Tonight at work one of my guests/customers was a director and his wife that I met 8-10 months ago at the restaurant. Of course I didn’t know he was a director when I first encountered him; it came out in the small talk we were having. Turns out he was in town from London meeting with agents. He told me about his film and I checked it out on their website. I contacted him to tell that I really enjoyed it and he responded in kind.

CUT TO: 8-10 months later…

He and his wife came back in the restaurant and I recognized him right away, but it took me a moment to remember exactly how and in what context I’d had met them. Then it came to me; I remembered the table they sat at, the reason he was in Los Angeles, they agency he signed with…and his name. He was completely shocked.

Since the time I’d first seen him he had left the agency he originally signed with, moved to one of the Big Four agencies, got a project in pre-production…and moved to Los Angeles from London just 4 days prior. He said they didn’t know anyone so they came back to the restaurant; a somewhat familiar place for them. He told me that in a few days he was set to visit 3 different places out of town for location scouting for his project. He also asked for my contact info to stay in touch. Cool. I sensed that he and his wife are nice, genuine people so I gladly gave them my information. I wish them both the best.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Today I participated in the WGA program that reads the scripts of at-risk students in the some of the high schools in the area. Today it was Crenshaw High and, as usual, always great fun.

Audition/tape: “Hung” @ CFB Casting. …not so much.

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Nine years ago today I left my job waiting tables…at the same place that I am currently waiting tables. How’s THAT for full circle? Trust me, I’m still not sure how that is for full circle. It’s been an interesting mental trip, waiting tables again, but I think I handle it pretty well…usually. I have good days and not so good days. I don’t usually have bad days, but at times it’s a major challenge to say the least…major challenge.

I’m not sure how long this trip will last at the restaurant, but I am determined to keep things moving in the right direction…and I think it’s working slowly, but surely. Of course it’s working…I’m just looking for more results.

The flip side is that, thus far, I’ve made this trip down “day-job road” work for me way better than I ever would have believe. I just have to stay focused and keep expecting…correction, demanding more from myself.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Audition: “Findlaw.com” @ Ross Lacy Casting. This was fun! It was one those law commercials written in the style of the commercials that you see during The Jerry Springer Show or Judge Judy. I love those commercials! They are hilarious to me. I had a great time and hopefully I’ll get a callback.

I contacted my theatrical agent to see if there’s any hint that I’ll be going to callbacks for the pilot in auditioned for last week. No news as of yet, I hope that changes and I get another crack at it. I think I’m really right for the character…fingers-crossed.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Audition: “Bing” @ Kathy Knowles Casting. This was another same-day call, which I am really getting used to. Sometimes I feel like a doctor who is always on-call. It’s all good though, trust me, I’m not complaining. It’s great to have as many opportunities for work as I do…even if they arrive with very little warning.

The audition went quite well I think. I went in with a child actress and her mother. They both were quite the joy to work with.

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Audition: “Vlasic” @ Bad Girls Casting. This same-day call went well. It was pretty simple; we just kinda reacted to an unusual situation. The trick was to not over-act, but still react in a real way. I think I got it right.

Audition: “AARP/Hartford” @ Michael Sanford Casting. Hmm…not so much. Didn’t feel so good about this one. Oh well, that happens…gotta pick up the pieces, learn from it and move on.

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Audition: “The Untitled Dana Gould Project” @ Barylski/Wright Casting. I arrived at the Warner Bros. Ranch Studio Lot early and had a great warm-up session outside by myself. Casting Director Deborah Barylski entered the building as I was outside and greeted me warmly. Deborah hired me years ago for the ABC pilot “Life With Bonnie”. It’s rare that casting directors actually hire actors directly, but that’s exactly what Deborah did for me in the pilot season of 2002. I auditioned, left the room, she called me back in and gave me direction, I read it again and she told me that she was going to recommend that Bonnie hire me. “Bonnie”, as in Bonnie Hunt. She also explained to me that since it was a pilot she would have to get approval from the network. Three weeks later I got the news that the network signed off on me.

Back to the read…I felt really good about it and I think I’m right for the character…or at least in the ballpark of what is right. I really hope I get to the next round.

Audition: “Time-Warner Cable” @ Ross Lacy Casting. This went really well…on the 4th take! Yeah, my partner and myself, mostly me, got off to a bit of a rough start. Actually, I think it made it even better because at that point we were certainly having fun and that is usually a good thing. Hopefully, I’ll get a callback.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Happy birthday to my car. I purchased it, used, 6 years ago today. When I bought the car I had no idea how I was going to make the monthly loan payments. I had been doing my best, with mixed results, to live a cash-only life; I was surprised that I was even able to get a loan in the first place. I literally didn’t know where I’d get the money for the very first payment due just 30 days later.

CUT TO: Several years later.

Somehow, I was able to pay the car off one month early and now enjoy having reliable transportation without a payment. Yeah, like most people, I’d LOVE to have a newer car, but now isn’t the right time for that…it doesn’t fit into staying as close to being debt-free as possible. Now THAT is a great feeling and I plan to keep it that way. I’ll get a nice ride one of these days, but I’ll do it in a way that, hopefully, makes sense.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Audition/Producers/Tape: “Love Bites” @ Debra Zane Casting. This was at one of my very favorite places to audition. Debra, Tannis and Shayna are just wonderful people…I wish I would have been more wonderful in my performance, but we’ll see. It’s an NBC series so maybe I’ll get back in for another role…if I don’t go further with this one.

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Audition: “Big-O Tires” @ Ross Lacy Casting. This was fun and I auditioned with a guy that helped to train me as a commercial camera operator. That was back in the Fall of 2007. I actually ran a few sessions for pay, but I was never able to get in the rotation of regular work. Ultimately, and obviously, I opted to return to waiting tables where I worked years ago…the single most, smartest decision I made the entire year of 2008. Anyway, it was a good audition and I expect to be called back to the second round.

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Audition: “Applebee’s” @ Hayley Marcus Casting. YES!!! This was, without a doubt, one the best, most fun auditions I’ve ever had. It was all improv and I had a great partner that was right there with me. We were supposed to be brothers in the spot I think we were totally believable. To top it off it was a casting director I don’t think I’ve been in for before.

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Audition/Tape/Producers “Ghost Whisperer” @ Donna Rosenstein Casting. I don’t know how many times I’ve auditioned for this show. Will I ever get on it? I sure hope so! This is the last episode of the season; I’m not sure if it’s returning next season or not…I hope so.

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Shooting: “Marie Callendar’s/Healthy Choice”. Call time: 7:30am. Location: Miracle Mile District of Los Angeles – 29th Fl. I parked my car, as directed, at The Peterson Automotive Museum and jumped in the waiting van to shuttle me to craft services for breakfast. I met a few other actors that I’d be working with and then walked over to our trailers for wardrobe, contracts and other stuff. The two lead ladies were flown in from out of town; Mary Crosbie based in New York and Susan Messing based in Chicago. Gotta love those out of town gigs. Exactly one year ago on March 4th 2009 I was flying back from New York after shooting a commercial there.

When everyone was ready we made our way to the set on the 29th floor of the adjacent building. I don’t think I’d ever been that high up in LA before; the panoramic view was mesmerizing. It felt GREAT to be working!

A moment later we were rehearsing and then shooting. The really funny part for me was that in the original audition I completely butchered part of the dialogue and out of all the actors in Los Angeles and wherever else they held auditions I was the one chosen to say those very words. How cool is that!?!

I made it through the day relatively well considering I was at work until 5am and had to wake up at 6:30am for my 7:30am call time. Yeah, there was a period during the day that I was really tired so while on break I went to the craft services table and got some Gummy Bears and Jelly Belly’s and started having some fun…and it gave me a boost of energy.


bellies, bears and a berry...a source of energy.

After lunch we shot the second part of the scene and some other stuff; waited around for a while and we were wrapped. It was a long 10 ½ hour day. I got home by 7:30pm to get 2 hours of sleep because I was scheduled to work at 10pm. It’s rare for me to be tired at work; before and after, yes, but not during. This night I was really dragging; I’ve been burning the candle at both ends for a while and it caught up to me.

One of my co-workers could tell that I wasn’t my normal, energetic self and I explained to him what my recent activities had been. I had been asked to work the previous night because someone called in sick. He suggested that I should have just said “no” to the extra shift since I was shooting the next morning. I understood where he was coming from, but I explained to him that if I do what most would have done in that situation I’d be crazy to expect different results. I have felt that I have no choice but to worker harder than most. I told him that “typical effort” usually results in “typical results” and “typical results” in my business, this business of entertainment, is not what I’m after. He thought about that for a moment and then understood where I was coming from.

My turning point at work was seeing a man, one of my customers that I was serving; he was suffering from some sort of nervous condition; I think it might be the same thing that Michael J. Fox suffers from. Right away, I felt blessed to only be tired. That gentlemen, I assume, has to deal with that condition 24 hours a day 7 days a week. Me? All I need is some rest.

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Audition: “True Jackson VP” @ Harriet Greenspan Casting. This went okay, super rushed, but okay. I did it once, got some direction and did it again and I was on my way.

After the audition on the Paramount lot I was walking back to my car and saw that I had a message from my commercial agency, Kazarian-Spencer-Ruskin (KSR). Usually, I get my audition notices through e-mail and confirm through e-mail before the wonderful assistants, Leah or Jamie, have to call me with the same information. This was a missed call/message and no e-mail.

Of course, one of the thoughts that went through my head was that I had been replaced, fired, etc…no longer booked on the “Healthy Choice/Marie Callender’s” commercial. I don’t say that to sound pessimistic; I’m just a realist and know a lot about how the casting process works…sometimes I think it would be better if I knew less than I do. All in all knowledge is power.

Booking the job is just part of the journey that most actors would consider commercial success; I consider it about 91% of the way. Once you book the commercial you need to actually get the opportunity to shoot it. I can tell you from personal experience that just because an actor is booked on a commercial doesn’t mean that the actor will get to shoot that commercial and even if you shoot it doesn’t mean you’ll be in the final edit to air…if it airs at all. Lots of variables in play.

Anyway, I checked the voicemail and it was assistant Leah. This was a good sign because if I was being replaced/fired, etc. my agent Samantha would have been the one leaving the message. It’s funny how so many thoughts went through my head in a split second because after Leah said her name, but before she started the message she paused for what seemed like an eternity. Finally, I got the voicemail message which was that I would be receiving an audition notice through e-mail and to disregard it because I’m already scheduled to be shooting tomorrow. Sigh! A few minutes later I got my call time for tomorrow.

I’m glad I received the audition notice anyway because I will try to make that audition as well. Could be an early wrap on the commercial, late call time who knows, but I don’t like missing auditions.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Remember those photos I did for my friend Greg last week? Well, he was ready to get a few duplicated and he was informed that the resolution wasn’t high enough. Tough lesson; I never said I was a professional. Anyway, today we shot again and attempted to do better than the last session, but still capture some of the good stuff we had. I think we did pretty well for me being someone that doesn’t really know what I’m doing.

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Fitting: “Marie Callender’s/Healthy Choice”. It’s always great to go to a wardrobe fitting; it means I’m getting ready to work! This fitting was actually at someone’s house; a really nice house. Not anything big or outrageous; just a nice piece of property and a house that felt like a home. Being there made me want to have a little space of my own.

When I was walking up the sidewalk to the front door I could see that a woman was leaving and that she looked familiar. A moment later I saw that it was, Minnie, one of my supervisors at my night job. It was great to see her; I don’t think we are going to be in the same commercial, but it’s the same campaign.

I got to briefly talk to the director, Gavin James, about his journey to where he currently is in his career and thank him for the opportunity to work. He is also the writer of the commercial.

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Will I survive? That’s the question right now. Survive what? I’m talking about my night job. The one on The Strip…The Sunset Strip. Yeah, the one where I work the graveyard shift. Yeah, that one. The one that I am so fortunate to have. The one that I really appreciate…yup, that’s the one.

Truth be told; it’s really testing me. That, in itself, is nothing new. I’ve just used many different tactics to get through it. It usually works quite well, but about once a month I go on what I call “My Cycle”. Yeah, a guy with a cycle…it happens about every 30 days. During that time I’m a little unlike the me I like so much. I’m a little darker; a little less patient and I have to work harder at being my normal self…sometimes a lot harder.

I have to say that I’m proud of how I’ve handled this ride thus far. It’s a real headtrip working where I used to work so long ago…even with some of the same people. That said; I know I can do better. I can do more; I have so much more to offer than what I’m doing there and the duality of living it while trying not to get depressed about it is a constant thing I have to manage. I am doing quite well.

I really appreciate my employment there…I really do. There are so many people these days that wished they had any kind of steady income and I have two streams. Things are great for me.

More great stuff…February 2010 is on its way out I believe it goes down as the busiest audition month I’ve had in my almost 12 years in Los Angeles. Well, that may not count when I was working on “Good Morning, Miami”…plus, then I was getting paid…I don’t get paid for most of my auditions.

There was 19 business days in the month of February…I had 20 auditions. Mostly commercials, several callbacks and avails and at least one booking. There is still a chance I could be callback, placed on avail or book from auditions I had this past week. It was a dizzyingly busy week because I was of my …other job. I say bring more of it on because I am ready to work! 2010 will continue to be a year of change for me.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Audition: “Charter Communications” @ Ross Lacy Casting. This went really well. I auditioned with a group of five actors, including myself. I think I was the youngest by about 30 years! Wow! Some old folks came out today and I was thrilled to see them. They kinda reminded me of my late mom Louise. I even saw one woman’s resume and her name was “Lou- Lou”. That’s what some people used to call my mom.

During the audition we were all asked a question which started with “Where are you from?” Of course I answered “Virginia Beach, VA”. Then I was asked what my first experience with loss was. For me, my first real experience with loss was losing my mom on November 15th 2002. He asked how old I was and I answered “….old”. I said a few more things and then I blanked out and don’t remember too much afterwards. I almost started crying right there in the room…just caught me by surprise is all.

At any rate, before we started he told us that the director of the commercial is a photographer and is simply looking for snapshots of emotion. I think I nailed that with my mom, “Louise, Lou-Lou, Weezy” Fuller on my shoulder. I love you mom. I miss you.

Next up…nope, I’m not a headshot photographer, but I shot some headshots for an old friend of mine, William Gregory Lee. Greg and I met on September 22nd 1993 in our first acting class in Virginia Beach, VA. I have to say that a lot has happened in both of our careers since then. Between the two of us we’ve worked in South Africa, Spain, New Zealand, Japan, London, Miami, Hawaii and of course New York & Los Angeles. There is a lot more to come from the both of us.

Lastly I received notice that I’d been released from my avail for the SEARS commercial. AH! Too bad; I had a really good feeling about that one. I‘ll get something else in the near future; actually I’ve already f got something else – the “Marie Callender’s/Healthy Choice” commercial. I shoot on Thursday of next week.

Completing my huge list of drop-offs is taking me a lot longer than I expected, but that’s okay; I’ve been busy. I thought I would have had it all done last week, but I think I underestimated just how much I was trying to get accomplished. It’s no big deal; I’ll get it done when I get it done. Even after I “get it done” I’m not really done because there will always be more to do. I’m just trying to get a foundation to work from; I’m about half way there. It’s hard with the schedule that I keep, but I’m not sure what else to do. I mean, from my POV, it’s seems that the best way to escape from babysitting adults on The Sunset Strip is to keep doing what I have to do while I have to do it. I am one determined mofo. I believe I should be working in this business and that is exactly what I am going after to be a working actor…again. I’ll get there…trust that.

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Audition/Tape: “Meet The Browns” @ Alpha Tyler Casting. For this one I had to put myself on tape and get it uploaded so that the producers could see it in Atlanta where the show is taped. This is the first time in almost 12 years in Los Angeles that I’ve ever put myself on tape. The first person I thought of to help me in the process was Julia Flint @ THE ACTOR CONNECTION. They provide numerous services for actors. She was a pleasure to work with and a great help for me especially since I had never done it before on my own. I’m guessing my performance will be viewed in Atlanta tomorrow and, who knows, maybe I’ll be on a plane to Atlanta next week.

The only not so exciting part about it is that I think it would be an AFTRA job. If I had a choice I’d much rather work on SAG contracts. I’m really glad that I finally had this experience so that next time it will be familiar to me.

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It seems that these days, more often than not, after working my graveyard shift I am woken up by a call from my agent for a same-day audition or a callback. It’s especially great when the call is for an actual booking. Yes! I booked the Healthy Choice/Marie Callender’s commercial…now the next step is hoping I get to actually shoot it.

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Wow, my commercial agents just keep calling me! I am so fortunate to be getting all of these opportunities to work. I’m also really in need of a better, healthier schedule, but what am I supposed to do. Right now I have to be thankful that I’m tired from working two full-time jobs. Some people are exhausted from just looking one job. Things are really good for me…but I gotta keep working on my social life. I am almost always working; but I’m seeing results too.

Audition: “IHOP” @ Keri Peyton Casting. This was a quick-fast, simple spot and I was in and out in a jiffy. Not sure if I’m spot-on for it, but I’ll let them make that decision.

Audition: “Dunkin Donuts” @ Dan Cowan Casting. Another quick one that went really well AND I think I’m really right for it. Call a brotha back!

My theatrical agent called with an appointment for Tyler Perry’s MEET THE BROWNS. It shoots in Atlanta and I have to put myself on tape for it. Not thrilled about the putting myself on tape for it, but it’s something I need to figure out. Plus, I think I’m really right for the role…and I’d love to go to Atlanta.

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Callback: “Marie Callender’s/Healthy Choice” @ Vicki Goggin Casting. I think this one went good. I guess. I mean how can you tell? I did what I did and felt good about it…not much more I can do besides that. On to the next…fortunately there has been a lot of “next” these days. It has been incredibly busy for commercials. Why aren’t I actually booking anything though? Not sure; I think I’m doing good work. It’s about the right fit and hopefully I’ll be the right piece for the right puzzle soon. In the meantime I’m going to keep it moving in the right direction.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Okay, I don’t know what the heck I was thinking when I agreed to do this play reading. Actually, that’s not true. I know exactly what I was thinking when I said “yes”. I was thinking that it was a chance to be around a different group of artists that I hadn’t met before. To read material I hadn’t read before. Plus, I was recommended. It’s great to have someone vouch for me and put her name on the line.

We read 2 different versions of the same play. Yes, it made for a long session and I was completely exhausted, but it was cool to see the two different takes on the same material. It was a great group of actors and an honor to be included. Thanks Alice!

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Callback: “Sears” @ Kathy Knowles Casting. Yes! On a Saturday too. This went great and I’ve worked with the director before…I don’t know that that matters, but it’s always nice to see a familiar face in the room…I doubt he remembered me, but ya never know. I hope I book this…they should hire me; I bought my new refrigerator @ Sears, lol!

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Yep, another same-day appointment. It’s a great place to be…having appointments arrive on a moments notice. It’s also a testament that my agents feel that I’m one of their super reliable clients. That means a lot to me; especially coming an agency like KSR.

Audition: “Best Buy” @ Cathi Carlton Casting. This was fun! Actually, the funniest part of the whole experience was when we all slated. I won’t try to repeat what happened because I don’t think I could do justice to exactly what one of the other actors did in the room, but I laughed my a** off. After I stopped laughing the audition went really well too.

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Audition/Callback: “Maxwell House” @ Ross Lacy Casting. Another same-day, straight to callbacks appointment. It seems like every week I am awakened by a same-day audition. I’m not complaining; it’s just something I’ve noticed.

It went okay. I think my “son” in the audition was a little confused as to what was going on and, as a result, the cues were a bit off. That’s okay I think some of the other guys looked more the part than me anyway…but ya never know.

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Audition: “Sears” Kathy Knowles Casting. Yes! This went really, really well; it was a lot of fun and I have a great callback ratio and a few bookings at this office…hopefully it will continue. I feel a callback brewing!

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Callback/Avail “AT&T” @ Ross Lacy Casting. This goes pretty well; I’m already on avail for it so we’ll see. Avail releases are getting old…it’s time to book something!

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Let’s do it! Yup, I’m out in the street today for the first day of a heavy week of drop-offs. Gotta make something happen. The Presidents Day holiday made traffic relatively light and quite a few places were open; although a few weren’t. It was a successful day.

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This weekend is dedicated to getting my ducks in a row to do a big round of drop-offs. That means I will be camped out on the CastingAbout.com website figuring out my strategy. Pilot season is in full swing and I need to be a part of it. I believe this pilot season will be stronger than in recent years and I have to do my best to get in the mix.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Audition: “Miracle Whip” @ Ross Lacy Casting. This was a simple Q&A type of deal. It went well and I learned something about how to handle similar auditions in the future.

After a long night of dealing with “Hollywood’s Finest” on the Sunset Strip I woke up to an email with the news that I had been released from my commercial avail for “Comcast”. Ouch! Oh well.

More…”news”. I won’t say “bad news” because I’m not taking it that way. I’m taking it as something that would have been nice to have gone another way, but didn’t…or hasn’t…at least not yet. What am I referring to? The cars.com commercial. While it was nice that it aired during the Super Bowl, in all honesty I was more excited about the notion of it running Class A during regular primetime long into the future. I also knew that in order for that to happen I would have to be included in the 30 second version because chances are slim that they would continue run the 60 second edit.

It goes back to the “Anatomy of a booking” Part One and Part Two; which I’ve written about before. There are so many steps in the process where things can get interesting…for better or for worse. I’ve experienced some of them. On the one end I’ve auditioned, been called back, placed on avail, booked, gone to wardrobe, shot and made almost $30,000 on a commercial before.

I’ve also auditioned, been called back, booked and have been cancelled/replaced/not approved 1 hour before my wardrobe fitting. Yes, I received the $500 and change session fee for my troubles…and the payment for the wardrobe fitting fee.

I don’t write this to complain. No, not at all. Actually, in a twisted kind of way it’s a positive thing…a very positive thing in fact. Why? Well, before I can get released from an avail I have to have been placed on avail. Before I can get cancelled/replaced/not approved I have to be booked in the first place. I look at it as the more I work in this business the more likely these things are to happen. From that standpoint I’m moving in the right direction…after all I booked a Super Bowl commercial!

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Callback/Avail: “Comcast” @ Ross Lacy Casting. Yes! I had a great time with a great partner on this one. I really took advantage of the chance to perform…I’m not always free enough to go there. I have to give my partner much of the credit for that; during our little rehearsal before going in the room he was throwing a lot stuff that was off the page into the mix. The director did the exact same thing in the room so we were primed and ready to go.

I’m already on avail for the spot; so hopefully they will actually seal the deal. No matter what happens I feel that I showed what I can do in the room and that I am a viable choice for the job…beyond that it’s kinda out of my hands.

Audition: “Healthy Choice” @ Vicki Goggins Casting. Hmm…I’m not sure how this one went. During the actual audition the wonderfully, patient session director was trying to get me to repeat a particular line of dialogue and I was hearing it wrong…so I kept repeating it wrong. I didn’t want to look at the copy on the board for some reason thinking I was repeating it “close enough” after about the 4th time she said it I snuck a glance over at the board and got it perfect…finally.

Funny enough, I wouldn’t be surprised if I get a callback because I think the director was really looking for real stuff and what was going on in my head was certainly real. So we’ll see.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

So Sunday was the big game and, yes, the commercial I was in for www.cars.com aired as I had hoped…with me in it. It’s the first Super Bowl commercial I’ve ever been in and I don’t think it’ll be the last. Something that made me smile was that I auditioned for several of the other commercials that ran during the game as well. The Super Bowl is the absolute tops for commercial advertising and the fact that many of the commercial casting directors in Los Angeles and my agents think I’m worthy of being considered is a real sign of progress.

I’ve always said that Los Angeles & New York is the Super Bowl of this profession and I feel like I got to play in the big game…literally. I’m thrilled.

The next step of possible success for me is that I assume that the commercial will be edited down to a :30 spot from the :60 version the ran during the Super Bowl. Hopefully I will be included in that version as well and it will be in heavy rotation for a long time to come.

And it gets even better. The game goes in the record books as the most-watched television program in US history. The 27 year-old record was previously held by M*A*S*H with 105.97 million viewers versus 106.5 million viewers. Wow, I feel like I’m a part of that. The spot.

Lastly, I saw a Long A** rainbow today! It was crazy! Without question, the biggest, brightest rainbow I’ve ever seen. It made me smile.

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Audition: “Progressive Insurance” @ Alyson Horn Casting. This was for two different commercials with the possibility or more to follow. I felt great about the first one, but when we did the second one I got all flustered. I was so irritated with myself. The deal was that they told us that the actual script wasn’t that important, but I had worked on it and it was stick in my head…I had a problem letting go what I’d worked on. Silly me. I left kicking myself…

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Tomorrow I have a commercial scheduled to air during the big game, the Super Bowl. I shot it about 6 weeks ago, and yes, I’ve mentioned it, but I don’t think even I embraced the full magnitude of what it means. The Super Bowl, in most years, is the most watched American television broadcast of the year. Wow, that’s huge.

The last few days it’s caught up to me that this is pretty special. I think it’s taken a while to sink in because I was never absolutely sure it was slated as a Super Bowl commercial at all. I was more concerned with the long term run, because in actuality, I don’t get paid any extra because it’s running during the big game…that first airing is included in the initial pay when I first filmed the spot. The second airing is where the financial magic starts to happen.

Thinking even more about it makes me want to place it high on the mantle of experiences I will have had as a performer. I’ve worked with some of the greats in this business – in commercials, in film and in television. I plan to continue that.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Audition: “Comcast” @ Ross Lacy Casting. Good, subtle stuff here. I especially love doing well at this office. Well, I love doing well at all of the casting offices I go to, but Ross gives me more chances than anyone in this town to be a successful commercial actor. The least I can do is do my best to make him look good. I think I did that today and I believe that will earn me a callback.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Audition: “Progressive Insurance” @ Alyson Horn Casting. I think this was another good one for me…and these spots run ALL the time. One actor that was there has a Progressive commercial currently running. I thought it was a little odd that he was auditioning for this one too, but good for him I guess. He asked me if I was the limo driver from the first DIE HARD film…no, I’m still not him.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Audition: “Medco” @ Joe Blake Casting. This was in and out, quick-fast. All we had to do was “very little”; which isn’t always easy for me. This time I think I was successful…and I think I’m right for it, actually perfect for it. – I expect a callback.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

I’ve got a busy day on tap and, fortunately, all of the appointment times are spaced out enough for me to make them without getting all stressed out.

Audition: “AT&T” @ Alyson Horn Casting. Wow, this went really well. I had a beautiful “wife” that I auditioned with that made want be in a relationship. Seriously!!! I wasn’t expecting it, but she touched me on the back of my neck and on my back…I don’t know, but I think women are incredible! All day! All of them…well, maybe not “all” of them, but a lot of them. So, on the 2nd take, I got to touch her, LOL! Fun stuff! In the spot we were the parents of 2 kids; that made it even more fun. I should get a callback on this one…hopefully with her.

Callback: “Keystone Light Beer” @ Francene Selkirk Casting. This was definitely one of the simplest callbacks I’ve ever been on. Truly, just a look and I hope I fit the bill. One of these days I’m going to book a commercial for Francene Selkirk’s office and I hope this is the one. She’s a really cool, actor-friendly lady. I like her.

Audition: “Walgreen’s” @ Ross Lacy Casting. Love auditioning at Ross Lacy’s office; one of the reasons is that he has great session runners. Today was no exception; I had a great time with the 4 other actors I went in with. Callbacks are next week – I plan to be there.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Audition: “Keystone Beer” @ Francene Selkirk Casting. This went well; it was a little improv with my partner. I have a pretty good callback ratio at this office, but it’s time to book something…geez. It’s only been 11+ years that I’ve been going there.

On another note, I’ve finally decided to repost my writings into the proper “blog” thingy on my website. So now there will be 2 versions. One will be “My Long A** Bio” that reads forward like a book and the other will be “My Long A** Blog” that reads…well, like a blog. It’s going to take a while to repost the entire thing because it’s over 1500 separate entries and there is space to title each separate one. It’s been fun revisiting stuff I experienced from years and years ago. I’m tempted to rewrite some of it; just so it reads better and fix typos and stuff. Who am I kidding? I suck at writing, typing, plus my grammar is terrible. For now, I’ll just try to get it posted. Oh yeah, you can also do one of those RSS feeds. I guess that automatically notifies you of updates…I think. Here is the link – Stephon Fuller’s “My Long A** Blog…An Actor’s Journey”

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Audition/Callback: “Raytheon Ethics” @ Beth Holmes Casting. I was still asleep when I got this call from my agent this morning – recovering from working last night. It was a callback for an industrial. The best part of it for me was the banter before we actually auditioned. I’m finding that my improv skills are stellar and my ability to entertain in a very organic sense is right where it needs to be…now I have to figure out how to do it with scripted material, LOL!

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Audition: “Ci-Ci’s Pizza” @ Ross Lacy Casting. I walked out feeling good about my performance.

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Audition/Producers: “Cold Case” @ Shaner/Testa Casting. I really want to get on this show before it goes out of production. I’ve gotten close a few times…at least I’ve felt like I’ve gotten close. Two of my favorite associate CD’s, Shaunda Grace Jones & Kimberly Foster-McCollum, work at this office and the partners, Dan Shaner & Michael Testa are the type of Casting Director’s where you feel what they feel. You walk out of the room kinda knowing how it went.

I make the long walk in the rain to the bungalow on the Warner Bros. studio lot. I smiled as I entered; I felt good – great in fact. I’ve had good memories on the WB lot. I did my first real TV job there, “Friends” on January 14th & 15th 1999. THAT was really special. I was still working @ OLD NAVY then. I shudder to think of that experience. I also worked on a Pilot there in ’05 I think; I had my fitting for “Ocean’s Thirteen”; long story there and on and on…

There were several actors ahead of me when I signed in, which was good; it gave me a chance to really focus on the task at hand. After waiting about 30 minutes I overheard a few other actors talking about having already been there earlier in the day and it dawned on me that this was a producer session – great!

Shaunda, the associate for the show, greeted me warmly. I met her in a workshop years and years ago. She called me in for the role I booked on “ARLI$$” back in February 2001. A few minutes later, Kimberly, the other associate said she had just seen me in something on TV. She couldn’t remember what it was; which made it seem like I “work all the time”. I figured it was GREY’S ANATOMY” which just aired twice last week. It’s funny because I started feeling like “that actor”. Ya know, the guy who “knows everyone”. Lol! I am SO not that guy. Yeah, I know a few people, but not at all “everybody”. I wanted to just disappear. Crazy I know. For some reason I spend much of my life trying “stay out of the way”. It’s something I better get used to.

Ironically, the scene I did on ARLI$$ was with Sandra Oh; who I also did the scene with on GREY’S ANATOMY.

Anyway, the audition went well. I read it the first time and the director had some notes for me and I did it again. I would love to book this role; hopefully they’ll call with some good news.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Audition/Tape: “Parks and Recreation” @ Dorian Frankel Casting. I think this went well; not sure I’m right enough for it, but that’s for them to determine. At any rate, it was good to get into an office I hadn’t previously been in to.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Audition: “Hot in Cleveland” @ Greenstein/Daniel Casting. I’m not sure how this one went. I think the best part of it was before I actually read for the part. I didn’t know it was a producer session; I thought I was just going on tape. So I walk in and right away Sean Hayes, Jack from WILL & GRACE, made a comment about my tie and jacket and I responded in a way that made the entire room erupt in laughter. That’s good right? The actual read? Eh, it was okay, but I showed that I was funny. We’ll see I guess.

I attended an agent panel at SAG the other night and for the entire 2 hours I was thinking that one of my best friends cousin would be a good fit for one of the agents on the panel. So I left a message for this actress immediately after the event. Of course I didn’t really know if it would work, but I felt it would be worth a try. So she called me back the next day and I gave her my opinion about why I thought she should contact the agent and how I thought she should approach it. Two days later the actress called me back and said that the agent offered her commercial representation. Yay! I’ve seen the work of this particular actress and I believe she is more than ready to be auditioning on a regular basis. I hope it works for them both.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Audition: “Jiffy-Lube” @ Craig Colvin Casting. This went great! I have STILL never booked a commercial for this office. I’ve had many callbacks and avails, but have never gone the distance. 2010 is gonna change that. I’m going to book at this office in 2010…it’s just time.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Okay, busy day in store. Not sure how it’s all going to play out, but I‘ve got my game face on.

Audition: “Partnership for a Drug-Free America” @ Leilani and Jennifer Casting. I arrived at this audition early so I could, hopefully, get in and out so I could get to my second one on time in order to make it to my 3rd one on time.

So I arrived in Santa Monica and it seemed like it could work, but as I waited and waited it started to look like I was going to have to leave…without being seen. The audition is a PSA and I don’t think it pays. I’ll try to come back later, but right now, I have to get to ABC/Prospect for a job that I really want to book. LA traffic, be my friend.

I got to the studio about 3 minutes late, which I hate because I like to “find my center” before I go in to read. Of course, I was called immediately and as a result I was a little “off center”.

Audition: “Private Practice” @ Lowy/Brace Casting. Just getting this appointment is great news. Why? Because it’s part of a bigger plan to re-connect with this office. They are a very important casting office in this town and I wanna be on their radar. I’d had auditioned for them in years past, but I wanted to freshen up.

I met one of the associates in mid-October. Got called in for a pre-read on “Grey’s Anatomy” 10 days later and had a call back that same afternoon…the callback just went okay. One week later I was called straight to producers for the next episode of “Grey’s Anatomy”. This one again went really well and later that afternoon got the news that I was in the running for the role. Seventeen days later I was officially booked and shot the role the next day. So the plan is to “crossover” to one of their other shows’ “Private Practice”…and he we are. The plan is working!

I went in and laid down the first take, got some direction and did it again. I nailed the re-direct, but I walked away feeling a little confused. Why? I’m not sure. Maybe because I know that this particular office usually gives callbacks “in the room” and I didn’t get the go-ahead that I was being called back. That’s okay, maybe they’ll call later…or maybe I sucked, lol! I don’t think I sucked, but I wanted to move to the next round. I’ll get ‘em next time…and there WILL be a next time. So I race out of there in dash on my way back to Santa Monica for a commercial callback.

Audition/Callback: “Lowe’s” @ Joe Blake Casting. Ehh, I felt okay about this one. There was some confusing about what role I was being seen for, but that wasn’t a big deal. Ya never know, but I didn’t walk out of the room feeling that I was the guy that was going to get the job.

Afterwards I drove back to the first audition that I had to leave in earlier in the morning to see if there was a chance I could still be seen…and there was. I went in, had a little fun and that was that.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Okay, playtime is over. It’s time to go back to work and Los Angeles. I’ve been doing some stuff for the family business the whole time I’ve been on “vacation”; so it hasn’t been much of a vacation. No complaints though, I love it. Sometimes, I wish things were different in my family, but I think my family is like many families – fractured. Some elements of it are healthy and other parts seem to be beyond repair. So what do you do? I don’t know the answer to that. I have chosen to take the parts that work and try to move forward in a positive direction, but I’m not sure that is the right way to go about it. Who knows, maybe tomorrow will bring another solution.

Anyway, my flight back was pretty uneventful except for the insanely long check-in time because one of the x-ray machines was broken. Fortunately, I got on the plane in the nick of time.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

See ya! 2009 is done and over. I didn’t make as much money as I’d hoped. Didn’t book as many jobs as I’d hoped. Didn’t make as many friends as I’d hoped. Didn’t get as much rest as I’d hoped. Didn’t ride my motorcycle as much as I would have liked either, but it was a very productive, highly successful and necessary year.

I’m thankful to have steady employment. Yeah, I feel a little weird saying that out loud because I didn’t move to Los Angeles to ask people if they want salt on their margarita. I moved here to perform and it’s what I should be doing. That said, the night job has been a positive thing for a few reasons for me. It’s tough to say the least…especially working the graveyard shift, but you do what you have to do while you have to do it.

I have a lot of tricks in my backpack to help me get through the nightshifts…mostly, it’s called denial. I deny it. I mask it. I tricked myself into believing it’s something that it’s not until I could find a better coping method. It’s worked way better than I could have imagined. Yes, occasionally my bag of denial runs shallow and it’s just me and the reality of my situation. It is sometimes depressing or even very depressing, but I feel that I’m doing the right thing. I wasn’t always sure of that.

2009 was much better than 2008, but 2010 HAS to propel me forward in all aspects of my life. It has to. I have so many areas of improvement, but I think I’m getting a handle on who I am, what my strengths are and what it is I have to offer. When I’m good I’m really good and when I’m not it seems like such a blasé thing. 2010 and beyond here I come!

I can’t think of a better way to start off 2010 than to go dirt bike riding. It wasn’t the same as how we used to go in years past, but I got to ride nonetheless. I SO look forward to the day when I can go riding on a regular basis and truly afford it. It’s an expensive, dangerous sport, but one day I’m gonna have my ducks in a row and be able to have a bike on the West coast. Until then I have to be happy with my 1 or 2 days a year in the dirt.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Last night I attended a mini class reunion of my high school. It was great to see so many faces that I hadn’t seen since who knows when. Through many different types of social networking we are all able to stay in touch. I look forward to the next one.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

I’m out of here! Yes! I have an early morning flight home to Virginia Beach for the holidays. It’ll be good to get out of Los Angeles for a bit, but truthfully, I’m looking forward to getting back to work as well. I’m planning on 2010 being a great year and not just for me. I think many of us are going to rebound and make a lot of great things happen.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Audition: “Lowe’s” @ Joe Blake Casting. I wasn’t sure how this was going to go because sometimes when there is a lot going on I get in my head and my best performance is in the car…on the way home. I’m pleased to say that it went very well.

Audition: “Cheez-its” @ Ross Lacy Casting. This is a multi-spot campaign…yup, a big deal. I felt good about what I left in the room…definitely callback worthy. We’ll see what they think.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

I had the wonderful opportunity to, again, read the scripts of at risk high school students. It’s always an interesting and fun experience to get a glimpse into the world of today’s kids. It’s been a great thing for me too as a performer.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Audition: “Jack-in-the-Box” @ Alyson Horn Casting. This was fun, fun, fun and I hope to get to the next step in the process.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Shooting: “cars.com” @ Polsa Rosa Movie Ranch in Acton, CA, near Palmdale. Gotta put on my game-face today. Why? Because I’m tired, but it’s a good tired. I’m tired because I’ve been hustling, trying to make things happen. I can’t expect anyone else to work harder than myself and I am totally up for the challenge.

Last night I got a call for a commercial audition for today, but of course I’m shooting…and not right in town. I think the casting notification informing me that I have an audition goes out from the casting notice company and not from my agency. That is a good thing because I like knowing about it as well because sometimes I know better than my agency what I can and cannot get accomplished in a day. I don’t want to miss an audition unless I absolutely have to.

I worked last night from 10pm until 7:45am; got home about 8am and needed to leave my apartment by 8:30 to get to the location by 9:30. The commercial appointment time is 3:38pm in Santa Monica at the same casting office that cast the “cars.com” spot. I’m not confirmed for the commercial appointment for obvious reasons, but you better believe this brotha right here is going to try to make it.

The drive out to Acton was beautiful! It’s amazing how close you can be to Los Angeles, but the landscape is completely different. I was heading out to the boondocks and I couldn’t wait to get there. I even saw a deer crossing the road about 8 miles from the ranch were shooting at.

I arrived at the location, parked where I was instructed to park and a van took me to basecamp. There I checked in with one of the PA’s and was led to my honeywagon. It was snug, but most importantly, warm, dry and had a place where could sit and write. A few minutes later I went to the make-up trailer which took less than 60 seconds and then to the wardrobe department. My clothes were pressed and ready to go. Of course I went by the craft services table to get some fruit to snack on.

I met up with a few of the other actors I’ll be working with; one of which was in the same callback group as I. About an hour later a van took us to the location where we were to shoot. It was out in the middle of nowhere and a bit chilly with very dark clouds just off into the distance. Actually, it seemed that we were in the clouds since they were almost at ground level.

Over the next 45 minutes the rest of the production team set up shop. We, the talent, were then placed in a “people mover” type van closer to the set. Finally, Ethan, the 2nd AD came to brief us on what was to happen. They were going to bring us all out for a camera rehearsal, but one person, not me, needed to change wardrobe.

A few minutes later I found out that “not me” was, in fact, “me”. So everyone went to set and they wanted me to stay back in the van, but my new wardrobe was back at basecamp. A moment later they started the camera rehearsal and I still didn’t have my new wardrobe. I’m watching them rehearse and I’m thinking to myself, “I ain’t gonna stand here and let them rehearse and get used to doing it without me. No, it ain’t going down like that”. So I moved closer to the monitor where the director, Craig Gillespie, could see me. Before long he motioned me into the scene. I kept an eye out for wardrobe coming back with my clothes and after a moment they did. At this point it was urgent because “camera rehearsal” quickly turned into “picture’s up!” So I ran back to the people mover van with the stylist and she’s helping me get undressed at the speed of light. Yes, I was vaguely aware of how weird it was that this was taking place. I’ve been undressed by a woman before, but this was just funny. So there I am, or better yet, there we are, ripping my clothes off and then we start to dress me back up again. The funniest part for me was her tucking in my pants, straightened me out and then pulling up my zipper while someone else was doing my shoes! What was I doing? Enjoying the ride. Yup, just enjoying the ride.

I sprinted back to the set, running at full speed and got back into the shot. My wardrobe changed me from a tourist to the safari guide’s assistant. I preferred this role. It was very, very cold and starting to drizzle and my new attire didn’t include the jacket that I had been wearing as a tourist, plus I was now in short sleeves. I don’t like to be cold and I was freezing, but I was a trooper about it.

A few hours later we were finished. It was a great time and I worked with great people. I think it’s going to be a 60 second spot for the Super Bowl and then hopefully it will continue to run afterwards…with my performance still in it.

After we wrapped I went down to basecamp and had a great lunch and got back on the road. Oh yeah, remember that commercial appointment that I didn’t know if I could make? Well, I was going to try to make it. I had trouble getting cell reception so I couldn’t call my agency. I tried emailing and that wouldn’t go through either, but after getting about 10 miles away from the location I was able to get in touch with them. The word was that they casting until 5:30. I felt I could make it to Santa Monica in time.

Audition: “Chase” @ Cathi Carlton Casting. I wasn’t on the list and that created some static trying to get seen, but I was able to work it out. The audition went pretty well so hopefully I’ll get a callback.

I needed to get home as soon as possible to get a few hours rest before having to go to work tonight, but you know how LA traffic is…especially on Friday…on the I-10 coming from Santa Monica.

I had a very, very successful day. Some said I should have taken the time off from the night job, but I’m not really wired like that. I think I’ve called in once in my entire life – back in New York when I had an eye infection. It’s all good; I’ll get some sleep over the weekend.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Wardrobe fitting for “cars.com”: I auditioned for the Safari Guide, but I think they booked me as one of the tourist. Actually, they fitted me for both; mostly tourist, but one outfit as a safari guide.

We shoot the day after tomorrow in Acton, CA, about 50 miles away from Los Angeles near Palmdale.

While I was at the fitting I saw that they were still auditioning for other roles – glad I was already officially booked. I mentioned that because often times I’m asked, “how long does it take for them to make the decision?” It varies because things are always changing. Even for this spot my callback time was moved up 2 hours earlier because several roles were cut from the spot. My take is that you just never know. I just try to show up prepared, with a great attitude, do well in the room and be extremely thankful that I have an appointment which means somebody in this town believes in me…they should believe in me.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

I was so tired after working last night, but the call to inform me that I’m on avail for “cars.com” made it easier to get up and ready for my audition today.

Audition: “Budweiser” @ Alyson Horn Casting. This was fun; I got to lie about some of the ways I order a beer at a bar. Obviously, I’ve never ordered a beer at a bar…at least not for myself. It was fun, that acting thing, the committing to something that wasn’t. I like it. I wanna be an actor. Hey, I am an actor! A professional actor too!

As I was walking back to my car my commercial agency called. As usual, I let the call go to voicemail. I retrieved the message, thinking it might be a call for another appointment for today, but that thought changed when I heard the voice of my agent Samantha. These days most of my correspondence with my agents is through email. We correspond quite often, just not verbally and when I do talk to someone it’s usually to the wonderful Leah or the wonderful Jamie. So hearing Samantha’s was great surprise. Talking to my commercially agents, in my experience, usually means one of two things: either I’m being booked on a job or I’m being unbooked on a job. (fyi, the latter sucks.)

It was Samantha congratulating me because I booked the “cars.com” commercial. YES!!! The prospective run is: national network, cable, internet and a possible screengrab for the “cars.com website. Cool! No mention of the Super Bowl.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

I guess I didn’t book the “Star Trek” DVD Promo. Clears me up for my callback today.

Callback: “cars.com” @ Cathi Carlton Casting. This went well, really well. I felt a direct connection with the direction…who knows. I have a feeling it might be a Super Bowl spot. I’ve never done a Super Bowl commercial. Often times those commercials seem to just run during the Super Bowl and not continue. The spec sheet said “National network, cable, internet”. It doesn’t matter; I just need to do my thing in the room.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

YES!! I have a callback on Monday for “cars.com”. Of course, I’m still on avail for the “Star Trek” DVD Promo. Could get sticky, but things usually work out.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

I was part of a roundtable discussion for www.castingabout.com today. They offer up-to-date casting director/associate/assistant information to actors. I like these guys; they offer a great service for actors.

Cool, I got word this evening that I’m on avail for the “Star Trek” DVD Promo and that it now shoots on Monday instead of Friday.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Audition/callback: “Star Trek” DVD promo @ Deborah Kurtz Casting. This went great! CD Jeff Gerard was who I actually read for; it was important for this to go well. It’ll be a quick turn-around on this one because it wardrobes tomorrow/Thursday and shoots Friday. They should hire this brotha right here…jus sayin.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Audition: “cars.com” @ Cathi Carlton Casting. This goes well, not particularly fun or not, but I definitely got travel as a character in my mind. That’s usually fun.

Audition: “Maltesers” @ Craig Colvin Casting. This one went well and was fun; hopefully I’ll get a callback.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

I just returned to LA from Virginia Beach, my hometown, for the Thanksgiving holiday. I hadn’t planned on going home for Thanksgiving, but several family members, including first and seconds cousins, I hadn’t seen in years were going to be there. The trip was “mostly excellent”; there was one element that was quite challenging, but that was nothing new really. I’ll try to dwell on the “mostly excellent” part. All in all I’m really glad I was there to share with everyone.

On my flight back to LA I had a layover in Dallas and while I was standing on the jet way, waiting in line to get on the plane, I noticed this kid in front of me with some of the coolest hair I’d ever seen. Judging by his attire and swagger and immediately thought he was a rat. Growing up in Virginia Beach a rat is a kid who is excels in many action-sport type athletics. For example he might be known as a surfer, but if you gave him a skateboard he’d do well right away. Same with skiing, snowboarding, etc. BMX, mountain biking, motocross, etc.

Anyway, so I‘m checking this kid out and I noticed he was wearing a Volcom backpack. Volcom is a surfing/action sports apparel company. Upon further inspection I saw that he was also wearing Volcom pants and a Volcom jacket…along with DVS shoes and a Vestal watch. Most people, although they may own many products of a certain brand, they don’t actually wear that many of the same labels together at the same time…unless they are sponsored athletes.

The kid was talking to another guy who was a little taller and looked a little older – they were speaking Spanish. The taller guy looked, maybe 20 and the dude with the cool hair was maybe 18. So I’m checking out the older guy and he was wearing a Red Bull hat along with a Red Bull pullover. I had it in my mind the guys were really talented, sponsored kids in something action sports-related; I wasn’t sure what it was, but I figured either snowboarding, skating, skiing, bodyboarding or surfing. My hunch was skating or surfing.

The line is moving slowly, but I finally get on the plane and to my seat, 28F, (I was born on the 28th and my last name starts with an F, so I chose 28F) and guess who is seating in my seat. Yup, the cool, crazy-haired kid. I give him the point and the nod and he gets that he’s in my seat. He moves over and I plant myself in the window seat.

After we got settled I asked him if he is a surfer or a skater and he eagerly answered “surfer!”. He’s from Costa Rica. I told him about some surf breaks that I had ridden, back in the day, in Southern California and he was quite surprised that I knew anything about surfing. His plan is, after a few weeks in California, to go to Hawaii on the 7th of December for the first time. A little later he asked me how long the flight was – 2 ½ - 3 hours I told him.

Quite a bit of time passed and we hadn’t said anything to each other so I figured I’d use some of my newly acquired Spanish on him. So I turned to him and said “Qué es su nombre?” His face lit up and he replied, “Me llamo Carlos”. I said, “Mi nombre es Stephon”. He came back with “mucho gusto”. I hit him with, “Igualmente”. He tried to keep going, but I raised my hands in defeat; I had no more Spanish to tap into. He said my accent sounded pretty good. I told him I had taken a short class at a local college. What he didn’t know was that I actually rehearsed for like a full 60 seconds before I said my first line in Spanish to him, lol! I was nervous that I would stutter or something.

So after the plane landed and we were taxiing into the gate I asked him if there were any videos of him surfing on the internet. “Yes!!” he replied, through his slightly broken English; “Google me, my name, Carlos. Carlos Munoz. I write my name and email. Are you on Facebook?” he asked. I told him yes and gave him a business card while he wrote down his name and email address. I told him I was going to check him out when I got home.

Moments later, at baggage claim, Carlos had caught up with his traveling buddy, Diego. I went over and asked him if I could get a photo with him…and his cool ass hair. His friend, Diego, took a snap shot of the two of us.


Me and Carlos Munoz - Supa star surfer @ LAX. Just
16 years old. Big hair, doing big things.

Later, when I got home, I searched for Carlos on the internet and it turns out he is only 16 years and is the Costa Rican National Surfing Champion and reportedly the hottest prospect to come out of South America. The kid is the truth on a surfboard…and yeah, we’re Facebook friends. I’ll definitely be following his career very closely.

I love the feeling of being a fan, impressed by the talent of others.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

I’m leaving on a jet plane today to go home to Virginia Beach for the Thanksgiving holiday. Hopefully it’ll be a nice break from Los Angeles.

After my friend Jon dropped me off at LAX I went inside the terminal to get sorted to check my bag. A Indian woman, who said she was blind, approached me. I had no idea what I was getting myself into, but of course you wanna help if you can. Yeah, I was suspicious, but it seemed like she was really blind and really needed help.

She had a piece of paper in her hand with flight choices on it from priceline.com; the prices were starting @ $213, but the dates were from Nov. 9th…2 weeks ago. Weird.

As a precaution; I kept my bags on the other side of me, away from her, but I didn't wanna stand too close to her in case she was gonna reach in my pocket…ya never know.

She wanted to deal with United Airlines, but didn't have the phone number.

I believed she was blind; she had the standard walking stick with the red tip and the sensibility of someone who couldn't see.

I googled United Airlines (we were in the American Airlines terminal) on my phone and called them for her. I told the rep what the deal was and asked the blind woman for the dates and city she wanted to travel to. The flight he quoted was triple what she had quoted on the piece of paper; then he put me on hold to check further. At that point I had to go check my bags, but told her I'd come back.

I came back and she was still on hold with the rep. A few more minutes and I HAD to go. So I took her to the counter and the ticket person seemed familiar with her, but she also seemed like she might be just brushing her off.

I kept looking at the woman and then the ticket person and back; I wasn't sure she was going to help the blind woman...or if the blind woman was a scam artist...or if I was being punked. My eyes started watering and I told her I was sorry, but I had to catch my own flight. I was freaking out! My heart didn’t want to leave this woman without being able to finish what she asked me to do, but if I missed my flight it would’ve been bad news. The ticket agent assured me that she would deal with the blind woman when she had a moment. I stood there, about to burst into tears, and said I was sorry and walked away.

I know I'm being a little dramatic, but I just couldn't imagine not being able to see and doing the just the simplest things that I now take for granted.

I went to get in line for security and it was waaay too long for me to be able to get on my flight so I went back to the ticket agent and she walked me all the way to the front of the line to the actual security conveyor belt. I had no idea they had the power to do that and it was my saving grace because there is no way I would have made my flight otherwise.

I rush through the security check and get on the plane and the weirdness continues. I got to 32D, an aisle seat, and an Indian man has the window seat. Before I can even sit down he hands me his camera and wants me to take a photo of him. He seemed nice enough, but it felt a little weird.

A moment later I'm finally getting settled and opened a bag of chips to snack on; I eat a few. About 15 minutes later he pulls out the biggest bag of chips I've ever seen and offers me some. I then feel bad for not offering him some of mine-I only had a normal, little bag.

So just before we land in Philly, when everyone shoot be seated, he gets up to use the restroom. When he returns he sits in the middle seat…right next to me. What??? That seat had been unoccupied the whole 4+ hour flight. I'm thinking "What the Hell is going on?" Then after we land, but were still taxiing he gets up and moves back to his window seat. I was just about ready to be a hero and take his ass down. Was he in cahoots with the blind woman? It was just bizarre. I wanna go home…now.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Happy Birthday, my mom, Louise Fuller - I miss you; I love you. RIP

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Audition/Tape/Producers: “Enlightened” @ Cami Patton Casting. This one went okay; yeah, just okay. Okay, isn’t good enough. Not here in Los Angeles; the big game, the Super Bowl. Okay ain’t good enough. Get it right Stephon.

Audition: “Budweiser” @ Cathi Carlton Casting. This went great. I have to get a callback on this. They need me for this spot!

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Audition: “Progresso” @ Kathy Knowles Casting. This was fun and, of course, I think I’m perfect for it.

Audition: “The Ad Council” @ Michael Sanford Casting. Ugh, this one, not so much. I don’t think I’ll be getting a callback for this one. Too bad, it would have been a chance to work with kids.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Shooting “Grey’s Anatomy” @ ABC/Prospect Studios.

I’m tired, really tired. I got off work early this morning; my call time is early this morning.

I’ve been running like crazy for the past several weeks including a little travel and I’m going home for thanksgiving next week. It’s all good though ALL GOOD; I didn’t move to LA to watch paint dry. So I’m not complaining; I’m just voicing stuff.

So I get to the studio and my little trailer and wardrobe and contract are ready and waiting for me. Shortly afterwards the 2nd 2nd AD leads me into the hair and make-up trailer. The first people I see are Sarah Oh and Ellen Pompeo in their chairs preparing for the day of shooting. The two ladies in charge of hair take a quick look at me and say ‘Ha! You’re easy and perfect; see you on set”. Then I go to make up and she takes a look at my skin and says “oh you’re fine, I’ll get you later”. I’m done; free to go back to my trailer to finish filling out my contract.

30 or so minutes later there is a knock on my door and it’s time to go to set for a quick rehearsal. I walk out to the golf cart and Sarah Oh is getting into the front seat while I get in behind the driver. Sarah turns around to introduce herself and says, “we’ve met before…haven’t we?” I was really caught by surprise, but yes, we had met before – we worked on “Arli$$” together on February 6th, 2001 @ the Andrita Stages. I could not believe that she remembered me.

Then the “Grey” in “Grey’s Anatomy” – “Meredith Grey” series lead Ellen Pompeo slipped into the back seat beside me and introduced herself. Sandra immediately told her that we’d work together, years ago and we made the short trip to the stage to rehearse.

We did a quick blocking run-through and then again and one more time before 2nd team took our places to do the camera stuff…I even had a stand-in. I was back in the trailer for a bit and then the call for make-up came. Shortly after that we headed back to the stage to shoot the scene.

It was fun! It’s always fun. I really look forward to the day when I’m acting on a daily basis as a regular on a show…it’s got to be one of the best jobs in the world.

After about 3 or 4 different camera setups we were finished and I was wrapped for the day. Success! It was a smaller role, but I’m thrilled to have booked it. The really funny part is that 2-3 years ago I may have decided to not go in on it, but times change.

Check this out. On a medical show like Grey’s Anatomy one would imagine that they would go through scores of lab coats over 5 seasons. Right? Random tech here, random doctor there. I thought it was interesting that my lab coat had my character’s name embroidered on it and not on a removable tag. I wonder if they do that for all characters because, I assume, that after embroidering a lab coat they couldn’t use it again for another character. That would be a lot of lab coats. That makes me wonder if maybe my character might return to the show in the future…hmmm. Who knows, I sure don’t…one can only hope.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Okay, crazy day on tap. I have 2 auditions, a callback and my rescheduled headshot session. Somehow, someway I will get all of this done. The first audition is at 11am, but the callback is at 11:05 a couple of miles away. The second audition is at 5pm at the same place as the first, but the headshot session is scheduled for 3pm. What to do, what to do.

I called my agent to see if I could be seen for the 5pm one at the same time as the 11am one which I would actually go to @ 10am. You never really because sometimes there are different categories being seen throughout the day; fortunately the answer was yes.

Audition: “Hyundai” @ Ross Lacy Casting. This went great. It was a simple question and answer type dealio and I was firing on all eight – super funny, sharp and entertaining. I don’t know if that’s what they were looking for, but that’s what they got and I had a great time. Afterwards, I headed to the other side of the facility to the 5pm appointment.

Audition: “Freschetta” @ Ross Lacy Casting. This one went pretty good; not great, not particularly fun, but good nonetheless.

I was finished by 10:55 and when I got in the car I had a message from my theatrical agency. The word was that the offer finally came in for “Grey’s Anatomy”; I had auditioned for the role 17 days ago. I was thrilled to be booked on the show! Yeah, it would be nice if it was a larger role, but it’s great to be booked. They didn’t low-ball my quote AND it’s a SAG show. So, so glad it isn’t an AFTRA show. Oh yeah, I shoot tomorrow.

I arrived at the callback, right on time, at 11:05. It goes really well for me; not so well for my “wife”/partner. The director was pretty direct about how he felt about what she was doing. I felt bad for her; I definitely been in situations where things weren’t going well at a callback or audition.

I rushed back home to get ready for my headshot session when the Grey’s Anatomy wardrobe department called to schedule a fitting for 4pm. Nope, can’t do it. I told them I could do 2:15 and then head straight to my photo shoot. They agreed to that. I arrived, tried on their choices, and was in and out in 8 minutes. From there I went straight to see the photographer, John Ganun.

I don’t particularly like doing the headshot thing, but I’m usually able to put my game face on and have a successful shoot. The headshots that I’m currently using are almost 6 years old and they still aren’t bad…even after all this time. But I feel that it’s time to put something fresh into the marketplace. The shoot went well; I think we got some good stuff. Exhausted, I went home to get a little sleep before going to work and then to shoot Grey’s Anatomy directly afterwards.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

This morning (after working all night last night) I drove out to Sun Valley High School to participate in a WGA-sponsored program to read scripts that some of the students have written. It was a blast! I think we read 7 scripts and I was in a about 5 of them.

It’s crazy because, we the actors, have almost zero time to prepare. We all just jumped in and went for it. In two of the scripts my character name was “Jose” so I used my newly acquired Spanish accent – funny and fun. I’ll be doing more of these in the near future. While I was working with the kids my agent emailed me to say that I’m still pinned for Grey’s Anatomy – wow, it’s been 2 full weeks since I auditioned and they still haven’t booked the role. I guess they haven’t “moved on without me”…at least not yet.

Afterwards, I drove home. Not yet to sleep, but to change clothes for a commercial audition.

Audition: “Taco Bell” @ Ross Lacy Casting. It went well and I’m right for it. NOW I can go home and sleep.

While asleep, my agent sends me another message informing me that the casting office for Grey’s Anatomy called to ask for my quote, but it still isn’t an official booking. That is great news. They didn’t say, at least not yet, that they won’t pay my quote (it isn’t that high) AND the fact that it’s a SAG job. Thankfully it isn’t an AFTRA job. Right now, SAG money is the best money for me.

Oh yeah, check out my friend's new blog http://badassnikabrown.blogspot.com/

http://www.stephonfuller.com

I was scheduled to shoot new headshots today, but at the last minute, a same-day audition came up and conflicted with the time.

Audition: “Febreeze” @ Craig Colvin Casting. It had a great time and a great partner to work with. I still have never booked a job for Craig, but I sure appreciate him keeping me on his regular list of actors he calls in.

I rescheduled be my photo session for Monday. Hopefully, I can get it done then. Shooting headshots is a very anxiety-ridden process for me. I don’t feel all that photogenic, but I’ve gotten great results over the years.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Audition/Print go-see “Intel” @ Katie Taylor Casting. You know how these go; quick-fast, and in a hurry. It was over just as it started. They should book a brotha.

I still haven’t heard anything further about Grey’s Anatomy; I guess I’ll assume they’ve moved on without me. That’s okay, but for some reason, I still think I’m gonna book this job…not sure how if I also think they’ve moved on. Maybe I should call my agent and ask.

My agent said, yes, I am still in the running for the job. That was great news, surprising and great.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Over the weekend I went to Phoenix to visit my friend SonHui and see the Grand Canyon. Believe it or not I didn’t know that the Grand Canyon was located in Arizona. I always though it was in Colorado; I guess the Colorado River made me think that. Hey, I’m just being honest.

It was great to get away for a bit. I have a 115+ vacation hours at my “other job” and I need to use them so I bought a plane ticket. It is a breath taking thing to see. I have a hard time imagining just how long it has taken create that wonder of the world. I think, one day, I’d like to go back and take a mule ride and/or go white water rafting.

Back to work tonight…at the “other job”.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

My agent called to say that I’m still in the running for the job on Grey’s Anatomy”. Actually, it seemed more like I’m “the choice”; they just aren’t sure exactly what day it will shoot. They want to make sure before they book so they don’t have to pay for another day. I’ll take that as great news.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Audition/Tape: “Land of the Astronauts” @ Morman/Boling Casting. This is a SAG Modified Low Budget feature starring David Arquette. It went okay. It involved me, as a doctor, working with a patient that wasn’t really there. It went okay.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Today I was a member of a roundtable session with executives from the Internet Movie Database (IMDb) along with about a dozen other actors. We discussed what IMDB is to us, as individuals, how we use it, what we wish it would do that it currently doesn’t, etc.

The biggest topic was, of course, the “age thing”. Why do they list our date of birth? Why won’t they remove it if requested? It doesn’t affect me so much, because early on, back in the day, I entered my own date of birth June 28th, 19?? They acknowledged that having the age displayed can cost an actor a job in some situations; especially women. They’re trying to figure out a way to make everyone happy. Maybe placing it somewhere else within the profile and not on the front page could be an option. Maybe giving the actor control over it; I’m not sure I see that happening. The thing is that the casual viewer and some industry professionals do want to know an actors actual age. They’re trying to please many different groups of people. I’m not sure what the answer is, but they are looking into coming up with some sort of solution.

The StarMeter is a measurement of how many hits any page gets. It’s updated weekly. Pages get hits for any number of reasons some organic, some not so organic. No matter the reason, a hit is a hit and they all count.

Another hot topic was actors with the same or very similar names with credits that get mixed up with each other and the difficulty in getting them corrected. They recommended going through the traditional channels of adding/changing data and if that doesn’t work contact them directly. How do you do that??? Since you can’t really get them on the phone. How do you contact them directly? I think I have a few ideas. Plus, now I know where they live…or work rather.

That led to the issue of not being able to contact a human being on the phone. They discussed the notion of having a customer service department.

We spent a bit of time on the resume feature. Most of the actors in attendance didn’t use the feature, but the few that did gave their reasons why. Myself, I don’t use the feature. I don’t have anything against it; I’m just don’t feel I need to pay extra for it.

Why is it so difficult to remove a photo once it’s on the site? I don’t know; I’ve never tried to remove any photos. I didn’t really hear a straight answer to that. One actor said he was able to remove photos without issue. Being able to rearrange the photos was discussed as well.

We discussed being able to view credits in a different order other than chronologically. Also, the possibility of being able to highlight certain credits. Maybe, on your profile you could have something like “As seen on”; then have 3-4 of your favorite/best credits listed at the top of the page.

Another possible future feature that was discussed being able to have “favorites”. So if there is a group of 20 actors careers that you follow you can get to their profile very quickly with a single click. We talked about a feature of kind of a “Who knows who” type of thing. It might be similar to the degrees of Kevin Bacon type of thing, but more usable in the sense of being able to build and track relationships.

The tracking of commercials was brought up. I think that would be great. Yeah, now can put them in your “other works” area, but I think commercials warrant a legitimate category. That way casting/producers/directors etc. might have an easier way to track actors in commercials. Many film directors direct commercials as their “day job”. I think it would be great to compile that info as well.

I suggested being able to click on a director and, at a glance, be able to see what casting directors he/she has worked with. Same with producers, writers and the like. Most of this data is already there; it would just be making it easier to view at a glance.

We kicked around the notion of being to attach a video clip to a given credit – rights/clearance issues could be a problem.

Much more was discussed, but that’s about all my ADD-having ass can muster right now. I will say that it was an honor to be in the same room with the other actors in attendance. Some of them I knew, others I knew of but had never met and still others were brand new to me. I was proud to a part of such a sharp group of people who are very, very serious about their business. I also thank the IMDb executives for hosting such an honest roundtable to get the ear of us in the trenches.

After the meeting my agent informed that I am still being “pinned” for Grey’s Anatomy.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

I was supposed to hear something today about whether the “pin” in me for “Grey’s Anatomy” is to become a booking or a release, but there was no news…I’ll take that as good news.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Last night I went to pick up mail at my old apartment. It was weird being in that space that I had lived in for 11 years and seeing it set up for someone else and it’s a woman. I knew they would put tile in the kitchen the moment I moved out and of course they did. It looked great.

I saw “Precious” this afternoon. Simply incredible work in front of and behind the camera.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Remember that audition for “Grey’s Anatomy” last week that I got a callback on, but let “life get in the way”? Yeah, I kinda beat myself up over that for a while afterwards. The saving grace was that I felt I did very well in the first audition and, even still, the callback wasn’t bad. It was just that I lost my focus over something silly. I didn’t prioritize.

Anyway today, one short week later, I had another audition scheduled for the next episode of “Grey’s Anatomy”. It’s a very similar type of role; a few lines to move the story along. Also, this time I’m going straight to read for the producers/director/writers rather than having to pre-read.

Audition/Producers: “Grey’s Anatomy” @ Lowy/Brace Casting. This went really well. Even though I didn’t have too much to do I had a ball doing it. It was fun to give a couple of lines a beginning, middle and end. When I finished, one of the casting directors said “Great…as usual”. Huh? That comment caught me by surprise. Not because I didn’t think I did great, because I didn’t feel that she would have really known who I was enough to refer to me in a sense of having a track record with her. That is probably a classic example of me underestimating exactly what a casting director’s responsibility is – knowing actors and what they can do. I can do the job. Thank you Linda Lowy; you put a smile on my face.

Several hours later, while I was getting some much needed rest, my agent called to tell me that there is a “pin” in me for the role on the show. That was great news to wake up to! Of course, I’m going out of town this weekend. As they say, “Buy a plane ticket if you wanna get a job”. I got a plane ticket, several in fact, now I hope I get the job. I’ll figure out the logistics.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Audition: “FedEx” @ Kathy Knowles Casting. This was fun and went really well. I have a pretty good callback and avail ratio at this office and have booked in the past. It’s way beyond time to book again.

http://www.stephonfuller.com

Audition: “Grey’s Anatomy” @ Lowy/Brace Casting. This audition was for a small co-star that I’m really right for and should book. It was also a pre-read. I didn’t have a problem being pre-read for the role, but I’m really looking forward to bigger and better things.

I’d dropped a photo to this casting office a couple of weeks ago and more recently did a workshop that went really well with someone from the office. I’ve met several people from this office over the years, but recently wanted to reacquaint myself. I don’t know if the workshop had anything to do with being called in, but I’ll take an appointment however I can get it.

It was a 2-line role and right before I was to go in to read the casting associate added another line of dialogue. Cool, it gave me just a little bit more to chew on. So I go in the room and the first read felt great. Sometimes I wish I didn’t know so much about the casting process. Why? Because I’m “a thinker”, my mind is constantly at work. I feel it often gets in my way and prevents me from doing things exceptionally well, but it often helps me too. I wish I could just turn it off at will, but I also love that very part of me.

I knew they were determining callbacks in the room and I would pretty much know right away. Of course I needed to get a callback to move on to the next step.

The casting director seemed happy with what I brought to the table and gave a little more insight to the character. I took that info and did it again; the casting director said “perfect” and gave me a time for the callback – 45 minutes later.

This is where sh*t got interesting. My new mattress that I ordered almost 3 weeks ago was finally scheduled for delivery today between noon and 4pm. Yup, my callback was scheduled for 12 noon...

Right away I called the delivery company to get a closer picture of exactly when they would be there. He said, “right around noon”. To make a long story, I ended up driving home to meet them, which was by far the dumbest thing I could have done. I knew I could make it back in time for the callback, but my focus was a little off. Of course the delivery truck wasn’t there and I drove right back to the studio, arriving right at noon. I went in to read right away for the director. It went okay, not bad at all, but I was really upset with myself for not prioritizing. I know better than that.

http://www.stephonfuller.com