The Vault – TrueBlood-Online.com

Lisafemmeacadienne has written a review of Jace Everett’s latest album, “Mr. Good Times” for The Vault. As all True Blood fans know, Jace is the writer of True Blood’s title song, “Bad Things”.

Below is her review:

Jace Everett’s new album, “Mr. Good Times” can be summed up in one word: evolution. The singer/writer of True Blood’s “Bad Things” has created a dynamic artist repertoire full of wit, philosophy and charm. He once again crosses musical boundaries through his ability to vocalize emotions in his not-quite-country music style.

This album encompasses a wide variety of styles: he captures the Beatles’ sound in “The Drugs Aren’t Getting It Done”, and an anthem style similar to U-2 in “Autumn.” You can hear the regret in his voice with “Let’s Begin Again,” “Nothing” and “Don’t Look Down”.

As an artist and writer, Jace has matured into more complex compositions with the assistance of his co-writers and talented band members. The more you listen, the more you glean from the album. Is he commenting on other people, or on himself? Listen for yourself to see!

This album has already been released in the UK, and is available in the U.S. on Amazon.com as a download. Below is a link to purchase both UK and US versions where you can also listen to samples of the songs:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Visit the Jace Everett Fan Page

 

Yesterday, Saturday, September 10, 2011, I went to the Surfrider Foundation’s Sixth Annual Celebrity Expression Session where True Blood’s Sam Trammell was one of the celebrity surfers, just like last year.  I also attended last year’s event, which was held shortly after I had moved to California and I remember that it was the first time I had been in Malibu. At the time, I was just awestruck by the gorgeous landscape there and I still am.

 

 

 

About the Surfrider Foundation:

The event is held by the Surfrider Foundation to help raise awareness for the need to clean up our oceans. Sam is a member of the organization and told me that he is proud of his association with them. The Surfrider Foundation’s  mission is “the protection and enjoyment of oceans, waves and beaches through a powerful activist network.”

You can think about it as three concepts.

• “Protection and enjoyment“, they don’t want to put a velvet rope around a beach and tell people to keep off. They’re surfers, beach goers, watermen… they enjoy the coasts. They’re a user group.
• “Oceans, waves and beaches.” Think coastlines, they’re engaged with environmental issues that affect our coastlines.
• “Powerful activist network” speaks to how they go about this mission as a grassroots organization and are local in many coastal regions.

Their association includes moms, surfers, kids and teens… in other words, they’re you. They’re engaged to protect what we love; oceans, waves and beaches.

To donate to this worthy charity, go to: surfrider.org

 

About the event:

As a member of the press I was told to arrive at 9:30am to check in. Alexis who is the Communication Manager for the event, was just great and very helpful throughout the day.

As we waited for the celebrities to arrive, sadly it started raining and those with large and very expensive camera equipment began to worry, so the staff set up a new canopy just for us. Luckily the large drops were short lived so very soon the canopy became unnecessary.

The celebrities began to arrive. The participants for the day were:

Of course I was there primarily to see and speak to Sam. He was one of the last to arrive, and immediately posed for some photos for the photographers:

After his session with the photographers he began his round of interviews. I was second up, so he was still really fresh and ready to talk. See my interview with Sam below where he talks about the the charity to save the oceans, what it was like to “be Tommy”, the season finale and what he “didn’t” know about Season 5.

 

EXCLUSIVE VIDEO INTERVIEW WITH SAM TRAMMELL

 

It was so awesome to spend time and talk with Sam. After the interview, I pretty much shadowed him the whole day.  I’ve also included a video of the event which is at the end of this article.

Sam seemed a little worried about the lack of waves and how calm the ocean was; which he said was just like last year. You could tell that the celebrity surfers were all seasoned professionals and it was a real shame that they didn’t get to “hang ten” because of the calm surf. However, for me, being on that beach in Malibu, which is well known as one of the best spots to surf in the world, and where all the surfing craze really started, was very exciting. I expected Beach Boys music to start playing at any time.

The surfers posed for group shots and got ready to go out for their hour long surfing session. It was really funny because as you can see in the first image below, Sam was the only one “sans shirt”.  They all started to tease him saying, because he was on True Blood, he of course was shirtless and was used to it.  Sam noticed, looked around and then said, “Hey, I’m no Joe Manganiello!” and promptly put his wet suit all the way on.

The group then posed for another group shot down by the water, and finally Sam has his “official” Surfrider shirt on.

Then, it was time to go to the starting point. By the way, I am also a huge fan of Mad Men and I loved seeing John Slattery among the group of celebrities, he sure held his own and more during the surfing.

They got their boards ready and all swam out into the surf:

They stayed out for their hour and some actually did catch a few waves, but it was mighty hard to do. Here’s the one photo I caught of Sam riding one:

See all the photos here in the Photo Gallery:

view more images from this album

When they all came out of the water I could tell that they were all glad to have helped their favorite charity. I heard someone say that the winner of the event was John Slattery who caught the most waves. I didn’t know that it was a competition, but want to say, “Congratulations John.”

EXCLUSIVE EVENT VIDEO

The video below is a full account of the day from Sam’s arrival to the very end of the event. You will hear an onlooker ask if they “hung ten” and John Slattery jokingly says, “NO!”

 

 

It was still a great day and I was so happy to have been able to participate.

Thank you Sam for allowing me to follow you around and to Alexis for her wonderful organization!

Video credit: Shadaliza

Thursday July 14, 2011, I went to Molly Malone’s in Los Angeles to join members of the cast of True Blood for a night of music, fun, door prizes all in support for the Amanda Foundation.

The event was hosted by True Blood cast members Kristin Bauer van Straten (Pam), Tara Buck (Ginger) and Todd Lowe (Terry) with performances by Abri Van Straten, Chris Pierce and Todd Lowe’s “L.A Hootenanny.”

It was a great night, I had so much fun. I have said it before, but I’ll say it again the True Blood cast are the most generous and giving people I know. They love to raise funds for their favorite causes, and tonight it was the Amanda Foundation. The Amanda Foundation was founded in 1976, and has since placed thousands of homeless animals. It is a nonprofit organization that rescues dogs and cats who, through no fault of their own, are spending their last days at City and County Shelters.

When I first arrived, the bar was fairly empty, but people were quickly arriving. I immediately saw Tara Buck who gave me a big hug and then her boyfriend and soon to be husband, Chris Pierce, who was one of the performers of the evening.  I next saw Todd Lowe whom I had never met in person, so that was a thrill.  I had brought a Season 3 DVD with me in order to get signatures of all the cast members attending so we could include it in a future charity auction.  Todd and Tara were the first one to sign it.

I sat down with some friends and we waited for the evening to begin, but I was so anxious, that I got up and walked around some more to see who else might arrive. I next saw Kristin Bauer van Straten and she immediately, said “Hi Lynn!”. She had just arrived and she and Abri were getting ready for the festivities. There was a silent auction set up and there was to be True Blood items among other great gifts raffled off during the night in-between each set of music. You could buy raffle tickets as you entered or during the evening.

I then saw someone that I had met before, Ryan C. Burney.  I had met him when I went to see Abri and Chris Pierce play at the Foundry a couple of months ago. Ryan a new cast member in Season 4 of True Blood  and is first seen in Episode 4, which happens to air this week. We talked about his upcoming “debut” and how exciting it was.  He had told me the night I met him that he is in one of the flashback scenes (I so love the flashback scenes). All I can tell you right now is that he plays a 16th Century Spanish Lord and is in two episodes, 4 and 6. I will be posting more about Ryan in a report on Monday, but I promised him I’d wait until after his first episode aired to post photos. Below is a photo I can share with you which is of Ryan with his girlfriend at the fundraiser on Thursday night:

I then went back to my seat since the night of music was about to begin. First on the stage was Kristin Bauer van Straten’s husband, Abri van Straten.  I know Abri’s music so I was sure that we would be treated to beautiful sounds.  The last time I heard Abri play, he played solo, but on Thursday night he had accompaniment.  This made his music even more lovely and he truly blossomed the more he played.  I loved his set of lilting music and he was very friendly with the audience.  Great job, I thought!  Find out more about Abri and his music by going to his web site.

Once Abri had completed his set, we were all treated to Kristin and Tara getting up on stage to start the fun of picking the winners of the raffles.  We had all bought our raffle tickets by then, and had them in hand hoping one of our numbers would be chosen.

During this break, I could see that several other True Blood cast members had arrived either during Abri’s set or just after.  They were, Deborah Ann Woll (Jessica), with her boyfriend EJ Scott, Mariana Klaveno (Lorena), and Jim Parrack (Hoyt).

I quickly ran to each of them with my DVD in hand, in order to get further signatures on it and to also take photos of them mingling with the many other True Blood fans who had also arrived and were quickly filling the bar to capacity.  In fact, the staff at the bar were so overwhelmed, that they closed the kitchen because there were just too many orders coming it from the large crowd. It was truly a successful event so far!

Next up after the first group of raffle prizes were given out and everyone had a chance to mingle, was Chris Pierce. Chris’s music, I would describe as very bluesy and he was just plain “amazing!”  He rocked the house with his set. I am a huge fan. If you live in the New York area on Saturday September 17, 2011, Chris will release his new album show at Rockwood Music Hall (Stage 2). 8pm.You won’t regret it and IT’S FREE! rockwoodmusichall.c​om. Chris also has samples of his music on his website which is here: http://chrispierce.com/

By the end of  Chris’s performance the audience was really getting going and many were dancing in front of the stage.  Just like Abri, the first time I heard Chris was when he played alone at the Foundry; having backup musicians this time really helped him to shine brightly and he sure “let it all hang out.”  Everyone loved it!!  I know I sure did.

After Chris finished his performance it was again time for more raffling.  When all the prizes were given out, I was not one of the winners; I never win, LOL!  However, again we were all having a great time and enjoying ourselves immensely, so that didn’t bother me at all.

For the final set of the night we heard Todd Lowe and his “LA Hootenanny” band play.  They really to the house rockin and they truly showed that the night was a night of all different tastes in music.  I loved the fun loving way that Todd and his band played and got into the music.  Loved it!

Below is a short video that will give you all a small taste of what each performance was like:

 

There are more photos in the Photo Gallery:

For me, in addition to the great music, the highlight of the night was getting to meet Todd Lowe for the first time, as well as Mariana Klaveno.  I loved Mariana’s performance of Lorena in True Blood and will miss her so, but I’m thrilled that she will be on Dexter this season, so to see her all I have to do is change the channel. Then to have Jim Parrack come over to sit with me, that was a thrill and it was great to talk to him again.  Jim has just released his new film POST, which you all should try to see when it get distributed.

Certainly, the night was all about raising money for a worthy cause, The Amanda Foundation.  It seems it was a success because Tara Buck reported on Twitter the next day saying: “Thank you to all the fans who came out last night to support The Amanda Foundation. We raised almost $5000 & we had a great time of it!”

However, there is never enough I’m sure to help these poor homeless animals, so please go to the Amanda Foundation web site and make a donation now: http://www.amandafoundatio​n.org/

Thanks to Shadaliza for putting the video together for me.

Last Sunday, June 26, 2011, I went to Pasadena to attend the International Makeup Artists Trade Show (IMATS) Convention. True Blood was to have a panel there including the team that does all the special effects, and I wanted to learn more about how those crazy stunts and blood baths are done.

 

To introduce you to what this convention is all about, below is video of highlights from IMATS shows that are held in London, Vancouver, Los Angeles, Sydney and Toronto each year.

 

 

While walking around the Exhibit Hall at the convention center in Pasadena, I was fascinated by all that goes into the makeup for fashion shows and for TV and film, but I was at this convention, primarily to see the True Blood Panel which was presented by Make-Up Artist magazine and called BLOODY SUNDAY: A True Blood Panel Discussion.

The discussion featured  Andre Bustanoby, Lana Grossman, Todd Masters, Brigette Myre Ellis, Dan Rebert and Mark Viniello.  They are from Masters FX, the company that has done all of the True Blood special effects and makeup.

Moderated by Joe Nazzaro the panel was held in the Main Stage (the largest room at the Convention Center). The True Blood panel discussed their work from the show’s previous seasons—as well as teased us with what’s to come in Season Four! We got to witness never-before-seen test shots and got a detailed expose on their work, followed by a question-and-answer session with the audience.

Below are three videos I took at the event. I apologize for the camera movement; I was late to the event (someone guided us to the wrong location) and people were walking behind me resulting in lots of bumping and nudging leading to camera movement. I know it’s hard to watch because of that, but the information they provide is absolutely fascinating so I suggest you just go along for the ride, you won’t regret it.

The panelists showed us scenes and guided us through how they were done. Most are from Season 3, including when the King rips out the vertebrae of the newscaster, Lorena’s death scene, the twisted sex scene, just to name a few.  We also get to see how they did fairyland and the “goblins” for Season 4. You’ll learn some interesting insider info and they even show us a photo of Executive Producer, Alan Ball in full make up!  Look on the table in front of Todd Masters to see the “dead head” of Jessica’s first victim that was used in Season 3.  Oh, and you’ll be surprised to learn that the naked guy in the sink in Sookie’s kitchen,  from the end of Season 2, is a goblin in Season 4.

 

True Blood Panel Part 1

 

True Blood Panel Part 2

 

True Blood Panel Part 3

 

source: imats.net

 

I moved to California last year at this time and because I was such a newbie to LA, and didn’t have a clue of even where to go, I wasn’t able to attend the Season 3 Premiere of True Blood. I was very disappointed that I couldn’t go, so I made up my mind, then and there, that I wasn’t going to miss it this year! Therefore, on Tuesday, June 21, I went to the Arclight Theater in Hollywood to participate in the “fan experience” at the True Blood Season 4 Premiere.

I had arranged to go with some friends and we were originally planning to arrive at the Arclight Theater around 2pm, but when I woke up on Tuesday morning, there was a text telling me to get there double quick because the line of fans had already started. I quickly got all my supplies together, Sharpies – check, 3 magazines to have Alex, Ryan and Stephen sign for charity – check, cameras (video and still) – check, as well as, all the other stuff I would need. Once I had all I needed packed up, I headed to the theater in downtown Hollywood.  I was there to meet up with the cast of True Blood and get Alexander Skarsgard, Ryan Kwanten and Stephen Moyer to sign magazines for our 2011 Fundraiser.

When I arrived at the theater, I was OK because there weren’t a lot of people there yet and we were first in line.  Also, neither the red carpet nor the barricades had yet been set up. My friends were all anxious for that to happen because they wanted to insure a prime spot and they couldn’t do that until things got set up. They had arrived well before me (they were kind enough to save me a spot), and weren’t going to give up first in line to anyone. I was glad to be with them; they are pros at attending these sort of events.

At about noon, the trucks arrived with all of the equipment, and the first thing they did was set up the fan section. It was very close to the red carpet this year and therefore, much easier for the cast members to see the fans and come over to sign autographs and say. “hello.” Yea, a real piece of good luck!

 

 

It was a beautiful sunny day and everyone was excited that things were finally beginning to happen. It wasn’t very hot, probably about 80 degrees (26c), but when you are standing in the sun with no shade for 10 hours, and smashed up against a lot of hot fans, it really was stifling, in our spot behind the barricades. This was where the fans were to be contained, as I later started referring to as, “the cage“.  It was about four people wide and produced a long line that extended around the corner. We got right up front in the most “prime” spot which enabled us to see all the action and to attract the most attention. While we were waiting I must have consumed two bottles of water, but yet was still thirsty. As the day wore on, the technology really started to appear with lots of lighting and camera equipment needed for the event.  Also, more and more fans began to show up.

 

 

It seemed like the sun would never stop shining on us, and we wilted more and more, but when the press arrived, even-though we knew they would block our view of the Red Carpet, our spirits perked up. At least now that the press were in attendance, we knew that the True Blood Cast couldn’t be far behind. And about 6pm or so, the cast did begin to arrive. The first one on the red carpet was Tara Buck, who plays Ginger in the show. I know Tara and she is the sweetest and nicest, not to mention a really talented person. When she came up to me, she gave me a big hug and said she loved the Vault. Jim Parrack, also came directly to me first and gave a big hug and a hello.

 

 

 

That was the way for me, most of the time, many cast members thanking me for the work that Shadaliza and I do on The Vault. I’d like to send a special “thank you for stopping by and saying, Hi to the Vault” to Alexander Skarsgård, Jim Parrack, Kristin Bauer, Chris Bauer, Deborah Ann Woll, Anna Paquin, Stephen Moyer, Tara Buck, Ryan Kwanten, Lauren Bowles, Nelsan Ellis, and Sam Trammell. There were lots of new cast members that I met at the event, and it was nice to see them, too. I have nothing but wonderful things to say about all the cast and crew of True Blood; they are the nicest bunch of people you could ever meet.

Then things started to really pick up and lots of cast members began arriving quickly. We could see them from our location, but there were so many cameras and press people in front of us, it was difficult to get any really good photos while they were on the red carpet.

Below are some photos from fan side of the event.  More photos can be found in the Photo Gallery.

Below are several videos of the cast documenting the experience of them among the fans to sign autographs.

 

Anna Paquin, Stephen Moyer, Ryan Kwanten and Nelsan

 

 

Alexander Skarsgård

 

 

True Blood Cast sign autographs at True Blood S4 Premiere #1 - Kristin Bauer, Marshall Allman, Jim Parrack, Carrie Preston, Brit Morgan, Fiona Dourif and new cast members.

 

 

True Blood Cast sign autographs at True Blood S4 Premiere #2 - Tara Buck, Joe Manganiello, Deborah Ann Woll, Chris Bauer Sam Trammell, Todd Lowe and new cast members.

 

 

True Blood Cast sign autographs at True Blood S4 Premiere #3 - Lauren Bowles and True Blood newbies, Fiona Shaw, Annie Fitzgerald, Stephanie Erb, Courtney Ford, and Dean Chekvala

 

 

Once the cast went into the theater, the fan experience was over for me. However, some of the fans decided to stay until the screening of Episode 1 ended in hopes of seeing the cast’s departure to the after party. I wasn’t up for that, so I went home. If you want to see some “departure and arrival videos”, we have them on the Vault that you can see by clicking here.

Thanks to all the cast for being so generous to their loyal and devoted fans!

 

My final thoughts about the event:

While it was an utter joy to see Steve, I have to say, that I’m not sure I will be doing this sort of event again. For me, it was an exhausting and somewhat humiliating experience. Since I know most of the cast, to be corraled behind a barricade and squashed like a sardine while waiting in the hot sun for over 8 hours, was embarrassing when they stopped by to say hello to me.

And, one final comment. While the True Blood people, (cast, crew, etc.) and most of the security people were very nice to the fans, there were two security men who were just the worst. They referred to us as “animals” and they told us that we were lucky that they even let us be there on the street. This is to a group of fans who were doing everything they were told and were behaving themselves. One thing I have never been made to feel by HBO or anyone associated with True Blood is that I was unimportant, but these two men managed to insult me and the whole throng of fans that were doing their best to show their devotion to their favorite show.

 

Thanks to Shadaliza for her help in producing the videos. And Thanks to Filmchick for the bulk of the photos.

 

On Friday, June 10, 2011 the Playhouse West Film Festival opened at the El Portal Theater in North Hollywood. On this opening night, I attended the Premiere of Jim Parrack’s new film, POST.

We all know Jim as Hoyt Fortenberry on True Blood, and now we see him branching out of acting into other realms. “Post” is Jim’s directorial debut and was an extremely personal experience for him.

His wife, Ciera and his best friend Scott star together in the film and Jim uses not only most of his family but a lot of his friends as actors. As I said, it’s an extremely personal film that brought Jim out of a bad experience in filmmaking and made it into a good one.

About Playhouse West: It is a training ground for actors, writers and directors founded by Robert Carnegie and Jeff Goldblum in 1981. Highly regarded and recommended by industry professionals as the premiere acting school in the country, many of their members go on to work at the highest level within the entertainment business.

In addition to the festival’s showing of Post on opening night, Jim also is seen in another film called “Simone”, directed by Wolfgang Bodison about a young black woman and her white boyfriend who are forced to make important life decisions involving class, race and love.

Before we saw the film last Friday, I attended the “red carpet” event for the Playhouse West Film Festival. Earlier in the week, I had met with Jim at his house with Ciera and Scott and interviewed the three about the film. You can see that interview, in which Jim talks about the experience and how the film saved him here.

Below are some photos and pictures from the Red Carpet Premiere event. In addition to Jim and Scott, the four women together, in the photos, are: Olivia Dudek, Ciera Parrack, Katie Ryan, and Katherine Boecher.  In the first row of photos you see Abri van Straten, who did a beautiful job of writing the original music for the film.  ”Filmchick” is also seen below in a photo with Jim.  I am seen at left with Jim and below with Ciera.

Below is a video from the Red Carpet that includes the ladies in the movie (the dancers) Olivia Dudek, Ciera Parrack, Katie Ryan, Katherine Boecher along with Scott and finally, Jim.

 

 

As Ciera tells us, Post is a story that travels from tradegy to hope. It’s about a woman named, Sophia who after repeated attempts to avoid reality has alienated from herself, her friends and her art. This dancer must confront a simple but terrifying problem; die or face the most horrific truths about her life with the hope that freedom, joy and healing will bring her back to life. In the film, we see Ciera’s Sophia living with the tragedy and we feel her torment. Scott Haze plays a military man and someone that is also associated with this tragedy and the two grieving people come to experience much together.

As Jim’s first try at directing, I found Post to be more that satisfying. There are several scenes that I thought were exceptional. The scene on the beach when we first meet Scott’s character, all the scenes at his home in Texas with his family, but the last scene in the film for me was the best. It is very touching and gives us all hope for a better future. His family are remarkable as are Ciera and Scott in the lead roles. I am still amazed that the film was shot without a crew, without a single lighting set up and is exclusively acted by either non-actors or members of Playhouse West.

To a packed house (the premiere was sold out), we all watched Post and I am happy to report that I think it is definitely worth seeing. After the film ended and the lights came up, Jim and Ciera came to the stage and held a very fascinating Q&A. During the Q&A Jim elaborates on the story he told during the earlier interview about what inspired him to make the film, and it’s certainly worth hearing. Below, in 5 parts, is that Q&A with the Parracks.

You might need to let the videos load before playing.

 

Part 1 of Q&A

 

Part 2 of Q&A

 

Part 3 of Q&A

 

Part 4 of Q&A

 

Part 5 of Q&A

 

At the end of the Festival, we all learned that Jim’s film had swept the awards winning Best Film, Best Directing, Best Actress, and Best Supporting Actor. The Best Actor award although didn’t go to anyone in Post, it stayed in the family as True Blood’s Marshall Allman took home that prize. Also at the event was True Blood’s Alexander Woo; which is a testament to the stories that True Blood really is a family.

I want to thank Jim for letting me into this very personal experience of his and to Ciera and to Scott who were not only wonderful in the film, but have been so generous with their time.  I think this is the beginning of something for Jim and I wish him the best with it.  John Cassavetes is looking down smiling, I know.

 

Thanks to Shadaliza for preparing the red carpet video, thanks to M’Lou for shooting the Q&A and to Filmchick for sharing some of her photos.

 

True Blood’s Denis O’Hare participated in a panel discussion for The Los Angeles Times’ 3rd Annual “The Envelope: Primetime Emmy Screening Series” on June 7, 2011 in Los Angeles. I attended the event and got a chance to meet Denis before the panel started.

Denis arrived all on his own, not in a limo like many of the other participants did.  He was walking outside when I got a chance to run up and hand him my Vault business card and get a quick photo with him.  Just like all the other True Blood cast members, Denis was very gracious and just as animated as I thought he’d be.

This evening’s panel was the “next to last” in the series and was titled, “The Alternative Families Panel.” It was hosted by Times TV critic Mary McNamara and featured Katey Sagal (“Sons of Anarchy”), Jennifer Carpenter (“Dexter”), Denis O’Hare (“True Blood”), Emmy Rossum (“Shameless”), Cloris Leachman (“Raising Hope”) and Peter Krause (“Parenthood”).

The audience consisted of mostly Screen Actors Guild members (they were given preference for seating), and I was a “stand by” audience member. Evenso, I got in easily and found a great seat in the third row. The actors came out individually after being introduced by the commentator Mary McNamara.

The commentator said that Denis’ show had the most “out there” family of the group. I suppose vampires must have pretty “wacky” families. However, I was curious about the “alternative familes” topic chosen as the title for this panel, because I wasn’t sure what True Blood had to do with it, however Denis explained all.  He talked a lot about his True Blood partner, Talbot (played in the show by Theo Alexander). He said that his relationship with Talbot was the only really “stable” relationship and unlike humans, vampires “make” their families. He also talked about the True Blood cast and crew that has become like a family and how everyone loves each other on the show. I have heard this about the cast and crew of True Blood over and over. I know it must be true because every person I have met from True Blood is kind and generous and I’d like to somehow be adopted, too!

Below are videos from the Q&A panel representing most of Denis’ contributions. Oh, and I got to ask him a question, during the audience Q&A.  I asked Denis what he based his characterization of the King upon and, although his answer was a good one, it presented more questions than answers for me. He goes on later to discuss the scene between he and Stephen Moyer in episode 4 and how long it took to shoot it and how they had done it in several different ways.

I so enjoyed Denis speaking about acting since he is such an exceptional example of the art. While Denis speaks very passionately about it, he also is as animated as you’d expect him to be and he and Cloris Leachman are very funny together.

 

Alternative Family Panel Part 1:

 

Alternative Family Panel Part 2:

Thanks to Shadaliza for helping to enhance the videos.

 

Jim Parrack’s has just completed a very personal and lovely film, called “POST” which premiered last Friday night at the El Portal Theater in North Hollywood, CA.  I attended the Premiere and will report on it shortly. It’s pretty miraculous that this film is completely Jim’s invention, and he was the entire crew.

Last week, I asked Jim if he would sit for an interview with me to discuss his new film. He invited me to his home to do so and on Wednesday, June 7, I met with him, his wife Ciera and his friend Scott Haze.

Ciera is the star of the film playing the part of Sophia along with Scott who also stars in the role of a marine.  While Sophia is the story’s focus, both characters are linked to each other by an event that is explained in the film. As you will hear when viewing the interview, Jim had a good sized cast in the film that included his family, as well as Glee’s Heather Morris and Mark Pelligrino from Lost and Supernatural.

After we enjoyed a very good bowl of soup, in their comfortable kitchen, the three actors sat down with me for the interview.  At the end of Part 2, Jim reveals a couple of True Blood Season 4 secrets, well, sort of.

Watch the two part interview below:

 

 

 

Be sure to watch for my upcoming coverage of the Premiere from last Friday that should be online sometime this week!

Thanks to Jim, Ciera and Scott for taking the time to speak to me.

 

And, thanks to Shadaliza for compiling and adding special effects to the videos.

 

Yesterday, I went to the filming location of True Blood in downtown Los Angeles. As listed on Onlocationvacations.com, True Blood was to be filming at the Millenium Biltmore Hotel and I thought I just might get a glimpse of some of the cast, particularly Stephen Moyer, if I waited outside.

When I arrived, I met up with two other Truebie’s, M’Lou and Megan. We three were the only fans there and, unlike the typical LA weather, the sun was fading fast as the clouds and the wind rolled in. The girls filled me in on their adventure so far and M’Lou has written about it on her site at cinematicdebris.com. Unfortunately, Megan had to leave but M’Lou wanted to stay and I told her if she stayed with me, I’d be glad to drive her home.

Poor M’Lou, she had no coat and it was in the 50′s and getting progressively more windy, cold and damp as the afternoon wore on, proving she is a real “trooper” for staying. So far, the only person I had seen was Alexander Skarsgård at the top of the ramp, sitting down reading outside in-between takes.

 

 

We were hoping that others too might appear outside, but as the day got gloomier, colder and more windy, I wasn’t so sure anyone would come out.  However, we did see Anna Paquin briefly as she was whisked to her van and back again to the set. We also saw two of the new cast members, Aaron Perilo who plays “Blackburn” and Annie Fitzgerald who plays “Kirsch” in Season 4.

 

 

After that, we continued to talk to the guards who were watching the entrance and just waited. I had brought a Details magazine with me that had Alex on the cover to hopefully, get him to sign it, but he hadn’t  noticed us, so far. We still hoped to get him later, though. Our plan was to go to the other street (the other side of the ramp) since that was closer to where he was sitting. However, I had just sent a message to Steve saying where we’d be, so because I hoped he might just get the message, I didn’t want to move yet.

As always, he didn’t disappoint. Just when we had almost given up and were just about to leave for the “other side”, I looked up and there he was descending the long ramp looking super fine in a lovely double breasted striped grey suit accompanied by a maroon tie with a handkerchief in his breast pocket. As he descended, I couldn’t help expressing to him how great he looked, as you can hear in M’Lou’s video below.

It’s odd to me how stars can just overcome all weather obstacles. While it was super windy and my hair was blowing wildly, Stephen’s managed to stay just “perfect” and not a hair on his head moved in the wind.  He did look just great.  They were filming in the ballroom of the hotel and there were lots of actors there, so I’m guessing it must be some sort of a big climax scene like in the church of Season 2, but that’s just my speculation.  At any rate, there were a lot of extras on set that day and Stephen sure does look fine in that suit! Oh, did I already say that?

 

 

Below is a short video that M’Lou took of Stephen’s short visit for her site that she graciously allowed me to post here.

 

Stephen couldn’t stay long as he had “snuck out” and wanted to get back before they missed him. He did tell us how much he enjoyed being downtown in LA and liked it there.  I then asked him if that meant he was going to move here and he immediately said “No.  You know I’m totally a beach bum.”

I so appreciated him taking the time to come out and say a quick hello and pose for the photos with us. He then descended the ramp again and it was just as nice seeing him leave as arrive.

We then moved over to the other street, as planned and waited for Alex to come out again to read. It had grown so cold and windy, that unfortunately he must have decided not to come back outside or, he was busy filming. So, since we had been there for most of the afternoon and it was near to 6pm, we decided to call it a day and went home.

It was a great experience seeing the comings and goings of the production that I thoroughly enjoyed.

Thanks to M’ Lou for braving the cold and allowing me to use her video.

Jace Everett, writer/performer of True Blood’s theme song, Bad Things, appeared at Baton Rouge’s annual Fest for All on April 30, sponsored by the Baton Rouge Arts Council. Lisafemmeacadienne had a chance to attend the concert, and to ask Jace a few questions about his upcoming album and tour.

Jace brought his wife, Stephany Delray, who played guitar and did back-up vocals; Dan Cohen played electric guitar; and Derek Mixon, drums. The acoustics were excellent, and the audience seemed to really enjoy the music, dancing while they played. It threatened to rain during the concert, which kept the temperatures in the 70′s. I was able to sit up by the elevated stage, in front of the good-size crowd of festival goers.

 

 

Jace was in full humor, using the French pronunciation of “Baton Rouge” repeatedly (we pronounce it “batten rooj” here.) A drunk lady decided to bother the band during the concert, but he handled it with his usual wit and charm. He played for an hour and a half non-stop, doing a selection of his songs and a few “cover” songs.

 

Set list:
1. Burn For You
2. Possession
3. More to Life
4. The Good Life
5. Business is Booming
6. Tricky Thing
7. One of Them
8. Let’s Begin Again
9. Good Times
10. Bad Things
11. Little Black Dress
12. Your Man
13. Ride Me Down Easy
14. Angel Loved the Devil Outta Me
15. What It Is
16. Not Fade Away

As we posted on an earlier article on The Vault, Jace’s next album will be released in download form on ITunes, Amazon.com, and www.jaceeverett.com. It will have 11 songs; no release date has been set yet. He will be heading for Holland and the UK at the end of May. Jace also told me that he will be heading to Australia; you heard it here first!

Jace always continues to amaze me with his charm, wit, and intelligence. A Parisian was speaking with him after the concert while buying a CD, and Jace was conversing in French with a pretty decent accent. Pas mal, cher, pas mal du tout!

If you get a chance to catch Jace in concert, it will be time well spent. His songs, which reflect his life experiences, are worth a listen. His melodies are diverse, playful, and philosophical; there’s something for everyone!