in Acting as it is in Poker

Okay…I admit it. I’ve succumbed to the poker craze. Actually I succumbed quite some time ago. And now, once or twice a week I play at a local restaurant as part of the Fantasy Poker League. No real money (illegal in Texas), but lots of fun.

Now, other than the obvious (bluffing), what do acting and poker have in common? Good question. It just hit me last night after a major ’suck out’at the poker table.

The Poker Part:

I’m next to last position (one to the right of the dealer). I peek at my hand and see that wonderful /awful (if it gets sucked out) starting hand: Pocket Aces. Cool.

The blinds are $200/$400. The betting goes around the table with one caller before me. He limps in with a $400 bet. “I raise”. I know I did it, because I heard myself say it…and I saw my chips move into the pot, pushed by my own sweet hand. $1000 to go. I don’t like to completely ’slow play’ premium hands. Too many suck outs when you do. HA!

Only the dealer is left to bet. He calls. Cool. It’s not a big pot…not yet…but it’s early in the tournament and I haven’t played many hands yet.

The flop: The dealer burns one and turns up the 3 card flop: 4h,9c,6s

The limper checks. I pause (dramatically, of course…acting you know). Then I check, not wanting to scare anyone away at this point. And hoping that the ‘dealer’ will bet.

The dealer, much to my unbridled joy doesn’t just bet, he says “ALL IN”. The limper quickly folds. I quickly call. I put him on a pocket pair…but at least 10,10 to call my bet, then make this play.

What more could you ask for in a poker hand? I’ve got the guy dominated. He’s toast. This hand is MINE! He and I have almost the exact same chip stack, so I’m about to double up. Zippidy doo dah!

We turn over our cards. He turns over 8,8 ( I don’t remember the suits). Are you KIDDING me? Wow…lots of guts or just plain dumb?

I turn over the AA.

The rest of the table murmurs appropriately. Someone patted HIM on the back. You know…better luck next time kind of thing. There’s another game starting at 9:00pm.

The turn: dealer burns a card…turns up a 9s. Now we’re cooking. We both have two pair, but, I’ve still got him dominated.

The river: The almighty, everloving, stinking, freaking RIVER: I guess there’s no doubt…

dealer burns one and turns up another 8.

This lucky sucker (and a very nice guy, btw) who called my $1000 pre-flop bet – then went all in with no help on the flop – sucks out my beautiful AA on the river.

And so it goes.

Oh yeah….so how does all this relate to acting or the acting business more particularly? (Thought I’d never get here didn’t you?)

The Acting Part:

Had an audition last week for a film that will shoot here in Austin shortly. Sequel to a sequel to a sequel, etc., etc. Lots of blood.

So I get the call from the agent, she tells me I’m to prepare two different roles and hopefully read for both. Okay, that usually means the roles aren’t that good (number of scenes – days of work). But it’s been VERY DRY here (see previous blog post), so I’m happy for anything that resembles acting work

Agent faxes sides. Aside from being pretty foul and vile in the language department…yes both foul and vile….the scenes are not bad. Pretty darn good audition scenes, actually. There are actual characters on the page. I actually read the material to my sweet wife, who is not a big fan of vile and foul language said all at once. She thinks the material is good, and agrees with my take on each character. (We’ve done this dance for 30 years, so I do like to get her input.)

Day of audition: I have the scenes down cold. Now we can discuss whether you take the sides with you when you read, or just go from memory. Each choice has its strong points. For me…it depends. If I feel like I’ve really got the character and the words…I’ll take the sides into the room, but drop them to the floor once I start.

Never met this casting director before but she gives off a really ‘nice person’ vibe. Not all do. Trust me. I’m not first on the list, but the people before me defer, asking for more time. She calls my name. I’m up and we’re headed to the audition room…ready to rock.

I meet the guy doing the taping…CD asks which part I’m reading..I tell her both…and I suggest starting with the one I like best. (The most lines, most complicated scenes, hopefully most days of work…that’s why I like this part the best). More days means more money, means more producer contributions to my health insurance….there’s method to my madness (no acting pun intended).

Well that and it reminds me of a role that Strother Martin would have done. I Love Strother Martin. Don’t get me wrong…I’m not going in to do a Strother Martin imitation…not in the least…it’s just that the roles I was reading for were not the kind of things I have traditionally gotten…you know before I was older…fatter.

Putting the image of Strother Martin in my head allowed me to free up my self image and get to these characters in a way that worked for me…that probably doesn’t make sense…but it does to me…and maybe to another actor out there.

Poker and acting….oh yeah…I’m getting there…really.

We slate…(I hold up a hand lettered paper. with my name..not unlike something one would see in a jailhouse booking photo). Scene starts…my dialogue drives the scene… It goes very well…not letter perfect, line wise…but very close. And no stumbling. I don’t beat myself up if I don’t get the lines exactly as written in the audition…if the choices are interesting and the character is illuminated…if the scene works, that’s more important than if it’s letter perfect per the script.

This time, I did exactly what I had intended to do.

Good…no great performance in the car on the way home will be necessary today!!

The casting director gives me some nice ‘atta boys’…you know, in acting terms…”nice work” , “that was really good”, sort of thing that actors love to hear…whether it’s true or not.

“Since you have the sides…would you also read the role of the Sheriff (yeah a sheriff… I never get these). So I quickly glance at the other sides, refresh my memory…shift gears mentally and drop the pages to the floor.

This scene also goes extremely well. More “nice work”, “that was excellent”. Don’t overstay your welcome…leave it where it is on a positive note, ‘thank you, nice meeting you’ and out the door.

Now I’ve been doing this acting thing a LONG time. And still…I’m not always right about auditions. I’ve booked as many that I thought I’d screwed up as I have those I was certain of. And vice versa. So…who knows…but I left feeling GREAT. I had stepped out of my own way and completed a very good audition. I am convinced of that…still.

Sent my agent an email telling her I thought things had gone well, but ‘who knows?’

The Finish…I Promise:

Late that afternoon I get a call from my agent. Now, this is a new agent. New to me, at least. And fairly new to agenting in our market. I liked her before today…or I wouldn’t have switched over to her. I like her even more now. She called to tell me she had followed up with the casting director. [Insert 'star' by the agent's name here...you'd think ALL agents would followup and relay information to the actor...they all don't. ] My ‘take’ on the audition was on target. The CD was very positive in her comments said the agent, and I had a ’star’ by my name. No guarantees…there seldom are….but looks good for the callbacks.

Well…that was a week ago. No word. Nothing.

Now, callbacks can come immediately, in a day or few, a week….or never. I may still get a callback on this epic. I hope so. Not that my 88 year old mom see it or she would be sure we were in The End Times. But it could still happen.

Okay…geez, maybe this isn’t like poker. OH….yeah it is. Here’s the thing:

At the poker game I got my money into the pot with far and away the best hand. I HAD THE BEST HAND. It didn’t work out, but I played the hand well. I just got beat. Maybe it wasn’t “fair”.

What is was…(to paraphrase Andy Griffith)…was poker.

Now…if I don’t get the callback on the film….I still know I got my money into the pot with MY BEST HAND. I couldn’t do it any better. If it doesn’t work out…well, that’s life.

(I’m talking to myself here) If we dwell on the ‘bad beats’ we may never play poker again. Or we don’t play up to the level of our skill. In poker you can’t let the bad beat on the last hand beat you on the next hand, and the next.

Same with the acting business…we get bad beats. Tell your ‘bad beat’ story to your actor friends, your acting coach, your wife. Then let it go. It’s all part of the game.

in Acting as it is in Poker

Okay…I admit it. I’ve succumbed to the poker craze. Actually I succumbed quite some time ago. And now, once or twice a week I play at a local restaurant as part of the Fantasy Poker League. No real money (illegal in Texas), but lots of fun.

Now, other than the obvious (bluffing), what do acting and poker have in common? Good question. It just hit me last night after a major ’suck out’at the poker table.

The Poker Part:

I’m next to last position (one to the right of the dealer). I peek at my hand and see that wonderful /awful (if it gets sucked out) starting hand: Pocket Aces. Cool.

The blinds are $200/$400. The betting goes around the table with one caller before me. He limps in with a $400 bet. “I raise”. I know I did it, because I heard myself say it…and I saw my chips move into the pot, pushed by my own sweet hand. $1000 to go. I don’t like to completely ’slow play’ premium hands. Too many suck outs when you do. HA!

Only the dealer is left to bet. He calls. Cool. It’s not a big pot…not yet…but it’s early in the tournament and I haven’t played many hands yet.

The flop: The dealer burns one and turns up the 3 card flop: 4h,9c,6s

The limper checks. I pause (dramatically, of course…acting you know). Then I check, not wanting to scare anyone away at this point. And hoping that the ‘dealer’ will bet.

The dealer, much to my unbridled joy doesn’t just bet, he says “ALL IN”. The limper quickly folds. I quickly call. I put him on a pocket pair…but at least 10,10 to call my bet, then make this play.

What more could you ask for in a poker hand? I’ve got the guy dominated. He’s toast. This hand is MINE! He and I have almost the exact same chip stack, so I’m about to double up. Zippidy doo dah!

We turn over our cards. He turns over 8,8 ( I don’t remember the suits). Are you KIDDING me? Wow…lots of guts or just plain dumb?

I turn over the AA.

The rest of the table murmurs appropriately. Someone patted HIM on the back. You know…better luck next time kind of thing. There’s another game starting at 9:00pm.

The turn: dealer burns a card…turns up a 9s. Now we’re cooking. We both have two pair, but, I’ve still got him dominated.

The river: The almighty, everloving, stinking, freaking RIVER: I guess there’s no doubt…

dealer burns one and turns up another 8.

This lucky sucker (and a very nice guy, btw) who called my $1000 pre-flop bet – then went all in with no help on the flop – sucks out my beautiful AA on the river.

And so it goes.

Oh yeah….so how does all this relate to acting or the acting business more particularly? (Thought I’d never get here didn’t you?)

The Acting Part:

Had an audition last week for a film that will shoot here in Austin shortly. Sequel to a sequel to a sequel, etc., etc. Lots of blood.

So I get the call from the agent, she tells me I’m to prepare two different roles and hopefully read for both. Okay, that usually means the roles aren’t that good (number of scenes – days of work). But it’s been VERY DRY here (see previous blog post), so I’m happy for anything that resembles acting work

Agent faxes sides. Aside from being pretty foul and vile in the language department…yes both foul and vile….the scenes are not bad. Pretty darn good audition scenes, actually. There are actual characters on the page. I actually read the material to my sweet wife, who is not a big fan of vile and foul language said all at once. She thinks the material is good, and agrees with my take on each character. (We’ve done this dance for 30 years, so I do like to get her input.)

Day of audition: I have the scenes down cold. Now we can discuss whether you take the sides with you when you read, or just go from memory. Each choice has its strong points. For me…it depends. If I feel like I’ve really got the character and the words…I’ll take the sides into the room, but drop them to the floor once I start.

Never met this casting director before but she gives off a really ‘nice person’ vibe. Not all do. Trust me. I’m not first on the list, but the people before me defer, asking for more time. She calls my name. I’m up and we’re headed to the audition room…ready to rock.

I meet the guy doing the taping…CD asks which part I’m reading..I tell her both…and I suggest starting with the one I like best. (The most lines, most complicated scenes, hopefully most days of work…that’s why I like this part the best). More days means more money, means more producer contributions to my health insurance….there’s method to my madness (no acting pun intended).

Well that and it reminds me of a role that Strother Martin would have done. I Love Strother Martin. Don’t get me wrong…I’m not going in to do a Strother Martin imitation…not in the least…it’s just that the roles I was reading for were not the kind of things I have traditionally gotten…you know before I was older…fatter.

Putting the image of Strother Martin in my head allowed me to free up my self image and get to these characters in a way that worked for me…that probably doesn’t make sense…but it does to me…and maybe to another actor out there.

Poker and acting….oh yeah…I’m getting there…really.

We slate…(I hold up a hand lettered paper. with my name..not unlike something one would see in a jailhouse booking photo). Scene starts…my dialogue drives the scene… It goes very well…not letter perfect, line wise…but very close. And no stumbling. I don’t beat myself up if I don’t get the lines exactly as written in the audition…if the choices are interesting and the character is illuminated…if the scene works, that’s more important than if it’s letter perfect per the script.

This time, I did exactly what I had intended to do.

Good…no great performance in the car on the way home will be necessary today!!

The casting director gives me some nice ‘atta boys’…you know, in acting terms…”nice work” , “that was really good”, sort of thing that actors love to hear…whether it’s true or not.

“Since you have the sides…would you also read the role of the Sheriff (yeah a sheriff… I never get these). So I quickly glance at the other sides, refresh my memory…shift gears mentally and drop the pages to the floor.

This scene also goes extremely well. More “nice work”, “that was excellent”. Don’t overstay your welcome…leave it where it is on a positive note, ‘thank you, nice meeting you’ and out the door.

Now I’ve been doing this acting thing a LONG time. And still…I’m not always right about auditions. I’ve booked as many that I thought I’d screwed up as I have those I was certain of. And vice versa. So…who knows…but I left feeling GREAT. I had stepped out of my own way and completed a very good audition. I am convinced of that…still.

Sent my agent an email telling her I thought things had gone well, but ‘who knows?’

The Finish…I Promise:

Late that afternoon I get a call from my agent. Now, this is a new agent. New to me, at least. And fairly new to agenting in our market. I liked her before today…or I wouldn’t have switched over to her. I like her even more now. She called to tell me she had followed up with the casting director. [Insert 'star' by the agent's name here...you'd think ALL agents would followup and relay information to the actor...they all don't. ] My ‘take’ on the audition was on target. The CD was very positive in her comments said the agent, and I had a ’star’ by my name. No guarantees…there seldom are….but looks good for the callbacks.

Well…that was a week ago. No word. Nothing.

Now, callbacks can come immediately, in a day or few, a week….or never. I may still get a callback on this epic. I hope so. Not that my 88 year old mom see it or she would be sure we were in The End Times. But it could still happen.

Okay…geez, maybe this isn’t like poker. OH….yeah it is. Here’s the thing:

At the poker game I got my money into the pot with far and away the best hand. I HAD THE BEST HAND. It didn’t work out, but I played the hand well. I just got beat. Maybe it wasn’t “fair”.

What is was…(to paraphrase Andy Griffith)…was poker.

Now…if I don’t get the callback on the film….I still know I got my money into the pot with MY BEST HAND. I couldn’t do it any better. If it doesn’t work out…well, that’s life.

(I’m talking to myself here) If we dwell on the ‘bad beats’ we may never play poker again. Or we don’t play up to the level of our skill. In poker you can’t let the bad beat on the last hand beat you on the next hand, and the next.

Same with the acting business…we get bad beats. Tell your ‘bad beat’ story to your actor friends, your acting coach, your wife. Then let it go. It’s all part of the game.

Goal for the week…or at least Monday

I gotta remember to keep from getting my *&^%#@# nose bent outta joint!

http://www.pbase.com/txactor/austin_texas

Goal for the week…or at least Monday

I gotta remember to keep from getting my *&^%#@# nose bent outta joint!

http://www.pbase.com/txactor/austin_texas

Screen Door Jesus – It’s Finally Released

I worked on this quirky indie film over 2 years ago here in Austin. The producers are to be commended for not giving up on getting a theatrical release for SDJ. This film has won a fair number of festival awards, so if it gets anywhere near you, please check it out. I’m sure a DVD release will follow.

www.screendoorjesusthemovie.com

I play Brother Wiley, the Baptist preacher. Don’t blink.

What’s Next…

Hurricane season is hitting us hard this year. Really? I hadn’t heard.

Just when we were getting a grip on the devastation in LA, MS and ALA, along comes Rita. Fortunately, my family has escaped, so far, with no more than inconvenience. A new baby’s birth, thought to be possibly delayed or accomplished away from home, now looks like it will take place, as planned, in Houston. Yeah!

The New Orleans area has not escaped this latest storm induced misery and the recovery there will no doubt be set back at least a bit.

What does this have to do with Acting…or the film industry?

Well…in case you don’t know, the state of Louisiana has been very aggressive in courting the film industry. We here in Texas (we being our legislative heroes in particular) have watched as their LA counterparts have put together very attractive incentive packages that had, prior to hurricane Katrina made New Orleans a booming film production center.

At a recent Austin meeting put together by a group called “The Alliance” http://www.theallianceaustin.com one of the local talent agents (who now has an office in New Orleans) asserted that there were (at that date) approximately 35 film productions either filming or scheduled to film in and around New Orleans. He went on to state that at our busiest times here in Texas we had approximately 11 films going or scheduled…and we thought we were HOT!

The state of LA has reportedly participated in somewhere around $200 million in film production over the past two years. At the same time, other states such as New Mexico have also been aggressively pursuing similar legislation that will give tax incentives, rebates, etc. to film producers who meet certain criteria (location filming and hiring of local residents are key ingredients). Meanwhile, the Texas legislature fights over school financing and other important issues but is completely Asleep At The Wheel as our own considerable film industry has been taken away by these other states. During our most recent legislative session, these same political heroes passed a bill with approximately $20 million earmarked for the film industry. BUT…that bill was not actually FUNDED. So here we sit with an unfunded $20 million pool of money with which to try to win back some of our lost film production. Yikes!

Since hurricane Katrina, some LA productions have reportedly had to shut down, others are back up and running already, and some proposed productions have decided to relocate elsewhere.

While I wish no one in the Gulf Coast area any more misery, I hope that at least some of that production will relocate to Texas. Is that cold? Well, no…I don’t think so. If relocation is inevitable, Texas would be a great place ramp up production both for me and for all my fellow film professionals in this market area.

Why don’t I just relocate to LA or NM? Well…were it that simple. And if I were 21, unmarried and otherwise mobile, that would be an attractive option. But that’s not the case. Established people like myself need our film industry to be revitilized…and the sooner the better. For a variety of reasons.

First of all we don’t want to lose the infrastructure…such as it is…the talent base and the crew base that has grown up here over the past decade and more.

Secondly, many of the film community rely on film work for our insurance benefits. For some, and I count myself in this group, that is a critical factor. In order to qualify for insurance from SAG (Screen Actors Guild) benefits, certain income minimums must be met on a yearly basis.

Because of health care costs, those minimum thresholds have risen and at the present level of local production, it is difficult to keep those benefits active. In the case of costly medical events such as childbirth or a serious illness such as cancer, those benefits are even more critical than usual.

In November of 2003, my wife, Jane was diagnosed with a nasty little disease called IBC or Inflammatory Breast Cancer. My insurance benefits have been essential in Jane’s treatment. Thanks to that good treatment, great doctoring and to the prayers of thousands of friends and strangers, she is currently cancer free. But IBF has a bad habit of returning and medical costs are still mounting as we continue to fight to keep Jane well. Thank God for my SAG insurance benefits!! Without a return to a consistent calendar of film production, I will lose those benefits.

So…while I agonize over the misery of the people of Louisiana, I find myself in the uncomfortable position of hoping that because of their unfortunate circumstances, we here in the Texas film industry will reap some benefit.

No easy answers. God bless us all.

Hello

Hello to anyone who may stumble upon this feeble effort.

I’m just setting up this blog and hope to ‘meet’ some fellow actors, or those interested in either the craft or the business. Feel free to ask questions…as long as you understand that I will feel free to answer honestly.

Please excuse my early fumbling with getting this all set up.

Thanks.

Tommy

Screen Door Jesus – It’s Finally Released

I worked on this quirky indie film over 2 years ago here in Austin. The producers are to be commended for not giving up on getting a theatrical release for SDJ. This film has won a fair number of festival awards, so if it gets anywhere near you, please check it out. I’m sure a DVD release will follow.

www.screendoorjesusthemovie.com

I play Brother Wiley, the Baptist preacher. Don’t blink.

What’s Next…

Hurricane season is hitting us hard this year. Really? I hadn’t heard.

Just when we were getting a grip on the devastation in LA, MS and ALA, along comes Rita. Fortunately, my family has escaped, so far, with no more than inconvenience. A new baby’s birth, thought to be possibly delayed or accomplished away from home, now looks like it will take place, as planned, in Houston. Yeah!

The New Orleans area has not escaped this latest storm induced misery and the recovery there will no doubt be set back at least a bit.

What does this have to do with Acting…or the film industry?

Well…in case you don’t know, the state of Louisiana has been very aggressive in courting the film industry. We here in Texas (we being our legislative heroes in particular) have watched as their LA counterparts have put together very attractive incentive packages that had, prior to hurricane Katrina made New Orleans a booming film production center.

At a recent Austin meeting put together by a group called “The Alliance” http://www.theallianceaustin.com one of the local talent agents (who now has an office in New Orleans) asserted that there were (at that date) approximately 35 film productions either filming or scheduled to film in and around New Orleans. He went on to state that at our busiest times here in Texas we had approximately 11 films going or scheduled…and we thought we were HOT!

The state of LA has reportedly participated in somewhere around $200 million in film production over the past two years. At the same time, other states such as New Mexico have also been aggressively pursuing similar legislation that will give tax incentives, rebates, etc. to film producers who meet certain criteria (location filming and hiring of local residents are key ingredients). Meanwhile, the Texas legislature fights over school financing and other important issues but is completely Asleep At The Wheel as our own considerable film industry has been taken away by these other states. During our most recent legislative session, these same political heroes passed a bill with approximately $20 million earmarked for the film industry. BUT…that bill was not actually FUNDED. So here we sit with an unfunded $20 million pool of money with which to try to win back some of our lost film production. Yikes!

Since hurricane Katrina, some LA productions have reportedly had to shut down, others are back up and running already, and some proposed productions have decided to relocate elsewhere.

While I wish no one in the Gulf Coast area any more misery, I hope that at least some of that production will relocate to Texas. Is that cold? Well, no…I don’t think so. If relocation is inevitable, Texas would be a great place ramp up production both for me and for all my fellow film professionals in this market area.

Why don’t I just relocate to LA or NM? Well…were it that simple. And if I were 21, unmarried and otherwise mobile, that would be an attractive option. But that’s not the case. Established people like myself need our film industry to be revitilized…and the sooner the better. For a variety of reasons.

First of all we don’t want to lose the infrastructure…such as it is…the talent base and the crew base that has grown up here over the past decade and more.

Secondly, many of the film community rely on film work for our insurance benefits. For some, and I count myself in this group, that is a critical factor. In order to qualify for insurance from SAG (Screen Actors Guild) benefits, certain income minimums must be met on a yearly basis.

Because of health care costs, those minimum thresholds have risen and at the present level of local production, it is difficult to keep those benefits active. In the case of costly medical events such as childbirth or a serious illness such as cancer, those benefits are even more critical than usual.

In November of 2003, my wife, Jane was diagnosed with a nasty little disease called IBC or Inflammatory Breast Cancer. My insurance benefits have been essential in Jane’s treatment. Thanks to that good treatment, great doctoring and to the prayers of thousands of friends and strangers, she is currently cancer free. But IBF has a bad habit of returning and medical costs are still mounting as we continue to fight to keep Jane well. Thank God for my SAG insurance benefits!! Without a return to a consistent calendar of film production, I will lose those benefits.

So…while I agonize over the misery of the people of Louisiana, I find myself in the uncomfortable position of hoping that because of their unfortunate circumstances, we here in the Texas film industry will reap some benefit.

No easy answers. God bless us all.

Hello

Hello to anyone who may stumble upon this feeble effort.

I’m just setting up this blog and hope to ‘meet’ some fellow actors, or those interested in either the craft or the business. Feel free to ask questions…as long as you understand that I will feel free to answer honestly.

Please excuse my early fumbling with getting this all set up.

Thanks.

Tommy