Speak Softly & Carry A Big, Pointy Stick
Well once again, as life turns up disappointments in one of my endeavours, it also manages to quite pleasantly surprise me in others. The principle filming for the feature film "
Regrets" has already begun, and for the next 3-4 days they're going to be shooting the final showdown and battle at one of the local clubs. And now I'm sitting here blinking and trying to understand this latest development, where out of the blue I've been upgraded as a supporting actor yet again.
Here's a quick recap:
My friend John, playing the priest in the film, was told by the director that they were short a dancer for one scene, and he volunteered me to help. I get a call out of the blue asking if I could be a dancer, and I volunteered. And there was much rejoicing. Then I was told that they needed disposable vamps for the final battle (now dubbed the "Fight Club" scenes), and since I was a familiar face already floating around, I got volunteered to help out there. Out of the blue I'm told I get to be in the final battle, with a good ol' 15-second life expectancy rate. And there was much rejoicing.
As of roughly 11pm last night, I've been upgraded yet again. Apparently I've now become a disposable vampire with a speaking role. I don't exactly know what happened to the guy originally playing the role, but I guess at the last minute he wouldn't be able to do all the shooting required of him this weekend. So now I get to have lines.
Well...technically speaking I think I already had at least one line as a disposable vamp. Granted this line might have been along the lines of, "AAAAUUUUGGGGHHHH!!!" as I'm staked, but hey, I was looking forward to getting killed on-screen anyways. So added bonus now: I get to have lines, and then probably scream "AAAAUUUUGGGGHHHH!!!" as I'm staked. Or shot with the crossbow. Or wailed across the head with a shovel.
Funny thing is that when the call came my way last night, I was out with John at one of the local Williams Coffee Pubs. During last night's reading, a few random scribbles of idea turned into a new scene that he & I wrote, and once we show the director, it may wind up being used in the movie if time allows. This, in fact, may be where I meet my untimely end. I'm someone not only willing but able to take the physical abuse this vampire will endure.
In a lot of ways, the scene mirrors the unique commaradarie John & I have: I try to eat him, he hammers me across the face with a shovel, I spew blood across his face in the process, and he helps stake me. Ah, friendship!
So I may very well have written my own demise. It's quite a peculiar thing to sit back and think about. And in the end, it adds yet another unique and strange layer to an already interesting experience.
Today's Lesson: the worst that can ever happen by at least offering your services is hearing, "No, you don't get to die that way. We have other plans on how to kill you instead."
posted by Phillip at 8:26 AM
