We are casting now for roles up through mid-August, and you will be contacted for anything for which you are right. If you feel that you fit what we are looking for, but haven’t been contacted, please e-mail your name and photo to casting@extrasonly.com.

Thank you so much!!

Casting Company, EXTRAS ONLY, announces FINAL EXTRAS CASTING CALL FOR SEASON 3 of the hit TV show, LEVERAGE.

EXTRAS ONLY, Portland’s busiest extras casting company with recent credits that include “Extraordinary Measures” with Harrison Ford and “Twilight”, is still casting real people to be paid extras in episodes of LEVERAGE Season 3, still filming in Portland!

Casting Director, Danny Stoltz, says in general, his company is “always looking for real people of all types who are interested in working as extras. However, we’re lacking specific ethnic types for upcoming episodes of LEVERAGE and have urgent needs to fill. We are hiring hundreds of people, and are specifically seeking more HISPANIC & MEDITERRANEAN ADULTS (Greek, Italian, Spanish, etc.) as well as people with small European type cars (Yugos, Datsuns, older Volkswagens, etc) ).”

“Those cast as extras earn minimum wage, but are guaranteed at least 8 hours of pay plus any overtime. Extras for these episodes will work 1 or 2 days between now and mid-August. Working as an extra can be an adventurous and exciting experience, a great way to meet new people, learn first hand about the behind the scenes of show business and make extra money while doing it! Extras accept the work only when they are available, which allows even those with busy schedules to take advantage of opportunities when they can.”

APPLY ONLINE: EXTRASONLY.COM | PROJECT CODE: LEVERAGE

OR CALL 503.299.4776

Current members of EXTRAS ONLY do not need to re-apply.

ABOUT LEVERAGE: Season 3 of TNT’s thrilling, action packed hit TV series, “LEVERAGE”, stars Academy Award winner Timothy Hutton, and is a drama about a team of thieves, hackers and grifters who act as modern-day Robin Hoods, taking revenge against those who use power and wealth to victimize others. The series is executive produced by Dean Devlin (“Independence Day,” TNT’s “The Librarian”), John Rogers (“The Cosby Show”) and Chris Downey (“The King of Queens”). New episodes air Sunday nights on TNT.

ABOUT EXTRAS ONLY: Founded by casting director Danny Stoltz in 1994, EXTRAS ONLY is Oregon’s largest, longest running and most accredited full service extras casting company, responsible for some of the biggest, most popular casting calls in the Northwest for national commercials, hit reality shows, and big studio feature films. Partial credits include: Twilight, Extraordinary Measures, Feast of Love, Elephant, What The Bleep Do We Know, The Ring, Ring II, The Hunted, Foxfire.

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If you worry about never getting the opportunity to achieve your career goals, let someone with an inside knowledge of the industry guide you, give you advice and provide you with the keys to success.

Tools 4 Actors founder Lana Veenker is one of the country’s top regional casting directors and has built a career on helping actors outside Hollywood break into the business.  She has cast actors opposite the likes of Jennifer Aniston, Morgan Freeman, Harrison Ford, Charlize Theron and many others, on projects such as “Twilight,” “Extraordinary Measures,” “The Road” and TNT’s “Leverage.”

Whether you plan a future move to the major acting hubs or you choose to live in a regional market for lifestyle reasons, Tools 4 Actors has resources to help.  Our passion is to show Hollywood and Broadway that regional actors have got the goods.

Tools 4 Actors provides many free resources, including our newsletter, blog, informational meetings and even career consultation giveaways to our email subscribers.   We also periodically offer workshops, boot camps, books and online courses to give actors the tools to compete in the big leagues.

Our tools are designed to move you a few steps closer to your goals, whether you dream of transitioning to a larger market, building a solid regional career, or simply earning a little money acting in your spare time.

What is Tools 4 Actors?

Tools 4 Actors  |  PO Box 12435  | Portland, OR 97212  | tools4actors@slateplease.com

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For this film Hollie wrote, directed, edited, produced, sound editing, foley work, wrote and preformed the original theme music and original song ect… Started as a project to learn Adobe CS4 –it is now being submitted to festivals. Goal was not only to learn editing but to produce a short film that had a feel of a pilot for a TV series. So it’s a “pilot/demo’ for a Pilot.

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The Top Eight Qualities of a Great Actor

Published May 24, 2007 by:

R.A. Knight

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Are You Ready to Become an Actor?

Not only can the road to becoming an actor be rough and treacherous, but it is usually quite uncertain. Many start with a dream and end up only discouraged and broken down. Some, like anyone you have ever seen on the

silver screen, end up wealthy and have Oscar as a roommate. Some reasons for this contrast between actors are partly based on talent, but success is mostly based in dedication and passion. Are you ready to become an actor? Can you do it? Here are the top eight qualifications for a great actor.

Number Eight: An actor must be flexible.

This characteristic comes into play often. There are three types of flexibility that an actor must possess. He must be flexible with time, with criticism, and with change. If you ask any director how easy it is to try and fit the rehearsal schedule into every cast member’s busy life, he will most likely tell you it’s like trying to herd cats. Some directors won’t even try to mess with working around your schedule; they might tell you that if you want to be in the show, you’ll be at rehearsal, no matter what time it is or what conflicts you have. Most directors won’t do this. But they might, and that’s something you must be prepared for. That goes along with number seven, being dedicated, but we’ll get there in a minute.

As with any artisan’s craft, constructive criticism is perhaps the most important facet to growth. You won’t ever be a perfect actor, just like you’ll never be a perfect writer, because these crafts require criticism to grow. When the director suggests you try a scene from a different viewpoint or in another way, you say, “Yes, sir.” If you find fault with the director’s suggestion, simply ask for clarity or say, “I can definitely try.” Don’t argue with the director. That makes you a prima donna, and nobody likes those.

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Title of project:  ”Wearing Normal.”

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John Gets Wasted NEW Trailer from Christopher Tucker on Vimeo.

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SUMMER ACTING CLASSES FOR KIDS &TEENS!!!

Portland/Seattle

July Schedule:

*Broken down by date and time. Sign up for all day or half-day sessions. Lunch in between.

Coach Katie has a loaded summer schedule designed to work your kiddo out in the art of performing.

Classes will be taught by teachers all at the top if their craft.

Please contact actingforkids@yahoo.com for a spot in the most talked about class in the Northwest!!

6^th/ 7^th

Stunt class w/ “tough guy- tough girl” scenes!!

Coach Matt Dotson teaches how to “fight” for screen and pull off a “tough” role.

11am-3pm

$225

Matt Dotson has worked in the entertainment industry since the age of 19. He was always an active guy that was stretched between the sport and acting worlds loving both to the extreme. Matt has worked in LA and Portland has worked on: commercials, music videos, indie films, and shot a pilot for Disney. He looks for really intense, gritty characters of substance that create a good challenge for him as an actor. In addition he still enjoys doing his own stunts, as he has never used a stunt double, thus far.  Fast and Furious 2-day camp.

12^th, 13^th, 14^th, 15^th Morning

Shakespeare Camp

This class is a once in a lifetime experience! Coach Grant will guide you through the world of Shakespeare and help prepare you to delve deep into his work! There is NO other class like this. Must commit to 2 weeks.

9am-12pm

$250/wk (2 week commitment $500)

Grant Turner:

As Artistic Director of the award-winning Northwest Classical Theatre Company, Grant has performed in or directed 24 of the 37 plays in Shakespeare’s Canon! Favorite roles include HAMLET, ROMEO, Puck A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM, Marc Antony in JULIUS CAESAR, and most recently, Berowne in LOVE’S LABOUR’S LOST. Favorite directing credits include THE MERCHANT OF VENICE and HENRY V.  This Summer Grant will guest direct THE COMEDY OF ERRORS for the Portland Actor’s Ensemble.  Grant is on the Artistic Advisory Board for the Portland Shakespeare Project.

*Lunch break 12-1pm if staying

12^th, 13^th, 14^th, 15^th Afternoon

Film/TV/Commercial audition:

Learn to audition for any upcoming project and prepare for the business of acting!

1pm-5pm

$195

Coach Katie/Val:

Katie O’Grady works in both Portland and LA while raising her three kids. She recently returned from traveling to film festivals in NYC and London to start a production company, Alcove Productions. Alcove recently produced the feature RID OF ME (a black comedy by James Westby), HOT IN THE ZIPPER, a screw ball comedy set in the 40’s, and Storm Large’s music video 8 MILES WIDE. Katie got her start in acting while working for FOX interviewing celebrities like Tom Cruise, John Travolta and Brad Pitt.

Katie is currently shooting on LEVERAGE (TNT) as Amy Nevins and for Saturday Night Live exec. producer Lorne Michaels in a pilot w/ SNL cast member Fred Armisen. Over the last few years Katie has shot with Jennifer Aniston, Steve Zahn, Justin Long, Diane Lane, and Tommy Lee Jones and can be seen on numerous National commercials, including M&M, Nintendo Wii, Clorox and Nike

Val Landrum is an Equity and SAG actor originating from Chicago where she worked with several first class regional theaters, including Steppenwolf and The Goodman. Since moving here she has been in productions for Portland Center Stage (including four JAW West festivals ), Third Rail Repertory Theatre, Profile Theatre, CoHo, Triangle Productions, and Artist Repertory Theatre, where she was most recently seen as Stella in A Streetcar Named Desire. She taught at Purdue University and then transitioned into the inner city of Chicago, working with troubled youth. Upon moving to Portland she has taught for Northwest Children’s Theatre, Portland Parks and Recreation, Portland Center Stage, Artists Repertory Theatre, Oregon Children’s Theatre and several immersion programs with the Portland Public School system. She has also worked as an assistant to two leading Chicago Casting directors and spent a year as a casting associate/ talent coordinator for one here in Portland.  Her film and TV credits include: several regional, national, and international commercials, ER, The Sasquatch Dumpling Gang, Man Maid, What the *Bleep* Do We Know ?, The Hunted, Uncle Buck and Only the Lonely.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

13^th, 14^th, 15^th, 16^th Afternoon II.

Meisner for teens (ages 10+ only):

Coach Katie will guide the kids through the basic core principal of acting that was created by Sanford Meisner. The Meisner technique is the art of listening and answering and learning to live truthfully in imaginary circumstances. Scene work w/ partners as well!

3:00-6:00pm

$225

*At a different location

July 24^th/25^th :Weekend Workshop in Seattle w/Katie O’Grady & James WestbyCoach Katie will be hosting an intensive training weekend and Director James will be filming short spots for kid’s demos. Mad fun w/ intensive learning. All skill levels welcome.

11am-4pm Sat/Sun.

$325 (includes video spot)

James Westby is a filmmaker who lives and works in Portland, OR.  He has written, directed, and edited five feature films and several shorts.  Legendary Producer’s Rep John Pierson quoted James in the book Spike, Mike, Slackers as a voice of a new generation of filmmakers, and Roger Ebert wrote of his BLOODY MARY (1996), “it is an audacious thriller in the vein of the Coen Brothers’ Blood Simple.”  Westby’s 2006 movie FILM GEEK won the Independent Visions Award at the Sarasota Film Festival and was picked up for distribution by First Run Features.  Lisa Schwarzbaum of Entertainment Weekly gave FILM GEEK a B+, calling it “perceptively hilarious.”  His feature THE AUTEUR, a sweet romantic comedy about the world’s greatest director, premiered at the 2008 Tribeca Film Festival.  Vanity Fair called the film “laugh-out-loud funny” and Variety dubbed it “hilarious.”  The film has played at the Athens International Film Festival in Greece, the Raindance Film Festival in London, and many others.  In addition, Cinetic Media, has just brokered a distribution deal for THE AUTEUR, and it is now available on iTunes and Amazon. Westby is currently editing his latest film, the scathing black comedy RID OF ME, starring Katie O’Grady and the legendary Theresa Russell.  His next feature project is based on a short film he recently shot, a screwball comedy set in 1940 HOT IN THE ZIPPER. James currently directs commercial projects for Sockeye Creative and is represented by BenderSpink.

19^th, 20^th, 21^st, 22^nd

Shakespeare Camp continued

Coach Grant continues w/ a 2^nd week in the world of Shakespeare!

9am-12pm-Morning

$250/wk

*Lunch Break 12-1 pm

Scenes/Monologues Afternoon

Work on performing in a scene and playing a character. Class will include improv games.

1pm-5pm

$195

Val Landrum is an Equity and SAG actor originating from Chicago where she worked with several first class regional theaters, including Steppenwolf and The Goodman. Since moving here she has been in productions for Portland Center Stage (including four JAW West festivals), Third Rail Repertory Theatre, Profile Theatre, CoHo, Triangle Productions, and Artist Repertory Theatre, where she was most recently seen as Stella in A Streetcar Named Desire. She began her teaching career at Purdue University (FW) and then transitioned into the inner city of Chicago, working with troubled youth. Upon moving to Portland she has taught for Northwest Children’s Theatre, Portland Parks and Recreation, Portland Center Stage, Artists Repertory Theatre, Oregon Children’s Theatre and several immersion programs with the Portland Public School system. She has also worked as an assistant to two leading Chicago Casting directors and spent a year as a casting associate/ talent coordinator for one here in Portland.  Her film and TV credits include: several regional, national, and international commercials, ER, The Sasquatch Dumpling Gang, Man Maid, What the *Bleep* Do We Know ?, The Hunted, Uncle Buck and Only the Lonely.

26^th, 27^th, 28^th, 29^th

Improv/Comedy

Silly, crazy fun that will train you to work off the cuff!

10am-1pm Morning

$195

Superior improv coach in the works! Hoping to land Jenn Hunter-a highly professional improv director!

*Lunch break 1-2pm

Scenes/Monologues Afternoon

Coach Val is a pro at helping you prepare or polish a great monologue. Class will also include scene work with partners and improv madness!

2pm-5pm

$150

Val Landrum is an Equity and SAG actor originating from Chicago where she worked with several first class regional theaters, including Steppenwolf and The Goodman. Since moving here she has been in productions for Portland Center Stage (including four JAW West festivals), Third Rail Repertory Theatre, Profile Theatre, CoHo, Triangle Productions, and Artist Repertory Theatre, where she was most recently seen as Stella in A Streetcar Named Desire. She taught at Purdue University and then transitioned into the inner city of Chicago, working with troubled youth. Upon moving to Portland she has taught for Northwest Children’s Theatre, Portland Parks and Recreation, Portland Center Stage, Artists Repertory Theatre, Oregon Children’s Theatre and several immersion programs with the Portland Public School system. She has also worked as an assistant to two leading Chicago Casting directors and spent a year as a casting associate/ talent coordinator for one here in Portland.  Her film and TV credits include: regional, national, and international commercials, ER, The Sasquatch Dumpling Gang, Man Maid, What the *Bleep* Do We Know?, The Hunted, Uncle Buck and Only the Lonely.

*Write actingforkids@yahoo.com for your spot or to get on the mailing list for other classes and workshops!

**August schedule coming soon!!

*** All classes require $75 non-refundable deposit.

Have a great summer….Coach Katie O’Grady

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Leverage’ goes classical with ‘The Scheherazade Job’

Aldis Hodge as Hardison in “Leverage.”

Credit: TNT

While I blog about a lot of TV shows, there are even more shows that I watch and don’t write about, whether for scheduling reasons or because, while I like them, there isn’t necessarily enough meat there to merit episode-by-episode analysis. (This is known in my corner of the TV blogging game as “The ‘NCIS’ Factor.”)

One of those shows is TNT’s “Leverage,” which is a fun caper series I always mean to write about on occasion but usually get so far behind in my viewing that it doesn’t seem worth the bother just to talk about how sweet it was when Eliot beat up 17 guys with one arm dislocated behind his back.

I did, however, get to see the second of Sunday’s two episodes (TNT is running double-headers at 9 & 10 for at least the first few weeks of this season), and it’s a pretty cool one, about which I’ll have a few thoughts after the jump.

Not only does it guest star Giancarlo Esposito from “Breaking Bad” as an aspiring African dictator in need of some Nate Ford humbling, but the episode takes advantage of one of Aldis Hodge’s many hidden talents(*) by putting Hardison in a situation where he has to play a violin solo at a concert to help the crew pull off a heist.

(*) The summer that “Leverage” launched, Fienberg and I approached Hodge at Turner’s press tour party, mainly so we could gab about his stint as Ray “Voodoo” Tatum on “Friday Night Lights.” (And so we could use the phrase “Ray ‘Voodoo’ Tatum” as often as possible in a 10-minute conversation.) Instead, we mainly wound up talking about Hodge’s many, many, many outside talents and projects. Among the ones we can remember him listing are a black belt in some martial art (he said he hoped there would be a Hardison/Eliot fight scene one day so he can Christian Kane could see who was really the baddest), watch repair, screenwriting and, we think, aircraft design. Even if he could really only do half the things he claimed, he’d be in serious renaissance man territory, and “Leverage” co-creator Chris Downey says he wrote this episode to pay off a promise he made in season one to find a way to work Hodge’s violin skills into an episode.

There are the usual fake identities and fight scenes and double-reverses, but what makes “The Scheherazade Job” more notable than your average “Leverage” is that a good chunk of the heist sequence (including one of the better Eliot fight scenes they’ve done) is filmed largely without dialogue, and is instead accompanied by the classical piece Hardison is playing. I complain sometimes about shows (particularly those on ABC) that lean too heavily on their musical scores to tell you how to feel about certain scenes, but this is a more traditional, very effective use of score to make this particular job stand out from the many others we’ve seen Nate pull off in episodes past.

Alan says check it out if you’re around on Sunday at 10 (or if you have one of those newfangled DVR thingees).

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