I can't believe I didn't mention this in my previous post, so now, it will get it's own post. So, big movies have these things called "casting calls." It might as well be called "cattle calls." Seriously. That's what it is like. This is my second casting call. Back in the fall, Star Wars 7 was having casting calls around the country (and the UK). I drove down to Nashville at 4:30 in the morning with my dad (thank God he went with me, it's a long drive solo). We got there an hour or so before the meetings started, and the line was already several thousand people long, seriously, thousands of people. I knew my chances were slim to none of getting cast, but after seriously thinking about it, and prodding/kicking/pushing from those near and dear to me, I took a personal day and went for it. The weather was freezing, and the wind child threw it into the low 20's at least. Then, I stood in line for 5ish hours, if I remember correctly, and eventually, I made it inside the hotel's convention center...where another 3-4 hours of waiting commenced. At least I was out of the cold, man, I hate the cold, which is why I'm finding LA's weather is right up my alley.
So, I was expecting to have an audition and a chat, boy, was I mistaken. Now that I look back, how could they possibly hold 7,000+ auditions in one day? I didn't find this little nugget out until the very end of the of the line. The website had PDFs of "sides" (the script for auditions) for those that submitted electronically on the internet. I never got around to doing that. I can't remember why. But in preparation for my casting call, I memorized the sides, and I was ready to perform them when my time came. Unfortunately, my time never arrived. I really felt that it would distance me from the hundreds and hundreds of people that were just doing this as a joke, or a thrill. I felt like it would be an opportunity to show what I can do, and what I sound like. Now that I think about it, I really should've done that video submission.
When I got to the front of the line, it was finally my turn, I was able to talk to the casting representative for about one minute, maybe two minutes. They wanted to see personality, looks, etc., and I was polite, and I made her laugh a few times, which I take great pride in doing. She commented on my theater credits, and we chatted a bit, and she thanked me for being so calm and polite. While I was standing outside all day, the casting people were sitting down going through thousands of little interviews, etc. They actually started seeing people a few hours earlier because of how cold it was outside. So, it was a long day for all involved. Several people were losing their cool, and I was not one of them. I was tired, but I kept my head about me, which is impressive in its own right. I kept remembering that I was creating a memory, and I actually auditioned (or casting called) for a Star Wars movie. Those that know me know that Star Wars is kind of a big deal to me.
So after the SW meet-and-great, I gave them my headshot and resume, and my dad and I drove back to Fort Wayne...but, I was obviously hungry since I hadn't eaten or drank anything, so of course, we hit White Castle. One of the best restaurants to go to when you're starving. The food tastes infinitely better when you're starving (or craving, as they put it) for food. It's on another level depending on the degree of your hunger.
Now, back to FF7. It was the same premise as Star Wars. I woke up early on Saturday, and I had to drive about an hour north of LA to Lancaster, California. I drove over mountains, and the only green that I saw was on baseball/soccer fields. Everything else was the color you think of when you think of Nevada/Arizona. It was still beautiful, but not much color. I had no idea how mountainous Los Angeles is. I didn't say hilly...I said mountainous. It really is a beautiful place to live, and the smog you hear so much about isn't really that bad/noticeable...thus far, at least.
I got up there right on time, and I should've gotten there even earlier (like I did for Star Wars). By the time I showed up, I saw that the line stretched out the door and around the corner. I found a parking spot pretty easily, so I didn't think much about it. I walked over to the front of the line, and started walking and walking, and then I hit the corner, and turned it. Holy cow! It stretched the whole next block leading away from the street I was on. So, I started walking and walking, and a few minutes later, I hit the end of the block, and turned left again, and boom, it kept going...this went on for FOUR blocks. It was 90+ degrees, so it was much warmer than Nashville in November, and since I hate the cold, I could tolerate the heat. I listened to the entire White Sox game from start-to-finish (a loss to the Twins), and I still wasn't at the front of the line.
Four-and-a-half hours later, I get to the front of the line. The guy that had been behind me the entire time, a chatterbox mind you, which is another reason that I kept my earbuds in the whole time...somehow he jumped me right at the end, and he was the last person in the door. It was now 3:00, and they were done. Seriously, the door was closed in my face. The workers were chatting around for 10 minutes, and looked at me and said, "Thank you for being so calm." I was just standing there, others were grumbling. Really, what would complaining accomplish. I said, "No problem."
Just then the casting director came out and said that we needed to hand in our headshot and the form we filled out, he stapled them together, and said the director would look them over, and then they'll call us next week or so if they're interested. In my four seconds with the guy, who seemed pretty nice (especially after a busy/stressful day of cranky, heat-exhausted people)...I made him chuckle twice. So, maybe I made my mark. Only time will tell. I'll post if I hear anything.
So, I handed over my stuff, took a dead breath, and then exited the line for the first time since 10:30 that morning. When I got back to my car, I sat down and felt AC for the first time all day. It was heavenly. Then I began the long trek back to Los Angeles...after a stop at Taco Bell, of course. Of course.
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