Special thanks for the U short film!

Well, the U scene really wasn't a scene at all. It was a short film, a documentary but a tongue in cheek doc therefore making it a mocKumentary.  Yes, we were mocking my crazy idea and my behind the scenes "attitude".  I was at a point where I had the choice of a couple of scenes that would have been very difficult to pull together at the last minute or to have another palate cleanse, like the trailer or the interview.  Jay Kim came up with the idea.  I liked the idea because he was running the show and I could coast.  It was like I was an actor on set who was NOT producing.  This meant, I could be at all the shoots, watch the other actors but I had little responsibility.  When it came time to shoot my parts, it was oh so easy, I just talked off the top of my head.  Jay directed me to pretend like I was mad at the end of the scene.  I basically had to make up banter to go with the parts everyone else had shot.  It was a cake walk for the shoot anyway and I loved the break in action while merely wearing the hat of an actor ONLY.

So let's get to the faces we see but do not hear from and thank them appropriately.  Seen but not heard are Dave Thomas, Jeff Blanchard, Jennifer Enskat, Daniel and Halle Sovich, Vic Gideon and Jean Zarzour.  Jay inserted visuals from their respective scenes and as they were in the first take on the original sets, they fit in quite perfectly.  I appreciate all of the work they did for me and their wonderful contributions to my project.  I love those peeps!

Then there were the Director's of Photography whose footage we grabbed, including: Noel Maitland (B scene), Spencer Jay Kim (C and T scenes), Devon Collins (A, D, E, L S scenes), Andrew Gardner (J scene) and Brian Zaczek (K scene).  Noel came in to save the day on the B scene at the last hour and was instrumental in the edit right when we thought it was impossible to post, thus bringing it all to a beautiful finish.  Jay worked tirelessly on many scenes, acting, directing, writing, editing and was unending in his desire to contribute to my project.  Devon V. Collins was the man on so many levels with being there from the very first scene to shooting 9 of the 26 scenes and editing 11 of them in total! Andrew Gardner shot the J scene on the red camera thus creating one of the most beautiful onscreen moments in A to Z, was beyond the beyond with his level of professionalism and served as guidance to me on several other occasions throughout my project. Brian Zaczek was part of the duo that came in at the very last moment to pull my butt out of the fire for the K scene and worked endlessly on the green screen production of The River Wild.  To all of these cinematographers, I truly thank you for your contribution to my edits, shoots, and overall productions.

Then there are the stars of the Mocumentary. Catherine Albers (cla2@case.edu), Jay Kim (jkimgant@hotmail.com), Paul Floriano (florianoproductions.com), Tony Nicholas (tonenicholas.com), Jimmy Silver (thereelthing.com) and Greg Violand (greg0038@aol.com).  Cathy is a consummate professional on stage, on camera and in life she's a class act.  I appreciate her allowing us to come into her home and shoot this silly segment.  Jay conceived nearly every moment of the shoot and edit and was a great sport about eating a pastry on camera. I had to go for the joke and he went right along with it, love it!  Paulie was running around that day and had so much to do but without hesitation he drove over to Greg's house to participate in the U scene.  Again, ever so playfully and a good sport, he came up with comic bits that were real gems.  Tony Nicholas is a King in the world of music but being on camera isn't his thing per se, yet when others talked to me about the U scene, they mentioned how adorable he was and just how powerful his statements were.  Maybe he's got a future there!  As a side note, Tony is the one who encouraged me to take A to Z to another level by including professional crew members to widen the outreach of my project.  Jimmy struggled to say things that were unkind because from the word go he has been a support to my project.  He recorded the G scene and offered his studio, home, and encouraging words every step of the way.  Greg allowed us to come into his home, rearrange the furniture, and even let Paul Floriano in!  Of course I'm kidding, they are very close friends and I consider Greg that as well.  His performance in the L scene is one of my favorites and he was a great buddy to sit on his couch and rip me to shreds.  You can't just turn to anyone to tease you relentlessly all while bringing the love but these fine folks did that.  I appreciate you all.

Last but never least is Terri Negron who always dresses up my blog, and my life with her cheerful encouragement. She posted the U mini film everywhere for me, and I'm so grateful for that because with all I had to do for A to Z with Meryl and Me, I couldn't manage one more thing on my plate.  Thanks Terri for taking a side dish or two from my plate of responsibilities. (terri@fengshui5.com)