Tag: artists

One Of The Best Meetings I Didn’t Win.

Chasing The George

On Friday, February 24th, 2023, I locked myself in my office to get through another exciting list of career administration: Continue edits on my TV series bible, submit my half-hour pilot and feature film scripts to the Script Pipeline competition, look up classes on Casting Access, identify potential scenes I want to do in Scene Study, write my new blog entry, etc. I was firing on all cylinders.

As I recommit to my weekly blog, which chronicles the journey to build the career I want for myself, I couldn’t help but remember a recent meeting I had with a commercial agent. It was one of the best meetings I didn’t win.

I submitted to this particular agency because I resonated with its mission statement. I got a meeting with them immediately, and we met over Zoom. My virtual set-up was tight, from the lighting to the close-up framing to the background curtain behind me. I was ready to share what I was looking for in an agent and prepared to answer any potential questions they would ask me.

The meeting could not have been more excellent. We were on the same page. We were moment to moment. We were easy and comfortable with each other. I shared what I was looking for in an agency and what I wanted to create with them. I answered all their questions with confidence. They could see my professionalism and training on full display. They were everything I was looking for in an agency. The meeting ended, and they told me they would get back to me in a few days because they still had to interview a couple more actors. A few days later, they told me they decided to go in another direction. I was disappointed for a moment, but I realized that this is the nature of the entertainment industry. At least I knew I booked the room! I could go to sleep at night because I booked the room. So, I still won.

As 2023 continues to unfold, and I see what’s on the horizon for me this year, I remember various meetings I had or projects that I targeted that I didn’t win or land but won and landed in my heart because I failed forward. I risked and put myself out there. I made a valiant effort. I booked the room. So here’s to booking more rooms this year. KEEP READING BELOW…THERE’S MORE!

And just for fun, let’s stroll down memory lane of some past meetings or target projects that I didn’t win, but I did because I booked the room:

Lost: I targeted the hell out of this show. Eventually, I got a meeting with the casting director in Hawaii, and I was able to pitch a character I envisioned for myself for the next season. Ultimately, the character didn’t fit the story arc the creators had in mind for their next season, but it was a meeting I’ll never forget. And I got to celebrate afterward in Hawaii!

Martin Scorsese: He was attached to produce a movie musical that Madonna was to star in called “Hello Suckers.” His production company was notorious for keeping their address private. After searching high and low, I found an address. I mailed my materials to the company, but a week later, it was back in my mailbox. The post office placed a stamp on the envelope that said the company was no longer at this address, but they were at this address instead. What?! I couldn’t believe it. The post office provided their actual address. I booked a flight to NYC, walked into their office, and pitched myself and my materials to the front desk staff. Their face, their subtext: “How did you find us?” LOL. I think they low-key loved that I found them. Unfortunately, the movie never got made.

My TV series: Pitch meetings to CBS, Showtime, Youtube, a network in the U.K., and a network in Latin America. Each one passed, but I booked every single room.

Looking: I wanted to be on this HBO series so badly. I targeted this series for one year, building relationships, and expressing my love and passion for this show before I threw my hat into the ring to pitch myself for their next season. I reached out to the lead executive producer and lead director’s agent, and they were more than happy and willing to submit all of my materials to their client. Unfortunately, HBO cancelled the series shortly afterward.

OMG! I just remembered another show called Pretty that I also targeted. I utilized my relationship map to shoot a cool music video at a mansion in Brentwood…and the best part was that it rained that day, so we took full advantage of it…do you know how much it costs to rent a rain machine?!?! Anyway, I found the email I sent to my agent about my efforts: “Hi Sharon. I created and starred in a music video. I was targeting a show that I really wanted to be on called Pretty. It’s a web series entering its 3rd season in the near future. And one of the story lines they revealed was that the lead character flashes back to his old days as the leader of a boy band. So, I created a boy band-type video to get myself on the show. I just sent the video recently to the powers that be. They loved it, but they are reaching out to their celebrity friends to play the other boy band members. But, if circumstances change, they will bring me in for an audition. The video is funny, sensual, plays with sexuality…all the elements of a typical boy band video LOL.”

Onwards! Like Ralph Waldo Emerson says, “Speak your latent conviction, and it shall be the universal sense, for the inmost in due time becomes the outmost, and our first thought is rendered back to us by the trumpets of the Last Judgment.”

A Sampling Of My 2021 Wins!

Chasing The George

Happy Holidays! As we near the end of 2021, I wanted to share a SAMPLING of the wins (both professional and personal) that I’ve had this year. I study and teach at the Richard Lawson Studios, and one of the concepts at this studio is the tracking of wins and the corresponding celebrations for those wins.

I like this definition of “win” from dictionary.com: “To succeed by striving or effort. To succeed in reaching (a place, condition, etc.), especially by great effort.” In my classes, I also add this point of view: A win is anything that has moved you at least one step forward. And as an example, one of my students shared in class on December 14th that she accumulated 321 wins in 2021!

Tracking wins and celebrating them maintains the journey we are on to have the careers that we want. Tracking wins and celebrating them helps us stay in a state of gratitude and claiming for oneself. At the RLS, a few of the classes were assigned to do a “Wins Film” to take stock of their 2021 wins in 3 minutes or less.

So join me! What wins have you collected in 2021? Take stock of them and you’ll be shocked and amazed at how many wins you have. Large, small, everything in between. A win is a win. It all counts towards the journey.

Enjoy my Wins Film below!

Why My Artistic Anniversary Was So Special!

Chasing The George

On August 26th, 2021, I celebrated 19 years of living in Los Angeles. And what made my anniversary so special, what made it a full circle moment, was that I shot a role on an Amazon Prime feature film that day!

19 years ago, I flew out to LA on a one-way flight from NYC, armed with one suitcase, my leather CD book, and a resolution to pursue my artistic dreams full-time. I had no job lined up. I had no apartment lined up. I had no car lined up. I just had my dreams that out-created what I temporarily lacked. When I landed in LAX, I got into a taxi and immediately quoted Madonna when she landed in NYC in 1977 and got into a taxi as well: “Take me to the center of everything.” Madonna’s taxi driver took her to Times Square and my taxi driver took me to Beverly Hills LOL. The rest, as they say, is history.

As I sat in my trailer on August 26th, 2021, I was filled with so much gratitude. Shooting a role on my 19th anniversary of living in LA was not lost on me. But beyond the role, I was filled with so much gratitude because I am still doing what I love to do. 19 years later and I am still actively involved as an artist. 19 years later and I am still going. 19 years later and I am still standing. And it’s such a testament to my raison d’être, my career bus that contains a community of persons, places, and things that keep me going. My community. My DOIN (Declaration of Independence aka business plan that we learn to create and build at the Richard Lawson Studios.) My DOIN is so important and I literally pulled it up two days before I booked this role to add and edit some things within it.

I am grateful to still be on this journey when a lot of people have stopped their own artistic journeys to pursue other endeavors (no judgement by the way!)

I am grateful that since I landed in LA 19 years ago, I have become a more causative, 360-degree artist. To know that 19 years later, I have weathered the highs and lows, the ups and downs. I mean, come on: The Covid-19 pandemic could have destroyed and obliterated me, but I found myself so creatively plugged in during 2020 by attending classes over Zoom, by working on my writing, by building my own rocking self-tape station and being able to film self-tape auditions, by submitting filmed monologues and scenes to various casting director open calls, by teaching classes over Zoom, by researching various industry topics, by attending artistic panels over Zoom, etc.

2021 has also been filled with artistic excitement. Some highlights:

**Self-tape auditions for TV series on Hulu, Netflix, Fox, HBO, ABC, etc.

**My feature film script placed as a semi-finalist in a big industry writing competition (Scriptapalooza) and it will be promoted to a network of 125 producers for one whole year.

**The same feature film script film script also placed in the top 15% of discoverable projects on Coverfly.

**I placed as a semi-finalist (in the top 6% of applicants) for a program with the Writers Guild Foundation.

**I’m waiting to hear back from other established industry writing competitions and programs.

**I revisited and rewrote a TV pilot script and I am now revisiting and rewriting another feature film script.

**Weekly career administration group meetings where we hold each other accountable to our artistic goals.

**Attending weekly classes.

**Writing meetings with the PDP 3.0 collective.

**I bought printer ink so that I can print up my sides (yes, even buying printer ink is a big win!)

**Relationship map building and outflow.

**In the 36 hours leading up to my film shoot, I had to complete two Covid tests, I had wardrobe fittings, I taught class, and I had to film two self-tape auditions for two different primetime TV series on ABC (one of which was due in six hours!)

So, as I sat in my trailer, the last 36 hours was not lost on me. 2021 was not lost on me. 2020 was not lost on me. My 19-year anniversary in LA was not lost on me.

Happy Anniversary!

Featured photo courtesy of: https://www.whsmith.co.uk/products/champagne-glasses-happy-anniversary-card/5051937310033.html

Why My Anniversary Was So Special!

Chasing The George

On August 26th, 2021, I celebrated 19 years of living in Los Angeles. And what made my anniversary so special, what made it a full circle moment, was that I shot a role on an Amazon Prime feature film that day!

19 years ago, I flew out to LA on a one-way flight from NYC, armed with one suitcase, my leather CD book, and a resolution to pursue my artistic dreams full-time. I had no job lined up. I had no apartment lined up. I had no car lined up. I just had my dreams that out-created what I temporarily lacked. When I landed in LAX, I got into a taxi and immediately quoted Madonna when she landed in NYC in 1977 and got into a taxi as well: “Take me to the center of everything.” Madonna’s taxi driver took her to Times Square and my taxi driver took me to Beverly Hills LOL. The rest, as they say, is history.

As I sat in my trailer on August 26th, 2021, I was filled with so much gratitude. Shooting a role on my 19th anniversary of living in LA was not lost on me. But beyond the role, I was filled with so much gratitude because I am still doing what I love to do. 19 years later and I am still actively involved as an artist. 19 years later and I am still going. 19 years later and I am still standing. And it’s such a testament to my raison d’être, my career bus that contains a community of persons, places, and things that keep me going. My community. My DOIN (Declaration of Independence aka business plan that we learn to create and build at the Richard Lawson Studios.) My DOIN is so important and I literally pulled it up two days before I booked this role to add and edit some things within it.

I am grateful to still be on this journey when a lot of people have stopped their own artistic journeys to pursue other endeavors (no judgement by the way!)

I am grateful that since I landed in LA 19 years ago, I have become a more causative, 360-degree artist. To know that 19 years later, I have weathered the highs and lows, the ups and downs. I mean, come on: The Covid-19 pandemic could have destroyed and obliterated me, but I found myself so creatively plugged in during 2020 by attending classes over Zoom, by working on my writing, by building my own rocking self-tape station and being able to film self-tape auditions, by submitting filmed monologues and scenes to various casting director open calls, by teaching classes over Zoom, by researching various industry topics, by attending artistic panels over Zoom, etc.

2021 has also been filled with artistic excitement. Some highlights:

**Self-tape auditions for TV series on Hulu, Netflix, Fox, HBO, ABC, etc.

**My feature film script placed as a semi-finalist in a big industry writing competition (Scriptapalooza) and it will be promoted to a network of 125 producers for one whole year.

**The same feature film script film script also placed in the top 15% of discoverable projects on Coverfly.

**I placed as a semi-finalist (in the top 6% of applicants) for a program with the Writers Guild Foundation.

**I’m waiting to hear back from other established industry writing competitions and programs.

**I revisited and rewrote a TV pilot script and I am now revisiting and rewriting another feature film script.

**Weekly career administration group meetings where we hold each other accountable to our artistic goals.

**Attending weekly classes.

**Writing meetings with the PDP 3.0 collective.

**I bought printer ink so that I can print up my sides (yes, even buying printer ink is a big win!)

**Relationship map building and outflow.

**In the 36 hours leading up to my film shoot, I had to complete two Covid tests, I had wardrobe fittings, I taught class, and I had to film two self-tape auditions for two different primetime TV series on ABC (one of which was due in six hours!)

So, as I sat in my trailer, the last 36 hours was not lost on me. 2021 was not lost on me. 2020 was not lost on me. My 19-year anniversary in LA was not lost on me.

Happy Anniversary!

Featured photo courtesy of: https://www.whsmith.co.uk/products/champagne-glasses-happy-anniversary-card/5051937310033.html

Is Typecasting A Good Thing?

Chasing The George

Typecast:

According to Google: Assign (an actor or actress) repeatedly to the same type of role, as a result of the appropriateness of their appearance or previous success in such roles.

According to Lexico: Represent or regard (a person or their role) as a stereotype.

According to Wikipedia: In television, film, and theatre, typecasting is the process by which a particular actor becomes strongly identified with a specific character, one or more particular roles, or characters having the same traits or coming from the same social or ethnic groups. There have been instances in which an actor has been so strongly identified with a role as to make it difficult for them to find work playing other characters.

There have been instances in which an actor has been so strongly identified with a role as to make it difficult for them to find work playing other characters.

After working with, acting with, coaching and teaching many actors, this is a fear that comes up. And I’ve been asked many times what my point of view is on the topic of typecasting.

For ME, the best advice I can give is:

Get typecast. Get typecast so you can get in the door. And as you’re getting in the door, create the evidence for yourself that reveals what else you can do (and, most likely, what you’re more interested in and passionate about.) So that when you’re on hiatus from your series regular role or after you’ve booked X amount of roles as a particular casting, then you’re creating and distributing content to your team, your followers, your relationship map, etc…that reveals another aspect of your casting that you are probably more interested in, more connected to and more passionate about.

Again, that’s just me. You have to make your own personal decision at the end of the day. If you don’t feel comfortable being typecast or if you have strict policies and principles against that, cool. Then be about creating and carving out what you want to do, what you want to play and how you’re going to achieve that.

Ultimately, what do you see for yourself and how do you get there? Follow your instincts.

Revisiting My Oscars Speech

Chasing The George

Oscar

Happy Oscars day! Today is my Superbowl! And I love that the Oscars were scheduled earlier this year (February 9th) so that we can enjoy and wrap up awards season sooner rather than later. I revisited a blog entry I posted on March 10th, 2018, in which I shared the experience I had delivering my Oscar speech for Best Actor. And what stood out for me was that what I wrote in 2018 still rings true today. My career is still real and alive for me. My postulates are still real and alive for me. I am still in belief with what I see for myself, with what I am creating for myself and with the wins I am having.

I recently did a video testimonial for the Professional Development Program at the Richard Lawson Studios and when I slated with my name and what I do, it was with full belief and conviction: “Hi, I’m Jorge Ortiz and I’m an actor, writer and executive producer.”

So, take a stroll down memory lane with me below. Have you wavered on your dreams? Have you lost belief in your dreams? Two years later, are you in more belief or less belief in terms of your dreams?

Original Post:

On Sunday, March 4th, I attended what I call the Super Bowl of all awards shows: the Oscars. I live for awards season and the Oscars is the culmination, the peak, of this exciting and hectic season.

I attended an Oscars viewing party at the WACO Theater Center and it was hosted by Richard Lawson. We were asked to come dressed in our Oscars best. I chose to wear a black blazer, black pants and black shoes. I was going to wear a crisp, button-down shirt underneath, but I quickly discovered that dry cleaning stores are closed on Sunday (I was going to drop my shirt off the day before) So I quickly improvised and decided to wear a simple maroon t-shirt underneath. Rock and roll, baby!

As we settled inside the theater to watch the Oscars, Richard made an announcement. He said, “Now you know…because I teach about the power of postulates, I’m going to randomly call up a person to deliver an Oscars speech during each commercial break.”

(By the way, here is the definition of a postulate: A self-generated truth. A prediction. A proposition that requires no proof, being self-evident, or that is for a specific purpose assumed true, and that is used in the proof of other propositions. To demand or claim something.)

I could feel some people in the room shift uncomfortably in their seats and I also heard slight groans and murmurs of protest. Perhaps they felt this was some hokey pokey nonsense. Perhaps they don’t have belief in their own abilities to reach this pinnacle of industry recognition.

Not me. I wanted to lean into and embrace this opportunity! Winning an Oscar is on my DOIN’ (Declaration of Independence aka my business plan) and what better way to get closer to my postulate of winning an Oscar than to deliver a speech in front of a live audience of artists. What better way to assume the position and believe and experience.

On the second commercial break, Richard called my name over the speaker system! “And the Oscar goes to…JORGE ORTIZ!”

As soon as I heard my name, I was in instant belief. I jumped up to my feet and grabbed the glass bottle of mineral water I was drinking so that it could represent my Oscar. I remember seeing people around me giving me a standing ovation and cheering very loudly and happily for me. I remember walking with energy down the stairs and Jordan Bull giving me a hug along the way. I got to the stage and then quickly got off of it and ran back upstairs to give my partner a hug and a kiss! I made my way back to the stage and soaked in the applause and cheers. The lights shone brightly and warmly on me.

I heard Marlo Stroud yell from the front row, “I love you Jorge!”, and I quickly pointed to her and yelled back, “Thank you Meryl Streep!” When the applause died down, I began my speech. The first thing I said was, “Well I guess this means one thing: My IMDB star meter will FINALLY be number one tomorrow! I’ve always wanted that!”

My speech flowed. It was moment to moment and it had equal parts humor, charm, irony and earnestness. I was impinged. I impinged the audience. I would look at my glass bottle Oscar with pride and joy. I ended my speech, and to pay homage to the winners who sometimes walk off the wrong way, I did the same. When I realized I was exiting the wrong way, I played up the mistake and then pointed to the usher who helped me exit the right way.

I walked down the hallway and made my way into the lobby where I was still in absolute belief as people congratulated me on what a great job I had done. So many people congratulated me and I felt like I was in the press room that winners immediately go into to answer questions from the press.

Someone asked me in the lobby, “What kind of film do you think you would win an Oscar for?” I immediately said, “I could see myself winning a Best Actor Oscar for being in a film like Moonlight. A movie that pushes, provokes and inspires.”

This was such an incredible and real experience!!!!!!!!!

As the night continued and I watched other speeches, it was interesting to see who was in belief and who had a judgement about it. And all I can say about the latter approach is that this judgement, this non-belief, this doubt, this feeling of it being hokey pokey nonsense are all postulates. That’s right, these are postulates too. Negative postulates. You’re putting that negative belief out there. This self-generated truth, this prediction, this proposition that requires no proof, being self-evident…is all rooted in negativity and doubt. What you put out there is what you get back. So if you don’t believe that you can have an Oscar, then you won’t get it. You won’t ever put yourself in a position of belief to get closer and closer to the postulate of getting an Oscar.

And it’s just not about the belief in getting an Oscar. I’m curious to know where else you have doubts about your own career. Do you have doubts that you can have wonderful representation? Do you have doubts that you can put together a great demo reel? Do you have doubts that you can be a working actor? Do you have doubts that you can do a great audition or put up a great scene in class? Do you have doubts about the power you have as an artist?

“The man who says he can, and the man who says he can not. Are both correct.”-Confucius

What Is Your 2020?

Chasing The George

Happy New Year! A new year. A new decade.

What are your goals for 2020?

Goal: the result or achievement toward which effort is directed; aim; end. The finish line of a race.

I have identified four central goals that I am actively working on for the first quarter of 2020:

**Secure a literary manager.

**Finish the handful of film festival submissions for The Doppelganger (a film I wrote, executive produced and co-starred in) Accumulate those laurels, hunty!

**Begin submitting the pilot episode to my new TV series to established writing competitions.

**Align with a powerful showrunner and/or powerful executive producer who loves my voice as a writer. Who just fucking gets me. You know what I’m saying? Once we align, we create a game plan for the rest of 2020 to get my TV series picked up by a major streaming company or premium cable network for active development, production and distribution.

These are the four goals that really speak to me for the first quarter of the year. Each goal has an administration plan attached to it that will help me stay on track.

What are you after this year?? And most importantly, who is on your career bus that will ask you the right questions, cheer you along the way and hold you accountable? Art is communal and you can’t do it alone. Let me know what your goals are in the comments below!

Welcome back!

How To Get Your Own TV Series

Chasing The George

Ahhhhhh, wouldn’t you like to know (insert evil laugh here) With the proliferation of TV shows out there-propelled no doubt by the presence and growth of different streaming networks-and the need for content that is quickly consumed, it should be easy to land a TV series in this day and age.

So I will give you the answer on how to land your own TV series deal. As you may or may not know, Chasing The George is about the journey I’m on to create and carve out the career that I see and want for myself. And along the way, I share my advice, my wins, my losses which become lessons, etc…so that you can be inspired in the pursuit of your own dreams. It’s important to share my journey so that people can see that there is no such thing as an overnight success. That it takes a sustained effort.

So the answer to landing a TV series deal with Netflix or HBO or Showtime is……..I don’t know! NOW HERE’S WHERE YOU WILL PROBABLY STOP READING. Please don’t. This is a process. This is a journey. If you decide to keep reading, you will see what I’ve been doing to get my newest series picked up.

I’ve been down this road before with another TV series I created a few years ago. With that series, I had a literary agent. I had producers attached. I pitched my series to CBS, Showtime, Youtube, Logo and HERE! My series was pitched and submitted to different production companies. I independently shot the pilot episode and submitted to film festivals.

With my new TV series, this is what I’ve done so far. Hopefully this helps or inspires you. The idea first came to me in 2015 and I wrote a rough pilot for it. It wasn’t until the fall of 2018 that I decided to pick it up again and devote my energy to it. And since then, this is what I have done to arm myself with tools and resources.

**I studied many half-hour shows on Netflix (the pilot episodes only) to get a sense of the style and tone of each show to see what resonated with the style and tone of my new series. Also, I studied when the main character was introduced, when the other characters were introduced and how quickly the problem for the main character was introduced.

**I rewrote the pilot episode of my series based upon the information I received above.

**I created a spreadsheet that lays out the first eight episodes of season one (I decided that 8 would be my magic number for season one) The spreadsheet lays out important information from the characters to episode titles, etc. In this way, the buyer can get a clear map and picture about the possibilities of season one.

**I wrote the second and third episodes of my series. Again, in this way, the buyer can get a sense of my writing style and also see where the series is going.

**I’ve brought in scenes from all the episodes to read out loud in class to see what works, what flows, what doesn’t make sense, etc. Then, I applied the notes I received and brought the scenes back to class.

**I wrote the TV bible for my series.

**I wrote my pitch. And the biggest part of my pitch was articulating WHY I am telling this story and WHY I’m the only person who can tell this story. The next step is for me to start practicing it out loud to see how it flows, to see if I’m engaged and interested, to see if people get the story, etc. And how I came about writing my pitch was through doing research. There are many different ways to pitch and I made my life sane by choosing one approach that I really liked and sticking with it. If I went down the rabbit hole of looking at the many ways to pitch, I would have driven myself insane. I decided to model my pitch after the way Gloria Calderón Kellett does it (she has a video on Youtube where she breaks down how she likes to pitch her TV shows)

**I’ve met with one my mentors-who is in the industry-for advice and homework. And boy, did he give me a lot of exciting homework each time we met. The homework was designed to not only help me hone in on my voice as a writer, but to hone in on literary managers who will most likely be more receptive to repping me as a writer. Also, he guided me to utilize my relationship map for connections and possibilities. And no, I will not tell you who my mentor is LOL.

**I’ve recently met with a big TV producer (thanks to someone on my relationship map creating an intro for us) to ask questions about their professional journey and to start building a relationship with them. My mentor above encouraged me to ask the producer if I can do “takes”. I asked the producer and they were open to it! And no, I will not tell you who this producer is LOL.

**I’ve recently connected with a TV writer (thanks to someone on my relationship map creating an intro for us) so that I can ask them questions about their professional journey and to start building a relationship with them. And no, I will not tell you who this writer is LOL.

**I need to start reaching out to literary managers from the homework I did. Relationship map? Query letters?

**I will keep listening to the people I admire and respect on social media. Engage in genuine ways. Ask questions. Let them see that I am about it. One of the things on my to do list is to read this thread that a working writer posted where they honestly answered questions they received about submitting scripts to selling them to attaching directors and producers to a project, etc. In this way, I can see a different point of view.

Okay, I’m going to stop here. There are other things I have done this year and there are many other things I still have to do. Thinking inside the box and outside of the box. Tackling from all angles because there is no one way or answer. I think you get the point though.

Maybe this helps you. Maybe it doesn’t. If you have other ideas, please let me know in the comments below. What good moves have been effective for you in getting your series out there? Do I need to rent a plane and spell out a message over Hollywood?

Have a good week!

That First Moment When…

Chasing The George

Hello artists! How the heck are you?!?! Wow! It’s been a MINUTE since I last posted a blog entry! My focus over the last few weeks has been on putting the finishing touches on the pitch package I’ve been building for the new TV series I created and developed.

I hope your summer 2019 has been filled with exciting artistic possibilities and opportunities!

As consumed as I have been with my new TV series, I had a moment one day that reminded me of why I entered the entertainment business in the first place: I was a little kid when I first watched Christopher Reeve play the role of Superman. Christopher Reeve played the role of Superman in the 1978 movie.

It was several years later that I would watch this film for the first time…and it changed my life forever. I KNEW right then and there that I wanted to save the planet with my super powers. Every time I watched this version of Superman as a kid, I would tie my baby blanket (which I still have) around my neck and “fly” around my room…visiting places on Earth and beyond…and fighting any bad guys in the process.

I knew that I wanted to be Superman. I wanted to be on screen and fly and save and protect and be a hero. I knew that I didn’t want to be a normal person. I didn’t want to be an anonymous entity. I didn’t want to be ordinary. I didn’t want to be like everyone else. I wanted to be someone. I wanted to stand out. I wanted to be a star. I wanted to fly. Superman represented what I wanted to be and so I started my journey of being an actor…an artist…an entertainer. Superman made a difference in his world………….and I wanted to do the same in mine.

Superman was the moment I knew I wanted to be an artist.

What was THAT MOMENT WHEN YOU KNEW you wanted to be an artist?

I’d love to read your answers in the comments section!!!

See you soon!

ddp_00109010

 

Celebrate! Then Keep It Moving!

Chasing The George

Celebration is a vital part of the journey. Celebration marks the journey. Celebration acknowledges the work you’ve done to achieve a win, a moment, a milestone.

I had a wonderful, blessed past week of artistic wins. I was able to share them with everyone in my universe and beyond. I was able to enjoy the inflow that resulted from my outflow. And I was grateful to understand that my wins are a collective. My wins are connected to my friends, peers, colleagues, teachers, classmates, etc. who have helped me get to where I am today.

I want to recap my wins for the past seven days below and how I celebrated. And now that I have celebrated, it is time to move forward with the next step of career administration. I have celebrated, and now it is time to get back in and administrate the next steps for my career.

Here are my wins from the past week and also my celebration of those wins:

**The Doppelganger, a film I wrote, executive produced and co-starred in will play at the AMC Theater this July in Manhattan as part of the Dominican International Film Festival. More film festivals to come!

**A feature film that I am in, Zombie TV, has finally received DISTRIBUTION! It’s a spoof on zombies and reality television. 8 contestants are locked in a house with zombies. The sole survivor at the end of the night wins one million dollars. Does my character win????? Stay tuned!

**I submitted a self-tape monologue to Twinkie Byrd’s Flip The Script monologue competition. The competition was in conjunction with NBC. Out of the 1,200 submissions received, she sent 64 auditions over to NBC. I was one of the 64!

**I was on the set of the SAG web series, The Rejects, playing the role of Kenny. So much fun!

**I had two commercial auditions!

**I had a wonderful meeting with a fellow Vassar graduate about the literary agent world and they gave me so much homework to do!

**I am finishing up my tweaks on the three episodes, the series bible and the season one chart for me new TV series.

I am an artistic warrior!

And here is how I celebrated:

I bought Madonna’s new album, Madame X, on vinyl. (By the way, fun fact: Madonna earned a #1 album with Madame X on the Billboard 200 albums chart and a #1 song, Medellin, on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Songs chart today. She extends her record as the artist with the most #1’s at every Billboard chart combined, with 163 number ones!!!!!!!!!!)

Here’s a video montage of my wins from the past week:

 

And here is how I celebrated:

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