cheeky bastids -- feelin' a little persnickity

Just finished getting off the phone regarding a Mercy gig. Turns out as I suspected, that once they give your name in, whether they actually use you for the shot or not, you can't be used again.

If I had known that I would have never applied for this.

What I find interesting is how I met two people who are non-union who have worked on it twice, this past gig being their second time. How they got around that little rule I don't know. I've a feeling they did not get in there through Central. Who else could be casting for this, I wonder?

I know Central keeps a list as I was asked, and I didn't lie, I did state that while I was called for it, they never used me for the shoot, I was never in the scene. But apparently that didn't matter. I think I heard them say they'd get back to me regarding future gigs on this but I'm not sure it matters if that rule is in place.

I'm sure all rules have their reasons.

Meanwhile, watching Fringe. This is the show that's moving to Vancouver to film. All for a 16% tax credit.

It annoyed me hearing the head of the Silvercup Studios talk about New York City having a 'no cap' in order to 'stay competitive'. Okey-dokey. We are at 30%, plus 100% of any surplus goes back to the production company within the year they film, AND we have the Made in NY program that gives them an additional 5%. 35 plus percent is NOT competitive? How? How is Vancouver topping us?

And it's not like these film companies have to pay for permits in order to film -- permits are FREE! So WTF???!

Some of my fellow BG actors are not seeing the whole picture, just how it will affect them, which is understandable. Maybe I just tend to see the bigger picture in all this and know it's not that easy to just blame one person for everything going on in the city and the country. The days of knowing who the good and bad guy is have blurred considerably for many years.

Throughout this, I just went online and researched. Could not find one instance or shred of evidence of actual pullout or end of the tax credit -- just a lot of speculation on blogs and union articles and, I hate to say it, they were all doing a crying wolf.

I'm told I'm just missing the whole point. Hmm. We all know the tax credit isn't forever, just dedicated to the next several years, up to 2012, supposedly, according to the governor's site itself. There's no law set in stone that this goes on in perpetuity. The sense I get is "well, we'll see how it goes." Yet there's all this whipping people up in a frenzy. That's what worries me. It's like a bad social experiment. Anyone who disagrees or isn't caught up in the frenzy is deemed 'not getting it' or gets the 80's Molly Ringwald. You know, the eyes rolling over, mouth slightly open look.

To the business men -- you got your tax credit. Be nice and respectful of it. If you push too much, it could simply be pulled off the shelves altogether. Then what? Everyone goes to Vancouver or L.A and film a LOT of close up shots and use footage from a film library and CGI, baby! Like that won't cost a fortune. Yep it will.

worked National Geographic gig today

It was one of those magical days today. I checked my email and a colleague sent me an email alert that was looking for people for a gig today. I did not question it. I sent an email with my contact information and photo. After about an hour, I got confirmation on the gig over the phone. Got dressed, threw extra set of clothes and shoes in a bag, and flew out the door with my ID, bag and Metrocard to catch the train.

I only remembered as I got on the train that I forgot to bring my headshot with me. ULP!

I got there with ten minutes to spare and the lobby quickly gathered with some faces I knew, some I did not. We were greeted by the casting person who brought us all upstairs and we were brought to a nice little modern duplex upstairs, wall to ceiling glass and fancy filigreed gates that swung out to bring in more uninterrupted sun or views of the crowded older buildings that only New York City has.

We were soon filling out W-9's and being sent two by two to the filming area which was several floors down in the same building and then one by one we were given a situation that we had to act out for the therapist who was there to 'help' us work though our problem or situation.

I was delighted to do improv, and they let us go with it. I was the only one (and I asked prior before doing it) that displayed some emotional tinges. The rest were simply asking questions and relaying their story.

Afterwards, we did a closeup of our faces and then we said goodbye to the delighted crew who kept telling us we filmed so well, our segments went well, they seemed very satisfied. We were done in a couple of hours and got paid in cash upfront. Pretty awesome.

Left my information with the casting director as well as sent a thank you email to the agency that placed me. I also thanked a bunch of other people -- we are nothing without our networking and contacts to find that next gig.

CBS pilot - "Back"

It's a beautiful day today. I had a 5:30 AM call to play a tourist. I had to bring a prop (brought my digital camera) and a packed knapsack that had extra change of clothes and shoes just in case and managed to get there early. I almost doubted where I was going but made it after getting further confirmation from a fellow BG who happened to be having coffee in a shop nearby. It was dark when I left my home and it was dark when I arrived in Wall Street and the subsequent holding area which was a Chinese restaurant.

I checked in and managed to get my wardrobe approved then changed about when they saw I had options -- I was able to let an actor friend borrow my grey wool jacket since their jacket was deemed "too light" in color by wardrobe. I had not seen this actor friend in a long while so we caught up on things and hung out together for the bulk of the shoot, which was fun. Got to say hi to some of the regulars, although some were missed.

We filmed around Trinity Church, then we were told by the church's own security we had to move it along and so we moved, to another couple of blocks further down. Some lookee-loos were pretty nice and kept it moving after getting a glance, but some wanted to be in the scene and 'blend in with the extras' and thought they could just jump in and no one would be the wiser. One got uppity demanding to know why she couldn't be a part of it, and all I did was shake my head and say "please, no....no." And all she could say was why -- my actor friend was going to take the trouble to explain it, but if this visitor wanted to play tourist dumb, I was going to play along and break it down simple: "you need work visa -- take your work papers to that person over there (the PA) and see if they will let you work".

So it was pretty much walking back and forth as pedestrians as the actor Skeet Ulrich looked around, seemingly observant and looking all around him and the World Trade Center site. Skeet is not in any of these photos as we are not allowed to take pictures while filming. He didn't seem all that much taller than me and looked older than I thought he would. I don't know if it was makeup to look that way deliberately or that he's lived a pretty fast or harsh life in Hollywood. He's always presented as 'youthful' on camera. He recently did a series called Jericho on CBS, so perhaps they're looking for another star vehicle for him.

There was a lot of standing and walking in circles, which was rather funny. We got fed breakfast, a hot breakfast, but no lunch. We were let go around 1:30, 1:45, so there was no need to feed us a second meal. It was OK, I was grateful to take the brisk walk to the train station after changing out of my high heeled black leather boots and into my comfy F-UGGS, which is what I call my fake Uggs. Fuggs. *LOL*

In any case, except for the brisk wind that tends to come off the water down on Wall St., it was an otherwise nice and pretty day that ended blessedly early and well. Saw Meredith from Amerifilm Casting -- she was the one casting for this. I said hello and introduced myself to her -- as I had done on Hancock and when I met her at the Amerifilm open casting call over two years ago. She meets so many people, so it's not like she'll remember me. She was very nice to me.

Going to eat dinner. Just wanted to post this before falling asleep and forgetting!

Ohhhhh....Mercy Mercy Me

Worked one day on the NBC pilot called Mercy which is about three nurses working in a hospital. Why three, I wonder? You know, Charlie's Angels had three, Charmed had three, I just found that kind of curious, making a connection like that. Hmmm...

Anyway, today was pouring rain yet I made it to my bus to meet the transportation van that was going to take us to Jersey. When I got to the meeting place, there were already some background actors there waiting, and we huddled under one of the business canopies to stay out of the rain as best we could. Unfortunately, one of the background cluelessly blocked the door to the business we were standing by, and the irate owner came out to tell off the person. We couldn't blame the owner, the owner had no idea why six of us were hanging out in front of their store and an explanation was just too much of nothing to discuss.

I'm thinking a van is coming -- turns out it's a bus they rented, and we pile in. There's a toilet in the back, and I saw John, a fellow BG castmate from a Russian film we worked as background in, and we hugged and said hello.

I was really excited about the trip and when we got there, we filed out and went to holding within the hospital -- yes, a REAL hospital, but it was apparently empty -- there was a 'for rent' sign emblazoned on the side of the hospital building. So it was a little weird working in a place that obviously still looks much like a hospital within.

We picked up our vouchers and got checked by wardrobe in an orderly fashion. There wasn't a lot of us so things picked up quickly. I was one of 3 people who were marked as 'visitors' and yet we found ourselves NOT used. Can you believe it? They called all the other people to set, we were called to set, but they had us sit in a corner behind the camera, and so we just observed and sat quietly as they went through several takes.

Then it was over. We were sent back to holding. Then word filtered through that they were done for the day. It was barely 3 pm and the call was for 11 am this morning. I was surprised. I had assumed, wrongly, that just because we were a small pool of people, that we would all be used and featured. But we weren't. I then wondered if this was going to be like 'Damages' (Glenn Close show on FX) was -- that you only work one assignment and then can't be utilized for the rest of that season.

I saw the AFTRA rep there, it was the same rep as last time. Friendly guy, knows his stuff. But he was an omen that my suspicion might be on the mark.

I politely said hello and with the other woman who played a visitor, chatted and asked a few questions of him then took his card.

We waited about a half hour for the bus to come and take us back to NYC. I so wanted to ask the head PA about my concern about not being utilized but they work in mysterious ways and I am not to question.

So I dutifully head back to the bus with John who apparently wasn't used either even though he was in scrubs provided by wardrobe. I felt kind of guilty being paid for a gig I didn't even work, but I heard a couple of people were major late which may or may not have affected why the visitors weren't used. They had us sit behind the camera but sit in the room where the rest of the background was filming. At least I don't feel like a dope -- I wasn't the only one, so I can relax a little. I get home and the sun is doing its best to peer through the clouds. It's stopped raining. I check my emails and lo and behold I see a casting notice for Mercy, and a notation stating they're looking for people but you 'can't have worked it already'.

OH NO!!! AUGH!!!

Here is John looking spiffy in the scrubs provided by wardrobe. And to think, I own my own scrubs and brought them with me and showed to wardrobe. They hardly blinked and told me to stay in what I had on, that it was perfect for the 'visitor' role:

I decided to submit to it anyway. I made a notation in my submission for it -- "was submitted but was not used". Hopefully that won't be held against me. Weird. Meanwhile, another check came in from SALT -- deposited it. Pick up another check from another project next week. For now, I continue to hunt for more work while waiting for word on others.

Waxing Poetic on the late day call

After applying like four times to the same gig and date on four casting notices, I finally got the headsup -- got a phone call today and I called after 11 pm to find out the location/time details. YAYYYYYY it's not a 5 or 6 am report time! WOOHOOEEE!

Good news -- it's a late morning report call AND there will be transportation provided to take us to and from Jersey -- as long as we make sure to show up on time otherwise the van leaves without us and we're on our own to get to the site. I noted that the amount of extras was very small -- I think the first 20-25 are union, the other 25 are non. I like smaller shoots; less confusion, less time wasting, and easier to manueuver us to the next scene/shot.

That also means I may be featured. And I get to dress casual, blue-collar. No heels or dressy outfits that I have to will myself not to wrinkle, sweat in or spill anything on during a twelve hour gig. Goodygoody!

In the meantime, I found out two of my acting buddies will not be on this. I'm sad about that because I have so much fun with them and they make the waiting time between takes go faster. We exchange stories on the background lot, and make each other laugh and act as each other's sounding boards. Plus traveling in numbers is always good, security-wise.

I was planning on picking up a check I'm owed from another gig and to check out a voiceover seminar to audit but hey, when a new paying gig calls...gotta go to the gig, you know? Well, here's to the gig. Let's see how it goes. :-)

I'm excited!

In the meantime, I've submitted for a couple of commercials -- I'm confident and looking forward to more work.

bad news for the longest running soap opera

I'm posting this here as this is related to my work. This is one less show for actors to get work on.

CBS Cancels The Guiding Light
April 1, 2009
-By Marc Berman
Veteran CBS daytime soap The Guiding Light, the longest running daytime drama in the history of television, will broadcast its final episode on Friday, Sept. 18, 2009. The serial debuted in a 15-minute format on NBC radio on Jan. 25, 1937 and moved to CBS (airing concurrently on broadcast and radio) beginning on June 30, 1952. The radio show ended in 1956, and The Guiding Light ultimately expanded to 30-minutes in 1967.Ten years later it became a full daily hour. “Guiding Light has achieved a piece of television history that will never be matched; it has crossed mediums, adapted its stories to decades of social change and woven its way through generations of audiences like no other," said Nancy Tellem, President, CBS Paramount Network Television Entertainment Group. "This daytime icon will always be an indelible part of CBS's history, with a legacy of innovation and reputation for quality and excellence at every step of the way. While its presence will be missed, its contributions will always be celebrated and never be forgotten." There is no word at present what CBS will fill the weekday hour with.

Finally starting to see some of these shows

I'm ecstatic because I'm starting to see the debut of shows that I actually worked on. It's always exciting to see whether I will pop up or not on camera.

Cupid and Kings debuted. I was a little worried about Kings, where it's been said that the debut came up with miserable ratings. I am hoping things improve with that as I'm already liking the unfurling of the plots going on so far.

Cupid is a remake of a television show of the same name that starred Jeremy Piven, the guy that balked on doing the Mamet Speed the Plow on Broadway. Or puked, whatever, regarding mercury poisoning from his 'diet' of 'supplements' and impossibly LOTS AND LOTS OF sushi or fish.

Now back to the show. So Cupid, played now by Bobby Cannavale, is on Earth, being punished/expelled from Mount Olympus and has to put 100 couples together but it has to be TRUE LOVE for each couple in order to get back to Olympus. In the meantime, he meets cute with a psychiatrist played by Sara Paulson who I LOVED in the movie Down With Love. I guess it's not hard to figure out she's going to be his Psyche (she's a psychiatrist and human, get it?). Also, when she talks to him about Psyche, he says he has no idea about her, never heard of her. She reminds him he fell in love with Psyche, who was human, and that he even married her. Again he draws a blank. So that'll be ... cute.

I looked for myself during the New Year's scene in New York City which is in the beginning of the pilot. During this, a man takes some of the lighting during the countdown to 2009 and reconfigures it to read "I'm here Holly" in order to find a girl he spoke to briefly while working in a bar in Ireland. The girl was a tourist passing through but had made a strong impression on the young man who decided to take all his savings and buy a ticket to America to find her and Cupid helps him to do that. I won't give away the spoiler, but it ends cute, which I think might help this show as long as Bobby and Sara keep it from going too sugary.

For the New Year's scene, I recall it being filmed in Coney Island. They took a group of us to go to the rides, and the bulk of us stayed behind at some parking lot nearby, bundled up with our coats, scarves, hats and New Year's attire of balloons and hats, glasses and whistles, to ring in the New Year. We were told we would then be CGI'd to make a "huge crowd" in Times Square. Times Square would also be CGI'd in. What I found most interesting was the fact that it seems the show CGI'd the breath smoke that appears when one is out in the cold, talking. Since the weather was mild and still warm at the time of filming, we had to wear turtlenecks, boots, sweaters, coats, and pretend we were freezing. After pausing the video and slowing it down several times, I didn't see me. Oh well. The life of an extra.

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Kings has a whole Biblical and political theme about it and is very posh looking and dramatic. I would dare to say it's almost sudsy, like a nighttime soap opera. It's about this man who gets elected "King" (Ian McShane) and his family, along with a young modest soldier who happens to have saved the King's soldier son who had been captured on a brave overnight raid during the war that's going on and inadvertently gets sucked in to the political scene when he would rather go back to the battlefield where the rest of his comrades (and formerly his dad was) are fighting 'for the cause'.

I have yet to see the segments I was in, so I will continue to look out and enjoy the ride.