Before this past Wednesday, I had only directed one thing: a commercial, thirty seconds long, which I called Doritos® Intense: Snack Guru. It my submission to a contest which had a very attractive cash prize and I had been wanting to direct something for a while (you can read more about it here). Well, that’s all changed; I now have a short film shot and ready for editing! Above are early stills from the footage, that may or may not make the final cut.

Monday evening, I got news of a job happening Thursday morning, which required me to be clean shaven. At this point, I had quite the beard. In the feature Day Four, I was asked to grow a unkept, untrimmed beard, not shaving any part of it off. Well I have to admit, I was a little attached, and kept it since I got back from shooting in Ottawa. It went on growing of course, and to my recollection, it ended up being the most hair I’ve ever had on my face.

I didn’t want to let it “go to waste”. I thought, what could I do, that would involve me shaving it off in a short film? Ideas came to me, and finally narrowed it down to one. With such little time, I quickly made all the preparations needed and found someone to shoot it. Paul and Shalan Crivellari came through. Although fashion photographers, Paul used to shoot video and later decided to get into still images. His great eye carried through to photography (and very well I might add, see for yourself) and they’re doing great here in Toronto. However, since his high end photography camera also takes HD video footage, he was able to do this for me.

Not only did I shave my beard off in the film, I used this opportunity to show a side of me that almost nobody has ever seen; a side that I haven’t really been required to show in my short four and half year acting career. Well, at least not close to the extent seen in this film. I’m really happy and grateful (thanks so much Paul and Shalan) to have had the chance to once again, experience the amazing feeling of creating my own work. And this will be ongoing as I will be editing it over my free time, and hopefully have original music composed (as I want this film to be silent in terms of sound). I will be releasing it here when it’s complete!

Tuesday was my last day on set of “Day Four“. It involved shooting another scene in my car while we all, cast and crew, froze outside; which I have to say, helped deliver my first line of the scene in which I complain about the cold!

Despite the elements, it went great. And despite a few little hiccups here and there, shooting my part in this film has been a great experience. Not only, like I previously mentioned, that the script is great and this film is shot on a RED camera, but the cast and crew has been amazing. I had so much energy and so much fun on set because of the people I was surrounded with.

On the 7th of January, we shot two indoors scenes, which we were all thankful for. Both were in my character’s apartment and the day went pretty smoothly. Then on the 9th, we shot a lighter, funny scene where my character Brian and best friend Trevor have brunch. I won’t say how exactly, but it ends in a very comedic way.

On the 10th, the big pub scene. This is pretty much where the film starts… kinda (won’t go into details here either). It took us just over 14 hours from start to finish, but it was such a great day, with a lot of extras showing up and helping us out. Everyone did a great job and were all in high spirits on this one. Then the next day, I shot some voice overs for the opening sequence of the film.

Finally Tuesday came, and it was all over. The guys at Danger Cave Media were able to get my scenes shot early during the filming schedule in order to allow me to return to Toronto, but they still have another half month to go before they finish shooting the film. I wish them the best in completing the movie, and can’t wait to see it.

Did I mention they plan to have it completed by the Toronto International Film Festival 2010 deadline? I think they’ve got a good chance to get in with this film and hope they do! I’m really thankful to have been a part of this film, and to have shared amazing experiences with everyone involved!

First of all I want to wish you all the best in the New Year! Hope you’ve enjoyed this holiday season! For me, last year ended well and this one is off to a great start! I’m very excited about the upcoming projects I have lined up… one of which is starting as early as next week! Will write more about that one once things get rolling.

Also, I’ve recently made a few changes to my website. Notably, I’ve included my Twitter updates which are now located on the right side of the page, beneath the most recent photos. I will be using it to write short updates more often and will continue to write the longer ones on my website. I plan to do more of a redesign later, but for now you’ll also notice now my Featured Item section now includes a “sliding” page that switch between more than one item. That and a few links on the top right, including one to my Facebook fan page and my YouTube account.

In addition, I’ve gotten into something a little different. Lisa Meuser, a friend of mine who also works in this industry, has kept in touch with me and has been sharing some of her scripts as she writes them. Well, one day I ran into her and a group of mutual friends, and started talking about one of her screenplays. I was saying how awesome it was, and even kind of played some of the scenes as the lead. It was getting laughs and I didn’t think anything about it. However, maybe a few months later, I get an email from Lisa asking me to help her pitch her script! I accepted and started helping her get it ready, emailing back and an forth with some suggestions, changes and a few corrections here and there. Well, before the end of the year, we had a sit down and for a few hours, went over it together in person.

It’s almost ready to go, and on my return to Toronto, I will be working towards finding a production company willing to turn it into a feature film… one who will hopefully like the idea of me playing the lead! I can feel it… this year will be a great one!

Last week I shot a print campaign for Twixrix, a vaccine to protect against contracting both hepatitis A and B. Everyone on set, from the people representing the product and ad agency to photographer Darrin Klimek and the crew were great to work! Had lots of fun during this one, and was even offered a ride back home (I had taken the subway to the job and one of the guys was headed to my area). Anyway, it should be released by the end of the year, in magazines, brochures and on the Internet. We went through a lot of pictures, angles, setups and different expressions that I can’t tell you exactly what to expect, but in all cases I play a chef, dressed in an all white chef’s outfit, complete with hat.

I also went back home (Ottawa-Gatineau area) for the Thanksgiving weekend, but it wasn’t all just pleasure. Well maybe it was, because the audition I had, along with the little photoshoot I took part of were both very enjoyable. First I auditioned for Parktown Productions‘ upcoming feature length film and was happy to see some familiar faces. You may know them as the producers of the Live 88.5 commercials (Bathroom, Stereo) and the Calvin Klein Grand Prize winning shot film “2@2“, both which I act in. Then I met up with Kevin McMillan (who I’ve also worked with before) to take some pictures for his promotional materials he’s putting together to get funding for his TV pilot that he wants to shoot in China! If this goes through, Kevin has offered me one of two lead roles.. which would be a blast to shoot. Combining acting and traveling.. awesome!

Other than that, I still audition on a regular basis and doing great! I actually just got news of a callback for a short film I auditioned for before the weekend. Will keep you updated as usual!

The Corel Digital Studio campaign has now been launched in North America! Created and produced by Hooplah, short film style clips are used to promote Corel’s new product: Digital Studio 2010. That’s only part of the extent of Hooplah’s marketing campaign (which you can read more about on their blog entry titled “Corel Digital Studio 2010: Remember When?”, dated September 9th, 2009). I play the lead, Josh in his late teens to late twenties, and I’m featured in all the clips (but you won’t see much of me in the first one). Now to share the videos with you!

To watch these short clips, you can either watch them all as a one clip on the Digital Studio homepage: http://www.cds2010.com. Simply click the still image with the play button, the “Watch Full Video” link on the left, or “Watch the Film” on the right. You can also watch the clips individually by clicking the corresponding still.

Or.. watch it right here! Via playlist of all five clips on YouTube:

Lastly, you can read my entry about shooting this campaign here. Hope you enjoy these videos!

Episode 12 of the 5th season of F2: Forensic Factor titled “Picture Perfect” is airing tomorrow, Friday August 21st at 10:00pm ET then later on at 2:00am ET on Discovery Channel Canada! In this episode, I play the role of the late George Patisso.

For more information about the show, check out the F2 page on the Discovery Channel website. You can also read about my experience on set as well as auditioning for the role in my post titled F2: Forensic Factor shoot. Hope you enjoy this episode!

Yesterday and the day before, I worked two full days as a volunteer reader for a workshop organized by Marc Baur (an actor/coach). If you’re wondering what a reader is.. well, during auditions, you often find yourself doing a scene with one or a few other characters. A reader will read the dialogue of the other character(s) giving the auditioning actor something to work with.

I love doing stuff like this. Even if it doesn’t pay, you get so much in return (not just talking about paid meals.. although that was great too)! Learning from other actors and watching their performances, listening to what the coaches and casting directors have to say and of course having a good time while meeting new people.. can’t go wrong with that!

Marc, along with Janet Laine Green (also actor/coach), would work with the actors in the afternoon, giving them feedback on their scenes and having them do it a second time. Then after dinner, the casting directors watched the the actors and gave even more feedback. The first day featured Tina Gerussi and Millie Tom while during day two, Lisa Parasyn and Marsha Chesley took over the second half. They all had great advice which they passed along to the actors.

I had a great time and it was a good learning experience. As a reader, I also got to do lots of acting and had a bit of practice for cold read type of auditions (because of the sheer number of scebes I was given, I only had the time to quickly look over them beforehand). Now, I need to get ready to be in front of the camera myself.. as of tomorrow I’ll be shooting a promotional video during four days straight. More to come after the shoot!

Before getting to the subject of this post, I actually just came back from helping some friends move to the city. I’ve talked about this couple before.. Paul and Shalan Crivellari! They intend to continue and expand their photography work here in Toronto. So if you’re in the area and need the services of a great pair of photographers, be sure to get in touch with them: www.cprophoto.com.

In the month of May, I had jobs involving FaceSeal Technologies (more specifically their Fitseal product) and George Brown College. Both were lots of fun and I had the chance to meet and work with great people! On top of that, I continue having regular auditions and castings.

Also, I’m finishing up my improvisation foundation classes at Bad Dog Theater. I’ve completed three levels, each having a weekly 3 hour class, lasting 7 to 8 weeks. Right now, I’m about half way through the 4th and final level of the foundation classes. If you’re an actor looking for more training or just want to have fun and meet people, I definitely recommend it! Most of my classes were taught by an awesome teacher, Alastair Forbes.

Finally, I continue to get small jobs, and doing occasional “live” modeling. This usually happens during meetings where certain companies have clients that want to see clothes being worn. Speaking of, I’ll be doing quite a few hours of it this week!

Just a week ago, I hosted the Great Canadian Mash Up which happened at Myth on the Danforth in Toronto. This event was put together by Centennial College students and was in support of a youth program in Toronto called The Remix Project. They help young people who aspire to start careers in the urban arts sector.

It was a pleasure to host this event, and witness the performances by an amazing musical line up including Liya and Promise, The Styrofoam Ones, Carmela Antonio and a Remix Project graduate; Obie.

It was actually the first time I hosted an event, and had a great time doing it. The students were really happy with me and even gave me a thank you card and a few gifts! On top of that, Carmela gave me a copy of her first LP, which I insisted she sign. Her, along with all the other artists, gave such great performances. Make sure you check out the links provided for each artist, although the music on their website does not do justice to their live acts! Once again, I had a great time hosting this event and am thankful that I was able to be a part of it!

As for the modeling end, I attended a casting at Pi Media. It went really well, and I was told that they’d want to use regarding catalogue work for Sears, one of their biggest clients. Well, the following week, they had booked me for two days in a row, with more work to come! The people there are really friendly, easy going and a pleasure to work with!

First off, Yesterday’s post was in fact an April Fools. I’m still holding on to my acting career!

Actually, on Monday, photographer Robert Gagnon shot me for the cover of an upcoming Harlequin book. I forget the name of it, but know it should be released in October 2009. We shot two main looks for the character. First his handyman side (complete with tool belt) then with a more cowboy look to him (no tool belt, but a hat this time). It went great and everyone on set was pleasant. Hope to work with Robert and his team again!

If you were wondering about the Doritos Guru contest, my commercial entry didn’t make the top 5. However, I’m still very happy with how things went and the way the video turned out. I’m very thankful for everyone involved in this experience, and the support I had throughout this contest! Filmmaking is definitely something I want to continue to peruse. As for this video, you can now watch it on YouTube in HD!