Filming fit tips with Tommy

If you are like me and enjoy watching people suffer on TV, then you have probably seen "The Last 10 Pounds Bootcamp" and "Bulging Brides" on Slice.

Tommy Europe puts people through workout hell in their quest to get fitter and leaner. Having seen it many times from the comfort of my couch, I just finished filming a few little fit tip spots with Mr. Europe himself. Now I only had to do about 60 seconds of combined time of each exercise, but I needed to rest. At one point I couldn't get up off the mat. Seriously. I had to roll over and then push myself up. Yikes!

Tommy doesn't mess around. These exercises are HARD. I believe theses spots are destined for the show's website on slice.ca.

Now I know why I swim.

Tommy was very nice and generously gave me some additional pointers. Maybe I will have to do these movements in combination with my swimming. Then eat ice cream. Now you are working out the Candy-Coated way...

Here's a link to Tommy Europe's twitter page with a photo of the shoot. Witness my pain.
http://ow.ly/i/5cir

Friend of the Environment...Ms. Sarah H

Hey Ms. Sarah, on behalf of Mother Nature:

THANKS, LADY!

My dear friend Sarah has just returned home from caring for oiled birds in Louisiana. Yes, the birds that have been appearing covered in oil courtesy of BP and their bumbling. Admittedly, I don't know much about the hows and whys of this disaster (I don't like to watch the news-it makes me angry. I prefer to simply get onto my soapbox and bitch about it instead), but really, how much longer can this go on? I don't care about BP or how much this disaster is going to cost them. I care about about the toll on the environment.

The toll on the environment is exactly what Sarah has seen first-hand as she worked 15-hour shifts in sweltering heat to clean, care for and rehabilitate these birds. Not to mention the snakes and other wildlife she encountered on her porch when she came home for the day (snakes-eep)! Ms. Sarah worked hard for a month and has come home to tell us about it. We should all listen to her experiences and learn from them. I hope I never have to see oiled birds popping up in my Vancouver coast backyard, but when I go to the beach or look out at the water from downtown, all I see are tanker ships. It could so easily happen here.

Yes, there are many environmental issues out there, but the BP Gong Show has brought the oil/water debate to our dinner tables. Sarah has done her fair share (and will continue to do more, I am sure) for Mother Nature, and so I say... again... Thanks!

From one treehugger to another - I salute you, madam!

Read about Sarah's adventures on her blog (which I am following - you can find the link to the left), which is also where I snagged the photo of the baby pelican.

Just fill the goddamn cup with water, you losers!

There is nothing that pisses me off more than watching TV or a movie and the characters have a "cup of coffee" that is obviously an empty cup. Holding an empty disposable to-go cup from Starbucks looks a lot different than holding a to-go cup of actual hot coffee.

How hard is it for the props department to at least put some water in their friggin' cups? As soon as I see this act of laziness, I get ticked off and stop paying attention to the story. Hey, actors! If the props people won't fill your cup, at least think back to acting school and try to create realism. You are supposed to be acting with all your senses - and we all know that you can't gesture wildly without your dark roast flying around and those little cardboard coffee collars do not insulate your hand from the scalding beverage that was boiled on the surface of the sun. So at least try to act like you have something in the cup - and as an actor, you should know what imaginary beverage you have in the cup without it being mentioned in the script. Sheesh.

Empty Cup Syndrome runs rampant in Hollywood. When you start looking for it, you'll see it everywhere. Oh, and in live theatre as well.

Plus, Empty Cup Syndrome leads to an even worse condition called The Fake Swallow, which sounds dirty, but get your minds out of the gutter, people! I don't care if you are Meryl Streep, Robert DeNiro, or some hack in community theatre - no one can pull off The Fake Swallow.

Actors, please see this lesson on "Sense Memory" from Acting with James Franco.

Acting With James Franco Episode 1: "Sense Memory" from James Franco

Challenge of the Blogs

Recently my good friend Red proposed a blogging challenge. Never one to back down, I have picked up the gauntlet she has thrown down.

One week.

Seven days.

Seven blogs each.

Heck, I may do more than one blog per day. So there.

P.S. It starts today. It's on, Red.

Oscarpalooza... It's Over

The Oscars were held and, as predicted, The Hurt Locker is the Best Picture. Shame of shame - I did not win the Oscar Pool.

Curse you, Red!

I have not been able to duplicate my 2008 win. I declare war. 2011 is my year!! Even though I will be participating long-distance. I have been promised to be skyped in to the Calgary festivities from my new home in Vancouver.

I lost it in the smaller categories... that's where Red got me.

Good on you, Red! But next year - it's on.

The Results... Oscarpalooza

Here's my picks for the Academy Awards in the major categories:

WRITING (ADAPTED SCREENPLAY)

Who should win: Up in the Air

Who WILL win: Up in the Air

It won't win for Best Picture, so this will be Reitman's award.

WRITING (ORIGINAL)

Who should win: The Hurt Locker

Who WILL win: Inglourious Basterds

Quentin Tarantino will take this category for strong character and imaginative re-telling of WWII.

SUPPORTING ACTOR

Who should win: Christoph Waltz

Who WILL win: Christoph Waltz

Duh. Although I think Stanley Tucci is a distant second.

SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Who should win: Vera Farmiga

Who WILL win: Mo'Nique

The only reason I thought Vera Farmiga should win is that she did a surprising turn as a woman who out-Clooney'd Clooney. Plus, Precious was not my favourite film. But of course, it would be imbecilic to think that anyone other than Mo'Nique will take this cateory.

BEST ACTOR

Who should win: Jeremy Renner

Who WILL win: Jeff Bridges

Jeff Bridges has the whole "Oscar-for-an-entire-career" thing going for him, but I thought that Jeremy Renner did a fantastic job in The Hurt Locker that I wish he would win.

BEST ACTRESS

Who should win: Sandra Bullock

Who WILL win: Sandra Bullock

I would be surprised if Bullock didn't win. The Blind Side was a touching film and it's about time for a physical comedic actress to take the Oscar. Besides, Meryl already has enough... she can win next year.

BEST DIRECTOR

Who should win: Kathryn Bigelow

Who WILL win: Kathryn Bigelow

I am taking a chance here, but she obviously did the best job, 3-D or no 3-D.

BEST PICTURE

Who should win: The Hurt Locker

Who WILL win: The Hurt Locker

Again, I am taking the anti-Avatar stance here. Avatar was technically impressive, but it didn't have the entire package. The Hurt Locker is the way to go. I think it will have the shocking win!

So there you have it. Let's see how I do!!

Oscarpalooza... 10 out of 10

So, I watched it. And I almost wish I didn't.

Precious was not so precious. I still have emotional bruises. I think I need to read some Archie comics to bring back the goodness and light into my brain.

Yes, it was a well-made film with top-notch acting performances. But I wanted to kill myself after watching it. Or throw the TV off the balcony...

The TV remains safely ensconced in the corner of our tiny hovel and I am writing this blog, so I obviously did not do either.

After Precious I tried to watch some other Oscar films (The Lovely Bones and The Fantastic Mr. Fox), but after Precious, my heart and brain were no longer in it. I made take another stab at The Lovely Bones (no pun intended) before the Oscars tonight.

Up next: My picks for the Oscars!

8.5 hours and counting until the BIG event...

9 Down, 1 to Go...

Alright, so the new job, play rehearsals, and moving combination is not conducive to keeping a blogging schedule. Sue me.

I have seen 9 of the 10 Best Picture nominees... Precious is the only one remaining. Oy.

Last Monday: An Education. Good movie, great lead actress (Carey Mulligan) - I can see why she was nominated. Though it seemed to me to be your standard British film: staid and polite, with a stiff upper lid.

I also saw The Princess and The Frog. Very cute movie, well-written. It was a throwback to the old animated films Disney used to do (you know, before Pixar). The songs were not quite as catchy though.

Tuesday: District 9. Excellent sci-fi flick. Alien apartheid set in South Africa... kind of beats you over the head with the metaphor. The premise is that is the footage of a camera crew following around the main character while he does alien evictions in District 9. Then it switches back to a traditional movie where the camera is the invisible observer. But they still use the hand-held camera, with the shaky-I-am-in-the-action feel. It was a bit distracting.

Wednesday: The Hurt Locker. Best Picture. Period. Well written, well directed, well acted. I think Jeremy Renner should win for Best Actor. (He won't, but he should. He's got chops.) My favourite movie so far.

Thursday: A Serious Man. Seriously - Coen Brothers, what the hell? I do not get it. I chuckled a few times, but really... I did not get it. Red - will you please explain it to me? Red is the resident Coen Brothers expert.

So that leaves Precious. Saturday is the day.

(I still want to see The Lovely Bones, The Fantastic Mr. Fox, and The Young Victoria. I haven't been able to find The Last Station, The Messenger, and A Single Man though. One last attempt, and then, I give up!)

I will blog about my picks on Sat or Sun morning. Stay tuned!

Oscar-palooza continues...

Over the weekend, I saw the wretched "Avatar" (as I described in the previous blog), and then I followed it up with "Up" and "Invictus".

What can I say about "Up"? It was well-written, well-acted, and had its heart-tugging moments. I really enjoyed it.

"Invictus" was pretty good, although I can see why it wasn't nominated for Best Picture. I didn't really connected with the story emotionally. I think there was way more they could have done with the themes of racism and family.

Up next... Crazy Heart and The Hurt Locker

Oscar-palooza - 3 down, 7 to go

Over the weekend, I saw "The Blind Side" and "Inglourious Basterds". Two very different movies!

"The Blind Side" reminded me that it's possible the human race isn't going to pot. Sandra Bullock and Quinton Aaron (who played Michael Oher) were excellent.

"Inglourious Basterds" was a disjointed story with bits that made me cover my eyes, but Brad Pitt and Christoph Waltz made me giggle.

Next up: Avatar