And just like that, another year gone.

2012 was a wonderful year for me. For one thing, I spent a good amount of the year working as a professional actor. I had a lot of firsts this year. In August, I moved my oldest daughter into college. That was a first for me, but also a first for my family as no one in our family has ever attended college before. I survived without too many tears, and she is flourishing there, and I am so proud. Last fall I was nominated for an RTCC award for my performance in "Always, Patsy Cline", another first and such an honor. And in November I had the opportunity to film a commercial for the VA Lottery, quite an experience. I celebrated 30 years with my senior class and was glad to reconnect with so many friends, and I achieved my 50 lb. mark in weight loss. Those were the big moments and so many others to make a really blessed 2012.
2013 will bring many things for me. I will reach year 50 in October, so I am sure this will be a huge year of reflection for me. I want to continue to shed pounds and keep exercising for my health because I want to be here for another 50 to watch my girls as they continue on the amazing path they're on to the fabulous women they are becoming with each passing day. I want to continue to act as it is my greatest gift I have to share, and I feel so alive when I'm on stage. I will begin the college search with my youngest, and exciting time for both of us. My oldest will turn 21 this year, and my youngest will begin her senior year in the fall. 2013 will be filled with milestones for my little family of three. I am ready to face them all because I have their love and support through everything. I cannot imagine what my life would be without them. Bring it on 2013, we're ready for you!

VA Lottery Commercial: That's a Wrap!

Last Friday was the BIG day. My call to show up on set as a "Background Artist" was 7:15 AM. I had to travel about 30 minutes, and I wanted to make sure I could find it, so my OCD, overly anxious self wanted to leave at 6:00 AM. This meant I was getting up at 5:00 AM, so I could arrive "camera ready" Let me give you a little background on that term. Once I was cast as a "Background Artist" I received a long email with all of my details about Friday's shoot. Call time: 7:15 AM, breakfast was being provided starting at 6:00 AM. The location, about 25 minutes away from me. Parking info, contact info. This was a big one, Wardrobe Notes: "Everyone should bring business casual attire that is seasonal.

 MEN should have a suit or a sport coat and slacks in blacks, tan,  blues or greys. Please bring dress shirts and coordinating ties. Please wear a watch and bring appropriate shoes.

 WOMEN please bring pants, dresses or skirts in blacks, grays, teals,  blues, tans or burgundies.  Blouses and/ or sweaters/ sweater sets are great.  Please bring  appropriate hosiery, shoes and jewelry." This presented a problem for me. I am a single mother. I don't make a lot of extra money. Since I have lost 50 lbs. in the last year and a half, I have one, yes I said, one pair of pants. I have dresses, but since it was a holiday commercial, we needed to be dressed in winter clothes. I was able to scrounge enough of those together, but I wasn't exactly sure what they wanted. And jewelry, PLEASE! I wear the same silver filigree hoops every day, and a watch. I very rarely accessorize anything unless it's a special occasion. Accessorizing is not a ritual the budget conscious engage in. I decided to bite the bullet and buy at least one pair of pants and a sweater to match and some cheap jewelry. The last instruction? Please come dressed and "camera ready" I have never done a commercial before. I assumed that "camera ready" meant hair and make-up needed to be done. Dilemma number two: I have no idea how to make up for the camera. I had a feeling that what I wear everyday was going to be too much. And, no, I do not paint myself up like a harlot, but I do wear dark lipstick and black eyeliner and black mascara because my features are very dark. Luckily I have people that I know who have done this sort of thing, and thanks to Facebook, I put out the feelers on make-up tips. I showed up with down played make-up, and it must have been fine because I was APPROVED by wardrobe. We started shooting around 8:30 AM. Now, as the term "Background Artist" indicates, I and all my other fellow "BA's" are in the background of the shot. This generally means, there is a lot of standing in one place, take after take after take. My first stint of standing (I like that alliteration!) is 3 hours, in heels. I would rather walk a mile in heels than stand in one place for 3 hours. Pretty soon my feet were screaming, but we're not done folks. We are "moving on" to the next set up shot. We broke for lunch around 2PM. Lunch is provided for us, and we are in the chow line, more standing. Finally I get my plate of salad, soft tacos, and rice and take a seat. Ahhhhhhhh! At this point I have to give you another back story. At the beginning of October I had a root canal done, (Bear with me. This has relevance. I swear!) I have a temporary crown in place, and I have been very careful to eat on the other side, not chew hard candy or gum. When I arrived on the set, I decided to partake in the breakfast fare. Bacon, one of my favorites, was one of the items offered. I took a bite of a very crunchy piece and immediately felt something in my gum on the side of my root canal tooth. I though I had scratched the gum, and really paid it no more attention as I had to shoot the commercial. I paid it no more attention until I took a bite of the soft taco, and it felt like a razor blade was cutting into my mouth. I decided to check out what was going on in the bathroom mirror. I had broken my tooth totally in two pieces right down the middle. I immediately called the dentist, and, of course, they want me to come in right then. Any other day, I could have, but today, I am shooting a commercial. It's a Friday, folks, so you know what that means. I can't see the dentist until Monday morning. I still have an afternoon of shooting to do, and all I can think about is my tooth. Luckily, I am not in pain, but definitely anxious, because the afternoon shoot involves cookies, and possibly eating them. We started shooting again around 3:30. Several times I thought I would have to take a bite, but narrowly escaped with the word "Cut" We wrapped at 8:30 PM. A 13 hour day! May I just say, if you have never been on a film set for anything and think it is an EASY job, you are wrong! It is a very tedious process, doing the same thing over, and over, and over, and looking fresh every time, even if you've done it 25 times. I collected my clothes, and when I got in the car to drive the 25 minutes back home at 9PM, I can't ever remember being more tired. Add to that, immense hunger and the broken tooth = one frazzled, on edge, me. Once I got home, I knew I would not be able to eat anything substantial because of aforementioned tooth. I decided on Broccoli Cheese soup from Jason's Deli. I looked online, so my daughter could look at the menu to decide what she wanted, and I placed the call at 9:30 PM. "I'm sorry. We/re CLOSED!" came the answer. I looked at my daughter, and I said, "I think I'm gonna cry." and that's exactly what I did. Poor thing, she was so confused by my wacky behavior, but  she was there for me, as she always is, and hugged me as the emotions of the day gushed forth in the form of gut wrenching sobs. Would I do it again? Maybe. I think I would make better choices: more comfortable shoes, and, oh yeah, I'll make a note to have all my teeth in tact. 

VA Lottery Commercial: Take 3

Well, I heard. I was not cast as a Principle in the commercial. Cue muted trumpet: ♪♫ Wah, wah, wah ♫♪ Oh, well, you win some, you lose some. The good news is that they did ask me to be a "Background Artist" which is apparently the new term for "Extra" I still get paid, and I get to work with a new group of people in a new genre for me. Anyone who is in this crazy business called show business will tell you that a huge amount of it is making connections, who you meet, work with, get your face in front of. You never know who will see you, and even though you're not right this time, if they are impressed with you, you might be perfect next time. So Friday, I will show up at the shoot bright and early, and play for the day with the VA Lottery folks. Sounds like a great way to spend a Friday to me!

VA Lottery Commercial: Take 2

So here I sit in a room full of other hopeful actors at the callback. All of us reading the side over and over again, so as to use that small amount of time we'll have with the director to our advantage. This particular day, they are running behind, so it's an even longer wait than I expect. For me, waiting a really long time at an audition is hard. I lose the edginess that the nervous adrenaline gives me. It's difficult to stay up and ready. Now at this point, I have to give you a little background on me and acting in front of a camera. People who know me and have read this blog before know most of my acting experience is on the stage. Acting for the stage and acting for the camera could not be further apart. On the stage, everything is big. On camera the most subtle move can be picked up and seen. 14 years ago I jumped into the deep end of acting for the camera. Because of a friend's connection to someone who was making an independent feature film, I was cast in a co-starring role in their film. I was pretty nervous the first day of shooting. The people at Paladin Pictures were incredibly patient with me. I'm sure I deafened the sound guy on the first take of the first scene. I was used to PROJECTING for the stage. The director yelled cut, and he came over to me and said, "Terri, that was really great, but we need you to be a little bit quieter." The first scene my character's ring was caught in the sink drain. Take 2: I'm thinking, okay, quieter, not so loud, Terri. ACTION! ....CUT! "Terri, that was really great, but you keep moving out of the shot." Boy, this is a really different world. Luckily, I had already been cast, and I got 6 weeks to learn while filming, and I ended up winning a best supporting actress award from an independent film festival for my portrayal. I haven't done any camera acting since then, so yesterday, when they finally called me in after waiting almost 4 hours, I was given some direction, and the camera started rolling. The director is watching me on a computer monitor. I have no lines. All I have to do is react to a tacky gift I am holding. The entire time I am "reacting" the director is saying, "Less. Less" And all I can think is, "How can I give less? I don't feel like I'm doing anything." We ended up doing it about 5 times. The last thing I did got a laugh, and they looked pleased, but who knows? I'll know by Tuesday, and when I know, you'll know. If I get it, I'm pretty sure my reaction won't be LESS.

VA Lottery Commercial: Take 1

Last week I received a notice in my email about casting for a VA Lottery TV commercial. I get routine emails about film castings, but normally I ignore them because having a regular job prohibits me from being able to attend most shooting schedules. This one was different. It was only a two day shoot, and auditions were quick. Having the wonderfully flexible boss that I do, I asked could she work with me to audition and shoot if I got it. Her response, as it always is, without hesitation, was SURE! I submitted for the commercial, and was thrilled when I received an email giving me a slot to audition. So...last Friday I made the trek to Charlottesville, VA to the casting office with a good friend who was also auditioning. The audition process was relatively painless, and the people at Erica Arvold Casting were wonderful - very friendly and encouraging. The whole thing took less than 10 minutes, and we were back on the road home to Richmond. And now, as every actor dreads after every audition, THE WAIT. The wait for the call for the job or a callback. For those who are reading this who are not familiar with the process, a callback is similar to making first cuts of an athletic team. You made it through the first stage, and now you have to come audition for more people or for the same people, but they might want to see you matched with other people or do something different. I was waiting for a callback. It would be a quick wait because callbacks were being held the following Thursday. The weekend went by, and no call. No big deal. I knew they were auditioning more people on Monday and Tuesday. Wednesday's work day came and went, and I had received no call, so I was hoping for extra work at this point. I came home. I cooked dinner and went straight to choir. I did not check my email when I got home from work. I arrived home from choir, and told my daughter that I guessed I hadn't gotten the callback because I never heard from them. I turned on my phone just to see if they'd left a voicemail while I was in choir. There was a voicemail on my phone. I still didn't think it would be from them. I was wrong! My face lit up like a Christmas Tree as I heard, "This is Michelle from Erica Arvold Casting." Luckily that wonderful boss I spoke of earlier read my email that I sent at 9:00PM on Wednesday evening letting her know I needed to go to the callback the following day, and that same response came back. Now....what to wear?