This morning, I went over to the annual Toronto Fashion Incubator Press/Media/Buyers Breakfast, where I worked for Therapeutic By Design with sisters Maggie and Karen. The former is the co-owner of the company and the latter, working for her sister. Both are massage therapists who felt there was a need for high quality linens covering the massage tables.

They were both lovely ladies that were fun hang out with! The event itself was pretty cool, got to I wear a robe and hung around Maggie and Karen’s booth, helping them promote their products. It went by very quickly, I had a great time and even got this little gift bag on the way out! Even the Mayor of Toronto, David Miller, not only attended but gave a speech, while the whole thing got media attention. I did see a CP24 camera around, so if you catch their coverage of the event and see a guy in a white robe.. it’s me!

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!

Just last month I wrote about the upcoming end of my foundation improvisation classes at Bad Dog Theater with Alastair Forbes. Well, last weekend, we put together an end of class show! It wasn’t the first time I’ve been on a stage (although that hasn’t happened too often), but definitely my first improvisation show. However, I was actually more excited than anything. The thing with improvising is that you don’t have to worry about what you’re supposed do.. you’re just gonna make it up on the spot!

Our whole class did good and got laughs from the crowd. Alastair was proud of us and encouraged us all to participate in more shows and to continue our improv training with intermediate and advanced classes. All in all, my experience at Bad Dog Theater, Alastair, the substitute teachers (for the few classes he couldn’t make) and my fellow classmates has been a great one! I plan to take more classes with Bad Dog in the Fall.

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!

Just last weekend, I attended The Actors’ Symposium, in Toronto, along with my good friend Moe Abdallah, who drove all the way from Ottawa. This event was put on by Ron Leach, Brian Levy and Crystal Kramer (all of them part of C.D.C.).

First I have to say that you can’t imagine how much I enjoyed this event! It was two full days of knowledge and enjoyment. Despite not having the chance to sleep much (and that being an understatement), I learned so much and had such a great time.. It was better than I expected!

We received lectures on the business, workshops on short parts, commercial roles (with Steven Mann) and full scenes. Speaking of, Jhanelle Dennis, who I had met via a previous workshop, taped my commercial workshop audition. In this scene, Kingsley Mgadi and I play two guys at a party, with Kingsley needing to get something off his chest.. a less than ideal Christmas present. Check it out below:

In addition, we had the chance ask questions from two panels with very special guests. The first panel was on Saturday, included many Toronto agents, including Amy Hines and Teri Boyack from Hines Management (who, I’m happy to remind you, I’ve signed with in October to represent me as an actor). The second one, on Sunday, featured many casting directors, producers and directors. They were very insightful with their advice, feedback and answers. It was an amazing opportunity for all us actors there!

There were also many sponsors and vendors. People who offered actor training services, a few photographers, and much more! I also ran into Lori Pearstein, who along with Crystal Kramer, offered a workshop which I had taken around mid October.

Last but not least.. well not really last as this is a very brief summary of what happened in these two full 12 plus hour days, we had the chance to network and make friends! With so many people, having different roles in the film and TV industry, all together in one space.. we’re bound to make connections! Not only was I able to meet and exchange contact information with a lot of people, but I also made some friends. There were so many great people with a lot of talent, it was an honor to be among everyone!

I want to finish with a big thank you to everyone involved in putting this together, as well as those who attended! Everyone did their own part to make it such a memorable event!

Plasma Films held their public premiere of Bollywood North last night. In this short film, I play the role of the Thug. This event, with red carpet and all, was held at the The New Jaz’oo Cafe Villa on Sparks Street in Ottawa. The owners of this place are also Executive Producers of the film.

It started off with Graham Murray (the Director) giving a speech, preparing the audience for the film and a revealing statement about his work in the pornographic industry (may have been a joke). All kidding aside, he talked about the nature of Bollywood movies and how Bollywood North was a satire of the genre, Canadian style. 

The movie was played with a great reaction from the crowd. Lots of laughs were heard, including mine (the part where I get headbutted to the chest, Zidane style, always gets me). After the end of the film, the Producers Tiffany Murray and Philippe Paquette went up to talk and answer questions. Later they invited me up there and I responded a couple of questions as well. Graham also joined us to help out.

All in all, it was a great night due to the company of good friends and catching up with the people I worked with during the production of the film.

I booked a job which consisted of pretending to be a Telus employee at the opening of their new building in downtown Ottawa. At the party, they had their very own cover band playing (The Webtones, comprised of Telus employees) and wanted to shoot a music video for them. So the plan was for us to mingle with the others. When the music started, we had to start dancing and hype up the crowd to make for a good video. It was lots of fun and it worked out pretty good!

Angie’s Models and Talent yearly showcase was last night. It was extremely successful! I had a great time and made some new friends. Today at the go see’s, quite a few people expressed interest in me.. including a couple of agencies in Toronto who want to represent me there. I will keep you updated on my decision if I choose to join an agency in Toronto!

Last night Pascal Aka premiered “Jamie and Eddie: Souls of Strife”. It was a great time and a very successful event with well over 300 people in attendance (400 or so capacity).

 We all finally got to see the finished product. A lot was cut out and the film was still a feature length movie spanning over an hour. Pascal Aka’s work was very impressive especially for this being his first film! Many were left impressed and a good time was had by all.  People seemed to enjoy my character “Spookie”!

At the beginning of December I attended my agency’s party. Met some new people, talked to some familiar faces and had a great time.

Shooting for “6 for 7″ continued and is going well.

I booked and shot a commercial for Vonage Canada mid December and had a great time on set! Watch for the guy with the binoculars on TV and on the Internet.

I also landed the lead in a local project called “Nothing Left To Say”. In January, the student film “Inescapable ” and shot in Cardinal, Ontario. That went well too.

I also did a music video for a local band called No Other way. The song is called “Hollywood Horror Show” and I played a show host. Had a great time with the character!

Also, shot another fight scene for “Souls Of Strife” which was a lot of run to rehearse!

Shooting for “Peace for Middle East” also continued.

Finally I joined an Improv group in Ottawa for practice and fun! Resume and pictures sections have been updated once again.