Here I am on day three, and I am sore, but having the time of my life. I debated heavily whether that was actually true, and ultimately decided that, yes, this is fairly exciting and fun, considering my life experience at this point. I am alternating between the video blog posts and written ones, just depending on my mood on a certain day (and whether I have anything video-worthy to share).
My first night here was a bit of an adventure to find food. Since each hotel room is equipped with a full kitchen, there is no continental breakfast or other gratis nonsense here, only an overpriced hotel store where apples are $2 a piece. After walking a half a mile to Subway on night one and paying $9 for a veggie-only salad (which was not even organic), I decided to suck it up and voyage to the grocery store. Sure, it cost me $55 to get there and back, but my refrigerator is now well-stocked with vegetables, organic proteins, turmeric, apple cider vinegar, kombucha, green apples, and chocolate almond milk, among other things (where has nutritional yeast been all my life?! Yum!). Especially given the fact that I am trying to heal an injured shoulder, eating foods that are non-inflammatory is very important, as this can affect your body as much as meds or rehab exercises. So I won't have to worry about coming back from a stunt rehearsal, exhausted and starving, and just shoving food I shouldn't be eating into my mouth. I figure if I keep eating like a serious athlete, like I do at home, I will have a better chance of performing like one here.
Yesterday I spent about 90 minutes doing strength training and cardio, then I spent another 45 minutes working on one of the stunt moves I am trying to learn. This particular move, used a lot in Parkour, comes from Capoeira. I haven't really done Parkour before, but I am developing a lo of respect for my friends back in California who do it regularly. Running and flipping over things is much harder than it looks!
Luckily, I am in great hands. The guy training me with these new moves, Cory Demeyers, is a champion in the sport, not to mention incredibly humble, patient, and a great teacher. Oddly enough, we both did the same martial art, Tang Soo Do Karate! I started karate in college, and Master Kim, the head of the school back in Pittsburgh, actually taught Chuck Norris. So it's all coming full-circle. If this trend continues, I will soon film a movie with Chuck Norris (aka Walker Texas Ranger).
I took a nap late yesterday afternoon for a couple hours, since we were doing a night shoot. I have to add, getting my first Brazilian Blowout with the fabulous Heather Davis before I left LA is giving me a lot more time to do other things than hair. Usually, I would have to spend 45 minutes blow-drying my curly hair before heading to set, but now, I can get up, take a shower, and have great hair in 5-10 minutes. It's amazing! I can see why people get hooked on these treatments now.
I got picked up to go to set at 8:18pm, an absurd number, but I looked at the clock in the van as we pulled away, and it actually read 8:18pm. These guys are efficient, folks! Once I got to set, I went into hair and makeup, then went to set for a rehearsal, then went back to the trailers to change into costume, took a break for lunch (at 12:30am), shot the scene, and crawled into bed around 5:30am this morning.
Being on set on your first day is always a bit nerve-wracking, and I have a feeling this is the case even once you are a well-established actor. It's kind of like the first day of school; you aren't sure if the other kids will be nice to you, if the teacher is mean or kind, if you'll do things correctly, if you'll know as much as you are expected to. I got blessed with a phenomenal first day of school!
The other actors I was working with in the scene are both very funny, very down-to-earth people, including the humorous Bas Rutten of MMA acclaim. We sang oldies in the van together, talked about family, and pondered why people pick up cafeteria trays the way they do. Bas has this warm, smiling personality that wins you over with his boisterous charm. The other actor, Leif, is also great. At one point while waiting to go to set, we were both sitting in one of the trailers, listening to country music on the stereo, and we both pulled out the same crossword puzzle page from our hotel copies of "USA Today". It's great to know I am not the only dork in Hollywood! He got into crosswords with his grandpa, I with my grandma, and working on them kept our brains awake, when our mouths started yawning around 1am.
Then there is the production team, who feel like a great big family. Our director, Andy, sets the tone for an organized production unit that is efficient, while still having a great time. That's my sort of director. There is no ego, only kindness and professionalism (with orange shorts, a blue button down, baseball cap, and Beats-by-Dre headphones around the neck). Everyone else - hair, makeup, costumes, grips, set decorators, production designers, producers, production assistants, assistant directors, behind the scenes - made me feel welcome and right at home. I heard stories of epic food fights and beyond. And when I pulled the door right off the set piece I was working with, they fixed it in five minutes, and it just became a running joke; "the cart should never be pulled, only pushed. Pshh who would even think to do such a thing as pull it? They shouldn't be allowed to breathe air.." would then be followed by a wink and a smile, and suddenly any jitters or misgivings were vanquished.
I am very lucky to have such a great on-set family for this first big rodeo. I am looking forward to making some good friends and some lasting memories over the next few months, and it looks like I have come to the right place. As a newer working actor, you find yourself (beforehand) thinking, "right, I need to make connections, need to network, need to be memorable." But I think, if you get placed in the right group of people, you stop worrying about all of that, because you are just enjoying the experience and truly soaking up so much new knowledge that those things happen on accident. And that's the best kind of start day for filming an actor could ask for. Back to the party - er, stunt training - for this girl!
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