The page-one rewrite of Ozark Mile is finished.

This is now the "new" first draft. It’s rewrite time! On the second draft, I’ll be adjusting scene lengths, balancing dialogue, and checking for character consistency. 

For those computer geeks out there, this should make you smile…

Here’s the proof…

If Howell County were anything like this, I would never have gone anywhere… maybe not appropriate for work.

I came across a roll of film the other day that, for whatever reason, I had neglected to process. After taking the photos to the lab, I realized they were from my trip to New Zealand last year. I just had to share…

“But I don’t want to do commercials; I want to do real acting…”

Let’s face it, none of us entertains the dream of becoming an actor so that we can land that late, great toothpaste commercial we saw on daytime television. That dream comes later, after we’ve been in the business for a year or so—then that toothpaste commercial is incredibly appealing. But when we first get into the business, we all dream of the big roles: the roles we see on great television programs, our favorite big-screen movies, and on the stage under the lights. But how do we get there, and what’s it really like?

The road to the big roles is different for every actor… some actors start out in the theater and find their way to the camera; others start out in commercials and find their way to regional theater. Your road will be impossible to determine, or plan, from the outset. But you can set long term and short term goals that will lead you towards good legit parts (that’s fancy actor lingo for “not a commercial”).

I went to a free screening of the IFCFilms movie The Edukators on Monday#–a German film about dissolute twentysomethings who take out their frustrations by breaking into rich people’s houses and rearranging their belongings. It was enjoyable, although a little slow in the middle. The film seems to have been shot digitally, so it’s not a pretty film by any means. The strength lies in it’s earnestness and well-drawn characters. The actors are all top-notch, and the score is mostly alt-rock faves, European and American. If you like art-house movies, you’ll probably enjoy this one, but if you’re a multi-plex goer you might find yourself a little bored.

In other news… I’ll be doing Guiding Light again next week, and also One Life to Live. I’m doing background on all the NY based soaps pretty regularly now, so hopefully I’ll move up to speaking roles soon. It’s sometimes easy to forget how much I’ve accomplished by being able to say "I received a paycheck this week as an actor". Most actors can’t say that… so even the small work I’m doing now is something in which I take pride. By joining the Unions I’ve said goodbye to juicy roles for a little while as I work my way up the ladder.

I realized today that the Amazon Wish List I had on my sidebar was a dumb idea. If you click on something and then buy it, it sends it to me#–not you! That’s lame. I wanted to share some of the things I like, not encourage people to send me gifts.

I also realized that I have no links up to the blogs I read on an almost daily basis#–friendships forged through the internet, and lives I’m involved in by distance.

So, I got rid of the wishlist and put in a BLOG LIST!

Visit my friends, visit their friends… you’d be surprised what you learn by listening to the ravings of others…