Saturday November 05, 2011
Audition
I had submitted for a supporting role for the USC student film Tongue of the Red Snapper and received an invitation to audition. While the time was late afternoon on a Saturday, the email indicated auditions would be from noon to five. What with my weekly online radio show (The Paranormal View at Para-X), understandably I attempt to arrange things not to miss cohosting. Actual shoots are one thing: auditions are another, particularly when the time window indicates I can mostly likely audition and get home in time.
So I arrived first, as usually is the case, at 11:30am, awaiting the auditions already in that classroom to clear out.
Another fellow arrived, friendly and clearly auditioning for the same role, and while he looked Extremely Familiar, I didn't connect it right away, his handlebar mustache notwithstanding. He indicated having had the early time audition, but something came up and he'd changed it to Much Later, and as that changed, here he was. Writer/director Jesse Keller arrived and quickly set up. I offered the other gentleman to go in first, but he graciously deferred to me, my having arrived first. As I was about to go in, Jesse went over to the fellow to thank him for coming out, and I heard him address him as "Bill," at which point it Clicked.
Inside I did my interpretation as I took from the script; Jesse had me perform it in a different fashion, which I always enjoy doing, not merely the challenge of a different take on a scene, but the lines. When I was done and about to leave, I asked whether the fellow outside was in fact, Bill Supplee, which Jesse confirmed. I mentioning having thought I'd recognized him, having met him a few times at commercial auditions; Bill had played the Willie one-eyed postman on My Name is Earl. During that awesome series which was inexplicably cut down in its prime, at least I worked on four episodes.
Outside I quickly said hello and "re-introduced" myself to Bill, aware that it was highly unlikely he'd've remembered me.

Tuesday November 08, 2011
Cast
When I'd left the audition, I couldn't help but sort of kick myself for literally chatting up my competition. But, I felt, if I were to lose a role to anyone, at least it'd be to someone whose work I admire.
Tuesday I got home to find an email from Jesse offering me the role; I quickly replied to accept.
So far the schedule would be a table read Monday, in-class rehearsal on Tuesday evening (I've done that before for a student film or three), and the shoot would be on that weekend.

Wednesday November 09, 2011
Schedule
Jessed email me and the leads Chris Johnen and Steve O (as well as the project's producer Josh Mendoza), the current schedule for the shoot:

Monday	Nov 14	|	Table Read	|	Brady, Dave and Nagurski	|	6pm-9pm, Most likely at USC
Tuesday	Nov 15	|	In-Class Rehearsal	|	Brady, Dave and Nagurski	|	Either 7pm-8:30pm or 8:30pm-10pm, USC Campus
Saturday	Nov 19	|	Scene 1	|	Brady and Dave	|	7am - 4pm, Traditions Bar at USC
Sunday	Nov 20	|	Scene 3	|	Brady, Dave and Nagurski	|	7am - 5pm, Location TBD
Monday	Nov 21	|	Scenes 2 and 4	|	Brady and Dave	|	5pm - Midnight, USC Campus

So after the pre-production aspects, my scene would be filmed on Sunday the 20th.

Thursday November 10, 2011
Schedule clarification
Jesse emailed us a further update on Monday and Tuesday nights rehearsal time/s, and that the Tuesday class with veteran TV director Michael Toshiyuki Uno would be at Zemeckis, as I suspected.

Monday November 14, 2011
Table Read
From emptying my Sherman Oaks rental box and heading south from there, I stopped and ate first at the tolerable Wendy's next to the USC campus, I started to head over across the open-air "mall" there, and Jesse and I came across each other, his wanting to check out a low-cost store for stuff that might help the tavern scene dressing make the place look a bit more of a dive. This saved me some time as well as the place had some stuff I'd recently been needing.
We headed over and Chris and Steve arrived minutes thereafter. We ran through the script a couple of times, then did some tentative blocking. Jesse was kind enough to work on my bit first, so I could be released for the bus trek home.
Steve is an amusing guy, and has an excellent sense of comic timing. Chris seems very very familiar to me, but having not seen the short subjects on which he's worked, I don't know of whom he may be reminding me. He's very good at delivering funny lines dry enough to make them funnier without being Bonk Bonk On Th'Head.

Tuesday November 15, 2011
In-class
After a bit of a morning into mid-afternoon double feature (as it were; I was starting to fall behind with movies), I timed it to get down to USC early enough to get some food. Unfortunately I learned that Pasta Roma serves horrible tasting, unforgiveably disgusting Fettucinni Alfredo, so I won't be patronizing that establishment again.
I quickly learned the class was not in Studio E but D, in which I'd worked on The Maiden and the Princess, amongst other projects. Steve and Chris arrived shortly after me, just as Jesse emerged for their half-way break, the first film cast heading out.
Inside Steve and Chris ran lines before the class officially resumed. I sat to the side and suddenly being greeted by the familiar Oliver Riley-Smith, who produced Dog-Eared in on which I was brought, after having directed me in his Inspiration video and All You Need is Plove short. He indicated being pleased when he'd first learned I'd been cast in this project.
Along with a few of the class, the teacher, Michael Toshiyuki Uno, provided some good insight for Jesse. Also clarified was What Actually Happens during my death. Initially I'd read it that Chris's character cuts off my arm. This was clarified but interpretet that it's Chris cuts off his own arm, and tonight we/I learned it's actually Steve's character who cuts off Chris's arm, in an (albeit unsuccessful) attempt to stop his killing me.
Jesse had notified us and conveyed to the class that the wood-shop location hadn't been fully pinned down. Jesse declared to us that the Sunday date was postponed until they find the location. The earlier scenes with just Chris and Steve could still be filmed Saturday and Monday.
We got out spot at 10pm; Steve was kind enough to scoot me over to Broadway to await the next bus north, the connections of which worked just right enough to get me home by just before midnight.

Saturday November 26, 2011
Re-Schedule'd
Jesse had emailed that the acquired location for my scene was at Wood Shop at Cerritos College, as well as the other guys' elsewhere-scenes filmed the same weekend. Jesse clarified that the original bar location fell through at the last minute, so the entire shoot dates all got moved.
My scene was still Sunday night and would thereby not interview with my radio show..
The trip down would be a slight challenge, but I had the entire afternoon to pull it off. If someone would be able to drive me back Monday morning, either to the main bus lines towards home or better (even if "only" to USC campus), that'd beat waiting on a Cerridos sidewalk for a few hours for the first bus.

Tuesday November 29, 2011
Re-Re-Schedule'd: Day over night
Jesse notified me that if I was available Sunday from 9am-9pm, the Sunday shoot could be in south Pasadena, far easier than getting down to Cerritos for an all-nighter shoot.

Sunday December 04, 2011
Shoot
The previous Thursday, before being wrapped on the first of two days working on the Charter commercials, the first of the season's Santa Ana Winds hit hard, raging across the southland, and as the night progressed, the winds savagely ripped apart branches and uprooted trees, and locally about 9:30pm the power went out. Over the course of the next few days pockets of the area were back up, but where I'd been staying the power was not restored until late afternoon Saturday, after about 67 hours.
The Sunday shoot location was a private domicile near Fair Oaks and Monteray, so taking the bus down was easy enough to arrive by 8:45am for my 9am calltime.
The home owner Tony was a wood-shop instructor at Cerritos, which apparently "wanted money" for using their on-campus woodshop. His own neighbourhood's power was not restored until the early afternoon while we were there. The film makers brought with them a small "portable" generator for the power needed before Tony's own place lit back back up.
Inside Tony's large backyard wood-shop, we filmed my scene from about 10:30am to 1pm'ish, when Chris had to leave for a few hours to perform in a live radio play satirizing A Christmas Carol. Steve went off on his own lunch; I went with Jesse, Josh, DP Mac Fisken and Luis Molgaard (running audio); we went up to Colorado Boulevard where they ate at a Pita place, I went 'round the corner to Bella's, finally to check out their Fetuccini Alfredo... which turns out not to exist, despite it being implied on their menu. On second look it does only say "pasta;" what they serve is okay Ziti with Alfredo sauce, along with mushy unsolicited broccoli (thankfully I like broccoli). At least I learned I have no need to return to that establishment.
Chris returned around 5pm as expected, and Tony's neighbourhood power came back on.
We filmed until around 8:30pm, and Chris was generous enough to drive me home; foolishly, I was not dressed for the suddenly-dropped temperatures down into the mid thirties.

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