Archive for the 'Filming' Category
I shot a music video/documentary last Sunday on a very sort notice. I worked with the director, Danielle Stallings, about 8 years ago and this shoot was the result of her submitting to a competition and being one of the finalists who had to finish a short film within a couple weeks.
So she came up with a music video/documentary concept that involved some beach shots, forest scenes, a bus ride and lots of plants. Danielle also interviewed some people who started the “counter culture” in the 70s and the interviews were part of the documentary.
Danielle bought some plants to use for the filming and all the actors who were involved were given the option to keep the plants at the end of the day. To my surprise nobody took the plants home. Well that was good for me because Danielle gave me all the plants that I wanted and so I took all of the small plants and I left her with the big ones that I had no room for.
After the shoot they all looked wilted and exhausted. I put them on my patio next to each other, gave them some water and now, three days later they all look healthy and happy. If you can’t pay me for a shoot, I will work for food as any other actor but I will also work for plants or a bicycle. 
Filming, Music Video | 16.01.2008 16:37 | 1 Comment
Sunday I had an early call time. I met Danielle, the director, at 7:30 am at Marina Del Rey. It was a beautiful day and I was looking forward to working with her again.
We started with a few shots at the beach and when the rest of the actors arrived, we took a quick breakfast break and continued to shoot with the group.
Hanelle Culpepper, the director of Six and the City and A Single Rose came to support this project, but this time not as a director but as an actor. (Hanelle I met at a film festival in 2002 and I stayed in touch with her since.)
Bill Philip, an actor I met at one of my classes and who became a friend, was also there as an actor and he was also helping out wherever needed. (I love to see people who are involved and whose eyes are everywhere and who help when needed. He is a person I know I would refer when the right role comes up.)
After the beach scenes we moved to a woodsy area for some twirling shots which was the last shot that involved all the actors. I had one more scene left which was very important to me and which was one of the reasons why Danielle cast me.
Danielle I stayed in touch with for many years and through my email blasts she knew about my advocacy on riding public transportation and on bike. So she asked me if I wanted to be involved in a music video documentary, where the main character rides the bus to the beach to plant a tree, which will grow into a forest.
Throughout the entire day I was thinking of this scene. It was important to me not to skip it. And finally we were on the bus, finishing the last shot and we wrapped for the day.
It is important to me that we show on screen that not everybody is in a car and to show that people ride the bus, their bikes and that people walk. It is important for me to show on screen to my friends and to the movie industry that there are people on public transportation who are not poor, who are not underprivileged, but who choose to ride instead of drive.
It felt awesome to work on something that is meaningful and that says something about doing good for the planet without being preachy. I love that there were no car scenes and I love it that my character who uses public transportation is portrayed in a positive light.
The shoot was a lot of fun and it was a fulfilling day for me. I hope Danielle will win the competition and I hope this short will screen at many festivals.
Filming, Music Video | 14.01.2008 12:02 | 1 Comment
Music Videos are cool, don’t you think? I always loved watching them (not much lately, though) and I even got to be in a couple of them through background work. And they were fun! Always! And it is always fun to see how the video is cut at the end.
Now I finally get the chance to be in one as a principal actor. Woohoo!
The director, Danielle Stallings, whom I worked with about 8 years ago on Haunted Planet, contacted me about her new project that is a commentary on the counter culture. She asked me if I would be interested and if I was available to shoot for one weekend in January.
Of course I said yes! And I’m looking forward to the shoot, even though I will probably have to be on set at 5 am. Ugh! That will be the hardest part of the shoot.
Filming, Music Video | 7.01.2008 15:01 | No Comments
I’m finishing up the SAG ULB short film with Tom Martin and Brian Lennon titled originally “Nicked” and now retitled after my character “Adelinde”.
I worked with Tom and Brian last year on several plays and this time they wrote a short script for film. They wrote the part for me and I’m very happy to be working with them again.
We started shooting two weekends ago and this weekend we are finishing up.
Wohoo! Back at work! I love working with these guys!
Oh, and Jeff Hohimer is working on this short film as well. Jeff is the actor with whom I worked with in “Beauty And The Beast” in May, and I also worked with him last year on the plays with Tom and Brian.
So the team is together again. I’m excited and I’m ready for my close up! 
Filming | 27.07.2007 16:14 | No Comments
Last Sunday I had an early morning call for a ULB SAG short horror film titled “Beauty And The Beast.”
Let me first tell you that I don’t like horror films and I never thought I would act in one.
How did I change my mind? Well, I met this writer/director, Robert Romeo, on a movie set about a year and a half ago and when I performed in any play, I invited him. And he showed up. That was cool!
And then he called me and asked me if I was interested in working with him on a short film. I said yes, but I told him that I would love to read the script first.
When I read the script, I didn’t get it. I didn’t get the story, but it was written very well and every sentence was like a picture painted on a canvas. It was so beautifully visual, that I said yes to Robert. But I still didn’t get the story, until after the first rehearsal, when I had an aha moment.
Robert ask me if I was o.k. with the gruel subject and I said, “yes, it’s all right. I just don’t know if I’ll be able to watch it once it’s finished.”
Anyhow, we had a rehearsal, fitting for face prosthetic, and I watched most of the movies and tv shows that Robert recommended for reference. I didn’t watch the horror movies though.
So, last Sunday, I was ready to go to the stage where we were shooting, and as usual I had my bicycle ready and my pannier packed. The only unusual thing today was that my hair was in curlers and I’m always wearing a helmet when I ride.
How am I going to put the helmet over my head? Well, my husband helped me squeeze the rollers under the helmet, that I had to expand to fit, and it was so tight I could barely turn my head. And the curlers were pinching and pushing against my skull. It was very uncomfortable.
Thankfully the stage was only 2.5 miles from my home, and since it was early Sunday, there was not much traffic.
I arrived as the crew started loading in and Jeff Hohimer, the other actor who was in one of the plays that Robert saw me in, was cracking up, seeing me in helmet and curlers. I didn’t think it was that funny, because I couldn’t get the helmet off. The curlers were stuck underneath.
I asked him, if he could help get the helmet off and with a little adjusting and a big yank he pulled my helmet off and with it came some of my loose hair. Ouch!
When I got inside the stage I met the crew and I immediately relaxed. Everybody on set was so nice to each other, so comfortable and confident but not cocky, that I felt safe in their hands. This was very important to me! It’s always very important to me to feel safe.
So I got dressed, I got my hair and make up fixed, and we were all ready to shoot. The shoot was pretty much non stop. The time flew so fast, I didn’t even realize that it was evening and dark outside by the time I wrapped. I had an amazing time, and the director was surprising me at every turn.
Robert Romeo is an actors director! He is gentle, positive, relaxed and has a great way of explaining what he wants. He bought great food, he assembled the best people, and he just was fantastic to be around. I hope to work for him again! And I think he changed my mind. I’ll be going to the screening for sure and I’ll be voting for him at the next film festival Audience Award!
Beauty and the Beast, Filming | 1.06.2007 15:38 | No Comments