The Butterfly Circus, Part II

A gigantic thank you to all of you who went to thedoorpost.com and watched all 10 of the finalist’s movies and voted. Due to your support, this past Saturday, The Butterfly Circus took home the Grande Prize of $100,000!
Congratulations to the filmmakers, Josh & Rebekah Weigal and all who were involved in the making of this film! Well done!

The Butterfly Circus

Mom’s can sometimes be the best networkers. Boy! If they want something done, ( by the time their kids are adults,) it gets done. My mother, who still lives in Denver goes to church with a woman whose son and daughter-in-law are filmmakers here in LA. Mom thought that we should meet this couple as they have entered several film and commercial contests and won them. Their names are Josh & Rebecca Weigel. And, as usual, mom was right. These are great people to know. Not just in the sense that they are great filmmakers, but also because they are truely amazing people!
We were lucky enough to get to work with them in a small capacity on their newest film project, The Butterfly Circus. It’s a submission in the Door Post film contest. D & I would really like to throw all of our support, (and yours) to them.
How can you help? I’m glad you asked. The weekend is coming up and just like on American Idol, your vote counts.
In order to vote, you must go to The Door Post and create an account on the site. Then you watch all ten films in their entirety, then you can vote. The catch, you only have until Sept. 16, 2008 to vote!
So, go to the door post, select the “sign up” tab on the right, upload a photo of yourself (optional) or select continue, select “watch now” below the films image. Or you can also follow this link: The Butterfly Circus
You won’t be disappointed, but if you are, we’ll give you 100% of your money back. Guaranteed.
Enjoy your weekend. I know you will if you see this film.
E

Pics of our anniversary at the Getty Museum and D’s birthday at Disneyland

John Williams at the Hollywood Bowl

Last night was a real treat. On a whim, E got us tickets to see (and hear!) John Williams conduct the LA Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl in a tribute to the power of music in film. It was amazing.

The entire first half consisted of selections from the Harry Potter films, with the orchestra providing live scoring to montages from the movies, all narrated (live) by Lynn Redgrave.

The second half provided highlights from a good twenty film scores, most of which were Williams’… but not all – As Time Goes By from Casablanca, the Superman March and themes from Dracula, ET, Catch Me If You Can, and of course, Star Wars.

He saved the most iconic for last, and as those opening chords resounded, a whole world of geek that we weren’t ready for revealed itself. Toy lightsabres lit up all across the vast audience! We’d seen a few people in Jedi robes on our way in… but wow, I just wasn’t prepared for that.

re: Success

Dan’s response:

Amen! But E’s having more success than she lets on. A lot of really beautiful things are coming together in her acting. I get to see it every week in acting class. She’s destined to play some pretty great parts, in my opinion.

One of the easiest ways to get overwhelmed in this business is to look at the mountain of tasks you could be doing to jumpstart your career and think, God, I’m not doing anything! The best way to combat this is to (and you’ve heard it before) embrace the journey. Most successful people view success in others in terms of how long they’ve been at it, and their track record of hard work, integrity and passion.

I’m taking a comedy writing course from Michael McCarthy, who runs the TV writing program at IO West. In addition to being a an incredibly funny, astute writer with lots of credits, he seems to have the gift of encouragement. Yesterday he said, “You know, people who succeed deserve it.”

So work hard, be smart, stay at it, value excellence, be fun and beneficial to work with. You’ll succeed. You will. We will. And don’t be too concerned with what that success will look like, specifically. Just know it’s coming. Indeed, take note of how it’s already come.

Success…what does that look like?

I’ve been thinking a lot about this lately.  Moving to Hollywood at our age… just starting out in this market…we see a lot of people our age that are a lot further along than us.  Gwenyth Paltrow had won her Oscar by the time she was my age.  In fact, I think that she started dating Chris Martin when she was my age.  Christ Martin is my age and he’s the lead singer of one of the biggest bands in the world and has been for 10 years!

If this is what I chose to focus on though, I might just as well give up, get a job elsewhere and settle.  But I don’t think that success has to always look like Gwen & Chris.  They just happen to be on one extreme of the success scale in the entertainment industry.  I don’t think that D and I are on the polar opposite end either.

In the short five months that we’ve been back in LA, we’ve experienced success in small yet very fulfilling ways.  We’re pursuing our dreams and getting noticed and recognition.  It’s not that people are ready to throw us in a writer’s room or in front of the cameras just yet, but we’re preparing for that eventuality.

We’re taking classes with a working actor and another with a former SNL writer, (I’ll let D tell you more about Comedy Lab Live! in a later post.)  We’re making it to set and meeting DP’s, (hi, Nelson!) and getting SAG vouchers.  We’re not struggling to buy groceries, (this is a feat!  We shop at Whole Foods due to dietary restrictions).  We’re happy in this precarious city.  We’re making lasting friendships. We’re finding that attitude and hard work really do take you places.  We’re also learning that letting people know that it’s “not all about me, but can I help you solve your problem?” get’s you noticed and utilized.  AND, if you do a great job, you’ll get used again and again.  People around here like the non-flaky people.  I imagine that they do anywhere, but flakes are all too common here.

All the tiny successes that we are seeing now, we know will add up to bigger success as time goes on.  So, today, my success is being a good wife and supporting my husband’s dream to become a comedy writer in Hollywood.  It looks different every day, but I know that eventually, despite the sacrifice and struggle, it is a life worth living and dreams worth pursuing.

What do your successes look like today?

E

Branding yourself in Hollywood; Words of Wisdom from Phil Cooke

Saturday, D and I were able to attend a Branding Seminar in Hollywood with keynote speaker Phil Cooke, (philcooke.com, TWCfilms.com, cookepictures.com).  He packed in a lot of helpful information into those 4 hours that he spoke.  I thought that some of you might also find this helpful.  Enjoy!

The following is paraphrased advice from Mr. Cooke as I understood it:

As people in the media, we need to be more strategic, more intentional about our careers.  We are in the midst of the Open Media Revolution.  Media is put in front of us all the time. In the past, we were able to shut the TV off, but now advertisers come to our cell phones.  We’re bombarded with 3,000-5,000 media messages per day.  What kind of message are you sending as an actor, writer, designer?  We must understand how vitally important that our online presence and appearance is.

The newest forms of communication keep people connected to  one another.  If you are great and you don’t connect with the right person, you’ve failed.

We must also understand who our audience is.  These days the TV is on in average households an average of 8 hrs/day and people are only sleeping about 6 hrs. & 40 min’s/day.  Even so, consumption of traditional media, (e.g. TV, radio, newspapers, etc.) is on the decline, while new media, (e.g. video games, cell phones, the internet,) is on the rise.  Cell phones alone have gained ground at the rate of over 1000% in the past few years!  And the majority of  those that are consuming the new media is a generation called “The Millennials”.

Millennials, (the generation born between 1978 – 2000) have grown up with a sense of entitlement. They want a voice & they believe it should be heard.  This is in contrast to the Boomer generation, whose parents were far from relational. Boomers grew up with parents that defined themselves by what they did for their occupation.  Mr. Cooke reminds us here, “Define yourself by who you are, not what you do.”  This is far more relational than the other way around.

An example of how Millennials are affecting change in media is the ABC hit TV show, “Lost”.  There are literally hundreds of sites dedicated to this show.  The writers scan these pages and find out what the fans like and dislike about the show and the story lines are altered based on what the fans are saying.  Conclusion: the audience wants to be a part of the story.

What can we do?  We can find out what our personal story is.  That personal story becomes your brand.  Branding creates loyalty.  The most effective brands have compelling stories that surround a product, person or organization. When branding yourself, you should be asking the following:

What do people think of when they think of you?  How do you stand out? What is the story that surrounds you? What drives your brand? (For example, Starbucks’s mission statement is, “A great coffee experience.”  They aim everything in their shops to that one aim.)

Your aim may be one thing, but the message that people are receiving is a totally different message.  Your brand, your story  is not what you say it is, it’s what people say it is.  This is again why we must be vigilant and very intentional about how we are perceived.

How can you create your story.  Sit down and really consider the following 4 questions, “The Branding Big 4″:

1. What’s the point?  Why must you be an actor, writer etc.?  What is the goal here? The answer will shape what projects you go after.  Those projects can shape others perception of you.

2. What makes you, you?  Your background colors what you do.  It impacts what you go after.  A businessman will see a role differently than a former gang member. (Tip: Don’t work for just getting paid.  If you come into the room and bring a solution to someone’s problem, you will be paid for it.  Look for someone’s problem to solve.)

3. What are your skills and talents?  Forget your weaknesses.  Focus on getting better at what you are already good at. People in Hollywood spend too much time doing what they are NOT good at. (Tip: STOP discussing your problems with people who can’t solve them.  The people that can’t help you will grow tired of hearing your problems and will not want to associate with you.)

4. What makes you different?  What do you bring to the table that no one else in this town can bring? Different voices get you noticed.  Being different is everything in this business.  Don’t be the next Anne Hathaway.  Be the one and only you.  Be unique!

How can we implement the answers to these questions into our careers?

1. In a media driven culture, visibility is just as important as ability.  Being good is very important, but if you’re not seen, what good does it do you?  It’s not just who you are, it’s how you are perceived.  If you don’t influence how people perceive you, you’re at the mercy of people who will create how others see you.

2. You can’t brand a lie.  These days people can Google or IMDB you.  Google is a reputation manager.  You must live a more transparent lives than ever.  Be sure that you’re clean on the web. (Tip: Digital real estate matters in a digital world.  If you don’t already own a domain with your name, buy it now!)

3. Again, being different is everything.

4. Stop thinking “mass”, start thinking “niche”.  How can you be the best in your niche?  Discover that, get to be the best in your niche and then you can out beyond that niche.

5. Discover the power of a name.  It’s the first thing people see (or hear).

6. Speak the language of design.  Meaning, you can’t tell people that you are amazing when you are putting an average image or logo out there.  Find what the norm is and deviate from it.  (example from D’s and my VO demo reels.  Our friend designed the album covers the way that he did because every disc that he got from VO artists had a microphone or some variation on it.  So, still using a voice theme, we deviated from the pack.  D with a radio tower and me with song birds. That will grab people’s attention because it’s not the usual old-timey stock photo of a microphone.  Different = great!)

A logo is not the brand, but rather it expresses the intent or spirit of the brand. You must gear your brand to your specific audience.  In our individual cases, our audiences are the people who we want to work for. Image is so important .  If you’re going to spend money on something, spend money on logos. Images have power.

7. Find the right team.  Surround yourself with people that believe in you and what you want to do. You need encouragment.Why?  EVERY YEAR 22,000 film grads are unleashed on Hollywood!  That’s a lot of competition!  In that competition, we can very easily loose sight of our goal without those around us reminding us.  Get rid of the negative people in your life.

8. Learn to tell your story.  Create an environment that fosters creativity.

9. Find an overarching theme for you life and work.  What’s the thread that runs through you career.  To do so, ask yourself what do you gravitate toward?

10. What drives you crazy?  That could be what you are meant to fix in the industry.  How amazing is that?

If you are comfortable with who you are, you’re good at what you do and are talented, you will NOT fail in this city.  Talent trumps everything.

A word on networking:  “Develop personal relationships.” Go to seminars. Go to social events.  Approach people on a personal level. Listen to them.  Don’t wait months to have a meeting with an A-List director only to talk about yourself the whole time.  Research their lives.  Know about them and get to know them on a human level.  They will want to work with you if you approach them on that level as opposed to being self seeking.

Words on a trashed reputation: “Remember that if there is nothing out there to nail you, you have nothing to worry about.  Let it go. Don’t retaliate! Don’t be bitter.  Move on and the truth will eventually come out.”

Words on why we must be in LA: “Things are shot everywhere, but decisions are still made in LA.”  If you aren’t here, you’re not building those relationships and people will forget about you.

END Morning Session

Afternoon Session:

Four ways to have an online presence and utilize new media to gain exposure.

1. Blog- It’s an online dialogue.  They are most effective when they are very focused in their aim. They should be about something you are an expert in.  Your expertise should surround your brand.  If you aren’t an expert, you should at least sound like one.

Blogging is a “T-shirt and jeans” approach.  A relaxed behind the scenes peek, if you will, on a certain, focused topic. (Our topic for this blog, in case you were confused, is what it is to be married actors living and working in LA.)

2. Facebook (FB). This is a “Collegiate” level of professionalism.  More professional than a blog.  It’s a place to throw ideas out.  People can and have acquired jobs based on FB pages.  Facebook can be used to grow your circle of influence and to build your brand. (Side note- Phil suggests that you not use MySpace any more.  It is a passé form of networking unless you are a band. Hardly any industry professionals are on it any more.  The audience is mainly teenage girls.)

3. Twitter.  It’s a micro-blog.  You can post a short idea about what is going on, thoughts and quotes. Twitter has the reputation of being even more professional with more profound responses to “tweets”.  It can also increase blog traffic.

4. Personal web page.  It’s your digital real estate and your platform to quickly pitch to people what your brand is.  Generally, there is no feedback here as it is merely an information hub.

Whichever method you choose, even and possibly especially if it is all of them, you must be intentional about what you post.  You must also ask people to respond or they are less likely to interact with what you have put out there.

All of these online things can take up a lot of time.  You MUST be a good tome manager.  “If you are not succeeding, it is because you’re leaving too much to chance.”  You need to find the tools that will help you keep on task and manage your time wisely.  Often, we are stressed we don’t know what we have to do.

Suggested reading: “Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity” by David Allen (Amazon.com)

If you have an Apple computer, you can also utilize the Spaces application in the latest OS, or buy “Things” a productivity manager. ($50 at Apple.com)

E-mail is insidious!  Responding to all your e-mails in your in box can eat your day up! Once it’s sent, you can never get it back.  Therefore, even if you’re sending an e-mail to a friend, never send anything that you wouldn’t want published in the newspaper. You never know what might happen to that friendship.  Things of high importance need to be done face to face.

What are we bogging, tweeting and Facebooking for? People expect information to come to them.  Basically, these all are platforms to pitch your brand/idea from.  Whether you are an actor, writer whatever, pitching is what you do.

What is pitching?  It’s getting people excited about what you are doing. “A good idea is the worst thing in the world unless you have more than one.”

Here are some keys to pitching well.

1. Do your homework.  Know who you are pitching to and what they are working on/have worked on.  They won’t respect you if you know nothing about them.

2. Try to develop real, honest relationships.

3. Sometimes the best way to pitch your idea is to ask someone what they think about you idea.

4. Keep the pitch short, sweet and to the point.  Between 3-5 minutes if at all possible. “Don’t tell me about the labor pains, show me the baby.”

5. If your content is good, you don’t need to get cutsie.  It’s totally unnecessary.

6. Don’t bug people!  If you pitched to someone five minutes earlier, don’t call them when they are on the way home from the pitch.  Honor the relationship that you are trying to build and consider what it looks like from their perspective.

7. Learn to listen.  If someone starts to riff off your idea and take it in a direction that you had never intended, don’t argue with them.  They are taking ownership of your idea.  It’s more likely to get done.

8. Be able to articulate your ideas well.  If you can’t communicate it, it won’t get done.  If you’re not good at it, become good at it. Growth is an amazing thing.

9. Learn to deal with the unexpected guest at your pitch. Meaning, if you come into a room and see someone you know there, don’t ignore them.  Pitch to them too. Get  them excited so that when you leave the room, when the head honcho looks at your mutual friend they can give a thumbs up.

10. Understand the goal of the person you’re pitching to.

11. Be on time.  If you’re not on time, you are devaluing the other person’s time.

Understand that whether you intend to or not, you telegraph information to people all of the time.  Be intentional and send them good, positive messages.

The term networking gets thrown around and not many people, especially in this business actually know what it means.  I, (E) in the past have always thought of it as a dirty and underhanded way of leveraging relationships to personal gain. That is the exact way not to network.  Here are Phil’s 7 networking principles for not derailing your career.

1. The Law of the Horizon.  Don’t become consumed with where you are. Keep your eye on the goal of who and where you want to be. So many people, particularly in the entertainment business just before they reach success. Don’t stop moving forward.

2. The Law of Perception.  What do people think of when they think of you.  Again, you can take charge of this before someone else does.

3. The Law of Ownership. It’s your career, no one else will care about it as much as you.  Own the positive things that have happened. Forget and let go of the negative things.

4. The Law of Momentum.

a)Have a plan in place for when you’re successful.  How will you get the word out?  Do you have press contacts?  Do you have several followers on Twitter?  Who are your friends?

b) Have two or three ideas/jobs in the pipeline.

c) Keep networking.  Even/Especially when you’re successful.

d) Recognize favor when it comes. A small success could translate into something HUGE!

5. Law of Relationship. People skills are more important than almost any other skills.  (Tip: Don’t be easily offended.  Easy going people are easy to work with. Also, if you are good at inspiring & motivating people, you will never be out of a job.)

6. The Law of Contingency.  Have a “Plan B”. Sometimes we have to realize that we’re hitting our head on a brick wall.  Go about it via another route.  Try to stay in the business and then work your way back to your arena. Be humble in that.

7. Law of Agreement.  No matter how talented you are, if you aren’t on the same track with your partner/spouse, you will fail.

An important thing to remember is that it’s not about you when you pitch, network, work. It’s about the audience, whether it be your agent/manager or studios or whomever.

So, what do you think? Did you agree with what Phil said? Do you take issue with it?

To find out more about Phil Cooke and what he’s about, you can go to philcooke.com or you can follow him on Twitter at Phil Cooke.

Thanks for taking time to read. I hope that it was helpful. Go be successful and have  a good day!

E

Mickey Mouse & Improv

It’s been too long since I’ve posted on this blog. Thank you everyone who has complained to me personally! So much has happened in the last few months. LA is a crazy, amazing, and volatile place to live; it’s been an adventure to be sure. So what little tidbits can I quickly share? I’ll leave you with two…

I auditioned for the voice of Mickey Mouse. This was about 6 weeks ago. Some may have heard that Wayne Allwine, the voice of Mickey for about the last thirty years, passed away recently. Definitely the end of a legacy. I didn’t want to capitalize on such a sad event, but at the same time E and I have always thought I do a pretty great impression of Mickey Mouse. Something I break out at dinner parties after entirely too much wine.

Speaking of wine, it was at a little wine-tasting party that I happened to meet one of the directors of the Mickey’s Clubhouse TV show. He casually dropped that they are currently casting for Mickey. So I rushed home, put something on tape, and began searching for the right person to email it to. Easier said than done. There’s a lot of readily accessible industry information out there for the enterprizing young actor. Nevertheless, when it comes to accessing actual decision-makers… the old addage of “it’s not what you know, but who you know” holds true. Fortunately my good friend Jonathan Auxier has a ton of contacts in the animation industry, and connected me with a friend of a friend of a friend who knows the Disney exec who was doing the casting. So I called him. He informed me that they were no longer accepting submissions… but to send it to him anyway! So I did. No word back. But I did it. Can you believe it? I actually did it! The crazy notion that we joked about so often actually came to pass. Never say never.

I guess the other big news is the work I’ve been doing with improv and comedy. A return of sorts to… my roots. As a teenager, I spent the majority of my free time doing improv and prolifically writing comedic sketches for Acme Youth Church in Surrey (represent!). Then in college I did weekly improv shows with 11:07. Then I guess I figured I would become a ’serious’ ‘theatre’ actor.

Well, I’m back to what I do best. Which isn’t to say I’ve forsaken drama. Far from it. But I’m having a blast doing improv and sketch comedy.

I’ve started professional classes with The Groundlings here in LA. Boy, it’s amazing. I absolutely believe that every serious actor should take good improv classes. It is NOT about being goofy, or even funny. It is about communicating. And being completely open. I really feel like I’ve grown in leaps and bounds since starting this class. It’s ben harder than I thought!

I’m also about to start performing regularly with Comedy Lab Live. This is something I’m very excited about. This writing program equips students with polished material that they can submit to Saturday Night Live and all the major networks. Part of the process is putting the material in front of an audience. I will be one of the performers showcasing the material. The shows will be staged on Sunday evenings at Improv Olympic in Hollywood – at the Andy Dick Theater!

Comedy is my first love. I’ve started writing again. Something I haven’t done regularly in ten years. I’ve finished a spec script of The Office, and am feverishly working on several others.

It feels good to be busy! I can’t emphasize how crazy our life has become in the last 8 months. What a change. What an adventure. It’s overwhelming when I sit back and think about it.

Whew!

D.

Introducing one beautiful, creative lady

I can’t believe that we’ve been in the US now for 7…almost 8 months! One of the hardest things about leaving a place that you’ve lived long enough to call home, is the having to leave people behind. We of course have a force of amazing people around us here in LA, but you still miss the ones you left back home.
While I was moonlighting at the Pottery Barn as a home decor expert, I met a lovely lady that has become a dear friend to both D and me. It was in the stock room that Coldplay’s latest album, Viva la Vida (or Death and All His Friends) was playing and I looked over at Ally and saw her singing along. I said, “Do you like Coldplay?” and she replied, “Oh, god! I love them!” Or something to that effect. That was the spark that kindled our friendship.
She is/was attending UBC getting her degree in English. She is not only beautiful and loves beautiful creative things, she has a lot of beauty to share and so it is with great pleasure that I introduce you to Allyredhead.blogspot.com
Enjoy!
E

A belated happy birthday to Canada and “The America”

Our friends Brad and Rebecca Bergman, some wonderful Canadians in Vancouver, have dubbed the US, “The America”. I used to find it ever so slightly offensive, but now I chuckle.

When at a wine tasting last month, we met a fellow Canadian who told us about Canadians Abroad who connects Canadians in the LA area together to Celebrate Canadian holidays and do decidedly Canadian things… sort of. It is LA after all and they are all Canadian (some Canadien) ex-pats. I was determined to make D feel at home by celebrating Canada Day (July 1st) then we would quietly celebrate the Fourth of July. So Canadians Abroad had organized a celebration that would take place on the roof of a Hollywood night club. Something decidedly un-Canadian. Oh well! It would be fun. Expensive, but fun.

We told our friends the Fritzsche’s who are also a mixed couple (US/Canadian) and they joined us. Pictures above.

Then, D’s parents came down for their yearly long vacation… to Vegas. They invited us to join over the Fourth of July holiday. So much for celebrating quietly. It’s Vegas, Baby! Who does it small there? We did spend the days by the pool. Happy to report we are now golden brown. Again, pictures above.

All in all, not a bad way to celebrate two countries birthdays, eh?

E