Sometimes it can be fun doing a self tape. Tristan had two sides that were mostly incomprehensible. There’s a helicopter, there’s shooting, there’s swearing. The scene we had to tape comes in right in the middle, and there is no context whatsoever. None. Somebody shouts “fuck” off screen. Nothing hangs together. Actiontastic.
I was on foley. I had a solid whup whup gunship sound on my phone, routed through a speaker. I had an AK47 on short burst fire through an iPad. I was reading all the other humans who were unfortunately meant to be women but there was just me. We had actual fun, and I know for certain that it would have been easier to play that scene that was mostly Tristan saying “what’s happening!” WITH all the foley than without it. I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again: Self tapes are part of the job now. I used to detest them. It’s such a big ask, to find somebody willing to do it with you when they have no skin in the game.
Tristan’s agent was in my year at Guildhall. We did a show together in Camden after leaving, to try and get the potential employers to watch us act. None of them came. Do they ever? He’s successfully agenting now. I’m still acting, still still still along with what like less than a fifth of my year group and that’s a good school. Today I tried to help my friend into an incomprehensible action movie job and remembered again how I might have a little bit of a boost if I just had somebody on the casting side who was rooting for me. We suspended a fan in an A frame. He bought the fab specially from Argos. I had to switch it on at the right moment so the helicopter would move his hair. Cheap but funny and it kind of worked. He was channeling Alan Rickman in Die Hard. I’d give him the job. Sadly it’ll probably go to somebody’s nephew or whatever but ’twas ever thus and all we can do is keep plugging.
I drove here, and afterwards it seemed logical to open a bottle of wine. I’m feeling great for it, despite it being the start of Ramadan. Time for a spot of good behaviour, joining the Lenten Christians and the Muslim world in a springtime fast. I’m wrapped up warmly in the Tristan snoring bed. A month of good behaviour? I can do that. I think… Ramadan Mubarak..X
AlBarclay 