Man it's been a while since I've put up a blog! But I just needed to tell you all about what happened yesterday cause it was so crazy!
So I get a call from my casting agency the other day telling me that they booked me for an "interview" for a part on a Spike TV show and to make sure that I "look hardcore" when I go in. So that night, they send me an email with some reading material that they wanted me to go over before I went in. It was a couple pages long full of information on Samurai warriors and their weapons. OK, easy enough.
So the next day, I put on my "hardcore" Dickies shirt over a wife beater and jeans and head off to the "interview". When I get there, I speak with a casting director who asks me if I have any martial arts weapons experience. He then hands me his card and tells me he likes my look and that he's gonna tell the others that I would also be good to play a Yakuza as well as a Samurai.
This whole time I'm thinking, "Seriously? I'm about five shades darker than everyone in here!" But I don't say that cause I want the job.
So he continues to tell me that once in the room, I need to BE the samurai and don't smile. "Samurai's are full of honor and confidence! BE the Samurai!...And think about what you're going to be doing with the Katana."
"Wait, what? Katana??"
"Yeah, they're gonna have some props with them. Didn't you say you had some experience with it?"
"Some. But it's been a while -"
"Great! Just make sure you play to the camera. Charge it once with the katana silently, retreat, and then a second time making noise."
"OK?"
So now I'm in the hallway, waiting my turn, looking like a jackass as I practice my Katana slices with an imaginary Katana blade!
So I get called in and there are two people there: a woman and a cameraman. The cameraman attaches a mic to my shirt and the woman writes my name and number on a sheet. I was soo nervous! But whole time I'm thinking about what the casting director had told me and I'm mean muggin it. I got this full on serious, mean, Bruce Lee in the midst of a fight thing going on with my face.
They begin asking me questions:
"So who are the Samurai?"
"We are the most elite warriors in the Japanese army!"
"Talk about some Japanese weapons"
"We have the most high quality weapons in the world! The best of which is a Katana which is the most balanced weapon, good for long range and close range!"
"Who would win in a fight: a Samurai or a Viking?"
"A samurai of course would win! The katana would slice completely through the viking's shield, killing him instantly!"
"OK, thank you"
What? That's it? No katana demonstration? My voice was trembling the whole time! Luckily I was able to hold my Bruce Lee face. And so they took the mic and I left thinking, how much that felt like an audition rather than an "interview". How messed was that! I'd like to mentally prepare myself for an audition! Preparing for an interview and preparing for an audition are two totally different things! I was thinking so much about what I was gonna do with the Katana that I completely flopped on the questions! I had a whole thing choreographed and everything! Bastards!
I don't think I got it but oh well, you live and learn and it WAS a pretty funny situation. I'm hoping maybe even though I kinda fumbled with the answers, they liked my look enough to cast me as Yakuza or at least some kind of nonspeaking part. But we'll see.