An email from my friend Tom…
Posted by Leslie on November 14, 2008 | No comments
Hi Leslie,
Hope you can catch me on COLD CASE this Sunday night. I play a cranky cop and it’s a funny scene!
Best regards,
Tom Derek
Produce (Short) Movies
How-Tos for New Filmmakers and Wanna-Producers
Tag: Uncategorized
A Message from Leslie
Posted by Leslie on September 29, 2008 | 2 comments
creatives, friends, filmmakers, and those that aspire to be any of these things…
But my focus has shifted a bit.
Specifically, this goes who those who want to have fun with this medium of filmmaking, especially those who are beginners. The moving image is such a fantastic way to capture material that ranges from your kid’s first steps to a local political debate to the short sketch comedy short that you just wrote.
This was the original “front page” of this blog. I changed it because it was mostly about me, but I figured I would post it here in case you wanted to read it.
Additionally. I do still hope that actors use this information. I think it would be MOST useful to them, because it relates to their career and is one of the easiest ways of grabbing the reigns of one’s career.
You dream of being more active in practice your craft, whether in a very casual manner (for youtube, vlogging or social networking sites) or as your chosen career as a professional actor in feature films and television.
Or maybe you already have a great career but you want more creative control.
Ask yourself this: Are your activities actually contributing your film career?
Some might say that the best way to be a professional actor is to start by doing what everyone else is doing. Mailing headshots and postcards to casting directors. Going to casting director workshops. Driving all over town going to get to each and every audition. Doing extra work.
I disagree with doing what everyone else is doing. If everyone else were succeeding, then that would be the way to go, but why follow people that do this for YEARS and get no where?
And it’s not even fun or empowering. How much fun is it to drive 30 miles to an audition and GET THE ROLL in the movie, only to find out that the roll that you got was for Waiter #3, who has the one and only line, “Would you like the check?”
All that energy, time and money you put forth for what? That?
Seriously!
The best way to put you out there is to learn how to craft your own projects and material.
You need to learn to produce to put yourself out there in a way that will get you jobs in the future and make you appealing to entertainment industry people that will help you. THAT IS THE BOTTOM LINE.
This site has been built to help you do that.
My Story
My name is Leslie and I struggled with being an actor for many years. All I wanted to do was act. I wanted to get paid for it, AND it was also really important for me to express myself in a theatrical, fulfilling manner. I loved my craft and I wanted to do it all the time!
At that time, the only way I could see myself making my art is if SOMEONE ELSE cast me in a movie, commercial or play, and the only way I felt I was going to get into that movie, commercial or play was through auditioning.
This left me feeling really unempowered and not in control of my career.
And then, once I got into a movie, often it would be such a small roll or a lousy roll that it didn’t fulfill me creatively. That would be fine, if I were being paid, but most of these were low-budget indie movies. Nor did the roll I received highlight my abilities in a way that would get me more of the jobs that I wanted to do.
It was very frustrating and I was ready to quit.
“So what is the Solution to Achieving a Successful Acting Career?“
Just before I was ready to throw in the towel, I was encouraged by some of my friends to direct and produce a short film. THEY DARED ME TO DO IT! It was scary and I had no idea what I was doing, but I knew had great people around me to guide me and give me advice.
I ended up directing, producing and starring in my first project, and though that first project is no Citizen Kane, it turned out to be quite a success, both personal and professional.
It got my project and me to several film festivals. It upgraded me from actor to actor/director/producer. It taught me a lot about what goes on behind the camera, and that, in turn, taught me a lot about acting because I was able to observe what I needed from the other actors. This knowledge has also helped me serve future producers that hire me to act and produce because I remember what I needed and felt was important when was producing.
Another important discovery I made was that when it came to film, my true passion was for directing, not acting (though I still love to act, it’s just not my focus anymore.) I never would have known if I hadn’t tried it!
And most importantly, I got to do my craft. I got to do a meaty, fulfilling, meaningful, interesting lead roll in my own short film.
It was great!
And then I simply repeated the process of producing short movies over and over again until I got really good at it.
Because learning how to produce has had such a positive impact on my acting career (and now my directing career), I feel compelled to share what I learned on this site with other actors (and writers and directors and youtubers anyone else who wants to make short movies.)
I WANT TO EMPOWER ACTORS AND OTHER ARTISTS!
That is why I created this site.
For instance, pardon my language, but quite frankly, actors are the ones that get shit on the most in the entertainment industry. Not only do you have to look great all the time, but you have to put yourself out there twice as hard because the competition is so high (though it’s not nearly as high if YOU know how to make your own stuff and are willing to do it.)
I’m also going to let you in on a little secret. Actors (except for A and B listers) are considered disposable in this industry because everyone else in the industry feel that most actors handle their career like a hobby and not like a business. The general consensus is that if you DON’T build business connections with actors it’s ok because they’re never going to go anywhere legitimate with their career anyway.
Also, acting is so much about looks (young and beautiful looks). When an actor is attempting to break into the industry, there is a time limit to how long that actor has to figure out how to do it. After years of making mistakes and finally figuring things out, the actor is told that his shelf life is up.
Additionally, everyone else in the industry can get each other jobs, but actors really can’t get anyone jobs unless they are really hooked up with people who do the hiring (that’s producers, NOT casting directors) or knowledgeable about what goes on behind the camera.
I’m sorry to tell you all this, and maybe you feel differently and that’s probably a good thing because once I came to these realizations, it really bummed me out.
But it also pushed me to find out how I could continue to be valuable to the industry after my 20s and how I could become INVAUABLE to as many people in the industry so that a long and healthy career was a greater probability.
The answer, I discovered, to a long and fruitful career, was KNOWLEDGE. And the key knowledge for an actor is Producing. (The other keys are marketing, sales and business, but we’ll get into that later.)
Producing will be the first step in getting you to act more. And act in better, bigger rolls. And elevate your career faster. And making better connections. And becoming more professional.
Every time I see an actor buying headshots, paying for a photographer, pursuing an agent, taking acting classes (for knowledge, not for pleasure or socializing), or paying for casting director audition events, I want to tell them to STOP WASTING THEIR MONEY…
Every time I see an actor buying headshots, paying for a photographer, pursuing an agent, taking acting classes (for knowledge, not for pleasure or socializing), or paying for casting director audition events, I want to tell them to STOP WASTING THEIR MONEY…
…because if they took all that money and put it towards a short film, they would be connecting with the right people, improving their skills as an actor, creating an excellent marketing piece and having fun at the same time.
And if your project wins awards that will hasten your progress even further.
I have created this site because I feel for actors and I want to help by giving information that I wish was available to me when I was acting.
(By the way, I act and perform more now than I ever did when I truly considered myself an actor).
PLEASE TAKE 60 SECONDS TO HELP US WIN A $10,000 GRANT
Posted by Leslie on June 27, 2008 | No comments
I recently got an email from my friend Cindy about a project she is creating that I think will have a great positive impact on independent filmmakers.
It’s doing really well, and I believe this is the final round, so they’re really close!
Please take 60 seconds and vote.
Thanks!
Leslie
***********************************************************
Dear Friends of PATRON OF THE ARTS,
As most of you know, I’m co-founding a non-profit company (called Patron of the Arts) that’s mission is to help filmmakers fund their films (wooo!!!), and in the FINAL ROUND of a competition to win a $10,000 business grant! We’re currently in SECOND place, and falling behind quickly. The competition is FIERCE and I need the table to come to the rescue! Please help!! If every member of the table were to take just 60 seconds to vote, it would make a HUGE difference. I swear it is super fast, free and easy. This company will help filmmakers everywhere. Please help me win this grant to be able to start this non-profit for all of us! YOUR VOTE and support will make a HUGE difference. Thank you so much for your support.
This company will help everyone!!
———————————————————–
PLEASE TAKE 60 SECONDS
TO HELP US WIN A $10,000 GRANT
THAT COULD CHANGE YOUR LIFE!
Cindy and Jenn are founding a non-profit company called “Patron of the Arts” that’s mission is to help filmmakers fund films! To win they need your help ASAP! (They need the most votes before June 30th). The competition is TOUGH and they are falling behind. Voting is fast (takes only a minute), fun and free. A win for POTA is a win for filmmakers everywhere!
Here’s how to help:
1. VOTE: Please take 30 seconds to vote for our program: Goto the link and vote ASAP (but no later than June 30th at 10pm): http://ideablob.com/ideas/2412-PatronOfTheArts-Sponsor-a-Film and vote! If you already voted for us, simply hit the green “VOTE” button, and login. It will take 2 seconds, and you’re done!! If you have not voted yet, it will take 30 seconds to register first. Just go to the same link, and hit the vote button. Then it will ask you to register. It will send you a confirmation email, and then just goback to our link and click the green “vote” button one more time. THAT’S IT!! REALLY FAST! (feel free to leave us a comment if you want!)
2. SPREAD THE WORD: Please send this email to at least five people who you think would be willing to spend a minute to vote for this non-profit film funding company. We need support urgently to make this happen! Help us create a company to help you!!
3. CONNECT WITH US: Drop us an email to let us know you voted! And if you are a filmmaker who may be interested in participating in our film financing program, please send an email to filmmakers@PatronOfTheArts.org. We hope to launch in 2-3 months, and will be looking for filmmakers who need funding to participate in this program!or just to tell us you voted so we can be sure to invite you to the celebration if we win.
4. PARTY AND FUN: Check this out! If we win the grant, they throw us a big party, and present POTA with one of those GIGANTIC 6-foot tall checks that you see in the lottery!! Ha! EVERYONE at the Table will be invited to the party, along with all of the other Filmmaking Organizations in town who have been supporting us too! So let’s win this grant! And then let’s celebrate! And THEN, lets use this new company to finance our films!!!
Thanks so much for everyone’s support!
With Gratitude,
Cindy Baer,
Co-Founder
Patron of the Arts
Cindy Baer
Director/Producer
Free Dream Pictures
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0046337
www.freedreampictures.com
How many Steps?
Posted by Leslie on June 21, 2008 | No comments
As you can see, I’m still building this site and I’m building it mostly as a static site. This is my first go at Wordpress and I wasn’t sure whether to have dynamic pages for all the content, or to have a solid set of pages with clear step-by-step instructions for you to follow.
Wordpress blog experts: feel free to comment and give advice.
Anyway, I’m putting up everything as fast as possible. I know that it says 10 steps (honestly, I wasn’t sure how many steps so I just said 10), and though there are only 4 up there now, there will be more as I continue working.
It took me a while, didn’t it?
Posted by Leslie on June 15, 2008 | 2 comments
Lately I have been working a lot on a website. In fact, today I’ve put in a lot of time with the hosting company’s technical service. And I’ve also been looking into online mailing list software.
The names of these two companies would jump out at me each time I visited.
With DaDa (mail list) it made sense… Dada is pretty distinct (and fun to say). 
But with GoDaddy, which I’ve had for over a year, I was wondering why I kept being drawn to the name.
And then it hit me: Father’s Day.
I don’t tend to think about that day too much because my dad passed away long ago. I usually mentally wish my father well as the day approaches and think about how grateful I am to have such a great dad (great parents, actually) and then move on before I start to get sad.
Maybe it was simply my subconscious mind that was focusing on those words because I new Father’s Day was coming up, but I like to think this is my Dad’s way of saying “Hi!”
He always was quite a word-smith, with a dry sense of humor and a robust user of the English language.
This happened last year, too…
Last year, ON Father’s Day, a friend of mine gave me a collectible coin set because she was getting rid of stuff and she felt I was the right person to give it to. I do not collect coins and I’ve never conversed about anything related to this topic with my friend. However, MY FATHER had a huge coin collection. We has just finished discussing Father’s Day when she said, “I have something for you.” I unwrapped it (yes, she even wrapped it) and I made the connection immediately.
I was so, so touched.
Perhaps I read too much into it, but it’s nice to grasp on to those little coincidences, whether or not they really mean anything.
So Happy Father’s Day, Dad! (Or should I say “Dada” Day?)
And Happy Father’s Day to all dads!
…And thanks for reminding me.
Free eps of South Park!
Posted by Leslie on April 22, 2008 | No comments
Gotta love the avatar creator at www.southparkstudios.com. Check out my bad-ass 4th grade chica!
No title
Posted by Leslie on April 15, 2008 | No comments
Pretty funny stuff…
9/11 Conspiracy Theories ‘Ridiculous,’ Al Qaeda Says
THIS WEEKEND: "Grey Street" in the Garden State Film Festival… Sort of…
Posted by Leslie on March 31, 2008 | No comments
The great news: My music video to the Dave Matthew’s song “Grey Street” got into the Garden State Film Festival!
The not so great news: It didn’t get music clearance and so it can’t actually be screened. It was not a project I had intended to screen publicly. I submitted it to GSFF because I know the director of the festival. She asked me to send it in and she liked it and though it would be a good addition to the festival, so… I went to work on securing the rights for that screening. The production company said no because it was too much hassle for what they’d make for one screening. They’d actually lose money paper shuffling.
If you’re in the NJ area this weekend, you should still attend the festival. It’s really fun and I met a lot of people last time I went that I still keep in contact with.
There is also going to be (not-too-expensive) celebrity benefit on Thursday, April 3rd, which I would have really enjoyed if I were able to attend:
“On Thursday, April 3rd , Montel Williams and Starline Films will be hosting a Special Red Carpet Premiere of 4CHOSEN: The Documentary (produced and directed by Jon Doscher) at the Paramount Theater. 6:30 pm Red Carpet Arrivals, special singing performance by DANNY AIELLO begins at 7:30pm, 4CHOSEN premiere begins at 8:00, reception to follow with musical performance by BRIAN KIRK and the JIRKS”
I went to the closing gala when Real vs. Reel got into the festival and had an amazing time and met great people. This should be a good party.
"Warm Beer… Lousy Food!"
Posted by Leslie on March 27, 2008 | No comments
Apparently Brits posted on You Tube a while back… So here you go!
In my last post about Brits I forgot to mention that Suzanne Gutierrez hooked me up with her improv troupe and supplied me with a number of my actors for this project. We have about 30 minutes of awesome outtakes that I would love to post on a website in the future because the commercial only shows a smidgen of the great improv these actors did. And Suzanne did great work in one of my earlier projects, Real vs. Reel.
Also, thank you to Peter and Elizabeth Holder for letting us use the space until 3am. Check out their restaurant if you’re into great food (despite their “Warm Beer… Lousy Food!” sign out front.)
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