me, once again, why I prefer to do roles that get a little talk time with the director instead of these fly-by scenes.

If, when it airs, there's a lot of editing around me (shots of my hands, shots of the extras while I'm talking), now you'll know why.

LIE TO ME, Part I

So, I booked my first role since the move. Yay!

It's a co-star on a mid-season replacement on FOX called Lie To Me starring Tim Roth. The show is about a group of behavioral doctors, etc., who solve cases by reading "microexpressions" in people's faces which indicate that they're lying. I watched a promo for it, and I actually think it's going to be a really good show.

I'm a little bummed to be back in co-star land, but am happy for the work. And the main thing is that I got in to see a casting director who I met two years ago, and she really liked what I did, took some time to get reacquainted with me, and called me in the next day for a much larger guest star on a different series. Actually, a Mossad agent, which would have been incredibly fun. But she decided I was too young, told me she'd definitely use me in the future, and in the meantime, did I want to play the original role I came in for? Which was Videographer #1 at a Korean wedding. And having hardly even auditioned all fall (it's been deadly quiet), I was happy for the job.

The shoot was most of last week. This post is about the first couple of days, which were wonderful and bizarre. The main action at the beginning of the episode takes place at the wedding of the son of a Korean ambassador—a huge, opulent affair. Most of the other co-starring roles were Korean-American actors (or other asian types who were playing Korean-American). Plus there were about 250 extras (or "atmosphere" as they are called here), by far the most I've ever worked with on a set before. The extras were about 3/4 asian, 1/4 caucasian. There were guests, waiters, other videographers, photographers, secret service people, the wedding party, a group of traditional korean fan dancers.....and of course about 40-50 crew. Madness!

It was fascinating. First of all, I was hanging out with the other co-star types. The Korean guys all pretty much knew each other and what kind of work each had done lately. Many of them had appeared together before, on numerous occasions. I realized that as a subset of all LA actors, the Korean acting community must be pretty tight. There were animated discussions about the script, which dealt with "microexpressions" of behavior but with a Korean twist (i.e., one character had to betray his inner feelings by not bowing deferentially enough....a tip-off to the resentment he's feeling. The actor playing the role was debating how low he should bow so as to show the microexpression, yet not be too obvious). At one point the episode's author writer came over and said he'd read that Koreans never showed disgust as an expression; the actors all cried in unison, "unless he's drunk!"...indicating to me that this must be a commonly accepted fact in Korean culture. Again, fascinating stuff.

Looking around the wedding reception, I saw many older actors (which is right for a wedding, yes?), including an entire table of extras of what I guessed to be Indian descent. They were wearing saris and seemed completely out of place compared to the rest of the room! I found myself wondering what in the world they were doing there, and decided that the ambassador must have colleagues at the embassy who he invites to his son's wedding or whatever.

All in all, it was a great couple of days shooting the wedding scene. The kind of stuff I love about shoots: meeting a bunch of talented and very diverse people, figuring out how to make the scene consistent but fresh for each take, having fun imagining what the actual wedding would have been like.

Alas, Part II of the shoot was not as great. But more on that in my next post....