August 19, 2023 • 30 mins
In this episode of Talent Talk, Jayson Therrien discusses his second directing project, "Suzy Makes Cupcakes". The film is not what one may expect and delivers a fun Guy Ritchie style film. Join us as we discuss the details of the film and everything else Jayson.
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Episode Transcript
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(00:00):
Well, Susie makes cupcakes. Yeah, the second directorial, Yeah, the
title does not give the show awayat all. So I was expecting a
cooking show, which I did notget when I watched the trailer. Yeah,
maybe you can just tell us alittle bit about it. And yes,
Susie makes cupcakes. Susie has avery unique talent. She makes the
(00:20):
best red velvet cupcakes you have evertasted. She parlays that talent into getting
even with her abusive husband, deceivingthe local crime family, and potentially making
out with a bowling bag for thecash. Come on, Susie, what's
going on? You and me?We get along? I don't think we
do, but I don't trump.And if you are, ask the boys.
(00:43):
Yeah, there's an a coula confortsand the money no one's gonna buy.
Yeah they will, then I'll givehim a cupcake. Talent Talk is
sponsored by Company of Rogues Actors Studio, New York style training for actors at
all stages of their journey. Withour part time classes and full time masterclass
(01:04):
program, Rogues provides a unique postsecondaryoption under the guidance of working professionals,
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Check us out at co rogues dotcom. Company of Rogues passionate about
(01:25):
the art of acting. Hey everybody, I'm gonna McLane. You're watching Talent
(01:53):
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(02:14):
Check it out. Finally, wehave sponsors in this our fifth season,
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(02:35):
right now, so thank you tothose guys for helping us out today.
As well. We have Company ofRogues, which is a Calgary Local Film
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(03:00):
So thank you to those fine folksfor helping us out this season.
Hopefully this will be just the startof a long relationship with those folks.
Now today's guest, he's been herebefore. He was here in season one.
He's done a lot since we lastspoke with this guy. He's been
doing some acting things on things likeWell Given Us Black Summer. Jan Let's
(03:23):
see what else he's got. I'vegot a list, Jeric, because I
couldn't remember all the things he's done. He's been on Tribal Guilty Party with
Cat Kate Beckinsale, just to namea few. He's been producing a few
things, doing some commercials. I'msure we'll find out for sure. And
he's got a couple of current projectswhich he delved into the directing side of
(03:44):
things, which is the first timefor him. The first short film that
he directed was Operation Clean Slate andthe more recent one which we'll be talking
about today is Susie makes cupcakes.So please join me and welcome me.
Jason Thurian, Hi, thanks,guys around me. Yeah, welcome to
the show again again. Yeah,it's always nice to be invited back a
second time. Right, you didn'tmess up the first time? No,
(04:06):
no, no, And you knowwe've we've grown a lot since then as
well. It's a show too,right, so it's and you as a
producer, actor, director, allthat kind of thing. So it's always
good to catch up and make sureeverybody is aware of what you've done.
So how about you do catch usup a little? Okay, what do
you what do you want to know? Well, I mean, like I
said, let's let's start talking aboutsome of the shows that you've done since
(04:27):
then. Like again, you hada bit of a series recurring role on
Jam. Yeah, so yeah,Jan Arden was great man. I love
working on that show. Those guysare so funny, and I guess they
really liked what I did in seasonone, and then they just kept bringing
my character back. Characters started offas like mister Miata because I drove a
Meada in the first one, andthen they couldn't get the rights to clear
that, so it ended up beingconvertible creep, and then I turned into
(04:49):
Brad in season two, and thenseason three was Brad the town jerk.
So they just the character just keptevolving, and every year it was kind
of like an ongoing gag that Iwould have a spat or fight with a
different one of the lead casts.So the first year was Jan and her
mother and her sister. In thesecond year was her niece, and then
(05:11):
it was her brother in law thethird season. So it's great. I
don't know if that show ever beback, but hopefully it doesn't. It's
one of the better Canadian comedy showsout there. It definitely had a bit
of a following. Like a lotof people I talked to they love the
show, and people outside the filmindustry obviously as well. I really enjoyed
the show. So yeah, it'slike, I mean, Jan should be
(05:32):
an ambassador for Calgary. She's justgreat and she lives here and working with
her is absolutely incredible. And Idon't think people and she people never looked
at her as an actor before theydid. She looked at her silver musician.
But she's she's quite good. She'sreally funny. Yeah, she like
I've to be honest, I've onlyseen a few episodes. I haven't seen
them all yet, but yeah,she's she's got some good timing comedy wise,
(05:57):
and some good lines approaches there aboutwhat about a guilty Party? Guilty
Party was fun too. Yeah.I didn't actually get to work with Kate
on that one. I was gonnabe my next question. Yeah I didn't.
I didn't get to meet Kate.I met the other lead jewels I
was working with her and that wasgreat. Yeah, that's fun. It
was, you know, good material. I got to work with some good
(06:17):
people and same thing. Have youheard anything about that, like in terms
of they're going to do a secondseason or no. I think it was
a one and done. I thinkthat was kind of their impression and I
don't think it did great, whichis too bad because it was again,
it's well written, it's funny,it's a good show. So well,
it's stove into some of the newthings you've been trying out talk let's talk
(06:41):
operation at least clean slate. Yes, yeah, I think the last one
is on the show. We werein prep for that, like, we
hadn't shot it yet, so weshot It's a twenty two minute teenage heist
film about four teenagers that break intocity hall to wipe their parking tickets clean.
Uh and yeah, well for us, we got into a bunch of
festivals. We won Edmonton International Festivalfor alberta short narrative. So it's very
(07:10):
happy about that. And uh,we're potentially development into a series or a
full length feature. Okay, soyou're continuing on with that a little bit.
Yeah, it's kind of we dohave a feature film script of that,
and you know, depending on whoI talked to and what they're looking
for, I always kind of likepresent that as an option of that we
could get this going if they neededto, and we had. We pitched
(07:32):
it to Netflix, we pitched itto CBC, and we pitched it to
y TV. Why TV, YoungTV you think, yeah, y TV
as well, so and there wassome interest, but there was also like,
hey, we got something similar comingdown the pipe, and twenty four
took a look at it as well. So people are interested, but nobody's
really pulled the trigger on it.And when it like, were you just
(07:56):
the director on that? Were youproducing as well on that? Yeah?
I mean I produced it and Idid it. I kind of came up
with like a little idea about liketeenagers breaking seat hall to wipe their parking
tickets clean. And then a longtime collaborator of mine, Charles Elliott Netto,
he went and he wrote the scriptand then I worked with him over
like six months and getting the scriptto where I needed and yeah, so
(08:18):
yeah, I pretty sid raised themoney directed. That was my goal I
wanted. It was my first timedirecting, and I wanted something that kind
of like I was really passionate about. And so that was a year and
a half process to get that allkind of said and done. From we
started applying for grants and we didget some grants and we crowdsourced a little
bit. Yeah, it was great, It's fun. Five days. It
(08:41):
was five day shoot, and wasdirecting my kit and was directing like something
you've always kind of wanted to headtowards or yeah, I mean I wanted
to try it. I was alwayslike I want to direct, you know,
because I would You know, beingan actor, you're breaking down scenes
and you're working with directors and you'rewondering why they're making decisions and you kind
of go, well, you know, I like to be I'd like to
(09:01):
show these ideas on film that Ihave, you know, and so yeah,
I always but it was I wasnever ready. I don't think like
I think when I did it,I was definitely ready because I had you
know, acting, producing, casting, first a D and I had all
that experience under my belt. Sowhat I do direct is really I don't
(09:22):
think I feel more comfortable on afilm set than when I'm directing, Like
for whatever reason, it just likeit's that's what I should be doing.
And prior to that, I'm notsure that you know, I would feel
that way because it didn't have allthose other aspects and elements of the film
world to grab onto. Now,for some folks outside the film industry,
(09:43):
they might not realize what's actually entailedwith the director in terms of people are
like, oh, well, he'shappy on the camera and told people what
to do. Yeah, there's somuch more to that. So maybe you
can give us a bit more,as you know, because you're involved in
the post production side of things andeverything else. Right, so when we
just give us a bit of ayeah, I mean you're essentially it's like,
(10:03):
you know, it's your vision,so how you want to direct,
and there's tons of ways that youcan direct a script and also to make
new script changes, Like hey,I like this. When we did Operation
Clean Slate, I said to Charles, I'm like, I'm not really happy
with the ending. We're like twodays into filming. We're going to film
the end in like eight hours,and I was like, I'm not really
happy with the ending, so let'schange it. And he's like, what
(10:26):
do you want. I said,well, if we're doing a comedy,
I think there should be a jokeat the end, and I don't feel
that we have a big enough punchfor a joke. So he went he
wrote like three different like endings andcame to me at lunchtime and said,
Okay, this is what I got. And I was like, okay,
I'm like that's the one that's ourending, and he's like, great,
here goes. I'm gonna go givethe new lines to the actors. You
(10:46):
go tell the first at that we'reswitching it up, and start getting your
shot list going. So yeah,I mean, it's all up here.
And that's what the hard thing aboutI think directing is it's like you have
it all up here, and howdo I get that out to the people
that have hired in their departments tohelp me with that wardrobe, production design,
actors. Right, one of thethings that I feel that I do
(11:09):
have a good handle on is Ihave a good handle on hiring talent,
knowing talent, being able to soassembling a really good team. And I
think our teams have been amazing thatwe've done so. And there's a bit
of trust in them too, Likeyou know, you tell them their story
and kind of communicate with them,cinematographer, communicate with them what you want
by giving them, is I giveexamples, I'm like, Okay, I
(11:31):
want like this is the kind ofvibe I want to go from this film,
and this is the kind of like, you know, transition I want
from this to this. Because that'sthe other thing I think a lot of
times directors don't understand the young directorsstarting not directors, but you know,
George don't understand that like you're transitioningand how does that fit when you're transitioning
from one scene to the next,and how is that going to cut together
as well? So it's it's reallylike you are this big vision and then
(11:56):
you kind of like grab everyone tohelp you out with it and try to
communicate to get it too best youcan. And and yeah, I'm sitting
in on editing, I'm sitting inon sound design, I'm sitting in on
you know what festivals we're going tosubmit to, like all that kind of
stuff. So it is, itis a It is a I guess,
a big job. Some people sayit's a hard job. I don't find
(12:18):
it that hard, to be honestwith you. I think you just when
you're passionate, you put in thework and really just put in the work
and think about it and stuff likethat, and talk to the other guys
that are professionals that you've hired andbe like, hey, how do you
feel about this? And one ofmy favorite questions is when someone will come
to me and say I really thinkwe should do this, whether it be
(12:39):
acting or wardrobe or you know,and I will, okay, sell me
on it. Why And you know, honestly, like eighty percent of the
time I don't agree with them,but that twenty percent that I do agree
with them really makes a better movie, right, you know, when they're
like, well, I think weshould do this kind of lens or we
think we should do you know,we should we should try this color on
(13:01):
this character or whatever like that,or the actors like I really think that
there's something here to explore, andI'm like, okay, and it does,
you know, And you got tobe open to that. You can't
be a dictator. You have tobe like, it's a collaborative effort.
I mean, you're the leader ofthe collaborative effort, but you have to
be open to suggestions. Yeah,okay, And that's gonna be one of
my questions is what kind of directordo you feel? You are? Obviously
(13:22):
somewhat collaborative. Yeah, I mean, that's what I love most about directing
is that there's a collaborate effort.It is it's like, I mean,
I've hired this cinemphotographer or this productiondesigner or this actor. I'm not you
know, I'm an actor, yes, but I mean I've hired them for
the specific reason and so like Iwant them to bring themselves to it.
And I want to know. I'mnot an expert in lenses and you know
(13:45):
lighting, I've hired that guy forthat, and so I have to be
open and I think it is collaborative. And that's my favorite part about directing.
Is it a bunch of these peoplethat are really talented in their respected
departments come together to essentially make thedirector's vision right. And if one,
you know, department fails, itkind of like the whole whole thing fails.
(14:07):
To be honest with you, becauseat the end of day, you
want to make the best possible filmand there's something that's lacking, and then
it'll show, whether that's acting,whether that's lighting or sound or whatever it
happens to be. If it's lacking, it's it's gonna pull you out of
the story, and it's gonna hurteverybody. Everyone's department, right, And
how are you when it comes tosay, uh, improv or yeah,
(14:28):
basically improv on on set? Yeah, I think that sometimes you know,
there's a there's a limit like whatyou can do, like you need to
stay kind of like reined in.But sometimes you can get some really good
moments from that, and I'm okayfor that. An example that I learned
from another director, Ron Murphy onjan is that he took we're shooting the
(14:52):
scene and he took he took usto the side and he said, Okay,
guys, I don't mind the improv, but let's do it right here.
Let's let's work it together, let'shear it out loud. And so
we started to do it, andI improved a couple of lines. Uh,
sitting in the miata and Jan throwsher ice cream at me and she
misses, and and I say,uh, you know, best lay off
(15:16):
the ice cream anyway was the line. And I was like, best lay
off the ice came anyways, chubby, and Jan turns to me and goes,
oh, that's really good. Keepit, fuck you, but keep
it. I was like, andthat, and you know, and it's
a better moment. But the directorwas open to it. And so from
that, I'm like, I'm opento it. So I've had I've had,
you know, especially if you're doingcomedy, and I generally kind of
(15:39):
gravitate towards some sort of communic elementin my movies. I think you have
to you have to allow that.But I don't know, I don't know
if it's necessarily improv I think it'slike thought about beforehand. Maybe it's not
on the script. Sure, andyou bring it, but I'm I'm open
to it. And I think youjust gotta be careful to like raining in
because sometimes you can get like reallyout of conroll. But yeah, again
(16:02):
it's I've hired these people for areason. It's because they're good. I
mean, if it's dramatic and thescript is you know, solid, then
maybe less improv But if it's morecomedic, then more improv I guess it
depends right on the on the material, to be honest with you, Yeah,
and that's fair. So when itcomes like going back to kind of
your acting side of things, obviouslyyou've had the opportunity to work with a
(16:23):
lot of directors. Have you seencertain aspects from other directors where you're like,
Okay, I'm not going to directthat way. Yeah, And but
I've also been like I like tofocus on the good. So I just
I just cast at a film calledThis Two Shall Pass, directed by Rob
Grant, produced by Michael Peterson,and Michael was very generous and saying,
hey, man, you can cometo set whenever you want, Like it's
(16:45):
a free, open invite to cometo set. And so I did come
to set and I watched Rob work, and I was there are a lot
of things that Rob did that Iliked, you know, I was like,
I really liked a bunch of thingsthat you did. I guess The
biggest no no I would say aboutdirecting is if you lose Like so the
first day of filming Operation Clean Slate, our sound guy did not He messed
(17:08):
up the sound. We literally hadto fire him the first day, first
scene. And so this is myfirst time directing, and I wanted to
I was really like, I wantedto lose my mind. But my producer
at the time, he was like, hey, man, like, don't
worry, We're going to fix this. If I would have lost my mind,
I just would have like spread likewildfire between the crew at cast and
(17:29):
crew. So I started, youneed to like, you need to be
focused, you need to be professional, you need to like and have fun.
But don't ever like if things aren'tgonna go like things never go the
way you want him to go onfilm sets, they don't. There's there's
curveballs all the time, and it'sjust like a matter of dealing with it.
But always stay in calm and alwaysbeing like working together, talk to
(17:49):
your people, get back on track. You know when we're we're This is
where the ad producer comes in iswhen I'm directing, I'm like, I
have already built in what see I'llbe okay to lose or or how to
condense my shot list if I haveto, because I need to make my
day right. If I'm asking peopleto work, you know, I can't
have people work in fourteen hours.I just can't. Yeah, twelve hours
(18:11):
is kind of where I like tobe, so yes, I'm more so.
That's the one thing that I diddefinitely watch from other directors is like
letting people do their job and makethem feel as comfortable as possible because you
will get the best work out ofthem. Let them feel like they're part
of the collaboration, which I'm okaywith. You'll get better work out of
them. So things I don't Idon't look for directors that I wouldn't do.
(18:34):
I look for things that I woulddo, things that would work in
certain like situations. Okay, andyou know, so yeah, the answer
is yeah, I do really payattention directors. I have been paying direction
pension to directors for a while,and any opportunity I can see directors work,
I do that. I also feelthat from producing I had, I
(18:56):
was really lucky early to produce fora lot of really good Calgary directors Brett
Firster, John kissach Mark, whichyou and I both know. So I
feel like watching them and being besidethem and shotgun with them also really helped
me. And they're really good directors. Yeah, all three of those guys,
(19:17):
you know in their own right,different but good. Absolutely. Yeah.
I wouldn't mind working with Mark again. Couples do a show, work
on a show up for him andI was like, sure, buddy,
no problem, not nice. Yeahyeah, So he put me up a
Montre offer like a week okay,and we did this play and it was
really well written. I like hiswriting a lot. Actually, he has
(19:37):
a short script that I would mindshooting, but acquire a bit of a
budget fair enough, as they alldo. Yeah. Yeah, well Susie
makes cupcakes. Yeah the second directorial. Yeah, the title does not give
the show away at all, SoI was expecting a cooking show, which
(20:00):
I did not get when I watchedthe trailer. Yeah, maybe you can
just tell us a little bit aboutit, and yeah, Susie makes cupcakes.
Susie has a very unique talent.She makes the best red velvet cupcakes
you have ever tasted. She parlaysthat talent into getting even with her abusive
husband, deceiving the local crime family, and potentially making out with a bowling
bag for the cash. I've notsaid that ever before, not not in
(20:23):
the title. Never, I neverpitched theos and that's what it's about essentially.
Yeah, yeah, that's again.Watching the trailer, it was pretty
fun to watch, which, bythe way, the trailer is on YouTube
if anybody wants to go check thatout. At least I think it is
Vimeo. Yeah, but yeah,vimeos. So it's yeah, and I'm
(20:44):
assuming this is another one where you'vekind of got the potential transition to make
it into a feature or yeah,that's not it. Like I kind of
didn't want that. I just wantedsomething different than I directed before, because
like, I'm really pitching myself asa as a feature film director now and
I've and I've talked a lot ofpeople about it, but they're like,
you know, you only got onething kind of thing. So I was
like, Okay. I talked toa couple of people that I knew that
(21:06):
IT invested in my last couple ofmovies and went to them with this script
and said, hey, would yoube willing to throw in some money?
So I ended up and then actoralberta thank you. Actor Alberta, wherever
you are, Hi, Actor Alberta. The MIP program, they kicked in
some money. They also kicked inmoney from my first film too, so
I'm very grateful to Actra. I'mhappy that they're supporting you as well.
(21:29):
Yes, they and it went tothem, and then it was able to
get a budget together and like andshot this because I wanted something else to
shoot. Also was going crazy notshooting, not directing, and it wasn't
like to be a big thing.But it's people are asking like if people
have seen it, like, hey, is this a bigger thing? Like
(21:51):
this could be fun. And Ithink the writer Bethany Mains, she has
a feature of like she has anovel of this, so maybe she could
write me a feature. I don'tknow, it's a peticil. I mean,
if there's if there's a desire forus to, you know, go
further with this story, I'd totallybe in. I love these characters.
Yeah, and again watching the trailer, it seemed like a fun little film
(22:14):
for sure. I mean, Ilove it, but you know, I
guess the audience will tell me oncewe start screening at festivals and stuff.
So which, speaking of I'm assumingit's starting to make its rounds now.
Yeah. So we opened in hadour world premier guest in Wyoming International Film
Festival, which if you're a filmmakerand you're looking to submit your film somewhere
Wyoming. Surprisingly, I was likefollowing them. They have a fantastic film
(22:37):
festival. I didn't get to go, but I really wish that I did.
So it opened in Wyoming on Julyfifth, I think, in their
crime section, and it was nominatedfor Best Overall Short and Best Screenplay okay.
And then we screened in Sacramento lastweekend Sacramento Underground Film Festival, and
(23:02):
then we got acceptance into South DakotaInternational Film Festival and Edmonton International Film Festival.
Nice. So we're hoping for Calgaryso that the hometown can see the
movie. So Calgary, if you'relistening. Yeah, So it's it's starting.
We got I think we submitted tothirty festivals and we'll see where you
(23:25):
know, who who resonates with itand who wants it and who doesn't.
Okay, that's fair. Going backto Operation Queen State for a second,
where can people watch that or isit available for public? Available for public?
I mean if anyone knows me,want to reach out to me on
social media, I will send youa link. I don't mind. I
think we're we're kind of contemplating.I have to talk to the other producers
about just like putting it out there. But I don't know if that's the
(23:48):
smartest move. Why we're still pitchingit to networks? Yeah, okay,
so but do you reach out tome on social media? I will send
it to you fair enough. Soa bit of a sidetrack, Like you've
been involved in casting for quite along time. Yeah, however, I
feel that industry has kind of pickedup for you over recent years. Yeah.
(24:10):
So I've always casted my own projectsbecause I felt like I just knew
actors better than I shouldn't say that. I did hire a casting director to
do my two feature films that Iproduced, Same Girl. She's great,
and but I've always been casting,like the smaller stuff that I did in
my web series, the shorts,all that stuff, and then I've always
liked it. I've always liked workingwith actors, you know, reading across
(24:33):
from them, doing the audition process, which you don't do anymore. Unfortunately,
right now, I think this projectI'm casting right now. I think
they're going to do that. I'mreally excited about doing that. And we
did a little bit of it onthis short that I'm producing called The Lily
and the Scorpion. We did calllike in person callbacks. The director was
in from New York and I wasable to read with the potential leads.
(24:56):
So I missed that. I lovethat. And then yeah, and then
Jason on Limb, who I believeyou're gonna have on the show later on,
he's got something coming. Uh Yeah. He hired me to start casting
his feature films and I loved it. And then I guess people thought that
I was good at it, andso I just keep been people keep offering
(25:18):
me bigger projects to cast, andyou know, we're doing one Night now.
We're looking across the country for youknow, names, which I've never
done before, and it is kindof interesting to to like know these people
and suggest these people to be likeOky, who do you think you know?
We have a budget, we wantto get some people who do you
think would be good for us,like them to be Canadian. And people
are taking my suggestions on it,like producers and directors. We hired a
(25:41):
couple on my last project that Idid, I was like, what this
person for this role and you workedwith them on this movie, so what
do you think can that? Andthey're like, that's a great idea and
they hired them. Okay. Ilove casting, and I think my focus,
like two years ago, I switchedit to like directing and casting.
That's what I wanted to do.Less acting, I mean, also makes
things more difficult to act because Ican't I'm not going to act in something
(26:06):
that I cast. It's just confidentinterest and the optics of it. So
that limits my acting opportunities right whenI'm casting them fair enough. So I've
done all the less casting, butmy focus is definitely like directing and casting
as well. Like casting is kindof the secondary to that. Okay,
but there's just keep getting work.I don't know why. Well, and
(26:32):
because there's isn't really a lot ofcasting directors locally in Calgary, right,
I mean there's essentially Rhonda and Sue, but really that's those are those are
the two Calgary? Yeah, Imean Pat as well, and I mean
there's a there's a pet Yeah,there's a few of them. But I
also think I'm good at it,and I know, and I know the
talent, like I Ronda's Rnda,She's the queen man, but past Ronda,
(26:56):
Like, I don't know if anyoneelse from being acting, from producing,
from being in here knows the localtalent and they I mean, I've
casted I don't know, probably tenfeatures in two years. I would say
ten features, maybe nine. Thiswill be my tenth coming up here in
two years. So I've seen alot of tape like and you know,
(27:18):
I like this. I like togive opportunities, like maybe somebody that doesn't
that you don't think that they're goingto be this character. You're like,
I don't know, let's see,Like the director may not see it.
I'll watch it. I'll know.I also like, there's a guy that
we cast I don't know, probablya couple features ago. I've been watching
his auditions get better, better andbetter over the last year and a half,
(27:41):
and I was like, I thinkthis is your guy. I think
he's ready. Chargers liked them,hired him perfect, So I think,
yeah, I think I do havea good handle on local talent. And
they also think that I'm trying tomake them better by giving them opportunities,
even like they may not get therole, or just jim a shot,
see what happens, and if they'renot good enough, that's okay, director
(28:02):
doesn't see it. We'll try nexttime. Yeah, absolutely, you know
what I mean. Yeah, becausethere is talent here, that's for sure.
You know. I think we needas as actors, we need to
be more serious about acting. Youknow, like stop asking for extensions.
Stop, you know, get yourtape in if you want to act,
or tell your agent to take youoff. Be like, hey, man,
I have people that get submitted allthe time. I want to see
(28:25):
them. I've seen them two years. I haven't gonna show them interesting.
Yeah, and then you got peopleout there that die for the audition and
you know who those people are,and so you start like leaning on them.
Yeah. Absolutely absolutely. Over thelast few years, obviously, you've
you've kind of developed your relationships withpeople within the industry and everything else,
and that's kind of taken you tosome travels I think as well, Like
you've been down to La a fewtimes, things like that. I just
(28:48):
wanted to see how that's hasn't beenfruitful. I guess it's where I'm kind
of going with that. Those thosediscussions that you've had with folks outside of
yeah, I mean industry, yeah, yes, and no, Like I
have been to LA and took meetingsin LA, that's for sure, and
Toronto as well. In Vancouver ithas been I think that there has been
(29:11):
like a really good development coming,like from the vamp World Media festival is
up there last month. They thereis a company that has approved me to
direct for them, which I'm excitedabout. They just don't know what project
that is or when it's coming becausethey are looking for Calgary directors for their
(29:34):
films and they're they're pretty good budgets, Like they're decent budgets, especially for
my first feature. So yes,I believe that there will be something from
it. Have nothing has come fromit yet, okay, to be honest
with you, Yeah, so yeah, okay. Next on the docket for
Jason therean next is going to bedirecting a feature film. Man That is
(29:56):
That is That is my goal.I got a lot of potential options,
opportunities, just waiting for one ofthem to kick in, maybe some private
funding to shoot a film, maybethis company out of Toronto. But that
to me is really where I wantto be and that's what I want to
do, so that's my focus andI'm feeling it's really really close. Nice
(30:19):
well, congrats on that. Hopefullythat pans out for you. I want
to thank you for joining us onthe show today and of course as always
best success. Thanks brother very Ill, and for the folks watching, thanks
for tuning in. As always,don't forget to like and subscribe on the
YouTube channel and we will see younext week. New guest, take care of all
Well, Susie makes cupcakes. Yeah, the second directorial, Yeah, the
title does not give the show awayat all. So I was expecting a
cooking show, which I did notget when I watched the trailer. Yeah,
maybe you can just tell us alittle bit about it. And yes,
Susie makes cupcakes. Susie has avery unique talent. She makes the
(00:20):
best red velvet cupcakes you have evertasted. She parlays that talent into getting
even with her abusive husband, deceivingthe local crime family, and potentially making
out with a bowling bag for thecash. Come on, Susie, what's
going on? You and me?We get along? I don't think we
do, but I don't trump.And if you are, ask the boys.
(00:43):
Yeah, there's an a coula confortsand the money no one's gonna buy.
Yeah they will, then I'll givehim a cupcake. Talent Talk is
sponsored by Company of Rogues Actors Studio, New York style training for actors at
all stages of their journey. Withour part time classes and full time masterclass
(01:04):
program, Rogues provides a unique postsecondaryoption under the guidance of working professionals,
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Check us out at co rogues dotcom. Company of Rogues passionate about
(01:25):
the art of acting. Hey everybody, I'm gonna McLane. You're watching Talent
(01:53):
Talk. Thanks for tuning in.If you haven't done so already, please
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Essentially, wherever you listen to,the show is going to be there.
(02:14):
Check it out. Finally, wehave sponsors in this our fifth season,
which I'm very excited about, soI've got to give a shout out
to those folks. As for example, today we have six Degrees Sound of
Music, who is currently doing oursound recording and editing. Thank you to
those folks. We have Workflow Filmwho is currently I'm looking in the camera
(02:35):
right now, so thank you tothose guys for helping us out today.
As well. We have Company ofRogues, which is a Calgary Local Film
Studio, in Acting School, wehave Counting Coup, Indigenous Film Academy,
Heard of One Media, and finally, actually not finally, we have RJ
Talent which is a coal also CalgaryLocal Talent Agency, and finally Actra Alberta.
(03:00):
So thank you to those fine folksfor helping us out this season.
Hopefully this will be just the startof a long relationship with those folks.
Now today's guest, he's been herebefore. He was here in season one.
He's done a lot since we lastspoke with this guy. He's been
doing some acting things on things likeWell Given Us Black Summer. Jan Let's
(03:23):
see what else he's got. I'vegot a list, Jeric, because I
couldn't remember all the things he's done. He's been on Tribal Guilty Party with
Cat Kate Beckinsale, just to namea few. He's been producing a few
things, doing some commercials. I'msure we'll find out for sure. And
he's got a couple of current projectswhich he delved into the directing side of
(03:44):
things, which is the first timefor him. The first short film that
he directed was Operation Clean Slate andthe more recent one which we'll be talking
about today is Susie makes cupcakes.So please join me and welcome me.
Jason Thurian, Hi, thanks,guys around me. Yeah, welcome to
the show again again. Yeah,it's always nice to be invited back a
second time. Right, you didn'tmess up the first time? No,
(04:06):
no, no, And you knowwe've we've grown a lot since then as
well. It's a show too,right, so it's and you as a
producer, actor, director, allthat kind of thing. So it's always
good to catch up and make sureeverybody is aware of what you've done.
So how about you do catch usup a little? Okay, what do
you what do you want to know? Well, I mean, like I
said, let's let's start talking aboutsome of the shows that you've done since
(04:27):
then. Like again, you hada bit of a series recurring role on
Jam. Yeah, so yeah,Jan Arden was great man. I love
working on that show. Those guysare so funny, and I guess they
really liked what I did in seasonone, and then they just kept bringing
my character back. Characters started offas like mister Miata because I drove a
Meada in the first one, andthen they couldn't get the rights to clear
that, so it ended up beingconvertible creep, and then I turned into
(04:49):
Brad in season two, and thenseason three was Brad the town jerk.
So they just the character just keptevolving, and every year it was kind
of like an ongoing gag that Iwould have a spat or fight with a
different one of the lead casts.So the first year was Jan and her
mother and her sister. In thesecond year was her niece, and then
(05:11):
it was her brother in law thethird season. So it's great. I
don't know if that show ever beback, but hopefully it doesn't. It's
one of the better Canadian comedy showsout there. It definitely had a bit
of a following. Like a lotof people I talked to they love the
show, and people outside the filmindustry obviously as well. I really enjoyed
the show. So yeah, it'slike, I mean, Jan should be
(05:32):
an ambassador for Calgary. She's justgreat and she lives here and working with
her is absolutely incredible. And Idon't think people and she people never looked
at her as an actor before theydid. She looked at her silver musician.
But she's she's quite good. She'sreally funny. Yeah, she like
I've to be honest, I've onlyseen a few episodes. I haven't seen
them all yet, but yeah,she's she's got some good timing comedy wise,
(05:57):
and some good lines approaches there aboutwhat about a guilty Party? Guilty
Party was fun too. Yeah.I didn't actually get to work with Kate
on that one. I was gonnabe my next question. Yeah I didn't.
I didn't get to meet Kate.I met the other lead jewels I
was working with her and that wasgreat. Yeah, that's fun. It
was, you know, good material. I got to work with some good
(06:17):
people and same thing. Have youheard anything about that, like in terms
of they're going to do a secondseason or no. I think it was
a one and done. I thinkthat was kind of their impression and I
don't think it did great, whichis too bad because it was again,
it's well written, it's funny,it's a good show. So well,
it's stove into some of the newthings you've been trying out talk let's talk
(06:41):
operation at least clean slate. Yes, yeah, I think the last one
is on the show. We werein prep for that, like, we
hadn't shot it yet, so weshot It's a twenty two minute teenage heist
film about four teenagers that break intocity hall to wipe their parking tickets clean.
Uh and yeah, well for us, we got into a bunch of
festivals. We won Edmonton International Festivalfor alberta short narrative. So it's very
(07:10):
happy about that. And uh,we're potentially development into a series or a
full length feature. Okay, soyou're continuing on with that a little bit.
Yeah, it's kind of we dohave a feature film script of that,
and you know, depending on whoI talked to and what they're looking
for, I always kind of likepresent that as an option of that we
could get this going if they neededto, and we had. We pitched
(07:32):
it to Netflix, we pitched itto CBC, and we pitched it to
y TV. Why TV, YoungTV you think, yeah, y TV
as well, so and there wassome interest, but there was also like,
hey, we got something similar comingdown the pipe, and twenty four
took a look at it as well. So people are interested, but nobody's
really pulled the trigger on it.And when it like, were you just
(07:56):
the director on that? Were youproducing as well on that? Yeah?
I mean I produced it and Idid it. I kind of came up
with like a little idea about liketeenagers breaking seat hall to wipe their parking
tickets clean. And then a longtime collaborator of mine, Charles Elliott Netto,
he went and he wrote the scriptand then I worked with him over
like six months and getting the scriptto where I needed and yeah, so
(08:18):
yeah, I pretty sid raised themoney directed. That was my goal I
wanted. It was my first timedirecting, and I wanted something that kind
of like I was really passionate about. And so that was a year and
a half process to get that allkind of said and done. From we
started applying for grants and we didget some grants and we crowdsourced a little
bit. Yeah, it was great, It's fun. Five days. It
(08:41):
was five day shoot, and wasdirecting my kit and was directing like something
you've always kind of wanted to headtowards or yeah, I mean I wanted
to try it. I was alwayslike I want to direct, you know,
because I would You know, beingan actor, you're breaking down scenes
and you're working with directors and you'rewondering why they're making decisions and you kind
of go, well, you know, I like to be I'd like to
(09:01):
show these ideas on film that Ihave, you know, and so yeah,
I always but it was I wasnever ready. I don't think like
I think when I did it,I was definitely ready because I had you
know, acting, producing, casting, first a D and I had all
that experience under my belt. Sowhat I do direct is really I don't
(09:22):
think I feel more comfortable on afilm set than when I'm directing, Like
for whatever reason, it just likeit's that's what I should be doing.
And prior to that, I'm notsure that you know, I would feel
that way because it didn't have allthose other aspects and elements of the film
world to grab onto. Now,for some folks outside the film industry,
(09:43):
they might not realize what's actually entailedwith the director in terms of people are
like, oh, well, he'shappy on the camera and told people what
to do. Yeah, there's somuch more to that. So maybe you
can give us a bit more,as you know, because you're involved in
the post production side of things andeverything else. Right, so when we
just give us a bit of ayeah, I mean you're essentially it's like,
(10:03):
you know, it's your vision,so how you want to direct,
and there's tons of ways that youcan direct a script and also to make
new script changes, Like hey,I like this. When we did Operation
Clean Slate, I said to Charles, I'm like, I'm not really happy
with the ending. We're like twodays into filming. We're going to film
the end in like eight hours,and I was like, I'm not really
happy with the ending, so let'schange it. And he's like, what
(10:26):
do you want. I said,well, if we're doing a comedy,
I think there should be a jokeat the end, and I don't feel
that we have a big enough punchfor a joke. So he went he
wrote like three different like endings andcame to me at lunchtime and said,
Okay, this is what I got. And I was like, okay,
I'm like that's the one that's ourending, and he's like, great,
here goes. I'm gonna go givethe new lines to the actors. You
(10:46):
go tell the first at that we'reswitching it up, and start getting your
shot list going. So yeah,I mean, it's all up here.
And that's what the hard thing aboutI think directing is it's like you have
it all up here, and howdo I get that out to the people
that have hired in their departments tohelp me with that wardrobe, production design,
actors. Right, one of thethings that I feel that I do
(11:09):
have a good handle on is Ihave a good handle on hiring talent,
knowing talent, being able to soassembling a really good team. And I
think our teams have been amazing thatwe've done so. And there's a bit
of trust in them too, Likeyou know, you tell them their story
and kind of communicate with them,cinematographer, communicate with them what you want
by giving them, is I giveexamples, I'm like, Okay, I
(11:31):
want like this is the kind ofvibe I want to go from this film,
and this is the kind of like, you know, transition I want
from this to this. Because that'sthe other thing I think a lot of
times directors don't understand the young directorsstarting not directors, but you know,
George don't understand that like you're transitioningand how does that fit when you're transitioning
from one scene to the next,and how is that going to cut together
as well? So it's it's reallylike you are this big vision and then
(11:56):
you kind of like grab everyone tohelp you out with it and try to
communicate to get it too best youcan. And and yeah, I'm sitting
in on editing, I'm sitting inon sound design, I'm sitting in on
you know what festivals we're going tosubmit to, like all that kind of
stuff. So it is, itis a It is a I guess,
a big job. Some people sayit's a hard job. I don't find
(12:18):
it that hard, to be honestwith you. I think you just when
you're passionate, you put in thework and really just put in the work
and think about it and stuff likethat, and talk to the other guys
that are professionals that you've hired andbe like, hey, how do you
feel about this? And one ofmy favorite questions is when someone will come
to me and say I really thinkwe should do this, whether it be
(12:39):
acting or wardrobe or you know,and I will, okay, sell me
on it. Why And you know, honestly, like eighty percent of the
time I don't agree with them,but that twenty percent that I do agree
with them really makes a better movie, right, you know, when they're
like, well, I think weshould do this kind of lens or we
think we should do you know,we should we should try this color on
(13:01):
this character or whatever like that,or the actors like I really think that
there's something here to explore, andI'm like, okay, and it does,
you know, And you got tobe open to that. You can't
be a dictator. You have tobe like, it's a collaborative effort.
I mean, you're the leader ofthe collaborative effort, but you have to
be open to suggestions. Yeah,okay, And that's gonna be one of
my questions is what kind of directordo you feel? You are? Obviously
(13:22):
somewhat collaborative. Yeah, I mean, that's what I love most about directing
is that there's a collaborate effort.It is it's like, I mean,
I've hired this cinemphotographer or this productiondesigner or this actor. I'm not you
know, I'm an actor, yes, but I mean I've hired them for
the specific reason and so like Iwant them to bring themselves to it.
And I want to know. I'mnot an expert in lenses and you know
(13:45):
lighting, I've hired that guy forthat, and so I have to be
open and I think it is collaborative. And that's my favorite part about directing.
Is it a bunch of these peoplethat are really talented in their respected
departments come together to essentially make thedirector's vision right. And if one,
you know, department fails, itkind of like the whole whole thing fails.
(14:07):
To be honest with you, becauseat the end of day, you
want to make the best possible filmand there's something that's lacking, and then
it'll show, whether that's acting,whether that's lighting or sound or whatever it
happens to be. If it's lacking, it's it's gonna pull you out of
the story, and it's gonna hurteverybody. Everyone's department, right, And
how are you when it comes tosay, uh, improv or yeah,
(14:28):
basically improv on on set? Yeah, I think that sometimes you know,
there's a there's a limit like whatyou can do, like you need to
stay kind of like reined in.But sometimes you can get some really good
moments from that, and I'm okayfor that. An example that I learned
from another director, Ron Murphy onjan is that he took we're shooting the
(14:52):
scene and he took he took usto the side and he said, Okay,
guys, I don't mind the improv, but let's do it right here.
Let's let's work it together, let'shear it out loud. And so
we started to do it, andI improved a couple of lines. Uh,
sitting in the miata and Jan throwsher ice cream at me and she
misses, and and I say,uh, you know, best lay off
(15:16):
the ice cream anyway was the line. And I was like, best lay
off the ice came anyways, chubby, and Jan turns to me and goes,
oh, that's really good. Keepit, fuck you, but keep
it. I was like, andthat, and you know, and it's
a better moment. But the directorwas open to it. And so from
that, I'm like, I'm opento it. So I've had I've had,
you know, especially if you're doingcomedy, and I generally kind of
(15:39):
gravitate towards some sort of communic elementin my movies. I think you have
to you have to allow that.But I don't know, I don't know
if it's necessarily improv I think it'slike thought about beforehand. Maybe it's not
on the script. Sure, andyou bring it, but I'm I'm open
to it. And I think youjust gotta be careful to like raining in
because sometimes you can get like reallyout of conroll. But yeah, again
(16:02):
it's I've hired these people for areason. It's because they're good. I
mean, if it's dramatic and thescript is you know, solid, then
maybe less improv But if it's morecomedic, then more improv I guess it
depends right on the on the material, to be honest with you, Yeah,
and that's fair. So when itcomes like going back to kind of
your acting side of things, obviouslyyou've had the opportunity to work with a
(16:23):
lot of directors. Have you seencertain aspects from other directors where you're like,
Okay, I'm not going to directthat way. Yeah, And but
I've also been like I like tofocus on the good. So I just
I just cast at a film calledThis Two Shall Pass, directed by Rob
Grant, produced by Michael Peterson,and Michael was very generous and saying,
hey, man, you can cometo set whenever you want, Like it's
(16:45):
a free, open invite to cometo set. And so I did come
to set and I watched Rob work, and I was there are a lot
of things that Rob did that Iliked, you know, I was like,
I really liked a bunch of thingsthat you did. I guess The
biggest no no I would say aboutdirecting is if you lose Like so the
first day of filming Operation Clean Slate, our sound guy did not He messed
(17:08):
up the sound. We literally hadto fire him the first day, first
scene. And so this is myfirst time directing, and I wanted to
I was really like, I wantedto lose my mind. But my producer
at the time, he was like, hey, man, like, don't
worry, We're going to fix this. If I would have lost my mind,
I just would have like spread likewildfire between the crew at cast and
(17:29):
crew. So I started, youneed to like, you need to be
focused, you need to be professional, you need to like and have fun.
But don't ever like if things aren'tgonna go like things never go the
way you want him to go onfilm sets, they don't. There's there's
curveballs all the time, and it'sjust like a matter of dealing with it.
But always stay in calm and alwaysbeing like working together, talk to
(17:49):
your people, get back on track. You know when we're we're This is
where the ad producer comes in iswhen I'm directing, I'm like, I
have already built in what see I'llbe okay to lose or or how to
condense my shot list if I haveto, because I need to make my
day right. If I'm asking peopleto work, you know, I can't
have people work in fourteen hours.I just can't. Yeah, twelve hours
(18:11):
is kind of where I like tobe, so yes, I'm more so.
That's the one thing that I diddefinitely watch from other directors is like
letting people do their job and makethem feel as comfortable as possible because you
will get the best work out ofthem. Let them feel like they're part
of the collaboration, which I'm okaywith. You'll get better work out of
them. So things I don't Idon't look for directors that I wouldn't do.
(18:34):
I look for things that I woulddo, things that would work in
certain like situations. Okay, andyou know, so yeah, the answer
is yeah, I do really payattention directors. I have been paying direction
pension to directors for a while,and any opportunity I can see directors work,
I do that. I also feelthat from producing I had, I
(18:56):
was really lucky early to produce fora lot of really good Calgary directors Brett
Firster, John kissach Mark, whichyou and I both know. So I
feel like watching them and being besidethem and shotgun with them also really helped
me. And they're really good directors. Yeah, all three of those guys,
(19:17):
you know in their own right,different but good. Absolutely. Yeah.
I wouldn't mind working with Mark again. Couples do a show, work
on a show up for him andI was like, sure, buddy,
no problem, not nice. Yeahyeah, So he put me up a
Montre offer like a week okay,and we did this play and it was
really well written. I like hiswriting a lot. Actually, he has
(19:37):
a short script that I would mindshooting, but acquire a bit of a
budget fair enough, as they alldo. Yeah. Yeah, well Susie
makes cupcakes. Yeah the second directorial. Yeah, the title does not give
the show away at all, SoI was expecting a cooking show, which
(20:00):
I did not get when I watchedthe trailer. Yeah, maybe you can
just tell us a little bit aboutit, and yeah, Susie makes cupcakes.
Susie has a very unique talent.She makes the best red velvet cupcakes
you have ever tasted. She parlaysthat talent into getting even with her abusive
husband, deceiving the local crime family, and potentially making out with a bowling
bag for the cash. I've notsaid that ever before, not not in
(20:23):
the title. Never, I neverpitched theos and that's what it's about essentially.
Yeah, yeah, that's again.Watching the trailer, it was pretty
fun to watch, which, bythe way, the trailer is on YouTube
if anybody wants to go check thatout. At least I think it is
Vimeo. Yeah, but yeah,vimeos. So it's yeah, and I'm
(20:44):
assuming this is another one where you'vekind of got the potential transition to make
it into a feature or yeah,that's not it. Like I kind of
didn't want that. I just wantedsomething different than I directed before, because
like, I'm really pitching myself asa as a feature film director now and
I've and I've talked a lot ofpeople about it, but they're like,
you know, you only got onething kind of thing. So I was
like, Okay. I talked toa couple of people that I knew that
(21:06):
IT invested in my last couple ofmovies and went to them with this script
and said, hey, would yoube willing to throw in some money?
So I ended up and then actoralberta thank you. Actor Alberta, wherever
you are, Hi, Actor Alberta. The MIP program, they kicked in
some money. They also kicked inmoney from my first film too, so
I'm very grateful to Actra. I'mhappy that they're supporting you as well.
(21:29):
Yes, they and it went tothem, and then it was able to
get a budget together and like andshot this because I wanted something else to
shoot. Also was going crazy notshooting, not directing, and it wasn't
like to be a big thing.But it's people are asking like if people
have seen it, like, hey, is this a bigger thing? Like
(21:51):
this could be fun. And Ithink the writer Bethany Mains, she has
a feature of like she has anovel of this, so maybe she could
write me a feature. I don'tknow, it's a peticil. I mean,
if there's if there's a desire forus to, you know, go
further with this story, I'd totallybe in. I love these characters.
Yeah, and again watching the trailer, it seemed like a fun little film
(22:14):
for sure. I mean, Ilove it, but you know, I
guess the audience will tell me oncewe start screening at festivals and stuff.
So which, speaking of I'm assumingit's starting to make its rounds now.
Yeah. So we opened in hadour world premier guest in Wyoming International Film
Festival, which if you're a filmmakerand you're looking to submit your film somewhere
Wyoming. Surprisingly, I was likefollowing them. They have a fantastic film
(22:37):
festival. I didn't get to go, but I really wish that I did.
So it opened in Wyoming on Julyfifth, I think, in their
crime section, and it was nominatedfor Best Overall Short and Best Screenplay okay.
And then we screened in Sacramento lastweekend Sacramento Underground Film Festival, and
(23:02):
then we got acceptance into South DakotaInternational Film Festival and Edmonton International Film Festival.
Nice. So we're hoping for Calgaryso that the hometown can see the
movie. So Calgary, if you'relistening. Yeah, So it's it's starting.
We got I think we submitted tothirty festivals and we'll see where you
(23:25):
know, who who resonates with itand who wants it and who doesn't.
Okay, that's fair. Going backto Operation Queen State for a second,
where can people watch that or isit available for public? Available for public?
I mean if anyone knows me,want to reach out to me on
social media, I will send youa link. I don't mind. I
think we're we're kind of contemplating.I have to talk to the other producers
about just like putting it out there. But I don't know if that's the
(23:48):
smartest move. Why we're still pitchingit to networks? Yeah, okay,
so but do you reach out tome on social media? I will send
it to you fair enough. Soa bit of a sidetrack, Like you've
been involved in casting for quite along time. Yeah, however, I
feel that industry has kind of pickedup for you over recent years. Yeah.
(24:10):
So I've always casted my own projectsbecause I felt like I just knew
actors better than I shouldn't say that. I did hire a casting director to
do my two feature films that Iproduced, Same Girl. She's great,
and but I've always been casting,like the smaller stuff that I did in
my web series, the shorts,all that stuff, and then I've always
liked it. I've always liked workingwith actors, you know, reading across
(24:33):
from them, doing the audition process, which you don't do anymore. Unfortunately,
right now, I think this projectI'm casting right now. I think
they're going to do that. I'mreally excited about doing that. And we
did a little bit of it onthis short that I'm producing called The Lily
and the Scorpion. We did calllike in person callbacks. The director was
in from New York and I wasable to read with the potential leads.
(24:56):
So I missed that. I lovethat. And then yeah, and then
Jason on Limb, who I believeyou're gonna have on the show later on,
he's got something coming. Uh Yeah. He hired me to start casting
his feature films and I loved it. And then I guess people thought that
I was good at it, andso I just keep been people keep offering
(25:18):
me bigger projects to cast, andyou know, we're doing one Night now.
We're looking across the country for youknow, names, which I've never
done before, and it is kindof interesting to to like know these people
and suggest these people to be likeOky, who do you think you know?
We have a budget, we wantto get some people who do you
think would be good for us,like them to be Canadian. And people
are taking my suggestions on it,like producers and directors. We hired a
(25:41):
couple on my last project that Idid, I was like, what this
person for this role and you workedwith them on this movie, so what
do you think can that? Andthey're like, that's a great idea and
they hired them. Okay. Ilove casting, and I think my focus,
like two years ago, I switchedit to like directing and casting.
That's what I wanted to do.Less acting, I mean, also makes
things more difficult to act because Ican't I'm not going to act in something
(26:06):
that I cast. It's just confidentinterest and the optics of it. So
that limits my acting opportunities right whenI'm casting them fair enough. So I've
done all the less casting, butmy focus is definitely like directing and casting
as well. Like casting is kindof the secondary to that. Okay,
but there's just keep getting work.I don't know why. Well, and
(26:32):
because there's isn't really a lot ofcasting directors locally in Calgary, right,
I mean there's essentially Rhonda and Sue, but really that's those are those are
the two Calgary? Yeah, Imean Pat as well, and I mean
there's a there's a pet Yeah,there's a few of them. But I
also think I'm good at it,and I know, and I know the
talent, like I Ronda's Rnda,She's the queen man, but past Ronda,
(26:56):
Like, I don't know if anyoneelse from being acting, from producing,
from being in here knows the localtalent and they I mean, I've
casted I don't know, probably tenfeatures in two years. I would say
ten features, maybe nine. Thiswill be my tenth coming up here in
two years. So I've seen alot of tape like and you know,
(27:18):
I like this. I like togive opportunities, like maybe somebody that doesn't
that you don't think that they're goingto be this character. You're like,
I don't know, let's see,Like the director may not see it.
I'll watch it. I'll know.I also like, there's a guy that
we cast I don't know, probablya couple features ago. I've been watching
his auditions get better, better andbetter over the last year and a half,
(27:41):
and I was like, I thinkthis is your guy. I think
he's ready. Chargers liked them,hired him perfect, So I think,
yeah, I think I do havea good handle on local talent. And
they also think that I'm trying tomake them better by giving them opportunities,
even like they may not get therole, or just jim a shot,
see what happens, and if they'renot good enough, that's okay, director
(28:02):
doesn't see it. We'll try nexttime. Yeah, absolutely, you know
what I mean. Yeah, becausethere is talent here, that's for sure.
You know. I think we needas as actors, we need to
be more serious about acting. Youknow, like stop asking for extensions.
Stop, you know, get yourtape in if you want to act,
or tell your agent to take youoff. Be like, hey, man,
I have people that get submitted allthe time. I want to see
(28:25):
them. I've seen them two years. I haven't gonna show them interesting.
Yeah, and then you got peopleout there that die for the audition and
you know who those people are,and so you start like leaning on them.
Yeah. Absolutely absolutely. Over thelast few years, obviously, you've
you've kind of developed your relationships withpeople within the industry and everything else,
and that's kind of taken you tosome travels I think as well, Like
you've been down to La a fewtimes, things like that. I just
(28:48):
wanted to see how that's hasn't beenfruitful. I guess it's where I'm kind
of going with that. Those thosediscussions that you've had with folks outside of
yeah, I mean industry, yeah, yes, and no, Like I
have been to LA and took meetingsin LA, that's for sure, and
Toronto as well. In Vancouver ithas been I think that there has been
(29:11):
like a really good development coming,like from the vamp World Media festival is
up there last month. They thereis a company that has approved me to
direct for them, which I'm excitedabout. They just don't know what project
that is or when it's coming becausethey are looking for Calgary directors for their
(29:34):
films and they're they're pretty good budgets, Like they're decent budgets, especially for
my first feature. So yes,I believe that there will be something from
it. Have nothing has come fromit yet, okay, to be honest
with you, Yeah, so yeah, okay. Next on the docket for
Jason therean next is going to bedirecting a feature film. Man That is
(29:56):
That is That is my goal.I got a lot of potential options,
opportunities, just waiting for one ofthem to kick in, maybe some private
funding to shoot a film, maybethis company out of Toronto. But that
to me is really where I wantto be and that's what I want to
do, so that's my focus andI'm feeling it's really really close. Nice
(30:19):
well, congrats on that. Hopefullythat pans out for you. I want
to thank you for joining us onthe show today and of course as always
best success. Thanks brother very Ill, and for the folks watching, thanks
for tuning in. As always,don't forget to like and subscribe on the
YouTube channel and we will see younext week. New guest, take care of all
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