Bootcamp, Being a soldier extra for a US feature film and Phonecall Update:)

"C-130 Rolling down the strip.
Airborne daddy on a one-way trip.
Mission unspoken, destination unknown.
They don't even know if they'll ever come home.
Stand up hook up, shuffle to the door.
Jump right out and count to four.
If my main don't open wide.
I've got a reserve right by my side.
If that one don't fail me too.
Look out ground, I'm a coming through
I'll hit the ground before you do!
Pin my medals upon my chest,
and bury me in the leaning rest.
When I get to heaven.
St. Peter's gonna say.
How'd you earn your livin?
How'd you earn your pay?
And I will reply with a little bit of anger:
Earned my pay as an Airborne soldier"

This is just one of the army cadence's we sung while running during PT for our boot camp for Emperor, a feature film starring Matthew Fox and Tommy Lee Jones shooting here in Auckland city soon.

I am one of the extras being trained for some of the military scenes with Matthew Fox (who is a really nice down to earth guy by the way) and our military advisor (also done pacific and band of brothers) has spent the last 2 days teaching us parade terms and executions and weapon handling, as well as other things we needed to do to portray authentic 1940's US soldiers such as smoking (fake cigs thank god since I don't smoke), dart throwing, typing on typewriters/whiteboards, manners and practices (e.g. hats off inside unless carrying weapons), talking on old school telephones in American accents and army codes.

We also trained in uniform, I have to say i enjoyed wearing it, it reminded me of Jet Li in the Enforcer. I think it was the cover (hat). Plus I enjoyed carrying the Thompson or carbine or whatever it was that i ended up holding, we went through so many different weapons I can't remember their names, But working as a team through set drills and tactical formations was fun.

Basically, in a sentence, For a fan of Medal of Honor: airborne (me), this is a dream come true :)

Though I can't share more detailed specifics of what we got up to or the scenes they will be used in, I can share this picture of my haircut I had done on set for the role :) lol. (which now means PHONECALL is delayed indefinitely, damn. had tons of pick ups to do...) and the sunburn in the shape of an upside down V (Illuminati tat! jk) from marching for hours in the sun and forgetting to sunblock that area. Sonofa-! lets just say- its raw to the touch ;) on another note, I miss my hair, not only does it seem more colder but I feel more thuggish as well as soldierish. Grow grow grow! :)

Phone Call update; We shot the half of the climax fight scene on Wednesday, unfortunately we didn't get to finish shooting the bridge finale as shooting in a public place means public have access which as a no budget filmmaker is a nightmare if they aren't in the script. Anyway, below I have a screenshot to share with you guys :)

Anyway, going to start shooting my short film for my SAE Definitive next week, I had to scrap Job 23 for later in the year as my course advisor suggested the audience won't be able to figure out enough about my story. I tried to add more dialog but It took away the arty show not tell images I had written in there. So I wrote a new (4th draft for a Definitive) story called TIMEFISH. Great title huh? Will post some screenshots as I shoot them, An action/scifi/comedy. Will be strange with this new haircut but hoping my facial expressions can get the humor across :)

Until next time we meet, Live out your dreams and God Bless you ;)

ActionStar shooting continues...and some good news :)

I managed to talk the wifey into more camerawork today so I could finish what I started yesterday, Day 2 of trying out Parkour! So after digitizing I decided to share some more screenshots with you guys. I have to shoot some pick up shots tomorrow for the intro theme of my web series as well as a couple more tricks if I can find the right environment and then I will be done shooting for episode one. Also tomorrow I will be shooting the end of Phonecall, which is great :)

After we finished shooting what we could in the hour or so we had to kill, I bought wifey some Maccas as promised, As vain as i am and never one to miss the opportunity I posed for a pic, M for Matt! :)

When I got home later that night I discovered I got an email from my agent for an audition for a small part in a major feature that shoots in Auckland soon, excited and terrified at the same time, Post more as it gets more concrete :)

Shooting of ActionStar webseries started today

Below are some screenshots of the footage we shot today for the first episode of my new web-series Actionstar. This episode is about me trying Parkour for the first time, (can't join the club until February 11th) So using the internet and other material for advice, I gave it a shot with the basics, cat leaps, rolls, dash vaults etc, I failed a couple of times but overall a very fun day :)

Hoping to shoot more attempts tomorrow (had to stop due to the rain). I just wanted to share what you can look forward to seeing on my channel in a couple of weeks. In the meantime, enjoy the screenshots :)

Photos from the last few weeks.

Hi team :),
I finally found where the battery charger was hiding so I can now upload pics from my camera into the computer, I just wanted to share a couple of pics of what I have been up to over the first 2 weeks of Jan. Nothing exciting really, but check out my food!! (pics 1&2)
It IS sort of healthy, then again, a smart observer will ask what food I'm NOT showing haha :)

(pics 3&4)There is nothing more self esteem boosting for a guy than putting together a DIY cabinet. As you can see above, assembling the thing (before) and it's new home (after) :) Also, I figure a new year, a new excuse for new shoes! Check em out, size 7 none of this size 12 business I wore for the last 6 months. My kicks will look swifter, quicker and tighter now on screen I hope. Nice right? I love that new shoe smell. If only it lasted JK :P

So 2012......I got a new haircut, new shoes, a new cabinet(lol) and a new attitude,
you ready for me? Lets do this! ;)

Kung Fu Hero Stare!

ps. Today I saw a city pigeon tearing off the bones off some leftovers of a KFC chicken wing. Its like when you see kids feed bacon to pet pigs. There's no moral, I'm just sharing cos It was so odd haha, Blog in a couple days, have a good week :)

First work of 2012, Shortland St extra again and Ad Audition

I've always wanted to draw stuff for my blog, but I don't. This year is about do's and not don'ts. So, now there are drawings. you're welcome :)

Shortland Street Extra, January 10

Every time I return to South Pacific pictures to do some extra work on Shortland St, we have to wait for anywhere from half an hour to an hour for the AD to let us know when they are ready for costume check then on set. I put my backpack down filled with spare clothes and pull out a book and then watch the minute hand race the second hand for like what seems like forever.

During this time I always feel like the GANTZ characters. For those of you who have never read/seen GANTZ, its basically about all these people who don't know each other who get transported and wake up in a room. All that's in the room is this black sphere (above) and the heavy silence as they wonder what will happen next. They end up hunting aliens for the sphere with alien weapons of their own but that's getting off track, what I'm trying to point out is the suspense always gets the best of me. (I highly recommend the manga/anime/movie adaption by the way)

ANYWAY, today's shoots were in the Cafe, my first job was facing the wall and having a coffee while the action took place. Though I am always happy for the opportunity to work on a live film set for a television series I couldn't help but feel pretty down. I traveled an hour by bus and walked another 20 minutes for this? I can imagine the discussion later...

Matt - "Look mom look, that's me, the guy with the black Tshirt! I'm on TV! :D"
Mom - "really? :S .... hmmm that could be anybody though... "
Matt -"no, but it is! it is! :("

In the second set of shots I got to talk to a young girl as we shared drinks at a cafe table in the background of the main action, which made the day totally worth it, I always figure, 'if you can see the camera, the camera can see you'. She asked me how old I was, I told her to guess. She said, "I don't know, 15, 16?" I told her I'm 25. Maybe that's why it's hard for me to get roles because I still look like a teenager? Well, this 15 year old thought so anyway. It was her first time miming in one of these scenes, which is great cos it gave me a turn to show someone what to do which is always a funny experience to have with someone, because you can't help but smile when you pretend to be puppets or mime some actions. You always burst out laughing (quietly or you'll take attention away from the main cast which isn't the background players job, our job is to be ignored, guess I'm good at that from real life experience lol) :)

I've come to the conclusion that the A in acting must be for Awkward, or I should be positive and think maybe ACTING is Absolutely Cant Think I'm Not Good? Good day anyway. Satisfied I walked to the bus stop, waited for an hour for it to arrive, then sat and pondered my next move as I traveled home for another hour, a long day but another notch I can add to film experience. I'm happy I have a good agent, as I'm getting more opportunities to do practical things.

First Audition, January 12

This was my first audition for a national beverage commercial, I can't tell you the brand cos of contract stuff but this was a big deal to me, Again with the GANTZ feeling as I finally found the place and walked into the waiting room. There was a guy with a bigger build and way more manlier than me and then there was this other guy who (small world) worked with me a couple days before on the Shortland St gig. As they both left the room to do their auditions, I was left alone with the measuring tape trying to figure out how big my chest was and how tall I was for the costume details on the audition form. Then came time to shake it out.

The audtioneer came in, shook hands, then I introduced myself to him and his partner, they had a camera next to their desk with the papers of the script and the casting details. Auditioneer took a photo of me, then using the camera checked my profiles and asked me some questions. I was happy and calm because I had seen Bruce lee's screen test for the original green hornet series many times, It's funny to see things haven't changed. Then we ran through some scenarios for the ad, which was pretty funny acting out the ad, whether or not I achieved the right look is up to them but fingers crossed it was. I get a call next week on whether or not I made the cut. We shook hands and I made the long trek home. Boy I can't wait to own a car again!

Today.
Did the last of the grocery shopping and also bought Yelawolfs album, even though I bought Watch the throne a couple of days ago I'm hungry for some fresh music. I want to finish my album this year and just focus on films from then on. Also watched Pursuit of Happyness again while having Tea, I love that film, it's shot really well, the acting is phenomenal and the story is so inspiring. Anyway I have school on Monday, as well as JKD classes resuming too. I hope to finish my logo finally and finish the shots needed for the Phonecall short film. All in all, a good start so far to 2012, my year of promise :)

New Year, New opportunities :)

Happy New Year Everyone! Time to eat last year's challenges :)

2012 Promises to be a defining year for me as I create more opportunities and finish projects that have long been gestating. So let me share with you all what to look forward to;

1) I graduate from SAE (knock on wood) March 2012 and then I can start work on my Indy no-budget feature, Chase. (completely rewritten from the original sci-fi action thriller I mentioned months ago which is now retitled Hunter).

Chase will be a 80 minute feature film and I aim to start shooting April 2012, hopefully to be edited and available off my website Dec 2012/Jan 2013. It's the story of a wannabe action-star (yes, loosely based on an exaggerated version of me) and his road to honesty. I've written 5 fights into it and plenty of comedic gags as well as some heavy drama to give my first feature some heart and soul.

2) Also in March I hope to have also finished Phonecall, the action/thriller staring Nazim Khan and myself. I hope to enter this in some low key festivals and spread the word about my style of film. All i have left to shoot are the 2 fight scenes, a flashback and some pick up shots.

3)Also in March I will also enter JOB 23 into film festivals too, this drama/action film is what I have decided to turn in for my SAE definitive project, though I had wrestled with shooting Bouncer or Maria, I have decided that budget and cast/time frame wise this is the safest and easiest option.

4)In order to become the film star I am aiming to be I need to work on my acting as well as getting exposure on national television and more views on YouTube. I will be chasing as much extra work as possible as well as trying for ads, student films etc, but I am hoping working on my own films will give me the exposure I seek. I don't want to start my website without something to sell to a fanbase I can grow, so I'm working hard on my Actionstar webseries....

5)I aim on learning Nunchuku and Parkour properly this year so I can feature them with my Jeet Kune Do in my movies, as all 3 very exciting to watch onscreen in my personal view, I want to be able to execute them as perfectly as possible.

Anyway, thanks for reading and I hope to have some more videos or photo's to share with you over the coming year as I chase my dream of becoming New Zealand's first action star :)

Thanks for your support even though as an action hero I'm only in the beginner stages :)