They saved the best for last, because I don't appear until the end, around the 3:48 mark.
Please watch the whole thing. Not just because my part won't make much sense if you don't, but because everyone involved did a super job in creating a fun, energetic video.
I auditioned on Friday, Jan. 25 and got the part!
(Obviously! Otherwise this blog post might be chicken jokes or something silly. "Not that there's anything wrong with that!" as Seinfeld might say.)
My part took two days of shooting!
To be clear, they did more than just shoot my part on those two days. But still, I got to enjoy their delicious craft services twice! :o)
All I knew was that I was the neighbor of some girl; and I run in the woods. Thinking about what that might mean made me feel ill. An adult neighbor in the woods with some kid? Ew! Sure, a gig's a gig, but still! Fortunately, the "girl" turned out to be a woman; and the director dispelled my fears, assuring me that I was not portraying Captain Creepy. In fact, the woman watches me; I don't watch her. I don't even know she's there!
We shot the me-stressing-out-in-a-car scene which starts around 3:48 in the video on Wednesday, January 30 at the house of a friend of someone from the production company. The Google Map directions threw me off a bit due to a street having a different name, but once I saw the cars lining the road and the big production truck in the driveway, I knew I'd found the right place.
A neighbor stopped by and asked to speak to whoever lived there, so someone said that the owner wasn't there. The look on the neighbor's face was priceless. Like why are there 30 or so people milling about a house when the owner's not there? That incident made me laugh for a couple of days.
The forest scene was shot on Day 4 of the video shoot, which was Friday February 1. My part in the woods begins around the 4:04 mark in the video.
The above is the only picture of me in the shirt I wear in the video, because it was so cold, I wore a long-sleeve shirt over my T-shirt when I wasn't being filmed.
All I needed to do was looked frightened and then run through a bunch of vines. Only problem was, I was supposed to be running for my life, without running past the golf cart with the film crew! Maybe I'm a method actor, 'cause when I run for my life, I run fast!
I had a blast. Everyone was professional and fun. And I know two days of shooting sounds like a lot of hard work; and it was, for the production people and the other performers, but most of the time I sat around eating and talking to beautiful people.
Smart beautiful people, because they had the good sense to bring jackets, blankets, and/or scarves, whereas I just brought a long-sleeve shirt. One of the performers had seen a Mitch Hedberg show! So I got paid to eat, talk to smart beautiful people, and share Mitch Hedberg jokes! Yes, my life is truly blessed.
To be more accurate, most of the time, I sat around thinking that I shouldn't eat, because I was going to be running. But then I'd get so hungry, I'd think I should eat a little something. The food looked and smelled so good, how could I resist? And so I would eat just a little something. And the food tasted so good, I'd eat just a little something more. And then just a little something more. And then just a little bit more. And then I'd think, okay, that was enough. More than enough. I shouldn't have eaten so much! But then I'd see dark chocolate-covered granola bars and eat some more!
After they shot the footage they wanted, I dashed to Mitchell's Coffee House to perform in the First Friday Show with the ImprovAddicts!
The ImprovAddicts' Ha-Ha's & Java's & More Ha-Ha's! Show
February 1 at Mitchell's Coffee House
Photo by Nathan Waters
The next morning, I went back to NFocus to rehearse for a presentation about Florida Southern College for the Lakeland Chamber of Commerce dinner at The Lakeland Center. That was a busy, but fun, several hours with the video, the show, and the rehearsal. Good times.
Special thanks to Smokepoint for an awesome rocking song, NFocus Visual Communications, Inc. for an excellent production, and the Jess Anderson Talent and Model Agency for getting me the audition!
If Andy Warhol's words are true, about each person getting his/her own 15 minutes of fame, I've easily got another 14 minutes and 50 seconds coming!
Please watch the whole thing. Not just because my part won't make much sense if you don't, but because everyone involved did a super job in creating a fun, energetic video.
I auditioned on Friday, Jan. 25 and got the part!
(Obviously! Otherwise this blog post might be chicken jokes or something silly. "Not that there's anything wrong with that!" as Seinfeld might say.)
My part took two days of shooting!
To be clear, they did more than just shoot my part on those two days. But still, I got to enjoy their delicious craft services twice! :o)
All I knew was that I was the neighbor of some girl; and I run in the woods. Thinking about what that might mean made me feel ill. An adult neighbor in the woods with some kid? Ew! Sure, a gig's a gig, but still! Fortunately, the "girl" turned out to be a woman; and the director dispelled my fears, assuring me that I was not portraying Captain Creepy. In fact, the woman watches me; I don't watch her. I don't even know she's there!
We shot the me-stressing-out-in-a-car scene which starts around 3:48 in the video on Wednesday, January 30 at the house of a friend of someone from the production company. The Google Map directions threw me off a bit due to a street having a different name, but once I saw the cars lining the road and the big production truck in the driveway, I knew I'd found the right place.
A neighbor stopped by and asked to speak to whoever lived there, so someone said that the owner wasn't there. The look on the neighbor's face was priceless. Like why are there 30 or so people milling about a house when the owner's not there? That incident made me laugh for a couple of days.
The forest scene was shot on Day 4 of the video shoot, which was Friday February 1. My part in the woods begins around the 4:04 mark in the video.
The above is the only picture of me in the shirt I wear in the video, because it was so cold, I wore a long-sleeve shirt over my T-shirt when I wasn't being filmed.
All I needed to do was looked frightened and then run through a bunch of vines. Only problem was, I was supposed to be running for my life, without running past the golf cart with the film crew! Maybe I'm a method actor, 'cause when I run for my life, I run fast!
I had a blast. Everyone was professional and fun. And I know two days of shooting sounds like a lot of hard work; and it was, for the production people and the other performers, but most of the time I sat around eating and talking to beautiful people.
Smart beautiful people, because they had the good sense to bring jackets, blankets, and/or scarves, whereas I just brought a long-sleeve shirt. One of the performers had seen a Mitch Hedberg show! So I got paid to eat, talk to smart beautiful people, and share Mitch Hedberg jokes! Yes, my life is truly blessed.
After they shot the footage they wanted, I dashed to Mitchell's Coffee House to perform in the First Friday Show with the ImprovAddicts!
The ImprovAddicts' Ha-Ha's & Java's & More Ha-Ha's! Show
February 1 at Mitchell's Coffee House
Photo by Nathan Waters
The next morning, I went back to NFocus to rehearse for a presentation about Florida Southern College for the Lakeland Chamber of Commerce dinner at The Lakeland Center. That was a busy, but fun, several hours with the video, the show, and the rehearsal. Good times.
Special thanks to Smokepoint for an awesome rocking song, NFocus Visual Communications, Inc. for an excellent production, and the Jess Anderson Talent and Model Agency for getting me the audition!
If Andy Warhol's words are true, about each person getting his/her own 15 minutes of fame, I've easily got another 14 minutes and 50 seconds coming!
P.S.
This first joke below is the joke that started
the whole Mitch Hedberg conversation,
because I looked at a monitor
that showed a shot of the woods
and said the opening line about Bigfoot being blurry.
I then said that was a Mitch Hedberg joke;
and then we started saying his jokes back and forth!
Please Note:
These jokes read much funnier
if you know how Mitch Hedberg sounds.
His delivery is half the comedy,
so if you've never heard him perform before,
you might want to watch the video below first!
Mitch Hedberg
I think Bigfoot is blurry, that's the problem.
It's not the photographer's fault.
Bigfoot is blurry.
And that's extra scary to me,
because there's a large,
out-of-focus monster roaming the countryside.
Run. He's fuzzy. Get outta here!
Mitch Hedberg
When we were on acid, we would go into the woods...
'cause when you're in the woods tripping,
there's less likely a chance
you'll run into an authority figure.
But we ran into a bear.
That was even more of a buzzkill.
My friend Dwayne was standing there
raising his right hand,
swearing to help prevent forest fires.
We got away from the bear,
he put his arm around my shoulder, he said
"Mitchell... Smokey is way more intense in person!"
Mitch Hedberg
My sister wanted to be an actress, but she never made it.
She does live in a trailer; she made it half-way.
She's an actress, she just never gets called to the set.
Mitch Hedberg
I called the hotel operator;
and she said, "How can I direct your call?"
I said, "Well, you could say 'Action!';
and I'll begin to dial.
And when I say 'Goodbye',
then you can yell 'Cut!'"
Mitch Hedberg
I wanted to buy a candle holder,
but the store didn't have one.
So I got a cake.
P.P.S.
On March 26 and 28,
please enjoy two of my tributes to Mitch Hedberg.
