November 6, 2003

  • Rather quiet lately with everybody studying for midterms.  Got our first "screen test" back from acting class, an ad lib of a family dinner.   Now, we have to edit it.  God, my camera shyness actually showed!   I came off really stiff, like one of those cheap electronic animals.  As soon as teach said "Roll'em!" I froze, hardly able to move or talk during the entire twenty minute shoot.   (They use a REAL cinema camera, by the way, not a rinky-dink video one everybody's used to.)   I managed to blurt only one line, a silly filler I'm too embarrassed to repeat which sounded as if I were ordered to speak at gun point.  I thought it would never be over.  You could tell I was terrified to look towards the monitor and seem to be fixated on one side of the table.   At the time my neck felt jerky, like a doll's, but on film it looks even worse, slow moving and mechanical, as if my head could really swivel a full 360 degrees.   I wish we could totally edit me out, but it's impossible.  Cripes!   And I look so fat!