Friday, September 2, 2011

Possible Fix for iOS Purchased Music Issues

Few things are as frustrating as the music app on your iPhone or iPad not working properly. Below is a possible fix.

If you are using iOS 5 Beta 6 or 7, your iTunes purchases no longer play:
Connect your device to iTunes;
Under the music tab, go to the section labeled "manually entered";
Remove those songs, & re-sync. If you sync your 'purchased' playlist, they should stay on your device.


Did this work for you? Leave a comment below.

Monday, April 11, 2011

Tales From the Set

My wife didn't realize I had makeup on when I came home from the Partner to Partner shoot on Saturday. She just thought I looked 'better than usual'.

Monday, April 4, 2011

Why I hate HootSuite.

I got into a discussion with our social media expert the other day about HootSuite.

I had asked him if I could post something to twitter, and he responded with our login info for HootSuite instead. Its better, he suggested, because you can monitor any number of streams, schedule posts etc. I told him I wasn't fond of it, but I couldn't put my finger on it.

I use twitter all the time. Sometimes I'm venting, sometimes I'm looking for suggestions, recommendations for business, or just want to hear other people's opinions on a given subject. What I like about twitter is that there is a connection. A conversation.

And I appreciate the tag that it adds about the client used. When someone is posting from an iPhone, I see twitter for iPhone, echophone, twitter for Blackberry, etc. It reinforces the idea that these are coming from real people.

When things go wrong, and people tweet five things in a one-minute timeframe, I often see HootSuite as the client. So when people's tweets are tagged using HootSuite, I assume that they are being cranked out by a social media consultant, or worse, by some kind of automated script. Its no longer a conversation, its a bullhorn. Its spam.

So when I see HootSuite, I assume you have so much to say that you need to automate your dispatches, and its probably not that important to me.

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

And Just Like That

Looks like I got bumped from the J. Edgar film. Not enough costumes.

Monday, March 21, 2011

The Last Job

On Saturday, I shot my first speaking film role as David in Philip Yang's "The Last Job."
I was impressed with the work that went into what I thought would be a relatively simple scene, and with how professional everyone was on set.

This being my first speaking role in a film, I was expecting to walk up, hit my mark, and say my lines. But with three people talking, the scene required a long shot, over-the-shoulders and close ups for everybody. So in each camera position, one two or three of us would run through our lines. This out of sync and out of sequence was a little jarring at first, but everyone knew their lines, and I think that was key.

What blew me away was how organized everything was, and the precision of the shooting script. I can't wait to see the final when its released.

Thursday, March 17, 2011

Extra Part in Hoover Filming

I just got a call from Central Casting to be an extra in Clint Eastwood's J. Edgar Hoover movie starring Leonardo DiCaprio, shooting in Virginia in a couple weeks.

New Work

March and April are shaping up to be busy months.

Last weekend, I was an extra in Ishu Krishna's first feature length film Arrange to Settle. I was part of the opening montage, and I'm part of a series of men the lead actress dates. I walk up the sidewalk, wave to her and we hug hello in front of the restaurant.

This weekend, I'll be shooting my first speaking part in Phillip Yang's student film, The Last Job being shot at George Mason University. And next month, I'll be in a leading role in a Masters Thesis film, Unhinged, directed by Janelle Bowe at Howard University.

Monday, March 7, 2011

So You're an Actor Now?

I went on my first film audition Saturday, Feb 26. I just got the part.

Its been 20 years since I auditioned for anything. Back then, it was high school drama productions. They were usually pretty frustrating affairs. Many of the productions were musicals, and I couldn't sing or dance, so I was left playing the heavy: Big Jule in Guys & Dolls, or the Russian Constable in Fiddler on the Roof.

Back then, a friend told me about a casting going on for extras in Dead Poet's Society. I was a junior in high school, and took off from Career Week to be in the film. I think I worked about four days, and was amazed at the process of filmmaking. Because the set was a courtyard, they left many of the extras in place as they re-set the camera and lights. I wanted to keep working in film, but it didn't seem possible at the time. I went to college and studied art, and began my career in graphics.

Fast forward to 2007: Body of Lies was shooting in my neighborhood, and was looking for extras. I had such a great time that again I wanted to work in film professionally. I hooked up with a local crew and PA'd on a short film and I again wanted to get into it, but my life was making big shifts, and I had to focus on buying a house, and raising my first child.

Its when I was home with her that I thought about film again. I got inspired by a viral video clip of Michael Emerson in an industrial video, and the thought that down the road he would become Benjamin Linus on LOST.

I was browsing craigslist when I saw an ad seeking actors for an industrial film. My thinking was, If I could be an extra, I should try for nonspeaking roles. If I could do that, I could grow into a speaking role. I already had a job, I didn't need to make a lot of money, but would't it be great if...

So I went in the basement, took a headshot of myself, and sent it in.

I didn't hear anything for almost a year. But last month, a talent agent who had cast the industrial film called to see if I was interested in trying out for a commercial. I went, but I was out of my league. It was so exciting that I decided to keep trying, but I wanted to start building my reel for the next opportunity. I signed up to be an extra in an independent film, and met a great group of people who like me weren't professional actors, but were trying. I started lining up auditions and potential shoots. My wife is not sure what to make of it, but she's very supportive.

When I went to this audition, I explained that I didn't have speaking experience, and that I'd be happy to play Policeman #2, etc. The director emailed to say that part had been edited out, but that she felt I could handle a much larger speaking role.