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Thursday April 05, 2012
Review
Wednesday evening I compiled the two parts of screen tests and
(as Unlisted),
I loaded them onto YouTube, as my provider cannot handle sending large email files.
I sent Jeffery the two links
(I didn't lump them together: Leah had her screen test video and I had mine);
in the morning he had replied to both Leah and to me.
He correctly deduced she and I both had had fun doing the screen tests.
While Leah and I felt one reading of hers was slightly better than the other, Jeffery felt that the other reading was a bit better
(an actor is his/her own worst critic; our own thoughts had been subjective).
Jeffery was very pleased with all of our reads, and that both sets were on target.
It was interesting for him to hear Leah reading Death opposite my on-camera read.
He confessed if he was not so determined to play the part himself he'd have considered Leah in the role; regarding her interesting qualities, and her certainly having the look
(he based this on the darker roles in her demo reel).
He felt he would be fun to push her "against type" to play a more vulnerable, yet fiercely loving daughter with a pure and angelic soul;
that she must be the antithesis of Davidson, someone who has impressed the angel of death once in a thousand years.
He went on to say I am perfect as Davidson, which he added he knew I'd be, having written the part with me in mind, and that this had confirmed that hypothesis.
Just as I read a role the way I feel its author might have envisioned it, Jeffery saw I understood the role.
(What with Davidson having had people killed), Jeffery's "only direction," as he put it, would be to toughen me up a bit, making me a bit more arrogant and less vulnerable beyong the obvious physical aspect with Davidson's failing health.
While Davidson is startled and a bit mystified by the Dark Man, he's arrogant enough to think that he can outmaneuver him.
As I prediced, he felt Leah was really good as well.
The main thing he wants to do is to give Leah a vulnerable quality in her exterior look, which we're both certain would be doable.
He felt her delivery was very good and that she clearly understands the character.
He was also very impressed with her readings, believing from the screen test that she had "memorized that dialogue so meticulously"
(at the time unaware she was reading the lines from the off-screen presentation board), which also demonstrates her talent not only at Cold Reading, but that he was unaware she was reading it..
He thanked both of us very much for our well prepared effort which really helped him visualize this, and it was actually better than he had seen in his mind's eye.
Jeffery was very pleased that we did this the way we both did it, with no real direction beyond what was on the printed page
(and our experience with character interpretation and cold reading).
The screen tests gave Jeffery a lot of food for thought on tone and delivery that was outside of his "odd little box."
He concluded that he would be showing the videos to His People on his end, but reassured us that the final call... is his.
He suggested he and I speak over the weekend, also indicating that as the weeks go by he would continue to flesh out the treatment, story, et al, and we were to expect refinements a-plenty, and that he is open to both of our input as well.
Sounds to me that It's A Go...
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