So I had been out in my garage having ye old garage sale this morning (after all, the whole neighborhood was doing it…okay, well, maybe six families…). Anyway, I came inside for a potty break and my husband hands me the phone. "Hello?" I say. "Hello, Cassandra. My name is Mike Walsh and I’m a casting agent in New York. I got your info off your IndianaActors.com website and your ExploreTalent.com profile. And I gotta say, I’m really impressed with your stuff."
Flabbergasted, I said an excited "Thank you" and he continued on to ask me if this were a good time to talk with him (yeah, who wouldn’t make time if a casting agent from New York called). I said yes, and then he went on to explain about how he was looking for someone with an "expressive sneeze". Yes, I laughed too.
After a little bit of explaining about how they were looking for talent to be in a new allergy medication advertisement in the next 3-6 months, he wanted to know if I would sneeze for him – for real – no pretending. I said I would try, and he told me to go grab some pepper and go to a room where I could concentrate. So I grabbed a palm full of fresh ground pepper and headed up to the bathroom.
He proceeded to tell me to take a pinch of pepper and breath it in and then give him a play-by-play of how it tickled and how close I was to sneezing (presumably so he knew when to record it on his end). So I inhaled the pepper and waited for the inevitable. Well, I didn’t sneeze right away as I had expected. So I took another pinch and breathed it in the other side. Still no sneeze, but boy was my nose burning now.
So here I am, trying to make a good impression on a casting agent from NY and I can’t even sneeze when presented with quite a bit of pepper. Just a bit embarrassing…. Meanwhile, my eyes are watering, I’m trying desperately to breathe and my nose starts running like crazy.
Here’s where it gets a bit gross. So he’s trying to coach me on getting myself to sneeze and he says to grab a Q-tip or bobby pin and stick it up there where it tickles to try and move the process along. So I grab a Q-tip and proceed to tickle the inside on my nose which is running even more now, but still no sneeze. Then he tells me to start telling myself I have to sneeze and to try breathing in short bursts like when you go, "Ah…ahh…ahhhchoo!" So I give it a go, and according to my husband, it sounded like I was having a, well, shall we say, a re-enactment of that restaurant scene in "When Harry Met Sally."
Still trying to get me to sneeze (and being very patient with me the whole time), this casting agent says to try a toothpick and gently touch upon that tickle spot. I was very skeptical about inserting a toothpick up my nose, but I was willing to try anything at this point (says a lot about me, eh?). This got me a lot closer to sneezing, but still not close enough. After another minute of trying (and him being on the phone with me for at least 5 minutes now), he politely gave up waiting, saying that he has run into this with other talent being unable to sneeze. He said that he might try me back in a couple of days, but I’m not holding my breath, so to speak.
In hindsight, I see a couple of flaws in my methodology. One was that I used freshly ground pepper -- not the pre-processed packaged pepper that has all kinds of "allowable" non-pepper mass (like dust and other things I won’t mention) that is very likely to make a person sneeze. Another flaw may have been that I tried too hard and inhaled too much – instead of just enough to tickle my nose hairs. Perhaps next time, I should just go downstairs in our finished basement and start dusting… ;p
So 6 hours after his call, I still have not sneezed. And I was kind of wondering -- does anyone have any remedies for getting pepper out of my sinuses? Holy cats do I have a headache… ;p
Saturday, August 29, 2009
Friday, August 7, 2009
To be, or not to be...a real "Soccer mom"
Today, I had my first audition for a national print ad -- Frito-Lay. Truly, I was "too excited to sleep" last night. :) I only had a day to prepare, so my biggest stress (besides picking out the right shirt to wear) was making sure my kids were taken care of while I made the trek up to Chicago. Many, many thanks to my wonderful neighbors who pitched in and let my kids hang out an their houses this afternoon. :) :)
Okay, so it took me 3-1/2 hours to get to Chicago (the longest it has EVER taken in my life). It's usually a 2 hour, 10 minute drive, but there was construction just south of Merrilville that added an extra 20 minutes, and then for some reason, traffic into Chicago from the Lake Shore Drive exit on I-90/94 was going (and I use this term loosely) at a crisp 2-3 miles per hour. It took me 45 minutes to get from there to the downtown exit I needed (typically about a 15 minute drive).
So after a couple of calls to my agent updating her to my progress and asking her to tell the studio I was going to be late, I finally arrived 15 minutes before the casting call was to end (at 4:00 their time). Luckily, there were still quite a few people left to go, so I was in good shape.
That being said, it was a very educational experience for me. I was told by my agent to look like a "soccer mom". I asked her if I were to be more upscale or more real, and she said definitely leaning more toward real soccer mom.
So I show up in a casual blue cotton shirt and regular jeans and sneakers - very "real" mom (except that I did have my hair down and curled and make-up on...;p). Well, the other mom-types who were there tonight were much more "polished" -- cute tops, tight jeans, strappy sandals... So I don't know if I were misinformed, or if the others just overdressed slightly.
This was the first national print job I've ever auditioned for, so I really didn't know what to expect. After entering the photographer's studio, I filled out my paperwork with my name, agent, phone number, sizes, etc. and then I got to watch the several other people who were in front of me (which was very helpful).
Each person got five pictures taken: 1) smiling "mugshot" which is a headshot with me holding up the paper with all my info under my face to easily identify me, 2) full-length casual pose, 3) side pose, 4) picture of me walking away from the camera (to get my backside), and 5) throwing a pretend frisbee (to show action and excitement).
Well, it became clear to me that I need to practice my "modeling" poses. I think I did pretty well with all of them except the frisbee one. I only say this because the photographer said the typical "great" or "nice" after each shot until after the frisbee one. He said, "okay", in that drawn out "I'm not really sure what you just did right there" kind of way. It almost made me laugh.
I had watched the other couple of moms before me and they threw the frisbee like they were throwing it to a really tall guy on a ladder (lots of extension and long, lean lines with their body poses). In true "me" form, I decided to throw a frisbee like a real mom who was throwing it to her child (who is, in actuality, shorter than I am). So no long, lean lines for me. I was a "real" mom in all my "normal-sized" glory. ;) ;)
So we'll see. It will all depend on what they are really looking for. They'll have my pics from today, and my comp card with my "pretty" pics to peruse. If anything, I will be better prepared for the next audition. :) With any luck (okay, an inordinate amount of luck), you may just see me on a billboard somewhere... hehehehe...
Okay, so it took me 3-1/2 hours to get to Chicago (the longest it has EVER taken in my life). It's usually a 2 hour, 10 minute drive, but there was construction just south of Merrilville that added an extra 20 minutes, and then for some reason, traffic into Chicago from the Lake Shore Drive exit on I-90/94 was going (and I use this term loosely) at a crisp 2-3 miles per hour. It took me 45 minutes to get from there to the downtown exit I needed (typically about a 15 minute drive).
So after a couple of calls to my agent updating her to my progress and asking her to tell the studio I was going to be late, I finally arrived 15 minutes before the casting call was to end (at 4:00 their time). Luckily, there were still quite a few people left to go, so I was in good shape.
That being said, it was a very educational experience for me. I was told by my agent to look like a "soccer mom". I asked her if I were to be more upscale or more real, and she said definitely leaning more toward real soccer mom.
So I show up in a casual blue cotton shirt and regular jeans and sneakers - very "real" mom (except that I did have my hair down and curled and make-up on...;p). Well, the other mom-types who were there tonight were much more "polished" -- cute tops, tight jeans, strappy sandals... So I don't know if I were misinformed, or if the others just overdressed slightly.
This was the first national print job I've ever auditioned for, so I really didn't know what to expect. After entering the photographer's studio, I filled out my paperwork with my name, agent, phone number, sizes, etc. and then I got to watch the several other people who were in front of me (which was very helpful).
Each person got five pictures taken: 1) smiling "mugshot" which is a headshot with me holding up the paper with all my info under my face to easily identify me, 2) full-length casual pose, 3) side pose, 4) picture of me walking away from the camera (to get my backside), and 5) throwing a pretend frisbee (to show action and excitement).
Well, it became clear to me that I need to practice my "modeling" poses. I think I did pretty well with all of them except the frisbee one. I only say this because the photographer said the typical "great" or "nice" after each shot until after the frisbee one. He said, "okay", in that drawn out "I'm not really sure what you just did right there" kind of way. It almost made me laugh.
I had watched the other couple of moms before me and they threw the frisbee like they were throwing it to a really tall guy on a ladder (lots of extension and long, lean lines with their body poses). In true "me" form, I decided to throw a frisbee like a real mom who was throwing it to her child (who is, in actuality, shorter than I am). So no long, lean lines for me. I was a "real" mom in all my "normal-sized" glory. ;) ;)
So we'll see. It will all depend on what they are really looking for. They'll have my pics from today, and my comp card with my "pretty" pics to peruse. If anything, I will be better prepared for the next audition. :) With any luck (okay, an inordinate amount of luck), you may just see me on a billboard somewhere... hehehehe...
Monday, August 3, 2009
The 48 Hour Film Project
This weekend, Indianapolis hosted its third annual 48 Hour Film Project. For those of you not "in the know", it's basically a festival that is held literally around the world in which teams of film crews and their actors compete to make a 4-7 minute film in 48 hours. The word "exhausting" doesn't even begin to cover it.
Here's how it works. All registered teams (and all 30 spots were filled this year) meet on Friday night at 7 p.m. to draw which genre they will be filming (e.g. drama, romance, sci-fi, western or musical, comedy, detective/cop, etc.). Then, all teams are given a character they must use in the film, a prop that must be seen, and a line of dialogue that must be included VERBATIM in order for the submission to be accepted. Failure to include all of the required elements results in a disqualified submission (this is to ensure that no work was created or filmed prior to the festival).
Once teams have all the required information, they set out to write the script, shoot all the necessary scenes, edit the footage and add any musical score into a 5-7 minute film, and submit that film by 7:30 p.m. that Sunday (48 hours after the start). Oh yeah, and if the film is delivered late (including one minute after the official deadline, it's disqualified too).
And now that you know the background to how the festival works, I just wanted to say that we had a fabulous time shooting our scenes on Saturday. I worked with a new crew this year and they were all amazing. The story was really funny, the director, Rick Uskert, and his crew were awesome, and I was working alongside some really great actors to boot.
Our team's genre was detective/cop. I had to laugh because that was the same genre I worked on last year with a completely different crew. (You can see last year's film "Cassandra" on my YouTube page.) The prop we had to use this year was a ball, the character we had to use was Dr. Shirley Kane, a psychiatrist, and the line we had to use was, "I'm not talking to you."
I'm so eager to see the finished product because the story was such a riot. It was centering on two detectives who have to find out what happened to the Sarge's best friend, Officer McGuffin (his dog). I didn't have a major role in this one, but it was still fun, nonetheless. I played the Sarge's secretary for a scene and answered phone calls from the two detectives. I won't give away the ending, but I will post a link to the film as soon as I have a copy of it.
All of the finished films will be screened this Thursday, August 6th in Indianapolis at the Indianapolis Museum of Art. Our film is in the first grouping of 15 being shown at 7 p.m., and the the second set of 15 films will be shown at 9:30 p.m. It is $10 per person to attend one session (15 films), or $15 to attend both sessions (all 30 films). I will be there for our film, and if I can swing it with my babysitter, I'd like to stay for both sessions because some really good friends of mine have films in the second session. It's so much fun to see what other crews have done with their genres and how they used the required elements in their films.
If you have time on Thursday, I strongly urge you to come to the screenings. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll groan, but most of all, you'll have a great time.
Here's how it works. All registered teams (and all 30 spots were filled this year) meet on Friday night at 7 p.m. to draw which genre they will be filming (e.g. drama, romance, sci-fi, western or musical, comedy, detective/cop, etc.). Then, all teams are given a character they must use in the film, a prop that must be seen, and a line of dialogue that must be included VERBATIM in order for the submission to be accepted. Failure to include all of the required elements results in a disqualified submission (this is to ensure that no work was created or filmed prior to the festival).
Once teams have all the required information, they set out to write the script, shoot all the necessary scenes, edit the footage and add any musical score into a 5-7 minute film, and submit that film by 7:30 p.m. that Sunday (48 hours after the start). Oh yeah, and if the film is delivered late (including one minute after the official deadline, it's disqualified too).
And now that you know the background to how the festival works, I just wanted to say that we had a fabulous time shooting our scenes on Saturday. I worked with a new crew this year and they were all amazing. The story was really funny, the director, Rick Uskert, and his crew were awesome, and I was working alongside some really great actors to boot.
Our team's genre was detective/cop. I had to laugh because that was the same genre I worked on last year with a completely different crew. (You can see last year's film "Cassandra" on my YouTube page.) The prop we had to use this year was a ball, the character we had to use was Dr. Shirley Kane, a psychiatrist, and the line we had to use was, "I'm not talking to you."
I'm so eager to see the finished product because the story was such a riot. It was centering on two detectives who have to find out what happened to the Sarge's best friend, Officer McGuffin (his dog). I didn't have a major role in this one, but it was still fun, nonetheless. I played the Sarge's secretary for a scene and answered phone calls from the two detectives. I won't give away the ending, but I will post a link to the film as soon as I have a copy of it.
All of the finished films will be screened this Thursday, August 6th in Indianapolis at the Indianapolis Museum of Art. Our film is in the first grouping of 15 being shown at 7 p.m., and the the second set of 15 films will be shown at 9:30 p.m. It is $10 per person to attend one session (15 films), or $15 to attend both sessions (all 30 films). I will be there for our film, and if I can swing it with my babysitter, I'd like to stay for both sessions because some really good friends of mine have films in the second session. It's so much fun to see what other crews have done with their genres and how they used the required elements in their films.
If you have time on Thursday, I strongly urge you to come to the screenings. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll groan, but most of all, you'll have a great time.
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