I finally got to work with Bellingham's own, Hand Crank Films! I'm in their data base of actors and received an e-mail from them wanting to know if I'd be interested in playing a mother to a young boy for an upcoming commercial shoot.
My first thought was A MOTHER! Shit, I'm looking my age, my second thought was, "hells yes!"
The shoot was two days, one day in Olympia, WA and the other in Bellingham, WA. How could I say no? So yes, I made myself available and luckily got the part!
When I first moved to Bellingham, 7 freakin years ago, I pretty much convinced myself that there was no acting here. I mean really though, what kind of acting goes down in Bellingham, WA? So I worked in restaurants and retail stores, and dreamed of one day being on a billboard...
It wasn't long ago actually, I found myself siting at a red light on N. State Street, staring up at a billboard. I clearly remember looking up at the girl and wondering, How the hell did she get on that billboard? I want to be on a billboard.
About five years back one night while working my hellish restaurant job, my manager, who must have at some point, caught me reminiscing about my days of being a NYC actor, casually mentioned that the man sitting over at the bar, works for a film company right here in Bellingham. Wha!? Next came his contact information in my apron.
So, what does a girl do? She runs off and gets headshots taken from a kid named Kevin, who was just starting out in photography. Here's a sample of Kevin's work, I actually don't think anybody but mom has seen these photos!
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| I was 27 & look soo young here! |
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| Chubby cheeks galore (and bigger boobs)! |
I think, throughout the following 6 years I maybe e-mailed Hand Crank Films, twice. Once, to inform them that an actor lives in Bellingham, if they wanted to hire me, and again about wanting to intern for their company, or something.
Anyway, can I just say how pleasant it was to work with Hand Crank Films. First off, they put us up in a hotel, in Olympia, the evening before we were needed. Which means that we all had the opportunity for a good nights rest, and a less chaotic morning.
On day one, when it was my turn to shoot, we were artfully guided through an improvised scene between my son and the Dr. Improvised scenes are the way to go, in my opinion. Here is a photo below of myself and the doc.
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| She totally pulled off a Dr. and my hair is darker than it's been in a while! |
Day 1: No drama
I happily drove back to Bellingham and anticipated the following film day, which again, consisted of, no drama.
Now, I know that actors have the reputation of being the dramatic type and this is usually true, but I have to admit, I've seen my fair share of dramatic situations revolving around the crew, but not this crew, they were super chill!
The director, Chris Koser, was great. He communicates really well, and has a very calm presence while directing. I actually hugged him goodbye, I don't think I ever really hug directors goodbye at the end of the shoot. Sometimes the relationship between director and actor can be awkward, but I didn't get that at all from him!
Which leaves me to this!
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| I'm on a billboard...and I can't be more excited about that!! |
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| And buses! |
I haven't actually seen them in person, but I'm thinking I might make the drive.
It was only a week or two ago that I was questioning whether or not I should pursue acting with everything I've got, and pulled a, "Show me a sign!" Like the actual movie Signs, ya know, aliens and half full glasses of water. I sometimes ask my grandma those kinds of questions, she died too young.
I THINK I GOT MY SIGN on a gigantic billboard. :) Here is the commercial. Enjoy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yC63EQmEYPk
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