Published on Thursday March 30, 2006 .
Tomorrow morning I will be subjected to picks, drills and pliers as they rip my impacted wisdom teeth from my mouth. Fun times. The doctor promised I would be “comfortable” and under heavy sedation, but will still be slightly aware of what is going on. I’ve never had surgery in my life so there is some trepidation to the whole process. I’ve avoided this procedure for years to the chagrin of my dentist, but I’ve finally decided to face my fears. Plus I can use the experience as artistic reference in acting.
To prepare for the whole recovery process I’ve put together a post-operation diet which consists of:
-Lean Mass Matrix meal replacement shake
-frozen fruits for smoothies
-almond peanut butter for smoothies
-matcha green tea
-raw kefir
-raw milk
-raw honey
-soy milk
-almond milk
-lentil soup
-bean soup
and other soups….
The doctor said it should take me 10 days to fully recover. Hopefully using this diet and listening to Mozart and other baroque music I can heal in half the time.
BTW, I shouldn’t have watched Hostel… Think positive thoughts… Think positive thoughts…
Published on Wednesday March 29, 2006 .
I had a Dr Pepper audition this morning. The call was for “business men in suits” which made it easy since I have to dress up for my conservative day job. The location was a casting studio in Hollywood. Parking is always tough in that area but today it was even more so because there was a production filming in the area and all of the production trucks were parked on one side of the street. Luckily I found parking further down the street. I’ve been to this casting studio many times before (actually this is where I got cast in my first national commercial) and usually it’s packed with people. Today was different though. Only a handful of guys in suits waiting for their turn. I was the only asian guy at the time as well which is cool because it means less competition for “my type”. Anyway, the audition was as simple as walking aross the room passing another business guy drinking a Dr. Pepper and saying “23″. I have no idea what “23″ is suppose to mean or refer to, but we did this 3 different times from different angles and that was it. I was in-n-out within 20min. Nice and easy. Now let’s see if I can get a callback.
I can only hope to be as lucky as that asian guy in the new cingular commercials. He’s gonna be making the big bucks.
Last August I was in Washington DC for a small indie movie I was cast in. I actually grew up on the east coast around PA and DE but forgot how hot and humid it can be. Well it was hot as hell with 100% humidity and a day of sightseeing with my brother and his girlfriend turned into a sweltering day of non-stop sweat for me and my wife as we tried to enjoy the sights of our nation’s capital. H and I swore we would never go back east during that time agian. But this August, we will be braving the heat and humidity to be at my brother’s wedding! CONGRATS BRO! I warned him that I might have to attend the wedding in a tank top. Honestly I don’t know how people walk around in suits all day in that kind of weather. I guess we’re just spoiled here on the west coast.
On another note, tonight’s scene study class was canceled at the last second because our acting coach had a flat tire and was stuck in the valley somewhere. My scene study partner had actually dropped the class because of two film projects she has coming up. Good for her. She deserves to be working. She was the best acting partner I’ve ever worked with. Really dedicated and hard working. Something we all should be. Too bad we never finished work on our scene.
Next month I’ll be taking a break from scene study class as well. I will be attending the Real Estate Wealth Expo with an actor friend of mine for two weekends learning how to gain wealth. You gotta learn to be smart with your money - especially if you are an actor and start making a lot of it. My commercial agent told me a story of one of his clients who booked a principal role on a new prime-time TV series and immediately bought a huge house in the Hollywood Hills. Well, the show got canceled after one season and he had to sell his house, BMW and everything else. Not cool.
I’m also gonna be brave and finally get my four impacted wisdom teeth out. I’ve been putting it off for years, but recently they have started bothering me so I think it’s time to get it done. I just hate needles and the word “surgery” is pretty scary to me since I’ve never had any major medical procedures done. I’ve never even had a broken bone. But I know it needs to be done so I’m going in for my consultation tomorrow.
Published on Thursday March 16, 2006 .
I can barely think straight. The only reason why I’m able to still walk and talk is my massive consumption of caffeine in the form of coffee, tea and various energy drinks. Since my last entry I’ve worked non-stop on freelance projects and slept 4-5 hours each night. It’s my own fault really. I didn’t have to take on all the projects I have, but these freelance projects pay off our debt and keep me in acting class. I just wish it was as easy to get acting jobs as it is for me to get freelance work. If it was, I’d be working more than Ryan Seacrest and his multiple TV and radio shows.
Things have been pretty good lately - other than feeling like I’m going to pass out from exhaustion. Last Sunday I brought back my Vin Diesel/Boiler Room monologue to class and rocked it. I felt a great connection with the monologue, the room and my audience. Lisa’s first remark in her critique was “That was a great performance for another teacher.” She went on to explain that although my performance would have been viewed by many other actor coaches as solid and “great”, she wanted me to connect even deeper to the emotions. She wanted me to completely manifest the quiet confidence of power and assuredness. The confidence of power players. But overall, she really liked my performance and said that this was a really good piece for me.
I also auditioned for a USC and a UCLA student film this week. Basically I view these student projects as a possibility to connect with the future power players in Hollywood. You never know who might be the next Spielberg, Tarantino, Rodriguez, etc. You also never know what student project might end up being the next Napolean Dynamite.
Yesterday I had a McDonald’s audition as a politician’s aide. I was pretty exhausted going in and I hope I summoned up enough energy for the filming.
I also received a mass email yesterday from a friend who booked ANOTHER guest starring role on a prime-time show. It’s hard not to be envious especially when I’m the same “type” as he is and I didn’t even get called in for an audition.
On another note, I really feel for Gina on the show America’s Next Top Model (let me explain - I’m married and my wife controls the Tivo). Gina had a horrible interview with Tyra and the judges in the first show when she started off strong about being Asian but then went on to say she’s confused with her identity.This effects her confidence. I understand exactly how she feels. Unfortunately I don’t think she will make it very far in the competition unless she is able to resolve her issues really quickly. Instead I think this will end up being a great learning experience for her. She should be proud that she has even made it this far. I don’t think Asians have been represented at all on that show.
BTW, I’m looking through the breakdowns on various online casting sites and it’s really annoying to see roles labeled as: ALL AMERICAN GUY/Caucasian. I’ve NEVER seen ALL AMERICAN GUY/All Ethnicities. Why is that? Can I not be an ALL AMERICAN GUY since I’m Asian?
Scene study class was re-scheduled to 10am this morning in account for the Academy Awards. My scene partner and I were hoping to get final approval from our acting coach that we had finished our work on our scene but our performance missed the mark so we will be bringing it back to class next week. I have been really struggling with the scene and playing this character. A charismatic Catholic priest who grew up on the Bronx streets and is now being accused of molestation. In this particular scene my objective is to convince Sister James of my innocence. But for some reason I’m finding it difficult to cover my emotion of fear and anger with casual-ness. On top of that I’m trying to incorporate a Bronx accent and keep everything grounded and intimate. So I’ll have to really work on it this week.
An interesting thing that Lisa (my acting coach) said at the end of class today is to watch the Oscars and keep your eyes on the goal. A lot can happen in a year. Why couldn’t it be us on that stage? And if we train ourselves everyday just like an Olympian, then things will eventually happen. On the flip side, I was watching the Biography of Johnny Depp. I really respect his work and he has mentioned to other people that he doesn’t need an award to feel validation. He just works on the projects that speak to his spirit.
I was also recently informed that Parry Shen (of Better Luck Tomorrow fame) wrote a very kind blog entry about me on his website. How unexpected and very generous. Parry, I wish you the best in your career as well. We should do a project together. Maybe an Asian version of Brokeback Mountain. Two Asian men who have immigrated to America in 1864 in search of the golden mountain but work during the day building railroads. Their relationship blossoms…
We could approach Ang Lee, or maybe even Justin Lin. This project would almost gaurantee us an Academy Award. What do you think!
Just kidding.
On another note, my commercial agency called me Saturday about an audition on Monday. It’s for Intel and it’s a going to be for web distribution. Nothing exciting, but at least I have an audition.
Published on Thursday March 2, 2006 .
I asked my theatrical agent today if there was any feedback from my audition a few days ago. She called the casting office and they said they had already thrown out all the notes because the role had been cast. Bummer. No call-back either. I guess I wasn’t right for the part. Well, all I can do is send a “Thank You” postcard to make sure they don’t forget me.
I started going through Now Casting and LA Casting casting notices and submitting to TV, Film and student projects. Nothing yet.
I really need to produce my own movie…
