Fitting Recap & Halloween!

Hello Readers! (all 4 of you now)

So the fitting, or lack there of, went great. Very cool costume designer and I believe she is an actress in the film as well. Basically, as I already knew because of the script, she told me, "So basically your fitting is your body. You're naked in a lot of this movie." I nodded. They approved what I've been doing at the gym! woo hoo! But I'm personally not satisfied yet, so I'm gonna keep working out and get in as great of shape as possible for this film. I still feel I have a ways too go but she made a very good point..."Remember you're 18...most 18 y/o can't get big, so keep it lean." I can't get bulk even if I wanted to. Lean is who I am no matter what I try and do...but there's nothing wrong with getting more ripped and keeping the lean body.

As for the title to this blog...Halloween is coming up! I know a ton of people who love Halloween, and why is that? It's because for 1 day in the year you get to be something completely different than who you are. You can be a killer. A zombie. A vampire. A slut. Whatever you want. Girls can wear next to nothing and not get judged like any other day of the year, and the manliest men in the world can wear eye shadow and makeup and not have people think twice about their sexual orientation. As for me, this Halloween am going to be..........

........HA! Like I'm gonna tell you guys! It's a surprise, but I will definitely have pictures up after Halloween for you guys. Hope I can pull it off. We'll see.

But Halloween is my favorite day of the year because it is the one day you can go completely insane with your look. It's basically...acting. Everybody can act and on Halloween they don't feel silly about "playing dress up."

Best day of the year.

Cheers,
Jonathan Baca

Finally I Start Work

This week is finally upon us! My first meeting with the production team behind "Snatch N Grab." Really looking forward to it. It's a fitting for costumes for my character. I got the email and what the description was for my character's look shocked me.

"Travis (Jonathan): Travis is pretty much a sexual object, pure and simple."

I won't get into the details because I want you all to see the finished product, of course, but that's the first sentence about my characters look. Have I ever viewed "Jonathan" as "a sexual object" before? No. But Travis...Yes. This is going to be fun. The work I've put into this character is pretty intense. Travis is a very complex character with a lot of different emotions and changes going on with him. 1st step to getting "into the skin" of the character is the body. My workout has been going great until I got sick. It slowed me down a bit but as luck would have it I start shooting a month later than originally scheduled which gives me an extra month of working out. It's great.

I love acting. I love everything about it. From the minute I'm cast to the minute I wrap there is nothing else in the world I would rather be doing.

Cheers,
Jonathan Baca

Just Opening Up

For the first time on this blog I felt like writing about life instead of my acting career. I've seen and noticed for the past few years how a lot of people my age are getting married and getting jobs they aren't passionate about or love and "growing up." Sometimes I just don't understand. I've had this talk with a good friend of mine because he's the one person that sees it the same way I do. We don't get it. I don't understand the need to rush life. I don't know about all of them, but I plan to live for a very long time and the last thing I want is to be married in my 20s. I want to see the world. I want to live my life like a bird. Free to do as I please. Maybe that's why I love my choice in career. Marlon Brando once said, "Pursuing acting is generally a childish thing to do, to quit acting...now that is the mark of maturity." and I get it. I see all these people in there early 20s getting married and having kids and I understand that some people want that but I don't understand why. In this day in age most of the married couples end in divorce and if you look at the divorces most of them end that way because they got married young. 20s time frame. It's also the area I live and grew up in...the south. It's southern living. Country living. They get married young, and some of them end up bored. I've already started to see it happen to some. I've even seen some divorce already or break ups. I've seen people that aren't right for each other be together. Of course I'm not in there heads and hearts but it seems because they fear being alone and it's a situation of..."Why not. We're getting older and I wanted to be married at (insert age)." Life isn't like that. You all have seen those couples too. Where you just know they aren't right for each other and of course you can't say anything but you just sit there watching them and think, "They have no chemistry." "They have nothing between each other." "It looks like a friendship." I agree that a great friendship is a great base for a relationship with a mate but you have to have romance and chemistry. Sparks have got to fly! You need to be able to see a picture and think, "Wow...you guys have something." Maybe that's me and my romantic self talking but that's what I feel. Plus every friend of mine over the age of 30, including family members that went through getting married young, have told me, "Jon...please wait to get married! Don't do it young." I always tell them, "Me get married young?! Not a chance." They have all ended up divorced. Some are on there second marriage and are doing it right this time because they are older and wiser (that's what most have said to me too that are on there second marriage). It's not the 1950s anymore where getting married at 25 was considered "so old." Now if you get married at 45 that's considered "so old." 25 is very young in today's standards but still people do it. I've even lost a relationship based on this. She wanted to get married young and I...well you're reading what I think.

I will never understand that mind set and when the time comes for me to get married, if I ever do, I will be ready for it. It's funny too because when I talk about it to people they assume I'm not a romantic but I'm actually one of the biggest romantics you will ever meet (ask any girl I've gone out with). I always tell people to "follow there heart." That's how I was raised and that's what I do. The road you live when following your heart gets you into trouble, but it's always led me in the right direction whether it be my career or love life and it will lead you in the right direction too. I've seen it lead people in the right direction too. Some of my best friends didn't let certain situations stand in the way of a great love.

Cheers,
Jonathan Baca

It's Never Too Late

As most of you know I am still fairly new to this whole acting thing. Most people who are actors have been doing it their whole life. They did plays in elementary and middle school. Then took high school courses and did plays. Moved onto college and so on and so forth. I got into it because I needed a credit for my college education. A blow off class is what we like to call those. So I signed up for "Intro to Theater." It all changed from there. I recall my friend telling me, "You are going to love that class!! Everyone will be like you and you'll have a blast." I assumed she didn't know what she was talking about, but sure enough she was right. It changed my whole life. I applied for an Institute, The Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute in Los Angeles, CA. Not thinking I had a chance in hell I sent in my homemade headshot, that my g/f, at the time, took, and my resume which listed my band gigs; Zero acting. I don't know how, or why, but they accepted me. First acceptance letter I've ever received. It was awesome!

When I arrived in LA I didn't know what to expect. I had a great friend lend a helping hand and let me crash at his place while I was waiting for my place to be move-in ready. I drove out to school on a Monday and entered. It wasn't like a school or university like most would be use to seeing. It was a building next to a 7-11. I didn't know what to expect. I arrived about 20 minutes early because the last thing I wanted to do was stroll in late. I enter the classroom and there was 1 other person as smart as me. He was sitting there just hanging out. I looked around. There were a bunch of chairs lined up facing a small-modified stage. It was about 2 inches off the ground. Very small, but then again it was a class and not a theater. I walked over to the guy and introduced myself. He ended up becoming one of my best friends and one of the best actors in the school in my opinion. Anyway him and I just sat there talking about the last thing I would ever find in an acting institute...sports. He's from Boston, a very big sports town just like Dallas. It was nice. Then about 10 minutes later another early bird walked in. She was very attractive and foreign. For the life of me I can't remember her name but she was very cool and was a singer.

After all the class arrived the teacher walked in, or the professor. He was older and had this intense feeling about him. When he sat down he said, "alright, alright! Settle down guys. Lets get to work." He was from New York and HATED Los Angeles. It was hilarious the way he talked about this town. Made me start wondering..."am I in the right town? Should I head east?" I was scared of him but of course in the end he ended up being the best teacher at the institute. He went to school at the original Actors Studio. Where Strasberg, Adler and Meisner all taught. Some of the greatest actors of all time were his classmates. So not only was he scary, but intimidating. I learned a lot from him.

After that class I had a break before my next class. The next class I met a few cool people and it was a "LA" style class. Laid back. Teacher was cool and just worked with us but no fear, no intimidation. It was nice to have a class like that but at the same time I loved the other class because it was a challenge and he challenged us. I never felt truly challenged in this class.

After studying there for a while I found myself wanting more and searching for other institutes to study in. My acting teacher from back home told me before I left, "The best thing you have going for you is...you don't know shit. Seriously, you have no idea and it's a beautiful thing. You're like a puppy dog. You need to keep being a puppy dog and learn from everywhere. Stay open. I always get these students in my class that think they know it all because they've been trained and been doing this their whole life. You, on the other hand, didn't. You were fresh and took everything in. Keep that up and it will take you far." I will never forget those words because I still keep it fresh and always am looking to learn from anybody, young or old, in the industry. Even friends that aren't in the industry help me without even knowing it. I'm an open book.

I'm really wanting to get back into a class but I need to get some things straightened out before I can A. afford it.

I guess the point to this blog is it's never too late to do something new. I run into high school friends from time to time and they always have the same response..."WHAT?!?! You're acting? You didn't take acting courses in school. That's crazy." I've also heard a story of an 80 y/o that always wanted to be an actress and finally decided to get up and do it. She's starred in some commercials and is doing it. And as for me...I got into acting about 5 years ago and have done so much that I am proud of that 5 years ago...I never thought could be possible. I have a long ways to go and can't wait to see what's next. It's never too late.

Cheers,
Jonathan Baca

Insomnia

For the better part of the last week I haven't slept...at all. And most insomniacs just sit in their bed with drool hanging out and flipping through the television. Not me. I've found it's been really helpful with finding the next step in my career. I've found agencies that are perfect for my unpredictable, get up and move from place to place mentality. I use to think you would have to wait to be in the big time agencies to be able to live wherever you want. Examples...Colin Farrell moving back to Dublin or Johnny Depp living in the South of France. They're with the big time agencies and are big time actors, so it doesn't really matter. I've found agencies that are smaller scale that have an east coast, west coast and Texas base offices. Very exciting stuff. If I can get representation with them I will have the freedom to say, "I'm moving back to LA." or "I'm ready to give NY a try." and I won't have to worry about losing my representation. It also means that if I become a favorite of the agency here in Texas they will send me to auditions in LA or in NY despite where I live. I go on trips to visit friends in LA and I could mention it to my agent and they could hook me up with auditions or work while I'm there. Same with New York. Insomnia, at least for me, isn't such a bad thing...it actually has been helping me plan...but I do miss sleep. If it happens tonight again...who knows what will happen.

Cheers,
Jonathan Baca

Star Trek

A few posts back I told you all when I have some down time I was going to write about my past experiences. Well, this could be the best.

One afternoon my phone rings and I pick it up. "Hello." I said. "Hey bro, what you doing?" It was my roommate on the other line. "Not much." "You should go to this open call I just heard about for the new 'Star Trek' film." I was excited. "Yea? What's it for?" "Not sure but you should check it out. It's out in the Valley around 9 this weekend." So I hang up the phone and find out all the information for it.

I head to the open call not knowing what to expect. Is it an extra call? Is it for featured extras? Is it for speaking roles? I didn't know what to think, so I stood in the line of thousands with my headshot in hand. Now I've always hated "Cattle Calls." I don't do them. But for this particular one, it was worth the wait. I go in with my group still not knowing what's going on. Are we auditioning? What's the deal?! I hand in the form they had me fill out and my headshot/resume. They take a picture of me and say, "thanks for coming in." I was like, "That's it?" Now I knew it was an extra call.

I had done extra work once before and that was on Spider-Man 3. It was a fun experience and I met some cool people on set. Plus it was the first time I was ever in New York...God I love that town. So when I thought about Star Trek I thought why not, another big movie. I got the call and I was excepted to be an extra in the film. I was happy because I didn't know what this meant because unlike Spider-Man 3...they were in the future. They didn't look...human. Well, most of them. So I started getting excited not knowing what was going to happen! The day I was called in, it was a 4am call time. UGG! Could you make it any earlier? I got to bed pretty early that night, around 10pm. The drive was pretty long too. When I arrived on set they had breakfast waiting. Now anybody that knows me knows...I can eat like a PIG. Even the last short I shot the director goes, "Geez...you sure do eat a lot." haha. So I had plate, after plate, after plate of food. I started thinking, "What if this is how I make it. The casting directors notice me eating all their food and are like, 'wow...this kid is the real deal!" haha. So I'm sitting there when someone asks me to come with them. Oh shit...did I just get busted for eating too much?! I get up and follow her. She takes me to the hair/make up area. They sit me down and give me a hair cut. I needed one too! Then they comb it the way they want. Then they take me to makeup and the guy does my makeup, camera ready. While i was sitting there, I have a cousin wanting to become a makeup artist in the industry, so I used this time to ask questions for her. The makeup artist was awesome and gave me some good points to share with her. She's doing great now going to school for hair/makeup.

After the hair and makeup they take me to wardrobe. I find out I'm going to be a "Starfleet Cadet." Which is a student at the Starfleet Academy. They find me an uniform and I try it on. It's a bit too big. They have a tailor come in and custom tailor it to my body. By this time everyone is already on set doing their thing. I'm sitting back there with one of the AD's or he could've just been an extras director, who knows, but as I'm with him I might as well make conversation. So we start talking about what I do and what he does. Where we both want to end up and all that jazz. This is when I wished I had a business card. Anyway, they come back with the new and improved uniform. I put it on and it fits like a glove. Myself and the AD start walking to set. The AD gets on the walkie talkie and says, "He's ready. Are you guys ready for him?" I start thinking, 'is that for me? am I him?' The person on the other end says, "give us a second." So we stop walking. I'm really stoked to get out on set! It's almost like a glimpse into the future. This is what it will be like for me with stand ins and what not. Who knows the possibilities. I snap out of my daydream when he tells me, "Ok...they're ready for you." He walks me out and they bring me to position. They have aliens walking around. A futuristic car driving around and a bunch of other cadets. Then I see Captain James Kirk and Doctor Bones rehearsing their lines. J.J. Abrams is calling "action." So we all start walking around. Despite it just being extra work I got into it. There was this cute girl walking around and so I did what i would normally do walking to class, turn and look and let her know I think she's cute. She played off of me. It's like we made our own little story in the background.

After a long day the sun was beating in my face they call Lunch. I go grab my lunch (I was starving! Despite the 3 breakfasts) and sit alone and eat. While I'm eating I notice this guy staring at me. Did I have something on my face? He walks over to me and says, "I'm a big fan..." holding out his hand. Then he pauses..."Wait...you're not Karl Urban." i said, "Who?" and he said, "The guys that's playing Bones." I said, "Nope...not him." and he says, "Geez...from a distance you look a lot like him." I said, "Cool." He walked away a little embarrassed. I could've played with the guy and been like, "Actually I am Karl Urban." but I didn't. After lunch we went back out to set and that's when I decided, "I should take something." So the girl and I noticed a piece was missing off the wall. A Star Trek room number. I found it on the ground and was like, "umm...how could I take this?" Then I decided to throw it on the ground and just come back after everything is wrapped and take it home. Well, it didn't even make it past one take. An AD or set designer noticed it missing and found it on the ground and put it back up. DAMN! Well I was finally cut at 8pm. We took a group photo but that photo is long gone. Maybe it's up in JJ Abrams house somewhere. That would be cool. I would love to see it someday.

All in all it was a day too remember. Oh and when I got home I looked up Karl Urban. Yea I don't see it AT ALL. The guy is much older than me. I think it's cause he has tanner skin and dark hair. Oh well. I had a blast either way and am proud to be apart of that film. Hence why there is a credit for it on my IMDb page.

Cheers,
Jonathan Baca