First off, check out this video before you read on. You’ll see why…

What could we possibly be talking about? Can it really be what most people are thinking as they watch the video? Well hopefully you’ve seen it by now so I don’t “spoil” it. It’s actually Contiki Canada’s newest online video campaign. What we’re talking about is going on a trip with Contiki! That’s what we’ve done, and have done with “a whole bunch of people” as they specialize in creating travel experiences for groups of people.

This was directed by my friend Trevor Francis who I’ve gotten to know after working with him on the Corel video as well as a Much Music commercial. What’s great about the rapport we share is that he also sees me as a creative person, which makes him open to ideas that I have. It’s such a blessing to work with a director like that… And, as a result of this, the line I deliver in the video was a suggestion I had, which ended up working pretty well!

As for Harlequin news, I was shot in two new book covers…which now brings my total to 8! Once again, I worked with Robert Goshgarian and I really hope to continue to work with him and his team at the rate I’ve been so far this year. It’s always a great time and good seeing those guys again!

Already? Another year over…and what a great one! Highlights include appearing in episodes of Flashpoint and Mayday, a role in the opening of a movie of the week called The Last Jinn, cool commercial projects such as the one we did for Carnival Cruise (getting paid to go on a Cruise, nice!) and a funny Dentyne Internet video skit, lead roles in multiple TV pilots, directing my first short film which I titled Forsaken, a supporting lead role in an Ottawa feature, few Harlequin cover appearances (those are always fun) and much more, in and outside of the film/TV/modeling world! I have so much to be thankful for and so much to look forward to, but at the same time, enjoying the day to day journey.

Now to talk about a few things I haven’t even mentioned yet! Check out this picture, it’s a still from William Barber’s latest reel.
One of the projects showcased is his BMW Soul Spec ad. Once post production on the commercial is completed, I’ll be happy to put it up here. It’s a pretty cool concept and I look forward to sharing it!

Since coming back from the cruise, I was involved in a web ad for Contiki where I worked with Trevor Francis again, for the third time. He actually brought up the fact that every time I auditioned for one of his project, I was offered a job! Speaking of commercials, I volunteered in a 3D PSA (public service announcement) for WildAid which was a blast to shoot and the first 3D project I’ve been involved in. I also made an appearance in a few corporate videos, did some voiceover work and had modeling jobs here and there. Got some new shots as well (I’ve put three new photos in the Pictures section)!

Unfortunately, without going into details, something happened in the end of November which prevented me from doing on camera work and auditions. Thankfully, all is well now and I will make up for lost work in the new year! Speaking of, in January or February, we plan to shoot the first episode of a web show in which I would play the main character. I don’t want to give away too much right now, but I’ve been working on the creative end (co-creating the show, writing the first episode, etc.) which has been very exciting. On that note, I wish you all the best in the new year! Happy 2011!

I’ve been back for almost 2 weeks now and I’ve finally decided to take time to write about my trip! I had work pretty much waiting for me (spec car commercial, voice over, corporate video) and quite a few auditions, so I didn’t find (or make) the time to do this all right away. Now, without further delay, here’s a somewhat short summary of my Caribbean cruise commercial shoot!

First of all, getting to the ship. We were flown from Toronto to Orlando, Florida and stayed in a hotel for the day/night. The room was nice and big while the outdoor common area had a pool, hot tub, even a fish pond! Everything was taken care of by people from the production company (Arnold Worldwide) and Carnival Cruise Lines. To be honest, I knew we’d be treated well but they went above and beyond. Not only did they cover all expenses (taxi, hotel, food off the ship and the cruise itself), they were really good to us…and all of them easy to work with!

Now for the cruise! We boarded the Carnival Dream, one of Carnival’s biggest ships (if not the biggest). It was so huge…we spotted it from the bus drive way before we got to it. Inside; even bigger! There was so much there, great open areas, lots places to eat, live entertainment venues, night clubs, a gym, a 18 hole mini-put course, etc. Believe me, the way I’m describing it probably isn’t doing it justice. You had everything you needed to keep you busy for well over a week, plus all the food you could eat! Not to mention tons of planned events and activities.

Our team was formed by the production crew, the client (Carnival) and the talent, or actors if you will, consisting of three real families and two married couples. No, I’m not actually married, but my role was the husband in one of the couples. I actually wore a wedding band for most of the trip as not to forget it when the time came to shoot some footage! You can see my lovely “wife” Andrea in the picture on the left. No exaggeration, the whole team seemed to get along with each other, and friendships were formed between a lot of us over the week. We couldn’t of asked for a much better group of people to work with.

It didn’t feel like Andrea and I had to work really hard. We had to get up early on most days, but had a couple full days off as well. We were in a scene watching a movie on the huge outdoor screen, hanging out on the ship, checking out the comedy club, etc. Actually, on one of the days we ported, they shot us Parasailing! So basically we had a good time while we worked AND while we didn’t! Everytime we ported, we ended up getting off the ship and every time we ended up on a beach at some point. The water there was so beautiful and clean. We walked around a lot, and visted the islands as much as we could. On the boat, we never had a dull moment. Can you believe that, other than all the things I’ve already mentioned, the boat had an outdoor water park with a giant water slide!?

Needless to say, this was one of the most exciting jobs I’ve had since I started my career. Oh did I forget to mention that, on top of getting all this for free, we got paid? Yep, it’s a hard life guys! But seriously, a lot of work goes into this career, and this is one of the great rewards I’ve had. The footage will be used for a TV commercial along with some online videos, etc. So keep an eye open for it and I will link you to whatever I find!

In mid March, I mentioned an Internet video I did for Dentyne. Well, their website has been redone, released and features the video! But of course, for your convenience, I have it right here:

Enjoyed it? Check out the other four videos featuring different couples at Dentyne.ca! Got a pack of their gum and a webcam? You can try an interactive feature where you can…uhh let’s just say “interact”…with any of the 5 guys or 5 girls! I haven’t tried this one myself yet, but as soon as I get a pack I will!

Things have been going good for me recently…the highlight would have to be being cast in an episode of Flashpoint! That’s right, I played a “bad guy” named Mike, and got to be a part of some fun action sequences! Did I get to shoot a gun? Yep, a real one, but with blank bullets. The one featured in the picture on the left isn’t the one used, that one is fake. You’re gonna have to watch the episode to see the real one!

It was one of the biggest sets I’ve been on so far, in terms of sheer amount of people and organization involved. So much happens behind the scenes of a day (out of usually seven) of shooting an episode for this show. It was great being a part of it (I had three days on set: March 5th, 8th and 9th).

Directing the episode (named “The Other Lane”) was a funny and passionate Erik Canuel. As a part of the arms dealers, I played alongside Ian Tracey, Colin Cunningham, Stefano DiMatteo and Jeff Parazzo. As for interacting with the good guys (the “SRU” team as they’re known in the show), I ended up having a confrontation with Amy Jo Johnson and David Paetkau (not in real life, but in the episode of course)!

Everyone was a pleasure to hang out and work with. We had some long days and nights, but in the end I was doing something that I really enjoyed. Since I had a small part, I mostly had free time on set, so I caught up on some reading, etc. It was kind of like waiting for a awesome roller-coaster ride… In the end, when you get your time in front of the camera, it was all worth it. Actually…okay I had more on set time than it may seem, but the analogy still stands. I had a blast! Speaking of, check out these videos of Colin performing some cool magic tricks with forks!

Although exciting, those awesome three days weren’t all that I’ve done since the last time I wrote an update. I had an amazing time shooting an internet video (coming soon) for Dentyne, had a role in a film like training video, played a part in other corporate videos and events, had a few voice-over jobs, and landed some print work! As I had mentioned before, the last few weeks have been good!

The Snack Guru is back, in a new 60 seconds edit for the new Doritos Viralocity contest! Check it out below:

First prize gets $100,000! BUT, if we collect enough points, Doritos will give $250,000! Want to help us get those points? I’d love that! Go to http://bit.ly/9xYXle and play it over there. Then, give it 5 stars, favorite it, and share it! Use the that link (http://bit.ly/9xYXle) to spread it around. Make this video viral… I mean that’s why it’s called Viralocity!

Have Facebook? Use the Facebook connect option and make sure you use the blue share button, right below the video on the left and have it post a link on your profile! Got Twitter? Use the green retweet button right next to it and it will write the tweet for you, complete with link to the video! Know people that live in a country other than Canada? Extra points when they watch this video!

Also notice how I’ve embedded the video on my page? This gets us extra points too! So if you got a website, feel free to do the same. You know what they say, the more, the merrier!

I appreciate the help and support to get us those points and bring our video to the top! So don’t hesitate to share share share! Email your family, friends, co-workers, rate it, favorite it, use Facebook and Twitter if you have accounts, embed the video on your website if you have one… and any other ways to help us win. Here’s a handy image to help. Thank you all!

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!

Just at the end of July, I had an audition for this project. The director Trevor Francis who came and walked me to the audition room was the same one behind the Much Mobile Missions commercial spot I did over two years ago. Right away, I remembered him, how much fun we had and our great rapport. Trevor then told me how he was trying to track me down for this video production and couldn’t get a hold of me (since I changed agents when I moved to Toronto). He was glad that my current agent submitted me for this, and said I was the guy for the part (all this before the actual audition process). Well two days later, I got a call from Teri congratulating me on the role!

This project for Corel turned out to be a promotional video with the style of a short film, created and produced by Hooplah. The concept is that my character Josh, puts together a video using Corel‘s new software with footage spanning over 20 years. I played Josh from his late teens to his late twenties, while Mila (hair/makeup), Kendra (woredrobe) and their assistants worked to make me look the right age. I even went through a haircut during the shoot, and trimmed/shaved my facial hair.

We started off on Friday, shooting at a house in the West end of Toronto and continued in that same location Saturday. On Sunday, we shot a scene at the Greyhound bus station then at a soccer field. Finally, saving the best for last, we had our final day at Kew Beach. Of course, every day was great (not without some slight roadbumps that we encountered, rain being one of those) but what a nice way to finish off this four day shoot.. with beautiful weather at the beach!

I have so many pleasant memories from working on this project.. I could write pages about these four days. The cast and crew where all hard workers and great people. I don’t think I could of asked for better! Trevor’s easy going but professional approach made it easy for us to have fun while putting out good work. I had the chance to see some footage that was recorded and… let me tell you this is going to look great!

This was simply a great experience for me, filled with great moments and laughter. Ask any one of the 40 plus people that worked on this project, they’ll tell you how much fun I was having. I also got to work with a few familiar faces, while meeting lots of cool people. Of course, I’m looking forward to seeing the finished product and sharing it with you!

Yesterday, I got a call from my talent agent Teri, about this booking concerning a video production for SMART Technologies. It came as a bit of a surprise as I didn’t audition for them. Well, Teri explained that they booked me from my headshot. Then when I noticed Infinite Media was working on this project.. it rang a bell. They were the ones who worked on the LG Fusic website about two years ago!

So when I got to set today, some of the people from Infinite said they remembered me from the previous work we’ve done together. It’s always nice to work with people from previous jobs, as it doesn’t happen too often in this industry. You constantly work with and meet new people, which.. don’t get me wrong.. is amazing and something I’m very grateful for! However, it’s also nice to see familiar faces.

The shoot went great! I was one of the characters in the video showcasing SMART Tech‘s innovative products. I sat down and a nice comfortable chair, pretended to sip some coffee and answer a video phone call. Most of the work was having to mimic conversation.. which I actually got praise for.. being told it was very natural and convincing. As usual, I was appreciative of their feedback, and glad that they were happy with my performance! We were able to finish off with my role in the video on time, and to the satisfaction of everyone. I had a great time, and was glad to have worked with these people again. Not to mention the other talent involved who were all pleasant to be around. I drove off to another Sears catalogue gig with a smile on my face and in a awesome mood!