Episode 034 – Off Off Topic – Sal Clemente & Stephen Talk Star Wars – SPOILERS!

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URO_Sal_ClementeI get Off Off Topic with my buddy, Sal Clemente, and we talk some Star Wars: The Force Awakens.  Sal and I are the same age, and we both saw the original back in 1977 at age 14.  (I said 15 in the interview, but I checked our birthdates, and we were 14 when it came out.)  I think it’s fair to say the new movie brought out nostalgic feelings from when we saw Star Wars in our youth.

WARNING: MAJOR STAR WARS SPOILERS IN THE PODCAST.

For the first time this podcast is also a “vidcast.”  Here’s the video version:

Couple of things, I said in the podcast that the guy who did Avenue Q was supposed to have done the music for the Cantina Scene in the new Star Wars.  Got it wrong — it was Lin-Manuel Miranda writer of Hamilton and In the Heights who did that music.

We also talk about Sal’s band (which he began with Alan Ware) called Ultrasonic Rock Orchestra (www.URORocks.com). If you want to hear some awesome 70s covers and see  some great showmanship, go check out some of their videos on the website … or better yet … go see them in concert if you live in the Boston area!  They have a concert on January 31st at 9 PM at the Regent Theater in Arlington.

Episode 017 – Victoria Campbell – Adventurer Filmmaker and Actor

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Victoria_CampbellI’ve decided Victoria is amazing and fearless.  And I don’t know if she’d define herself as an “Adventurer” but after talking to her I felt like that word needed to be in the title of her interview!

We got to know each other when she was in a production of my play, Home of the Great Pecan at The Drilling Company, and over the years I’ve seen two of her films, House of Bones (about her lovable, eccentric family and childhood home on Martha’s Vineyard — not to be confused with a horror film of the same name!) and The Hunt for Good Americans where she and a friend traveled across this great country finding and filming all sorts of cool characters.   [I’ll put up links to see these films as they become available.]

I had heard a few stories about her most current project where she daringly finagled her way into Haiti 7 days after the earthquake of 2010.  I knew there would be some amazing tales about that journey, and, boy, I was not disappointed.  You must listen!

By the way, the Haiti documentary, Monsieur le Président, is playing TOMORROW as part of The Martha’s Vineyard Film Festival at 10 am at the Chilmark School. Check out this great article from the Martha’s Vineyard Times.

Topics covered in the interview:

  • Intro  (0:00)
  • Hello Victoria; growing up in Martha’s Vineyard in an artsy family (3:12)
  • Film: House of Bones  (10:39)
  • Film: The Hunt for Good Americans (18:55)
  • Back road hookers in Ely, Nevada, Crow Reservation in Montana  (21:06)
  • Blues man, Razorblade, in Clarksdale, Mississippi (27:22)
  • Film: Monsieur le Président; the Haiti Earthquake in 2010 (32:29)
  • The aftershock 6.2; drafted as a “nurse”  (36:22)
  • The Voodoo Priest, Gaston (41:50)
  • Ukrainian transgender in Canarsie, NY (52:11)
  • “Bizarre, Interesting or Horrible Audition Stories” (53:17)

As usual my buddy Sal Clemente (of Ultrasonic Rock Orchestra) who wrote the podcast theme song, “Here We Go Again,” plays us out.  URO has a concert coming up.  Click the link to find out more!

Episode 005 – Cameron Watson writer/director of film, “Our Very Own”

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cam_watson_our_very_own_posterThe multi-talented Cameron Watson wrote and directed the film, Our Very Own, which was a valentine to his small hometown of Shelbyville, Tennessee.

If you want to be truly inspired by someone who did not give up on his dream of making his indie film, listen to this interview.

cameron_watson_our_very_own_cameraIt has a happy ending… a deal with Miramax… and you can stream this film right now on Netflix.  It stars Allison Janney, Keith Carradine, Cheryl Hines, Jason Ritter, Autumn Reeser, and Beth Grant.

Cam’s latest project is a new weberies called Break a Hip which sounds hilarious and is in post production now.  Here’s the Facebook page.

Topics covered in the interview:

  • My introduction of Cam (0:00)
  • Sweet story about a high school kid doing a monologue from my play, Home of the Great Pecan  (4:58)
  • Interview with Cameron Watson begins (7:38)
  • Growing up in small southern town with supportive parents (19:44)
  • Spaced Out – Cam gets cast as the heroic captain of the “ship” (20:37)
  • Horton Foote campaigns for Cam in The Widow Claire (23:55)
  • The move to Los Angeles, a work-a-day actor (25:40)
  • The writer/director emerges — Cam performs a story about his hometown (27:19)
  • Cam forms a writing group/support group (31:24)
  • Our Very Own — the next steps, a great supportive core group (33:14)
  • Shelbyville welcomes the production; casting the film (40:51)
  • Allison Janney and the Independent Spirit Award (44:43)
  • What’s the film about? (46:57)
  • How Miramax found the film (48:45)
  • Mary Badham cameo – Scout from To Kill a Mockingbird  (52:18)
  • Keith Carradine comes on board and writes a song with Nancy Griffith (55:42)
  • The other musical number in the movie – shades of Pippin by Bob Stillman (58:50)
  • Shiny Shelbyville — shooting in the town and finding period cars (102:11)
  • The new webseries with famous friends, Break a Hip (105:35)

lbs_12_09_13I reached goal one in my weight loss quest (during Turkey month, no less).  Hopefully, more updates coming soon!  I’m shooting for the next 10 pounds.

Write me if you’re working to achieve one of your goals — OffOffWorld@gmail.com.