Words of Wisdom- a post by Mark Antonious Richfield

Since Ms Hauser has been back from her exhausting sojourn into the realms of playing an Executive Producer for her film CAPITAL GAMES, she has asked me to write her blog in her stead.

Of course, I too am busy, as many of you know who follow me in her 'Tell All' books. With another new modeling contract in addition to Dangereux Cologne and working full time at Parsons and Company, I can barely breathe, let alone write. But for her, I shall make the effort.

Of course after accepting the offer to write this silly blog, I must come up with a topic. Well, to be honest, I've so many in my head, who knows where to bloody start?

But the ever hard working Ms Hauser has been busy on the next volume in her Action! series which you all know is about yours truly and the actors and other men who surround me. Some true blue, others, not so much.

Which brings me to my son, Alexander.
Alex at one point thought he had won the lottery, being cast for the hot vampire drama series, Being Screwed. And I too, was very pleased, though lately the director, Charlotte Deavers and the producers, have gone off their bleedin' heads.

As greed and ratings become paramount to the sexy vampire show, and the actors who have been newly cast show that they quite simply are spoilt brats who respect nothing and come with a sense of entitlement, I wonder how myself or Alexander manage to survive and come to where we are today.

If you ask Ms GA, she will tell you I did because of Valium and beer! Well, quite possibly. But in truth Alexander will manage as I have done, with some patience and a bit of moxie. Steven, my husband, and an ex-LAPD officer, always told me, if you are right-fight. And I think that's good advice.
For bloody sake, it simply stands to reason that individuals who are cruel, selfish and make life difficult in general shall be 'rewarded' when karma knocks them to their arse. I've seen it. Believe me when I tell you it is true.

So where am I going? Lost in my head, but that's for Dr Van Eldon, my psychiatrist and I to work out.

Inevitably, doing wrong will bite you in a not so pleasant place. Alexander has learned that lesson the hard way, and now he can watch the twenty-something prima donas who have been hired to act alongside him, show off, and make everyone's world and work an impossible task. Alex is no longer one of those difficult lads. He has matured, thank bloody hell! and he too can see what a nuisance the new talent is as they strut around and snap their fingers imagining everyone is there solely for the purpose of pleasing them. Keith O'Leary and Carl Bronson, from Forever Young have the same complaints. The new young actors simply don't get it. Don't work as a team.

Ahh, yes. Youth. You all know my struggles with (cough) aging. But I have to admit I have learned. I have learned, my lovelies, that ego is not a positive trait. That gossip and meanness can come back in terrible ways.
So my words of wisdom to my fans, and friends who give a shite about what I think...

Be kind. Think the best of people before you speak. Don't judge, for you, my pet, will BE judged. And for bloody sake, don't bite a hand that is feeding you. That simply does not stand to reason.

There. Here is my contribution to lighten the workload of a workhorse (yes, I am referring to GA). And now you are prepared for Book 12 of the Action! Series- Keeping it Up- which will be out in time for Christmas? I don't know.

Keeping what up? If I know Ms Hauser, it has a thing or two to do with the male anatomy. Or perhaps not. Perhaps this time she means, Keeping up being good- being kind, and loving those who love you.

(In the words of GA-) Be safe out there.

Yours Truly,
Mark Antonious Richfield

It's a Wrap!

The Making of Capital Games the Movie- Part 8

The shooting is done, the traveling behind me, and the catch up of writing and work begins.

Exhaustion is the word that comes to mind at the moment- and I know I am not the only one to feel this way. My director told me he is going to take a vacation for a week to recover. Good lord! We all need one!

I was warned how long the days were, how hard the schedule would be, and of course, never expected some of the drama, behind and in front of the camera. But according to my DP- Aussie Peter, this was all part of the game.

At the start of production, everyone was up and ready.
Mid-way, they began to sag.
By the end if felt as if we were running a marathon.

Kudos to all who fought to finish this to the end. It was such a long hard road, I had no idea how challenging the process could be.

But there it is. Done.
The camera has stopped whirring, the actors and crew are recovering and I am looking ahead to what comes next.

Edits.

In this age of computers there are no more 'reels' or celluloid. It's all on a hard drive. Precious little...err not so little, equipment. A hired staff of two were loading, correcting and managing to get the camera's vision onto a computer. Those two women worked hard to continue to download as we filmed. Two more amazing women I have never met! The hours they put in was nothing short of miraculous.

Those precious hard drives will make their journey north to an editor, who once again, I have been fortunate to find. She is a talented woman who will take the bits and pieces we shot and create the film.
Myself, the director and the editor will now have the challenge of selecting the shots to place in correct order, help splice, dice and fill in the blanks, of what will hopefully become my feature film.

So just as the production journey has ended, post-production will begin.
I am thrilled so far with the progress and with everyone's effort to finish this project.

Hearing, 'It's a wrap!' and being given the clapper board as a wonderful souvenir of the experience was the end...of filming.
But in reality, it's only the beginning of the next phase of the adventure. Edits.

And after that? Once it's done and dusted? Into the film festivals, with any luck.

What will the future hold?
No clue. But the past has been one hell of a learning curve and an experience I will never forget.

Move forward. Never give up. And never tell yourself it cannot be done.

There is no one stopping your success but you.

Be safe out there.

Learning To Fly!

The Making of Capital Games- Part 7

Complex.
Yup. That's how I would explain the art of film-making. Who knew? How many years have I watched a movie, a TV show, or even a 30 second commercial without a second thought? I think we all take for granted that we watch a movie or television show and everything falls into place as we see it.

Wow- my learning curve has just taken a quantum leap!

I've discussed the multiple takes- errors from crew, noise of planes, cars, dogs, all stopping filming until things quiet down. Sound- it's the biggest dilemma from air conditioning to refrigerators going on. 'Quiet on the set!' has taken on a whole new meaning. They mean reallllly quiet. Like in, hold your breath. That mike picks up a fly landing on a crumb.

Add to that our own shadows and reflections, our lights and screens and any number of poles, wires and objects used to light an area showing on the camera’s screen, and there goes the take.
When I see even this small scale production, behind the scenes, I can't imagine what big Hollywood mega-movies must go through to get one take. In our wedding scene we had not only seventy-five extras, but two young children as well- talk about hilarious! but also, they didn't understand the concept, so our director turned into a pre-school teacher, pointing, “Look at Daddy and smile!"

The stuff that went on, the 'out-takes' that may never get to be shared with the fans, were too hilarious to count. The stress, the long hours and seriously hard work, started to make the actors and crew punchy. And punchy means silly. It was time consuming and yes, meant more takes, but I was in tears I was laughing so hard. The puns came hard and fast.

Luckily I have a crew whose sense of humor matches my own. So the ex-cop got plenty of smiles from their antics.

And when the ice cream man passed during our outside shoot, you can imagine how many of my boys wanted a treat. "No. Not before dinner, young man," I scolded.

Along with the lighthearted silliness I do believe there has been some genuine learning for all. To many who came on this journey with me, it was a place to decide if this was the career for them. A place to do their first feature film. A springboard into what could be huge potential and great futures in the film industry. Everyone involved took that risk, that chance, that time, and the hard work to see if...
‘If’ Capital Games becomes a ground breaker, then it was all worth the effort. If not, it was one hell of an experience for everyone, including yours truly.

And how much did we learn? Too much to contain in one blog- skills, ego control, time saving devices, being flexible, and just managing to keep the project on track and moving to the finish line.

Ironic we have had the Olympics going on during this film project because we are going for the gold and it is a test of everyone's strength and endurance.

A big bravo to my cast and crew- They have far exceeded my expectations and I know they will do the same for my fans.

Learning to fly--
Oh, by the way....did you know actors 'fly' into the set? Like superheroes? Believe me. They are heroes to me.

Be safe out there.