San Francisco from Sophia's living room

Wow, what a week. Had a fantastic time in San Francisco during the Thanksgiving, and got back just in time to see Starting Out in the Evening, our friend Andrew's latest film. It's getting incredibly good reviews, and I was stoked to be able to see it on the always-important opening weekend...here's to hoping it gets some legs and opens in other cities. There has been a lot of attention given to Frank Langhella's performance, and I have to say, it really is a fantastically great performance--one of those kinds of roles that can only be fully expressed in film, really. He's so subtle and so...quiet (but focused, and alive in a way I think only those in their twilight (as the character feels himself to be) can be)...you need to see that kind of role done in a dark room, in a movie theater--it's just such a delicate thing. It wouldn't work onstage--you can never be that close--and on TV, well, you would have to see it in a dark room and not be distracted. No matter--it was a triumph, and the calls for an Oscar nomination are not unwarranted. I am so proud of Andrew, I can't tell you. He has been working toward this kind of success for a very long time and, honestly, it inspires me to continue to find ways to enjoy this often (I admit) frustrating pursuit. If you get a chance, check it out.

(click on the poster to see the trailer)

So, I was paging through a magazine today and, as is often the case this time of year, this magazine was telling us who the best entertainers of the year are, who the break out stars are, which of the big names are still relevant, that kind of thing. And, like, okay--look, this is not an ego thing--but really, this profession...it's just so damn random, and articles like this just make it look so easy. I mean, sure, the odds get better the longer you stay focused (for most of us, we hope) but, let's see, I went to class last night, and throughout the night, I saw some very, very good actors do some very, very good work. It's like this in every class. I would say that there are several--more than several--people in my class right now who are just as "entertaining" as any of the people in these magazines, and the other students? They are well on their way. Not to take away anything from the success of my fellow actors, it's just the pedestal that they get put on, well, it must be intimidating for them a bit but it just seems so...I dunno. I mean, next year it will be the same thing, right?

I had written a bunch of stuff but I just deleted it because it was just ridiculous. I was basically just frustrated, which tends to happen this time of year. Forgive how this might sound, but when I look at this stuff, I get frustrated because I know I can do it. I know others who can do it. It's not a competition, I know this...it's not even anything, but I mean, if I were an accountant (nothing wrong with accountants), it's not like I would be surrounded by magazines and shows and "news" telling me how there are so many other accountants that are doing so well, that are pushing accounting to the next level, that are living the accountant life that can see so tantalizing, with all the many exciting accounting gigs they are able to part in. I guess with acting it's just a lot more obvious when you find you are not where you want to be professionally.

No matter. It is working itself out. Every time I watch Chuck I send a message to my manager telling him that I am feeling a tad depressed and he always tells me to not think about it and to enjoy my day and everything that I am doing. Which is good advice, but when I see a show that I just want to be on and contribute to, it's nervewracking.

(I am very much enjoying the iTunes release of Daft Punk's Alive 2007, by the way. While it's not totally surprising since I have the recording of the Coachella set and I was at the actual show, it's still superbly dope.)

On the work side, we shipped three products this week, which is very cool. Most of my team is taking a bit of time off, I am just catching up on some loose ends and looking forward to solid yoga class tonight, then dinner with Allison, who is in town for a conference, and then the weekend.

Tags: travel, general, acting, starting out in the evening, daft punk

Tags: tech, HD, HD-dvd, games

The picture above is kind of a joke, I am friends with a few members of the production team on this spot that I shot yesterday and I walked to my trailer door to see "Mr. Romo" taped on it. I laughed out loud, I think many an actor has thought about that transition--when do you go from "Mike" to "Mr. Romo"? Box office pull, no doubt.

Good news! I filmed another commercial yesterday--though I should mention that I am basically a featured extra for a skin care commercial that will not be aired in the US or Canada, but if I can get a clip, I will make sure to post it. For the second time in a row, I worked with a "big super star actor"---the person I worked with yesterday is an international super star, been around for many years, and it was really a pleasure to get a chance to meet someone like that, and it was fun just to work, even for a really short time, with a true professional. As with any professional in any kind of job, you just end up learning a tremendous about just by being in the same room with someone like that. Totally relaxed in between takes, then absolutely, incredibly focused during. He (he's a he) also made a point of introducing himself right away and basically put everyone at ease. I feel silly that I am not saying the name, but I gotta wait till the spot comes out, so I will just shut up about it.

Nick, Drue and I just got back from seeing Beowulf in 3-d IMAX, which is apparently the way to see the movie...it's funny to try and compare it to the last movie I saw, No Country for Old Men. It kind of shows you just how different movies are becoming, in a way. Country is jaw dropping amazing because of the direction, editing and, most of all (I would argue), the acting. Beowulf is amazing because there's all this crap flying around and it looks like it's gonna hit you right in the $%(*%@ face, dude! It was cool, but my eyes are killing me. It was well edited and had some sequences that could only happen in a truly virtual world (when the camera can go anywhere you like, there's a certain flexibility). The 3D effect was quite good, I mean, it's the best 3D you are going to find in existence, methinks, and there were a few shots where it really was gorgeously effective---sprawling landscapes and wide, expansive establishing shots were much more interested and engaging than the sword point right at you or the blood dropping down at you (though that stuff worked, too). It was more than just the longest cut-scene in history, it was a well-done fable (if way too violent for the kids, which was refreshing, in a way). What was trippy is that there were several very long takes on the character's faces and the audience endowed these pixels with human emotion, giving them life, even though it wasn't real at all. The experience was there, but it was like listening to music ripped from a CD at a low bitrate (I know, it's nerdy but it's relevant in many ways)--you can hear it, you can hear all the elements, there's just not enough behind the elements. The cynical part of me wants me to ask whether modern audiences even care, really, just as long as they get "most" of it, the feeling...but I don't honestly think that anyone would really accept, fully, that a virtual "actor" is going to deliver the same kind of experience a "real" actor would provide. (The fact that I can even write this sentence shows, once again, that we are living in the future.)

Beowulf is worth seeing (in 3D, in IMAX), if only to see what the studios are trying to do bring people into the theatres. Is this "the future"? Nah. It's neat, and it works for some movies (the stereotypical "Hollywood" movies, I guess) but these kinds of stories are the minority. Still, these stories sell more than others. Witness Transformers, featuring, again, non human characters moving the story along.

20 years ago, we had Roger Rabbit doing this with drawings. What will the technology-straining "movies" of 2027?

It's amazing, really, and I will admit I hate being just a witness to all of this. I want to be part of these changes, I want to make sure these changes are good.

One of things that I kept thinking about during Beowulf was how I really need to get out of my element, like, seriously out of my element. I've had this very cushy existence and I would love to get out of here for awhile and find some way to test myself, my physical and mental strength. Funny that one would have to "research" a way to live in a more challenging way. I have to use a computer to figure out how to live a more simple yet more engaging life? And I come to thinking about this after watching a movie told entirely by computer created actors in a computer generated world dealing with computer generated crises?

Tags: acting

Leonard Velvet and Lace from "Crystal Monorail" on Halloween weekend. You can find more photos here.

Oh man...I wish I had more discipline to actually write this journal when I actually have time. I was going to write yesterday but I just couldn't do it, I just didn't want to get in front of the computer again.

No matter!

I think that this year will be the year of "Everyone I Know Is Having A Baby". We are officially at the point where more of my "couple" friends have/are having a kid than don't/not. I went to Ruby's first birthday (or is that second? being born technically has to count, right? we'll stick with first, because it is more of a birth-versary, I guess) on Saturday and it was crazy with kids. And it was fun, I mean, I really like kids--I am more comfortable, I have to say, with 3 and up (I can't shop for anyone that ages in months)--I don't get freaked out by them or anything like that. Of course, the number one question both Whit and I get all the time usually starts with "When" and ends with "one" and it's just a constantly weird thing to talk about.

What's amazing is this feeling of watching so many of my friends go and experience this whole thing that I am not. It cheapens it to say I feel "left out" but it is just, obviously, one of the most significant life event that my comrades are gong through right now, and after being neck to neck in experience with everyone for so long, it's just odd feeling to watch this happening as opposed to sharing it.

Whit and I talk about it all the time, of course, and I am sure we will continue to discuss it for awhile. Who knows what will happen, but it's just something that's happening around me and it puts everything into a different kind of perspective. Like, when people ask me about what's going on, I just feel silly talking about my events and stories when talking to someone who is up 5x a night caring for a new baby. I know, of course, that I should not feel that way, but I do sometimes.

So, congratulations to the few people who have told me that they are pregnant this week (I had two in one day last week). An congrats to Kate and Joel and Ruby for making it through a whole year. I had a good time at the party, seeing all of my friends and their parents and their kids, generations and generations all talking and sharing stories, I felt like I was in the opening credits of some family movie.

Everyone's talking about the WGA strike and I am already feeling the effects of it. Auditions have already been slow, and I doubt they are going to start picking up if this does not get resolved quickly. I was talking about this on Saturday and was hoping they would come to some kind of compromise on the DVD residuals (it was 4 cents per copy, the writer's wanted up to 8 cents for certain (more popular) titles) and I was surprised to see they had dropped that issue altogether, that they were focusing more on Internet rights, which are going to be difficult to reconcile, pretty because one of the biggest challenges for any kind of online content production/distribution/exhibition play is monetization. I was hoping they would go 6 cents per DVD, get a deal for outfits like the iTunes store and others, and then go back to the tables in 2 years to see what the marketplace is like for PC and Set-top box streaming delivery systems. It's a pickle, that's for sure, but these are the challenges of our time, the way we deal with video and music is changed forever; it's an amazing time to be a part of this, right at this very major and crucial transition.

Still, people need to get paid for their work. I get really annoyed with folks to pirate movies and all that...you gotta pay people for their work!

I got an HDTV player on Friday and will be post about it later this week. I put it through its paces on Sunday and it was, frankly, awesome. While it is not the insane upgrade that we saw with VHS to DVD, it is very significant. And awesome.

Ride the rail!

Tags: Halloween