October 26, 1998
As I walked up to the studios that house a number of commercial casting directors, a small gathering of attractive 20-somethings was just gathering outside. I was waved over and the spiel began... "Let's make this interesting. Let's make this fun. Use what they have there, but open it up, playt with it." It was the cameraman, who's name I never got, but who probably had more energy than any audition co-ordinator I have seen. What was even more surprising was that he was actually kind of funny. Usually, someone in his position is trying to crack a bunch of jokes and they suck. All of the desperate actors, however, chuckle and giggle to make the person feel good so as never to compromise their chances of booking a commercial. Bitter? Maybe. Are we getting to the heart of why I don't book commercials? Probably.
The audition tutorial concluded with this piece of advice... "Just make them laugh. Do somthing clever and funny. Make 'em laugh, you get a callback. Make 'em laugh at the callback, you get the job, even if you weren't what they were looking for. And remember, have fun, mug, and indicate -- the three tricks of commercials."
THe spot was for a new technology that tells you how much time is left on a videotape, as well as exactly what's already taped on it (pretty incredible). I was the guy going to the swami to get this information. I thought I put together a cute little bit, first looking for the swami, then wanting to add to my "Best of... Saved by the Bell" tape, then acting like a goof at the end. I felt I was following directions. And he did seem pleased with it. We did it again and he said to make it less wordy. Fine. So I got right to the heart of it. And then it happened. My swami was a little nervous and I think concerned by the fact that I wasn't staying with the script (he missed the seminar). On the second take, he grabbed the tape from my hand and as he swung it up to his head, smashed it into my bottom lip. We pushed on. We got through it and I was commened for my ability to stay with it. The weird thing is that sometimes that's exactly the break you need to get a job like this. We're hoping that this line is said in the next couple of days, "Oh yeah, and how about that guy that got hit in the face, call him back." Whatever it takes.