Friday February 04, 2011
Audition
I'd submitted for the student film project Computer Love which would be at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena. I'd done a print-model project the previous April, for which I still await my copy, so I knew how to get there. What with the new domicile (my previous roommate locking me out, and another friend near Pasadena letting me stay with him), I was actually rather close to the Art Center College of Design, and on Wednesday the second I received word from its director Michael Subjack for a Friday audition.
I got up there okay, but got turned around with the place's ironically ill-designed labyrinthal layout, and found the proper room at last. I was seen quickly but my delay in finding the room had my miss the only (hourly) shuttle back down the mountain, so I had to await the next one.

Sunday February 13, 2011
Cast
Michael emailed me, offering me the role of Dr. Scanton. From the audition as well as the emailed script I'd previously seen, I knew mine would be a quick bit; a few lines to establish some backstory for the main character, and exposit the character's goal of the piece.
The shoot would be the 14th from 11am "until about 8pm" (shooting on Valentine's Day; sometimes lacking a girlfriend is not a bad thing...), but he indicated a Sunday rehearsal the day before. I reminded him I rely on public transit, and the shuttle to the school does not run on Saturdays or Sundays. We arranged that I could get as close as possible (Lincoln at Seco), and the project's producer Nicholas Campbell could retrieve me, which he did.
The rehearsal went quite well, with a very friendly cast, and we all looked forward to the next day's shoot.
Mike indicated the food the next day was Thai. Predictably I had to balk at this, and indicated I was far more of a burger/fries kind o'guy. Mike felt almost in a quandry, as his instructor having indicated his cast was "to be fed 'well'," which I figure he believed meant [presumably] Healthy Food (as my brother and I maintain: "Health food'll kill y'..."). It was agreed they could snag me some McDonalds. Nick took down what I normally order, and as we left, instead of just dropping me at Seco at Lincoln, Nick graciously drove me back to my friend's place, passing the nearest McDonalds so he'd know where it was.
As the day progressed, I couldn't help notice some resemblences (these are compliments, btw): playing our Max, David Dickerson slightly resembled Kevin McHale; Mary Claire Reynolds who played Ali, has a smile reminicent of Dianna Agron; Gregory Scott Stone had a slight Eric Bana resemblance; Nicole Miller (who played "nasty girl" Erin), facially reminded me a bit of cross between Caroline Munro and Olivia Munn, with a hint of Laura Linney; Nick has a slight Crispin Glover thing going (not in a bad way), and writer/director Mike resembled as though being a tall relation to the talented Toby Jones...

Monday February 14, 2011
Shoot
I bussed to the Art Center College for my 11am calltime, arriving at 10:50. We had something of a run-through in shot-list order, and at noon broke for lunch until 12:30.
The day remained light, with a pleasant crew and cast, and even though the shot-list indicated they pre-planned that my scene would be shot (no earlier than) 6:30pm (and they actually got to it more around 7-7:30pm), thankfully throughout the day I had had good conversations with fellow cast members. During our conversations, I began to notice Mary Claire also seemed to have Anne Hathaway's eyes, with which David later concurred.
After my coverage was completed (and I got my lines right, considering right from the off I started flubbing a bit), and we did the reverse of David (and I did my lines off camera), we headed back to the green screen room where Mary Claire and David's did their green screen bits, and the shoot was wrapped.
Mary Claire, David, Greg and I joined the crew for dinner, which turned out also to be a debrief between the instructor and those involved in the project. The talent went first, indicating as actors as to what worked and what didn't with director Mike, though the latter was trickier as we had few to no issues.
Various members of the crew went next, at one point the instructor reminded that while it was Valentine's Day, this was not a "love fest:" for Mike to learn he had to know where if any were any goofs or room for improvement. She provided a few that easily could have been overlooked (such as Mike not doing more than Being Director: e.g., not his job to pull up mark-tape from the floor, et al).
Being hours after the last shuttle from the school, David agreed to scoot me back to where I've been staying. Before the evening was over David, Greg and Mike each had Friended me on Facebook.

Wednesday, April 06, 2010
Upcoming screening
The day before, Mike Subjack contacted the cast that there would be a 3:30pm screening of Computer Love. I had to reply that my own attendance would be contingent on whether I was cast in Meet the Gacys... which as of about twelve noon this date, I was...

Monday May 16, 2011
Copy
Michael emailed us Wednesday May 11, 2011 that into the post he'd placed our Computer Love DVD copies, one of which a playable DVD, and a second disc with the full HD .mp4 version on it.
It was in my rental box Monday the 16th (at least, that was the day I next went to my rental box). I thought it was done quite well, though for some reason to my eyes, the exterior scenes seemed to have a different feel than the interior scenes, the latter of which seemed more high-end studio look to them (plus there was a slight audio issue with "Ted's" phone call; the local ambient sound clearly drops away so we can hear the cruel girlfriend's voice on the phone, then the original ambient sound rises back up for his reply). I only point this out due to my experience in sound design years ago at the Studio Playhouse back in New Jersey: my ear catches stuff like that.

Tuesday June 28, 2011
AOF
While waiting for Tom Trinh's project at the Art Center College of Design, who should come by but Michael Subjack. He updated me that Computer Love had been accepted at the Action On Film International Film Festival in Pasadena. According to its website, this year's AOF VII was July 22-30, 2011. Its schedule page lists vague festival events parties and such (e.g., nothing firmly set up yet), but no film title/s for this year's festivals are listed on the site (as of this entry date).
Michael assured me I'd be kept apprised.