Hello acting fans, people of the world's Internet and fellow bloggers so its Friday and it's time to BLOG, yep, it's my turn to waffle on about H&H!
Just what has been happing? Well, as mentioned we did mange to get a meet this week (before Chris became ill) we had a few things to do, we had to sort out a costume test. Which we did and it did go well (well, sort of). It did turn out during our test that the item I had to try on was a wee bit small for me (yeah, sure, one size fits all, right) but then we found out there were actually buttons on the item too (which really Chris should have noticed before, as he is far more familiar with the item in question than I am - there that's your only clue!). So it did fit (just about) after unbuttoning (with help from Chris) though I am still going to have to modify the plan for the rest of the costume because of this. What is this all for? Well, it's an integral part of the next Vlog and thats all I can say.
GOOD GOD, NO!!! Nothing to do with THAT 'Mystery', URGH!
So what else has gone on. well, after some laughing, more of the fake trailer brainstorming and coming up with a few more Ideas we got on to talking once again about the hard to film 6th episode of series, yep, we havn't forgotten about that one, our Moby Dick (don't worry though, no whales will be harmed during filming). We are still getting on with it and it will happen as soon as we can do it. Plus I have been going over my lines like a good little actors, okay, a good fair-sized actor.
Oh, and one last note I also gave Chris some jelly (the stuff you eat). No, not to make him feel better while his poorly, it's so Chris can do a test with the prop we got in the post last week and, yep, once again I can't tell you too much about it because [SPOILERS]. I know, I know am a tease.
Well, that's all that's been happening for now, So we shall so you in the Future!
It was all going so well with props in the post and a vlog about ready to go, so really something had to go wrong. Yes, the two weeks shifts that took me out of the H&H loop have knocked us off track more than we realised and, due to additional circumstances this week, the next Actor's Log has been unavoidably delayed.
Yep, No Denzel for me.
I had forgotten about two things, you see, one was Mother's Day this coming weekend and the other being the Training Day I volunteered to take part in this Wednesday. No, I didn't get to hang out with Denzel Washington but I did learn the basics of First Aid at work, no, not that work, the other work. There was also a third thing as it turns out. After leaving my 2nd job's premises following the course finising I promptly headed home...and collapsed into a snotty, shivering mess as this ear infection/cold/whatever these godforsaken germs are came out. Urgh. That's why your Wednesday blog is coming to you on Thursday and the next vlog is (temporarily) scuppered. And why now I'm off for another hot drink. Vern will have more for you lot on Friday but now I'm off for tea amd sympathy.
Hello, Acting Fans and the rest of you - you know who you are! Yep, it's Friday, Friday, friday gotta get down a blog about what else has been happening since Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday. Well as Chris is busy working away, we haven't had a second meet-up (as we've tried to get into doing two in week, it seems to help us stay in the groove and get things done) so other that some preparation for the next Blog not much as been happening at all I'm afraid.
Other than me learning some of my lines for the next Vlog, oh, and doing some research of my own into some plots of the ol' movies. Why look back at old movies for the next blog? Well, this isn't actually for the next blog but further ahead - it is in fact part of the Top Secret, For Our Eyes Only, Ultra Classified Furture Plans of H&H, which have spun out of what we talked about in last week's blogs. This is something that may be quite a bit of the way down the line but we need to start to get things sorted out for it as it could be a big project, well, for H&H Productions anyways.
Me and Chris shall be meeting up again soon which will involve a costume test/fitting and a line run through, then it's of to film the vlog and, fings crossed you all should be seeing it very quite soon, soon indeed. You see, we've had a good omen today as our required bit of proppage for the vlog that we'd only just ordered turned up on Chris's doorstep this very afternoon (it's lucky his Mum & Dad were in to meet the postie too), how's that for service, eh? As to what it was, well, here's a clue...
Happy Humpday, Acting Fans, and it's good news on the H&H front this week, as a break on the work rota front has meant we have been able to do our usual knocking together of heads at H&H HQ. I also managed to put my tweak, spit and polish to the next vlog's script, which m'learned colleague and myself went over yesterday. Vern did have a few notes on the additions I'd made and, as the old adage goes about great minds, he said exactly what I had in mind for the specific sequences - the H&H Machine is running A-Okay. There was only one problem, as usual we had another idea to make the next vlog a bit more interesting. Yes, as usual we made the rod for our own backs and this new bit would require some additional proppage, which has sent me on an internet shopping search today. Luckily the necessary item or items was/were a reasonable price on Ebay and should be winging their way to us now. Fings crossed in time to get the Vlog done this month! We've also gotten ahead of ourselves and got a prop for a later vlog on order too!
With the current upheaval at H&H HQ when it came to shooting the next Actor's Log we thought it might be a good idea to consider using an alternate location. Once again our good friend and professional Comic Book Shop proprietor, Mr. Simon Shaw, Esq. has once again generously come to our aid. Now all we have to do is await our package.
"WHAT'S IN THE BOOOOOOOOOOOOX?!"
Vern also gave me back my DVD copy of 'Once Upon A Time In The West', with the upcoming move he didn't want to lose in the shuffle whilst transporting his collection to the new HQ (and Vern has a LOT of DVDs to get stuff lost in, he's an OFB - Original Film Buff). Before we set off to Simon I forced Vern to watch the final gunfight on Youtube as, at one point in episode 6, I want him to channel some Bronson and a bit of Fonda. Today I also finalised another bit of H&H 'Research', being as it was so nice out I took a short daytrip out to Leeds to pick up our tickets for Matt Berry's concert in the city in April. Like we've said before, learn from the best!
Now with the script agreed there's just a waiting game for our additional equipment, oh and a bit of a costume test yet to do. That's all for now though.
Hello, Acting Fans, fellow bloggers and people of the world wide webs. HELLO, yep, it's Friday and time for us to update you on whats going on down here at H&H HQ.
Well at last me, myself and Chris finally got to get a meet-up done, (YEAH!) and, well, Chris came armed with an idea about extending the background for H&H, something about our two criminal actors' acting careers, which led to us compiling a list of fictional movie titles that both of them have starred in and, well, I'm not going to give too much away though I will tell you the idea is a take on a certain famous British film studio. Oh, and these fictional movies are going to big overseas but to tell you why would be [SPOILERS]. And, boy, how much did we laugh at the titles. I do indeed think you will like them, we even talked about maybe evening filming some of the trailers for these movies (Man we do like to make this hard for ourselves, but who said it was going to easy)
On a completely unrelated note (alright, alright, it might be a bit of a clue) Chris also brought down the 1958 Peter Cushing/Christopher Lee Dracula as some, erm, research...yes, that's it research into fine acting! After our Richard Harris viewing went so well, we thought we'd give a film a go and see what it brought up ideas-wise. As we watched it we were reminded that Peter Cushing is just one of the finest british actors to grace the silver screen, proper "ACTING!"all capitals. He was indeed that good, his line delivery seemed sometimes more modern and sophisticated compared to the actors around him plus his subtle facial expressions were amazing, brilliantly showing the passion and emotion behind a polite, stiff-upper lip exterior. Why is this important to H&H? Well, if we're going to learn, why not learn from the Best? Looking over old actors and looking at how they did it can still teach us a thing or two and listening to their off screen antics can be handy too. You never know what you might spot though.
In Yesterday's feature it was the two or three scenes in it that suddenly went broadly comic, in a way that western movies don't tend to do these days, it reminded us a bit of the way they still shift tone, even in more recent films, in Hong Kong and Chinese cinema. We also spotted the more static use of the camera in the shots, with more panning than camera movement, especially when it came to movement between two tiers, and less inter-cutting than more modern films. Lastly we realised neither of us felt we'd be as comfortable dashing around in a cloak as Sir Christopher Lee, he surely must have fallen over a few times - never mind leaping over tables! And all without the aid of a stunt-man (as far as we could tell). Crikey! All in all it was an eventful and funny day. We got quite a bit done, because sometimes a little world building is just as important and can add more to the characters, even if it's just in our heads for now.
Greetings, Acting Fans, it's bad news again this Wednesday as once again my day job has taken me out of the H&H equation - don't ask me what m'learned colleague has been up to, once again we haven't even got together yet this week! I even have to admit I've been bad and haven't even made my usual first pass at the next vlog script yet, Naughty Chris! Enough of what I haven't been doing, what have I been doing? Well, after work I have in fact found myself getting caught up in a fresh, exciting new cultural movement that started in 2011 in the United States - yes, I'm talking about the McConaissance. That's right, the stunning second act of Matthew McConaughey's acting career. I am a total convert. After not initially rating the Texan and dismissing him as a pretty-boy actor for years I decided to check out 'True Detective' due to the absence from my telly of the programmes I usually watch (yes, I was right in the middle of a 'Doctor Who' & 'Person Of Interest' drought). I'd heard positive rumblings about the show but dismissed it as yet another cop show with a bit of stunt Hollywood casting. Oh, boy, was I wrong!
Both McConaughey and his co-star (and real-life buddy) Woody Harrelson absolutely knock it out of the park!
It's a frankly stunning bit of Telly that's as much about deconstructing the form as it is in showing the mystery with a hint of Cosmic Horror to boot, whose creator Nic Pizzolatto has been open about the work of comic book writers Grant Morrison and Alan Moore. So, yes, the story is pretty much Chris Catnip but that would mean nothing with out the great central performances. Now, time to stop ogling other peoples' creativity and get on down to my own!
Hello, Acting Fans, fellow bloggers and people of the Internet! Well, yep, it is Friday and it's time for the blog post, so what have we been doing. Well, alas and alack (mostly a lack of Chris) we still have not been able to have a meeting as Chris is busy with work, so nothing much has been done, But well sort off as I on and off have been looking on YouTube to find a clip of a show I was once in. Yep, like Chris I too have been on the tellybox, as an extra that is.
The show was a kids show called 'My Spy Family' and all I can say (much like the BBC 3 S***com (I'm not being harsh - it really was that bad) 'The Gemma Factor' that Chris appeared) in it, well, it's not the best kids show ever. Let's leave it at that. Sadly since I didn't have Satellite TV at the time it was first broadcast I never got to it. With our more recent H&H escapades I got to wondering about that footage of me beaming through outer space and, after search on and off on YouTube, what do you know? I found the it and, after looking through some of the episodes, checking when I did the filming and a bit of guessing, I found the two episodes I was in! And now you too can play 'Spot the Harcourt'!
I bet you're wondering, why, why is this important? Or is it not important at all and are you just blog filling until somethings gets done? Well, yes. And no as my appearance in the show is also going to be interwoven in to Harcourt & Haigh somehow, so there.
And how are we going to put them in to the show? You'll just have to stay tuned to find out!
Happy Humpday, Acting Fans, welcome to your mid-weekly update of what's what at H&H HQ. I have to admit that's not a lot so far this week, we haven't even managed to have our regular meet-up yet. Yep, It's the time of year where I'm called up in work near-enough full time, as I'm covering other colleagues annual leave which hasn't left any time for Acting at Large. All I can do is apologise and assure you that I'm poring over Vern's script with an eye to the odd tweak or two and a bit of word wrangling. Hopefully we'll have more to report Friday but that's all for now. What you could do though (if you've already gotten through our episodes and blogs and need some new humour injecting into your life) is check out the iPlayer as Stewart Lee's Comedy Vehicle has sputttered back onto our telly screens and can be viewed right there. A brief warning, though, some of the language is definitely NSFW!
