I was lucky enough to get 2 days of stunt work on the last episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I had about 1 hour of make up first thing in the morning. I was made into what they called on set an "uber vampire." From what I gather, they are going to take the 7 or 8 of us that were dressed up somewhat alike and digitally duplicate us so it looks like there is a huge swarm of us. I was able to get a lot of pictures and one of my vampire fingers fell off so the costume guy told me I could hang on to it since the show is over now. Doing a death scene was fun. I had to fake being stabbed and they said they would dissolve my body in post. Oh man... my first dissolving! I guess the expression is true: "Shoot for the moon. If you miss, you will at least get dissolved as vampire."
I also learned a new term in the union acting world "Golden Hour." Here is how it works. The first 8 hours you work is included in your session fee. So, if you work 2 hours or 8 hours, you get paid for 8 hours. From 8 to 10 hours you get time and a half. From 10 hours to 16 hours you get double time. After 16 hours you go into "Golden Hour" where you make your full 8 hour rate every hour. This was very exciting. I was there 17 1/2 hours the first day and 16 1/2 the second day.
It was a special experience to be there on the final day. When certain actors finished filming their final scene there were heartfelt speeches, cheering and one actress flashed the crew! I guess I should not name names. The most memorable speech was from the shows creator Joss Whedon. He talked about how much he will miss everyone on set. Although I do not remember his exact words, I do remember him saying this "Thank you everyone for giving me my life." This show meant the world to him and the people who helped him make it meant .a lot to him. It felt like I was at a family reunion. I bet they will find lots of ways to work together in the future. He is a passionate guy and you can tell a good one. Good for him!
Thanks to him and his show, I did get those 2 good days of work. Those will be fun checks to open! Grocery store victory lap, here I come.
Other great news. I got a call back from my Actors Co-Op Audition and am meeting with a director friend of mine tomorrow to go over my monologues.
In other other news, yesterday was Easter. My friend Ryan invited me up to Sonora, CA to spend it with his family. Sonora is about 5 hrs north of LA. It was a lot of fun. Ryan and I made it a goal to gain as much weight as we could. I think we tied. His family is really cool. It was nice being around his dad and seeing how they all were playful with each-other. I am thankful for my experience of my dad not being around much... but it sure is fun to know that there are some really amazing dads out there in the world. If you are reading this and are a dad... be one of the good ones please.
Off for now, learning how to play the guitar better. Good luck out there. Watch out for busses!
~Joe