Mr. Bricks Shoot

This past weekend was spent shooting a scene for Mr. Bricks: A Heavy Metal Murder Musical, www.mrbricksmovie.blogspot.com.  I was taken aback by the passion everyone had for this project-from the make-up department to the boom operator and everyone in between.
Even when snafus occurred,like losing daylight or special effects falling off, everyone had fun.  I was having such a good time filming that I didn't want to stop.  I actually got a little upset when we broke for lunch, not in a Christian Bale sort of way, but more like having to take out the trash before going out to play.  What can I say? We were in the middle of shooting a scene and we were on a roll.  The actors brought their A game.  The crew was on point.  I was afraid we were going to lose momentum but we didn't.  We came back from lunch and jumped back in without missing a beat.

All in all this is one of the best acting experiences I've had.  It was fun, challenging and a wonderful learning experience.  Thanks to everyone that made it such a great experience.

Here are some pics from the shoot.

Approval

Many times as an actor I find myself trying to gain the approval of other people.  A psychologist might say this is exactly why one becomes an actor, for the instant approval and attention one gets at curtain call.  This aspect of myself has come to be something of a blemish.  A zit that always seems to pop up right before a big date.  Before you know it all you can think about is that damn zit right in the middle of your forehead.  You lose all sense of logic and do something stupid and pop it.  Victory!  Wait a minute.  Now you have a bleeding, pus-oozing wound.  Great.  You go on the date and the whole time you are thinking, "This person must be staring at my gaping wound" the whole time causing you to be a nervous wreck, killing any chance at leaving a good impression.

That is exactly what happens to me when I concern myself with what other people think of me.  As an artist, I realized seeking approval is death.  I can't think of any good artist that concerned themselves with conforming to the status quo.  Most broke conventions and might have been looked down upon at first but so is every innovation.

So I pledge from here on out to say F*ck it!  The only approval I should concern myself with is my own. 

TMNT

Yesterday, Peter Sciretta from slashfilm.com reported the 20th anniversary of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles' theatrical release.  Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles or TMNT had a big effect on my childhood.  I went to go see the movie for my birthday with a group of friends and it was awesome.  From that point on, I was a huge fan.  I got all the action figures, their lair, watched the cartoon, used the word cowabunga and even watched the sequels.  My friends and I would quote the movie all the time.  I still quote the movie.  I wanted to be a Ninja Turtle and I still want to be a Ninja Turtle.

I had a chance to meet Josh Pais, the original Raphael.  It was a surreal experience.  I was taking the Summer Intensive at the Atlantic Theater School.  I was pretty psyched to take a class with the Raphael and he didn't disappoint.  He was very cool and fun guy.  He probably caught me looking at him with a grin on my face as he was talking through out the class because his normal speaking voice is Raphael's voice.

I think the reason I enjoyed this movie so much as an 8 year old boy is that their world was my world.  Unlike Star Wars,  TMNT took place in my galaxy, NYC to be exact.  At the time, NYC was probably the equivalent of Italy in a Shakespeare play, a place where anything could happen.  So in the back of my head I always thought there might actually be Ninja Turtles living in a sewer somewhere eating pizza, watching April O'Neil on the news while Splinter meditated.

A boy can dream, can't he?


Here's the link to Peter's own little trip down memory lane plus the Theatrical Trailer:
http://www.slashfilm.com/2010/03/30/teenage-mutant-ninja-turtles-live-action-movie-was-released-20-years-ago-today/