I can be such a dork sometimes. First of all, my rule of not working over the weekends was broken this weekend when a director I am working with needed to see an actor on Saturday. As I do have a lot to catch up on, I was happy to go into the office at 10 and hold the audition at 11 and finish up around 2 and then go to the gym, etc, etc… Well, 11am happened and the director showed up with the producer, who flew in from Atlanta and the actor was not there. We called the actor and he was running late and would not be there until at least 1pm. The director asked if I minded hanging out and as I did have a lot to do, I said it wasn’t a problem and went back to my desk while they went out for a coffee. 1pm arrived and I gathered all of my belongings. My office is on the 5th floor of the building I am in and the audition room is on the 12th floor. So, in my hands I had a script, two copies of the 17 pages of sides and my small digital camera with an extra battery and extension chord. My hands were full as I opened my door and as the door slammed shut, I realized that I forgot my keys. I usually keep my key attached to a buckle on my jeans but this morning I forgot to do that, so I was out of luck and had no way to get back into my office or into the audition room. I went to the security guard in the main lobby and asked him if he had a master key to the offices, of course not…so, I went back up to the 12th floor to deliver my news that I was a total dumb ass and locked myself out of the offices. The actor auditioning, said no problem and tried to pick open the lock like a professional thief. It was funny at first and then weird and then awkward and then I was like, wow, he really may be a professional thief in his spare time! Well, needless to say, he did not get the audition room door open and not for a lack of trying. He was actually up for the challenge and excited about the possibility of busting on in. He went downstairs to the shop next door and borrowed a screwdriver. He really was a very determined young man. After a few minutes of almost breaking the door, I ordered him to stop and put everything back the way he found it as I am already probably going to be in a hell of a lot of trouble with the building manager for trying to get back into the room. It was all put back neatly and we had the small dilemma of where to hold the audition. We had no choice but to hold it in the hallway of the 5th floor of the building. Sure, the lighting sucked. Sure, the sound was a little echo-y and my dignity was way, way, way thrown out of the window, because aside from being totally embarrassed and humiliated at the fact that the producer flew in from Atlanta to see this one actor, aside from all of that, the actor did a really good job. I am pretty sure he will get the role. The funny/sad thing about all of this is that this is not the first time this has happened to me. Several years ago when I was casting Mean Creek, I locked myself out of my office, without my camera (on a Saturday) and I had several actors to audition; one of them being Josh Peck, who landed the role and always reminds me of the time he auditioned outside, under the landing, in the rain, with his Mother waiting in their car. Oh the glamour of Hollywood. So in the end, it may be a good omen to audition for me on a Saturday, especially if I lock myself out of my office. I just think the Universe is trying to tell me to stay home and chill out and not work: or at least not be such a dork…

Tags: Filmmaking, Hollywood, Television, Oscars, Film Industry

I once read an article about a famous old producer who said that he spent over half his day doing favors for other people.  And I have to agree with him.

Much of my day is spent doing favors for other people: trying to help friends get jobs, making introductions, reading resumes, introducing actors to casting agents, etc.

It might seem like a waste of my time (and, trust me, there are days that I would agree).  But then something happens to remind me that it all comes back to you.

We have been friends over the years with a writer who we have tried to help out whenever we can without the expectation of anything in return.  We recently got an email from him saying he is now working at the Huffington Post and he would love to do an article on our very funny client Ben Schwartz.

Of course we said yes and, boy, are we happy about this article.  See the link below to read this fantastic article.

And remember, this goes to show you that it’s a good business practice to try to be nice to everyone — you never know how it is going to come back around.

Enjoy reading the article now.

Tags: Actor, Movie Bloggers, Movie Theatre, Filmmaker, Movie