4:17 pm - Saturday, May. 12, 2007
Jane, You Can SKIP this Entry

This is part of a recent email I wrote to Jane (Cause I don't have time to basically re-write what I wrote her. That, and I'm lazy).

On my end, while there are a number of things to feel positive about, I'm feeling a bit stressed & depressed as I write this.

But to start with "the good stuff"...

Money continues to flow in; I currently have three checks in my wallet (My Federal tax refund, another Propel check, and a residual check for "Nip/Tuck") totaling over $2800, just waiting for me to get to the bank. And "session fee" checks for Snickers and Coldstone are still "in the hopper".

I have more money in the bank than I've ever had before, which is a nice feeling. It's not as nice as I'd LIKE it to be--I still can't shake feeling anxious about finances (Since I can't know how much is going to come in, for how long, before the inevitable slowdown)--but it's pretty cool, for the first time in my life, to be paid really well for something I do, and to know that, at the very least, I was "set" for the year just three or four months INTO the year.

It's not "set in stone" yet, because I haven't actually TALKED to her, but it looks like I have a theatrical agent.

On Tuesday, while I was at ArcLight, I was talking to R.C. and his girlfriend Katy (R.C. was the one who recommended I talk to Vicki--the agent--who is Katy's mom), and during the course of our conversation, Katy asked if, when I'd met with her mom, she'd told me to "think about it, and call her back in a week or so". And when I said she had, Katy said that meant she wanted to sign me , but thought it didn't look good to be "overeager" (Or maybe she said "overzealous". Some "over"-word). And she'd told Katy after our meeting that I was "a good guy". So I'm hopeful that this will happen, and make a noticeable difference in my fortunes.

Two weeks ago, I had no auditions for the week, but I had three auditions last week, and am going on my third audition of the week later today (And there's been a virtual "rush" of theatrical auditions--I had four in the first three months of the year, and now I've had four in the past four weeks). And while I wish my happiness/feelings of self-worth didn't center quite so much around auditions, auditions ARE pretty damned important (It's not "rejection" that I mind out here nearly so much as not even being in the GAME). So wish me luck on booking some of these things, and building up my "saving for a rainy day" account (I want more commercial bookings, to be sure, but could also use some more resume-building theatrical gigs).

The BAD news...

Had an audition yesterday for Burger King, but things ended up going very WRONG--The breakdown requested clean-shaven men, but something got lost in translation between JS and the casting place, because there I was, at the casting office, clearly sporting a mustache, where I was told, in no uncertain terms (By a clearly frustrated assistant), that I could NOT audition for the commercial (I asked if it mattered that I'd be willing to SHAVE, and she re-iterated that the breakdown had asked for CLEAN-SHAVEN men).

Now, let me preface what I'm about to say next by saying that it was, in large part, my fault.

I should have just said, "Sorry about the confusion", went on my way, called JS, and let him deal with things. But I was caught off-guard by the confusion (I dont think it's ever happened before, that I've gone to an audition, then been told I couldn't audition), a little frustrated at the inconvenience and wasted time, and feeling defensive because the assistant had quickly became angry and frustrated with ME (As if JS hadn't submitted me--WITH a mustache, mind you--and they hadn't OKAYED it).

I didn't yell or curse or say anything offensive or untoward, but it wasn't appropriate for me, while in the office, to want to discuss/debate what had went wrong in the situation (In a normal situation, I think it would be--If an appointment is scheduled for me to see you, and when I get there, you tell me I don't have an appointment/can't see you, and are frustrated with me for BEING there, I think I'm entitled to try to "get to the bottom of things"--but this is not a normal situation,and actors out here aren't actual people. You can get angry about that, and I am, but it's just the way it is).

But I certainly didn't expect what happened next...I left, and shortly afterwards got a message from JS. The casting director--Danielle Eskinazi-- had called him, enraged, telling him her assistant told her I'd had an "attitude", and had angrily said "I don't NEED this place...". She want nuclear on JS, telling him "Well I don't need your fucking actor, or ANY of your actors...!".

The problem with her rage? Her assistant was out-and-out LYING. I didn't say "I don't need this place", or anything else that could have, in any way, shape, or form, been construed that way.

JS wasn't really angry with me--He knows me well enough to know I wouldn't do that--but gently suggested that THIS is why, if there's ever confusion like this, you just smile and walk out the door.

(I wrote a note to the casting director, apologizing for "my part in making a mountain out of a scheduling molehill", but at the same time, letting her know that I did NOT say "I don't need this place", because "I have too much respect for you, for JS, and for myself, to behave that way".)

I'm tremendously angry/frustrated by this situation, but there's there's nothing to do now but try and put it behind me. Hopefully, this casting person will cool off, accept my apology, and we'll move on from here, but if not, it's not like she's the only commercial casting director in LA.

The other bummer recently is that I saw the Snickers commercial yesterday...but I'm not IN it.

I'm hoping against hope that I saw a 15 second cut, and there's going to be a 30 second cut with me IN the spot...but I'm feeling doubtful. And that means who-knows-how-much money just flew out the window.

But more on this and other semi-interesting topics later (I'll be fleshing out some of this stuff in Diaryland). I have an audition for a feature this afternoon, and I need to go walk the dog before I go book that.

Hope things are good on your end.

Love,
Jim

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