wow, hard as i try to do a monthly update i always seem behind! guess that's a good thing!
COTW did get out of Cape Town and buzzed Sardinia last month with italian composer friend Paolo and my creative partner from LA, Geno. geno brought his daughter Dakota (14) and paolo has a 16 year old daughter Ilaria. both very cool kids. and paolo's villa in sardinia was stunning! pool included! lots of pics!
i fell in love with Italy and can't wait to go back! at present it looks i may be going to Corvara for skiing over christmas! and possibly Umbria and Rome. really chuffed about that prospect! i loved the people, the language, the food, the design, the whole vibe! now i get my friends who lived in Florence for so long!
the other cool thing lately has been my voiceover career coming back to life! i'm with Tongue Twsiters in Cape Town and after 20 years in LA of never being "the guy" in the VO world, suddenly i'm in demand. and having a blast! so fun to be back in the booth! really in my element and great to be "talent" again instead of being teacher or producer or whatnot! a whole new world is opening up and makes it all the more fun to be here!
BUT CAN I STAY????
the Permanent Residency Permit for ddm is still on appeal and as my german gal pal says who is also facing deportation next year...we will see where the wind blows... and where we will go next. unfortunately "Hollywood nice guy" isn't exactly on the "Scarce Skills" list for Home Affairs. so it's a bit of a challenge to say the least. i'm a longshot. again. but somehow my Exceptional Skills permit was granted on appeal, so you never know. the divine plan can create another miracle. but after years of traveling and moving every 2 years since 1996, i have learned to follow the open doors and not cry over the ones that close. but truth be told, having to leave CPT next august if need be would be crushing. i'm thriving in this city, in this country, and it will not be easily replicated elsewhere. all the doors have seemingly opened here for me for this season and i pray my PR permit comes through. then i settle here and maybe look for a home/condo and hunker down. that would be beyond ideal. i have representation. i'm working, and my Hollywood Acting Master Class is the best thing i do. all are going well! and i wish it continues so!
cape town really isn't a city, more an urban village, but it suits me just fine. just big enough. and the western cape has all the best bits of California. stunning!
i live in city centre and my edit bay office is 1 block in one direction and my HAMC class room at Raw Espresso Bar is 1 block the other direction. my world is so tightly contained it's incredible. i walk everywhere and everything is close. i've been looking at some property here in town to see what's avail, but scared to commit due to my immigration status. but the life of an expat always has these issues at the fore. everyone talks about it and has to deal with it. the expat community (which is very small for me as i only know 2 other americans, a couple of germans and a brit) has immigration on the brain. my other option is that PR permit fails is to get an Extended Visitor Visa good for 3 years, or go back to the states and apply for a Retiree visa which would take 8-10 months and not allow me to work here. and that's the rub. not really keen to retire yet. what does that even look like? you sit around and read your Kindle all day?
MASTER FUN
my HAMC 8 saturday course is so much fun. averaging 10 students per course and all levels of ability. from stay-at-home mom to young stage actors to commercial pros. i'm part shrink, part mentor, part professor, part director, part drill sergeant, part friend, and part old fart who knows the ropes. i have a great team of gals who help run camera, take stills, do admin and fill in to teach when i'm off to sardinia! a good group! but the next class is always a challenge. will anyone sign up?? the fee is $340 for 8 weeks, or $42 per class. not cheap. but not the most expensive either, and we're the only ones who shoot every class and run it like a hot set. it's fun for me cuz i get to write scenes, light the scenes, direct the scenes, and then cut the scenes. i'm training Lisa to cut right now and she will be a big help. and heck, if i get deported, hopefully HAMC CPT will go on without me! we even have a HAMC NBO that Lorella teaches in Nairobi!
TERRORIST SCARE
the US embassy did release a terrorist alert for ZA but it's kinda for the whole world during Ramadan for any american citizen abroad. i was in NBO during the Westgate bombing so i know these things happen, but i never live in fear and rarely divert my life due to threats. i could get shot in Tucson or in a cinema in Colorado just as easy as in Africa, so what's the difference? i'm sure the people in Brussels didn't imagine it happening there, but they still carry on. it's a part of modern living. and it can cripple you, kill you, or you let it lie and keep on living. even without a bomb today could be our last day. tomorrow is promised to no one. so, i try to embrace life and live each day. Muhammed Ali said "Don't count the days, make the days count". it convicted me in a sense. the older i get the easier it is to get melancholy and start moaning. but making the days count is a good reminder to press into life. thanks Champ! i suppose i could let my immigration status get me down, the uncertainty and high unlikehood of getting my permit, but why go there? you never know! my current permit is proof! all things are possible!
well, winter is here and today is gray and getting colder. i think cape town weather wise is more like San Francisco than Los Angeles...hotter in the summer and colder in the winter...and the sun is definitely setting earlier every night. but i enjoy the seasons. even when it's wet! on a side note i finally got paid this week for a couple of spots i shot, one early March! i mean, they pay the caterer and the security guy and dog trainer on these shoots but talent gets stuffed for 90 days. i was 101 days for this last check. are you serious? the whole crew gets paid and the production company but talent gets kicked to the curb like we're a bank and can bankroll the large ad agencies who somehow manage to pay everyone else except us folks in front of the lens. it's not fair. but nothing we can do about it. i guess can always drive uber if i'm complaining about show biz, but c'mon, there should be a faster way.
MEANWHILE ON THE WORLD STAGE
on the world stage i keep track of the refugee crisis with my news apps (BBC, AP, USA TODAY, AL JEZEERA) so how can Syria, Irag, Afghanistan, Eritrea, and Libya (and others) be such a colossal mess? in such disarray that these poor folks are willing to pay $2000 a head to get on a flimsy rubber dinghy from libya to italy in the wide open Mediterranean to try to find a life? death is a real possibility but compared to the lives they lead it's worth the risk. it's that hectic. and europe seems to have had their fill of the whole lot with more checks and borders. but marrying a mostly muslim middle-eastern culture into the West is not easy. i understand everyone's side of the story. but still it remains a tragedy. refugees leaving rubble in search of a better life. who can blame them? and what is to be done? the US ousted most of the bad dictators but is a bad dictator better than no dictator? Europe is the land of opportunity. (not corrupt SA with our President Zuma who just bought a new jet airplane and range rovers for his wives.) my sense is that every country is corrupt in it's own way (Washington has lobbyists) but Africa doesn't hide it so well. or Afghanistan according to Cameron. but can the EU make justice in the world? stop the abuse of power? the war ruined nations? it seems it just stands idly by while millions suffer under bad leadership. but what can they do? more shock and awe? it's a complete mess and millions of lives are on the run. what a time we live in. historic. the gentrification of Europe. mass exoduses from Middle East and Africa. huge problems with no real solutions. a global group hug and invite to all the displaced is not going to happen.
then there's Harambe, the gorilla stuck in the middle of "Kidgate" at the Cincinnati Zoo who got shot for rescuing a toddler and for being a gorilla. reminded me of my trip to Rwanda at Volcanoes National Park where i got to see these incredible beasts up close and in person. the power. poor Harambe. then the 7 year old Japanese kid gets dropped off by his parents in the bear infested woods to be taught a lesson and proves everyone wrong. and Angelina Jolie goes global crusading for the 60 million refugees being displaced while we as a planet quietly abort 56 million fetuses a year with not a peep on Facebook or the UN decrying the inhumanity. Harambe gets more attention. that's the entire population of South Africa (more than Spain) aborted every year and it doesn't move the needle. if we discovered Martians were aborting 56,000,000 unborn Martians every year we would think differently about them? or how about them of us committing fetuscide of our own species in the millions every year? what a crazy planet.
then the US presidential race shows there is a large majority supporting Trump who are "sick and tired of Washington and have had it" while Hillary represents the establishment...federal royalty. some choice. but will Bernie Sanders stand down? take his voters with him? should be an interesting election! Now if only my Golden State Warriors could win another playoff game!
STILL DRIVEN...BUT FOR WHAT?
so this morning i wake up and take the lift in my building down to the basement...for a voiceover gig in a studio in the basement of my building! could not be any closer! and i love the work. but it reminds me of how driven i am. how competitive... like i'm still 30...striving and fighting my way to relevance. and what is the prize i'm looking for? the fastest car? the nicest house? the biggest refrigerator? what is the validation i seek? when will i get there? why does it still matter? do i not consider myself a success? who do i need to be one? what do i need to win? an Oscar? highly unlikely. so what will scratch that itch? does everyone have one? am i alone? i long for something that i'm sure is fleeting and won't ultimately fulfil, but whose standards am i using? are they healthy? Hollywood's? my dad's? some unwritten code that says you're enough? a man? an artist? once i do this much or accomplish X i will feel Y??? if i could only attain _______ i would feel _____. what, fame? well, the Spur advert has made me famous here and i did the local morning talk show Expresso on my birthday already. so i'm someone here. and i'm working and i'm teaching and i have purpose. but what is it that's alluding me? contentment? why can't i be content? always more more more. like Rockefeller said, "one dollar more". what's my problem? well, i promise as soon as i feel i made it i'll blog about it!
maybe the next blog i'll also get into my unexpected layover in Addis Ababa. and my rookie travel mistake that made me spend an extra day there by misreading my boarding pass!
now for some pics! in no particular order as usual! i have to confess i am finally using a filter app to alter my photography, but i have to say...Snapseed is pretty amazing! and its free! enjoy!
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| a screen grab of the recent Spur commercial i did for SA and Zim. yes, i'm big in Japan. |
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| graham the VO sound engineer. we hit it off! 2 old timers! he's gotten me more work! |
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| classic cape town colonial architecture. |
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| a cafe in a govt building. |
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| thrift store fashion trends. |
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| my hood, near the High Court. CBD...City Bowl District. |
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| Another day another booth. big enough to score a movie! |
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| We Love Jam is the local sound studio. i'm slowly becoming a regular. |
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| the view from my flat. table mountain left and lion's head on the right. |
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| cape town has hundreds of tourist buses, almost like Jerusalem. this one looked like a bug with antennae! |
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| production is slowing way down. commercial season all but over. but movie castings here and there. |
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| at my dentist office. found art. |
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| sardinia. |
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| sardinia airport at Olbia. |
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| Another flight. |
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| shark fin? |
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| early morning light in the CBD. |
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| never gets old. |
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| flew Ethiopian Air from Cape Town to Rome via Addis. my connection didn't wait for me as promised. |
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| deplaning. at least there's a jetway. |
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| sax man. sardinia. |
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| the nougat butcher. |
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| my hosts Paolo and Rafaella! |
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| yet another leg. |
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| more Sardinia. a rich man's paradise. fun to visit. |
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| the sea water has medicinal qualities. heals the skin. and still bloody cold even in May. |
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| such great textures. |
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| art at the open market. |
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| Paolo built his pool before the ban. new building codes forbid you to use the natural rock that is aplenty. |
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| itlaiian light. |
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| Mind the Bull. |
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| petrol station icon so familiar with Formula One racing. |
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| lots of little marinas and boats. |
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| produce for sale. |
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| old school hairdresser. |
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| old school packaging. |
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| such great surprises in every town. felt good to shoot some pics again! |
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| sleepy villages. and great gelato! |
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| old world. |
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| say cheese. |
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| more italian flavour! |
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| paolo's marina. small speed boat a la 007! |
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| a local. |
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| still the slow season. by now this place is packed! |
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| view of the sea from Paolo's. |
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| me & Ilaria. a doll! |
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| there are 5 dogs on Paolo's compound. woof. |
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| Paolo & geno. a reunion for us all after meeting in LA 12 years ago! |
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| staples of life. |
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| no propane, no charcoal, no Weber, just a log on the fire. cooking time. |
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| don't mess with Dakota...she knows her super heroes! |
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| some stunning old wood boats! |
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| it was mostly cloudy the week i was there. paolo once said while were driving "you have never seen the colors of the sea". he was right. |
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| Snapseed. my secret is out. |
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| italian couture and design. |
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| looks good! |
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| life in the mirror. a tasty snack! |
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| Another mini-harbor. |
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| Dakota was a wonderful addition. |
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| Paolo in his friend's gallery. |
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| rockscape looks like Boulder. such a beautiful island. |
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| transpo. |
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| photo by Geno...from Paolo's upper deck. |
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| random civilian at play. |
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| pizza, pasta, and i still lost weight. |
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| good stuff. |
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| this is the town you need to see. in the north. Olbia region. great old town. awesome open market. |
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| the colors. |
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| so many sidewalk cafes. |
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| the view out my window. kinda overcast all week. still happy to be there! |
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| the Sheraton in Addis, where i met Salim Amin back in 2011! a coke and some fries was $10. |
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| when there is no jetway. |
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| waiting in Rome. Polizia were there. |
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| Rome airport. ahhhh. |
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| Paolo and his villa. brilliant! |
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| Addis film crew from my shoot in 2013. good to see the fellas! |
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| Director dr. dre. such a face! real ethiopian! |
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| Addis still growng like mad. even has a light rail now. |
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| Cape Town bike rack. |
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| A moody Raw Espresso bar, where i teach my class! |
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| one of HAMC's stars...Victory Stage. |
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| the other star...Lisa Marie Clarke. good work girls! |
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| Another day in the booth. |
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| Always a treat! |
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| on my birthday i did a SA morning talk show called Expresso shot in Cape Town. lots of fun! |
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| sidecar tours in cape town. pretty novel. |
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| big fish small pond? |
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| Besty on a last summer cruise! |
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| sundowner in Camps Bay. classic. |
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| a condo i looked at. cool water view. |
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| so many coffee shops and eateries in Cape Town. near High Court. |
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| the view from my office floor. |
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| Burn the Floor dance production at the Baxter. |
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| Dorothy Chandler in DTLA? no, more Baxter. |
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| A skybridge on my street. morning. |
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| Mr. Squirrel at Company Gardens for lunch. |
