Nose to the grindstone

Coming up for air for a sec to update ya’ll on the latest happenings!

Nothing major happening on the acting front, but there are always ways for an actor to keep busy and stay ‘in the game’. There’s the usual ‘actor-life‘ every day, behind the scenes stuff: Working on memorizing techniques, fine-tuning monologues to have them ready any time, and other exercises. Then there’s the endless pursuit of auditions by submitting to acting gigs. Seems like self-taped auditions are becoming more and more popular and I’m finally getting better with the technical side of it.

I also just finished a great and inspiring 4 week Episodic/Film Audition workshop with D. Candis Paule, CSA and Sandi Buehner and I highly recommend it! See more info about it on their website ActorsForReel.com.  I’ve taken classes there before, a few years ago, and thought I could use a refresher. So worth it!

Such a fun and talented gang! Thank you, Candis (in the middle), for all you do for us actors!

Also, I decided it’s time to go looking for an agent in LA. (in addition to my current representation in San Diego, Elegance Talent). Any recommendations or input?

Then I realized I didn’t have any German language samples, so I recorded voice demos, one in German and one in ‘Fränkisch’ (a Bavarian dialect), which was really fun to do. I can’t believe I hadn’t done that sooner!

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

I DID work on a feature film….not as an actor, but as a language consultant! I translated some German dialogue and later helped the actors with the pronunciation on the set during the shoot. It was an absolute privilege and pleasure to work with veteran actors Hal Linden (most remember him from ‘Barney Miller’) and Trina Kaplan. The entire cast and crew were a blast to work with and I’m super grateful for the opportunity. It was so much fun, I’d love to do that kind of work again! I can’t wait to see the movie when it’s completed. It’s called ‘The Samuel Project‘ (directed and co-written by Marc Fusco) and you can read more about it here or follow it on FB here.

BTS (photo credit: David Jester) from the set of ‘The Samuel Project’: I’m kneeling next to actress Trina Kaplan, running German dialogue lines with her during set-ups.

BTS with Director Marc Fusco inspecting Hal Linden’s beard for the next scene.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Hmm…what else?

Of course, the behind the scenes pre-pre-production for my next short film, a horror comedy called Things We Dig, continues! Slowly, but surely…

Some ‘in character’ snapshots of ‘Lucy’ (Jenn Larson) and ‘Kuni’ (yours truly) while working on more character development last weekend…

If you’re not following the Instagram account of Things We Dig’s character Brynn…you’re missing out! Go and check it out now…go! :)

 

That’s all for now – in the meantime, have a relaxing and safe Memorial Day Weekend!

 

 

 

 

 

 

End of year and what we didn’t dig

This has been a most lopsided year – frustrating, disappointing, hair-raising, shocking, scary, sad, rewarding, infuriating – these are just a few words that come to mind.

So many of my friends and family had a really rough 2016, and it was no different for me. I’ve had lots of disheartening challenges this year and I’m still overcoming them. I thought about pouring my heart out and sharing my highlights and lowlights of 2016, but then I wondered if that was wise. Social media is such a fickle thing. If I show struggle and defeat, some will call it weakness or failure (or secretly enjoy my misfortunes). If I show strength and perseverance, some will pounce on it and call it bragging or vanity. Facebook has become more of a ‘con’ than a ‘pro’ over the last year. And yes, the election and the months leading up to it have had a lot to do with it. Do I want to expose myself, lay my soul bare on Twitter and risk being trolled? For what? At this point in time, in this climate, I’ll pass, at least for now…for the sake of my inner peace and to keep focused on my goals. Having said that, I’ll let my creative work speak loud and clear instead!

Which brings me to some quick updates, as there are a few things I do want to share!

The state of my short film, ‘Things We Dig‘, a horror comedy.

Yes, we are delayed a lot longer than I ever anticipated. Locations drop out, life happens, people get sick or injured…family comes first. As I said, this year threw a few curveballs, but we are still on with the production! Just not in 2016. We are 2/3 done with finding locations, but are still looking for that crucial interior set. At least we’re getting closer! Realistically, we’re looking at no earlier than February 2017 for the filmshoot. The bright spot is, it gives everybody involved time to recover from the holidays and any emotional/family/financial meltdowns, lol! More time to prep, getting it right and other behind the scenes stuff. And to all our Indiegogo supporters, we have not forgotten you! Hang in there…It’ll be worth the wait! What’s that quote again? “It’s supposed to be hard. If it were easy, everyone would do it.”

I’m super grateful for the support and loyalty of my cast and crew, you rock! Thank you for your patience! I’ve resolved more than ever to make this flick happen, I’m determined to finish it, especially now, in light of the current political climate. And the women in it will be #nastywomen! Hey-o!

Hope for a better year, new energy.

With production of “Things we dig” on hold, I did some soul searching and gained some new perspective on my aspirations and priorities. Once this short film is done, I’ll hang up my filmmaker hat and shift my energy back to solely acting in film. I DO love telling stories, so writing some scripts might still happen as ideas pop into my head, but maybe someone else will produce or direct them. Anyhoo, over the last few months, I’ve updated my actor profiles on casting sites, renewed acting related memberships, gathered up all the film footage I could get my hands on to make new demo reels & clips, uploaded them online and made them available for agents and casting directors. Next up: new headshots and some refresher classes.

I started the practice of daily meditation a little over three months ago and can’t believe the positive impact so far! If you’ve ever considered it – DO it! Just 10 minutes a day… make it a habit! I promise you’ll be amazed! Of course, I’ve been continuing with my self defense and martial arts training, including the bo staff and nunchaku (which I really love!). Gotta keep that mind and body sharp!

There was one positive word in my blog post opening: “rewarding”  –  which was finding purpose in art & charity with my “Warrior” painting series. (I’ve already written about my inspiration/motivation in a previous blog.) The paintings hit a nerve, people responded – positively; and it encouraged me to continue with the series! I plan on debuting additional ones at the 2017 San Diego Comic Con Art Show (which already has asked me back, yay)!

#AlwaysKeepFighting  and #NeverGiveUp!

On that note, I wish you all Happy Holidays and a much better, kick ass Happy New Year 2017!!!

 

“12 of 12” for June 2010

Hey gang, I can’t believe it’s time for this month’s 12 of 12 already! This time it fell on a Saturday and it was a busy one, so it should make for a more interesting photo essay, I hope :)

This is all Chad Darnell’s idea. If you want to learn more about 12 of 12 (taking 12 pics on the 12th day of the month), please go to http://chaddarnell.typepad.com/

You can click on the pics for larger versions.

Ok, let’s start…

First things first: my morning green tea

I spent the next  hour or so preparing for an audition and forgot to take pics. Mainly I was going over my monologues again and just preparing actor-wise, getting in the right mindset. Hurray! I have an audition to go to!

I don’t know about you ladies out there, but I’m NOT one to drive with high heels. I can’t stand it. I always have a pair of lightweight ‘Sketchers’ shoes in the car. I have to really FEEL the pedals in my car to feel the road. Call it weird, but that’s just how it is. So, my ‘real’ shoes wait in the backseat until I arrive at my destination.

Next up, the audition. I can’t believe I remembered to take a pic here, lol! Next in line. Nobody else in front of me. *Gulp* Time to kick ass!

Afterwards, I had just enough time to get home, do a serious clothes change and join my GVA peers (Goth Volunteer Alliance) at a small garden area in Old-Town San Diego to weed out plants and improve it overall. This is in conjunction with the local chapter of the California Native Plant Society. They help us help them. The GVA exists to show people that goths are not what the media often makes them out to be (dark and creepy and menacing, whatev). The founder of GVA started it all after he, his wife and 2 other goth friends were brutally attacked in a hate crime; and he needed reconstructive surgery. Here we are at work in the sun (oh yes, in the sun, hehe!)

I planted 3 native plants today yay! (Just don’t ask me what their names were). This is the first one of the three:

Then back home, time for a little nap with my trusty guardian.

That only lasted about 10 minutes.

I had to get groceries and found this great deal at Henry’s. A 10lb bag of potatoes for 89 cents!!! Score!

I didn’t buy tomatoes this time, because I’m about to have some in my own backyard. They’re getting there….

My hubby is watching the 24 hr Le Mans and I stop by the tv every once in a while just to bug him ;)

The laundry is not gonna do itself, unfortunately. And it’s my turn to take care of it today. Hubby has to do the dishes.

I finally sit down to relax (yes this is Facebook on my screen, haha) and catch up with what’s going on…

when suddenly my room starts to shake for about 5 seconds….Sigh. Another earthquake. This is one of the things that come with living in California! It’s been really busy this year and I think we’re in for much more… I’m fascinated by earthquakes, even though the big “Easter Quake” at the Mexico border (a 7.3!) scared the crap out of me. I immediately check the USGS website (http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/recenteqscanv/) to check where the epicenter was and what the magnitute and depth were. After waiting for the site to refresh…there it is:

Some reports call it a 4.8 and some 4.9. I’m not sure if it was an aftershock to the Easter Quake, but IMHO I think it’s too far north for that. Looks like a separate little quake on a different fault line. But I’m no expert ;p

So, there you have it – a rockin’ end to a rockin’ day!

Hope you enjoyed this 12 of 12  – have a great month and see you next time!!!