Monthly Archives: August 2010

My Two Pence {The Film Set | Genevieve Sibayan}

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Oh Hai! It’s high time I threw my proverbial hat into the resource share arena.

I’ve been acting in London for a few years now and have a stack of Equity diaries to remind me! It’s not uncommon for newbies to ask my advice (yeah I know! *giggles) but for some reason I always assume that people already know all the same info I know. So when I’m put on the spot I mostly come out with “err, work hard?” which isn’t the most helpful thing to say.

I assume that because there’s so much free (and sometimes not free) information and resources available that everyone’s already found it. Of course that’s a silly thing to think.

So my mission is to share some of the things I know and point my finger at the best resources and occasionally give my opinion on things…most advice out there is the same…CV, headshot, hard work etc…all very important but I’m hoping we can uncover something a bit different. I certainly don’t know everything so if you have any finds you want to share or opinions then the comments are the place to put them. That’s what sharing’s about isn’t it?

I don’t know many Actors in this country (UK) who’s sharing their resources and I can only assume it’s because no one wants to appear arrogant or doesn’t want the competition to know what they know…If I’m wrong, and you do have a blog, I’d love to read it.

So to start off with, let me link you back to a few articles right here on Frost Magazine. And what a place to start! We’ve got a column entitled ‘the film set’ (some pun intended) and here’s a few excerpts from some of the articles (click on the titles to see the whole article:

Interview with Casting Director Richard Evans

We asked: Who is your inspiration?
“Anyone who knows what they want and goes for it wholeheartedly… especially if they have overcome adversity to do so.”

Interview with Lyn Burgess – Life Coach and also runs the Women in Film and TV events committee

““Fake it till you make it!” It’s good to model someone else who is a confident person – give yourself a ‘confident outfit’ or a lucky pair of knickers.”

Interview with Actor and Casting Director Leoni Kibbey

“You get out what you put back in. Always go with your gut instinct. Don’t get cosmetic surgery. Floss. Use Sunscreen.”

Interview with Simon Dale from Casting Call Pro

“Among the strangest we’ve had are requests for actors to play pranks on bosses and ex-partners, as well as a over-zealous salesman who was offering an all-expenses-paid trip to Helsinki for anyone who was willing to impersonate his CEO at a client meeting the the real CEO couldn’t attend.”

We also have an article written by sitcom actor Ceri Phillips (Ollie, Coming of Age) on what it’s like in his world and if you wanted to hear about some unusual moments from our career so far.

Right, off to learn a speech for an audition but I’ll be back very soon (mu ha ha)…ciao for now!

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Genevieve Sibayan is a London based Actress, you can find Genevieve’s blog here and get updates by clicking on her rss feed. If you’d like to subscribe to The Film Set on Frost Magazine then click here.

Rounding up the Week {Miscuity}

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I hope you’re having a lovely day, here’s some of the weeks best thingummies to distract you from work. Hope you enjoy them.

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Slime mould that makes decisions like humans.

Brainless single cell organism that makes decisions like humans, read the full article here, then go and watch some disturbing videos.

The best quitting story of the week.

Stephen Slater quit his job at JetBlue after launching into a tirade, grabbing a can and jettisoning down the emergency ramp. We’ve all had days like that.

The other quitting story…

When Jennifer the PA quit her job using a dry wipe board and 33 photos outting her boss for playing farmville everyone thought “wow that’s amazing because no one would ever do that”. It turned out no one ever did do that and it was a hoax all along. The actress playing Jenny turned out to be Elyse Porterfield who applied for the role through Actors Access.

Freak storm in Finland ruins a lovely day within seconds.

Watch out for the scary face at 00:56 and all the birds deciding they’ve had enough. [via Boing Boing]

Panasonic bring 3D to the Olympics By Jodie {Sport}

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It’s less than two years until the Olympics comes to London and to mark the occasion Panasonic commandeered Trafalgar Square and brought their own entertainment in the form of 3d booths, Flawless and Olympians Tim Brabants and Keri-Anne Payne.

We sent fearless Jodie Burch to interview the Olympians, here’s what she found out;

Tim BrabantsTim Brabants, who is a sprint racer, found his passion as the age of 10 in 1987. Inspired by people within his Kayaking club who went to the Seoul Olympics in 1988, Tim won gold at the Beijing Olympics in 2008. Naming this as his biggest achievement to date, he is eager to repeat this at London 2010.

When asked what it means to him to compete in London, he can barely contain his excitement. His face comes alive as the thought and you instantly know that his whole life has been working towards this moment. Describing it as a unique opportunity, Tim is eager to live up to the British expectations and uses this as his motivation.

With training happening 2-3 times a day and only 1 day off every two weeks, you can see the determination in his face. A long road of training, preparation and international competition stretches out in front of him before 2012.

With everything crossed that he qualifies for the team, we can but sit and wait until that decision is made.

Keri-Anne Payne, a 10k swimmer, began swimming at the tender age of 4 so sees competing in the Olympics as a natural progression and her passion is obvious. After winning the World Championships and bringing home a silver medal in Beijing, she longs for that gold in 2012.

Being in Beijing was a phenomenal experience for her and one she hopes is replicated when the Olympics comes to Britain, her home country.

Not taking the chance of a lifetime to complete for Britain on British soil lightly she doesn’t lie, she’s nervous. But also excited and describes it as the best feeling in the world and a once in a lifetime opportunity.

When asked how she has been preparing for 2010, she instantly says the last 12 years of her life have been working towards this moment. Hoping to avoid the ducks in Hyde Park’s Serpentine, she is all too aware of the fact that she still needs to qualify for the 2012 team.

Tim and Keri-Ann weren’t the only well known faces to grace the event, Capital’s Johnny Vaughan also dropped by…

Here’s the video of Jodie interviewing Keri-Ann and Tim in noisy Trafalgar Square, it’s a bit noisy, just be thankful there arnt any pigeons any longer.

Keri-Anne Payne and Tim Brabants were speaking at Panasonic’s Two Years to Go to London 2012 event in Trafalgar Square held on Tuesday 27 July. For more information on Panasonic’s Olympic sponsorship please visit www.panasonic.co.uk

The Karate Kid review by Junior Smart {Film}

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The 1984 coming-of-age film comes of age with a modest makeover with solid characters and fluid performances that exceed your expectations. The Karate Kid, also known as The Kung Fu Dream in China, and Best Kid in Japan and South Korea, is a 2010 martial arts remake of the 1984 film of the same name.

Although Karate Kid has numerous differences to the original (for example the chief location is now china instead of Los Angeles and the lead protagonist is much younger and also an Afro-American). The significant core values and the spirit of the original plot remain. A bullied youth learns to stand up for himself with the help of an eccentric mentor and through the discipline of martial arts learns the value of respect, honour, friendship and love.

The film was directed by Harald Zwart and produced by Will and Jada Pinkett Smith and stars none other than his son Jaden Smith as the lead character Dre Parker. Jaden Smith looks good, moves like magic on the screen and strikes just the right amount of balance between inquisitiveness and annoyance. Moving from Detroit to china with his mother Dre finds himself out of his depth and struggling with issues of acceptance he falls foul of the school bully; an encounter that will change his life forever.

Jackie Chan plays Mr. Han, the apartment’s maintenance man with hidden skills in kung fu who takes a curious interest in Dre and then takes him under his wing. Chan is exceptional as usual; if memory serves me correctly I don’t think I have witnessed such a martial arts master who has appealed so much to as many generations as himself. I believe at one stage he even had a cartoon series, so just knowledge of his track record makes him immediately likeable and credible in his part. There is some on screen chemistry between Dre and Han that creates expected warm fuzzy feelings and it serves its purpose in driving the story forward. Whilst the movie goes a long way to developing the characters it is perhaps not as impressive or immersive as some other films of this genre yet it does meet its objective.

Filmed in china the film makers wisely decided to cash in on the rich history of the geographical location. There are some lovely shots of mountains, monks training and great walls of china and often lots of history is revealed to the audience as well as the relevant discipline there to be learned by Dre.

One of the core strengths of this film is the characterisation. Being a remake this film could easily fail short in viewer’s expectations by allowing itself to be compared too easily to what is now regarded as a masterpiece. However watching this film you get the feeling that what they tried to do was compliment the original film rather than replace it. As such it stands up as a feel good fight movie in its own right. The fight sequences are well choreographed and much grittier than the original. You can visualise Will Smith wanting to be there in person to support his son through the rough and tumble parts of the filmmaking process because there are some solid blows in the fight sequences that make you wince. And there is something that has to be said for a 12 year old that can make a Kung Fu combat sequence believable. You have to admire the child’s flexibility and courage and if anything you feel more on his side because you know what he is up against. There are also some nice nods to the original film for example in one scene Dre walks in on Mr. Han trying to catch a fly with chopsticks which after a few attempts Chan’s character ends up swatting it against a wall with a modern fly swatter.

In conclusion fantastic performances and a strong script bring this rendition of Karate Kid bang up to date. Lets face it this is the kind of films that you need in the summer season, it has good values and is great fun for all the family.

The A Team review by Junior Smart {Film}

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Bet you didn’t know that “Hannibal” Smith loves it when a plan comes together. Almost every single middle aged person on the planet knows those words and the theme tune that it almost instantaneously brings to mind and what it means. The A-Team was an iconic Saturday morning show of the 80’s, and brings back lucid memories of ‘family time’ huddled round the TV set and school playgrounds where every kid would pretend to be in the van and involved in epic shoot-outs. It is also the latest film to get the movie update treatment by film studios that seem to be fast running out of original material and are looking to entice film going audiences back into the cinema.

I would have loved to have seen the CEO of 20th Century Fox’s face of when they brought this plan to the table. You can almost hear his words ‘What – you only want to bring the biggest TV show of all time to the big screen? – Are you for real? Damn we better get this one right – if we screw this one up even my grand kids grand kids won’t forgive me!!! Hell – let’s go ahead but let’s throw the kitchen sink at it!’

Bringing this to the screen was either going to be hit – or a miss and they knew there was going to be no second chances, no reboot in five years time, no nothing. Screw up on any aspect, have the wrong actors, have a crap script and you can forget it. Little wonder then that the film was in development since the mid 1990s, having gone through numerous writers and story ideas, being put on hold numerous times. In the end the film was directed by the accomplished Joe Carnahan and produced by Stephen J. Cannell, and legendary brothers Ridley and Tony Scott. This talented group act almost like an A-Team in their own right and bring the story bang up to date with enthusiasm.

The story follows the principle of the original series. For those of you who didn’t know The A-Team are a crack group of soldiers who go on the run after being framed for a ‘crime that they did not commit’ who now exist as soldiers of fortune… The movie belts along at a cracking pace but with a few twists along the way and thoughtfully the directors decided to create the origin story for the first half of the movie. This I thought was a superb idea because at the very least it gives the action compulsion. By the end of the first half of the film you know why they are all together, and more importantly why B.A.Baracus ‘will not get on no plane’.

The actors’ success in portraying their characters is a major factor in the film’s triumph and is second only to the fantastic script. As an 80’s A-Team fan my initial apprehension was that this would be a shoddy remake that unfortunately we have become accustomed to over the past decade, with paper thin characters that not only did not look like their counterparts but were going to be unable to carry them. However Liam Neeson steps sturdily into the role of John “Hannibal” Smith. He breathes life into the guy with a smile yet plays him as an individual rather than try to imitate the now legendary role made famous by George Peppard. As a result you appreciate him far more. The same goes for the rest of the cast. Bradley Cooper as “Face” gives the character his own suave inventive spin and also worthy of note is Sharlto Copley as “Howling Mad” Murdock. He conveys the character as being genuinely off his head yet also a hotshot talented pilot and he creates some real laugh out loud moments.

You can tell that the entire cast fully enjoyed making this film because the level of authenticity in the camaraderie, as a result you feel for their disappointments and whoop for their success. Liam Neeson said in a recent interview that it was the script not memories of the 80’s show that made him sign on the dotted line and judging from the script who can blame him; the script is very strong. Indeed you could take the title away from this film and still have a great action movie in its own right. Yes it is clichéd, yes it action focused but it also fun and does definitely have a heart. For example B.A.Baracus (played by a very driven UFC Champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson) ends up in jail he finds faith and decides that he doesn’t want to kill anymore. An interesting idea considered that he is a solider ‘of fortune’ and that their adversaries seem to stop at nothing until the A-Team is taken out of the picture for good. The rest of the team play out this potential ‘conflict of interest’ as great friendship in real life would allow and for me this is a nice touch on the 80’s series.

Just as good as the actors were those working behind the scenes with the special effects. Whilst there is nothing here that is ‘new’ so to speak, the film is big budget and well executed, some of the scenes are incredible if not totally unbelievable but still worth seeing. Want to see a tank fall out of a plane? It’s here. Want to see a helicopter take on missiles? It’s here. Want to see a twist of romance in the middle of breathtaking action? It’s here.
This story, complete with the performances in both acting and special effects is a powerful concoction especially for those in need of a testosterone built blockbuster of the summer. “Hannibal” Smith loves it when a plan comes together – Trust me by the time the credits roll – you will too.

MEN’S ROTARY WHITE DIAL CHRONOGRAPH LAUNCHES EXCLUSIVELY TO WATCHSHOP.COM

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I have came across an amazing website. My father is obsessed with watches. Making him amazingly easy to buy presents for. If you, likewise, want to go watch shopping, I recommend the following site and the beautiful new Rotary watch.

WatchShop.com (www.watchshop.com), the UK’s leading online independent watch retailer, is adding another UK exclusive to its online showroom this week with the White Dial Chronograph Watch from Rotary.

After the success of previous exclusives, WatchShop.com is now offering this performance oriented men’s watch with a highly stylish design.

The watch, officially priced at £185 will be available until 31st August at £92.50.

Complimenting the classic lines of the stainless steel case and bracelet, and showcasing the high performance chronograph movement, an easy to read and stylish white face with silver details now adorns this stylish but feature loaded watch.

The case is waterproof, with screw down crown and caseback to ensure the watch is always ready no matter what conditions.

The polished and brushed finish bracelet has a deployment clasp for security and style on your wrist at all times.

Coupled with Rotary’s lifetime guarantee, this is a solid and dependable performer, and a great watch for the man who wants the style, but doesn’t want to trade durability.

Product code: GB00004/02

Features:

· Rotary Packaging/ Official Rotary presentation box

· Official Rotary lifetime guarantee

· Case width: 40mm

· Case depth: 12mm

· Dial Colour: White

· Metal: Stainless Steel

· Strap type: Metal bracelet – free sizing available

· Strap colour: Silver

· Water resistant: Waterproof

· Clasp type: Deployment

· Movement: Quartz

· Chronograph: Yes

· 24 hour dial: Yes

· Glass: Mineral

· Highly visible dial: Yes

· Hour markers: Batons

· Tachymeter: Yes

A great addition for any stylish man.

JEMMA KIDD FRONTS NEW CAMPAIGN FOR NEWBURY RACECOURSE LADIES DAY SATURDAY 14 AUGUST 2010

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Today, Newbury Racecourse announced international celebrity make-up artist Jemma Kidd as ambassador for its annual Ladies Day featuring Party in the Paddock, 14 August 2010.

With ticket sales fuelled by Westlife’s performance after racing, the Racecourse is expecting to break last year’s Ladies Day record of 26,000 racegoers, meaning the 2010 event will result in the largest attendance in the racecourse’s recent history.

Racegoers from Edinburgh to Exeter and Newport to Newcastle are signing up to attend the August Ladies Day celebration, which includes seven top race fixtures, an evening performance from Westlife, ‘New Racegoer Masterclasses’ and a prize for the most stylish dresser in a Fashions in the Field competition – with the winner being crowned the style queen of Ladies Day.

Jemma Kidd says, “I have a lifelong passion for horses and I am calling all ladies to come to Ladies Day and experience the buzz you can only get from being at the races. For first-timers or those who have yet to be bitten by the bug, Newbury Racecourse’s onsite new racegoer sessions will really allow ladies to engage in racing and help them feel how I do about the sport! In return for a great day out I hope to see ladies giving generously in support of a great cause – The Eve Appeal.”

Newbury Racecourse has also pledged its support of The Eve Appeal as the Official Charity of Ladies Day and is aiming to raise thousands of pounds for the cause in donations. In celebration of this partnership and to raise further funds for gynaecological cancers on the day, Newbury Racecourse has launched the “Eve Salad” – a light, crunchy seafood salad, perfect for an afternoon at the races in the mid-August heat.

For the first time ever, Newbury will be offering onsite masterclasses, which will also be broadcast on screens around the racecourse. Whether it’s their 1st or 100th time at the races, these sessions will give ladies the skills to walk the walk and talk the talk on Ladies Day. Tips will include where and when to be seen, how to get close to the horses, how to bet, and learn the racing lingo – impressing even the most knowledgeable racegoer.

Stephen Higgins, joint Managing Director of Newbury Racecourse says “This year we are launching onsite masterclasses as part of our new racegoer campaign and will have experts available during the day to offer handy hints and tips to help ladies to get the most out of their day. Involving Jemma and the Eve Appeal can only complement this drive and confirm our position at the forefront of the campaign to ignite people’s passion for racing.”

Jemma will be joined on the day by Chanelle McCoy wife of Grand National winning Jockey Tony McCoy and Channel 4 Racing presenter Emma Spencer, who will form the key members of the Fashions in the Field judging panel.

To book tickets to this star-studded day out and for further information please visit www.newbury-racecourse.co.uk

Photo credit: Catherine Balavage

Brand New School Aces Strategic Design for Cartoon Network Brand Expansion

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NEW YORK and HOLLYWOOD – (Aug. 5, 2010) – To help Cartoon Network bring to life its vision of a brand expansion strategy that included a new look and tone, the international creative design and production studio Brand New School (BNS, www.brandnewschool.com) partnered with the network’s creative team to produce a look and sensibility that would allow them to have a dialogue with its audience across an array of platforms.

The network chose to embrace its brand visual heritage of the black and white checkerboard by imbuing it with new meaning, and the artists and producers of BNS were able to bring this idea to life in a fresh, compelling way using dimension, color and movement. All the new design elements began appearing in late May, and the new on-air IDs premiered on the network this week.

“Our brand expansion represents our commitment to delivering a breadth of content that our audience cannot find anywhere else,” said Senior Vice President of Creative Direction, Michael Ouweleen. “The checkerboard is in our DNA and is not only reflected in the subtle redesign of the logo but also provides a through line that connects and helps frame our diverse slate of programming from animation to live-action. The art direction and creative acumen of the Brand New School and their ability to breathe new into the iconic was invaluable and helped us achieve our goal.”

BNS founder and creative director Jonathan Notaro, along with art directors Eric Adolfsen and Mike Calvert, provided detailed insights into the conceptual thinking behind the multifaceted brand expansion project, where their approaches emphasized interconnectedness across each and every deliverable, as well as the pairing of extremely thoughtful design with animation geared toward generating specific audience responses, including laughter.

“This has been a very exciting opportunity for us to be closely involved with Cartoon Network and their continued evolution,” Notaro began. “The new on-air identity complements its diverse range of visual languages, and leverages our design expertise by incorporating specific, creative means for consistently packaging the network’s editorial humor into every second of each broadcast day.”

By combining their design ideas within the organizational approach, the BNS team is pleased to have created a meta-narrative that uses the complete visual identity system to creatively convey the interconnectedness of the channel’s content. From the promos to the menus to the bumps to the IDs, each piece tells the same story from a different perspective, where the checkerboard functions like a chessboard, with infinite moves possible.

“Because we’d created such a gridded and structured designs for the overall approach, it became imperative that the movement of these pieces felt snappy, fast-paced, and above all, playful and full of life,” said Calvert. “Our animators developed a language that’s rooted in familiar physical interactions, but caricatured and amplified into something incredibly captivating and energetic.”

It was important to Cartoon Network that each day part be distinct and branded with its own color, humor and expanding level of complexity. “We wanted to share on-air the excitement we found in the initial explorations of the checkerboard and the grid,” said Adolfsen. “From the first to the last second of each day, we looked for ways to consistently surprise viewers and build on the language of the checkerboard, eventually creating a visual shorthand the audience could embrace.”

The creation of each animated asset in the project was led by BNS’s Hyesung Park, Arthur Hur and Andy Mastrocinque. Among many elements created by various artists under their supervision is a series of 14 short, black-and-white animated IDs, each of which derives visually from the letter forms of the newly designed Cartoon Network logo.

As summarized by Calvert, “Our enthusiasm for the brand reached every pocket of this redesign, culminating in the ID system we developed,” explained Calvert. For the ID’s, Brand New School established a simple rule: make a black and white animation based on each of the 14 letters of the words Cartoon Network. “The idents are both a nod to the channel’s history as well as an opportunity to curate the artists we love. They’re a celebration of every form of animation, from hand-drawn cel to 3D.”

For HD design and finishing, as well as all elements of the broadcast package, primary artistic tools for BNS have included Adobe Creative Suite, Autodesk Maya, Apple’s Final Cut Pro and Flame. Complete project credits are available upon request.

About Brand New School
With offices in New York, Los Angeles and London, Brand New School is a bicoastal directing collective working in all fields of commercial art. Ever evolving, the studio continues to cultivate a sense of wonder and exploration. For its artists and clients alike, BNS represents an opportunity to play at work, to conduct experiments in image-making, and to feed the inspiration that drives the industry. For more information, please visit www.BrandNewSchool.com.

About Cartoon Network
Cartoon Network (www.CartoonNetwork.com), currently seen in more than 97 million U.S. homes and 166 countries around the world, is Turner Broadcasting System, Inc.’s ad-supported cable service now available in HD offering the best in original, acquired and classic entertainment for kids and families. Nightly from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m., Cartoon Network shares its channel space with Adult Swim, a late-night destination showcasing original and acquired entertainment for young adults 18-34. Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., a Time Warner company, creates and programs branded news, entertainment, animation and young adult media environments on television and other platforms for consumers around the world.