Just read this week's Coffee & Content and the fascinating short video interviews DPs about the tools, routines, and creative habits they rely on to prepare, shoot, and deliver their best work. It ranges from sugar to coffee, to meditation and reading to having an electric guitar at the ready with an. amp! Here is the link https://www.stage32.com/blog/coffee-content-the-tools-routines-and-relationships-that-drive-creative-success-4202
Ugh! I'm telling on myself again. There was an audition I did a while back where I just phoned it in. I wasn't really interested in the material and I didn't mind letting it show. I even went so far as to audition in my underwear. Buuuuuuut.... that was exactly what they were looking for with the character and I ended up getting the part. And yes, it actually ended up being a good time on set.
We come from all over the world on this platform. We are in all different stages of our careers. Some of you are new to acting, some of you are veterans, some of you even do it for a living. I am curious what kind of training, if any, everyone has had. I went to a performing arts high school my senior year, then I majored in theater in college. (Didn't complete, so I stayed in Orange County) where, I went to the American Academy of Dramatic Arts. (Hated it!) Then private classes in OC. I have also taken private classes at Playhouse West with one Jeff Goldblum! and Mark Pellegrino. (loved it) I have had real life training about what a set is like when I worked as an extra for four years. Classes will teach you how to act, but theater is an entirely different animal from a movie set with a camera in your face.
What about the rest of you?
From Muhammad Ali in Diff’rent Strokes to Sting in Only Murders in the Building, a perfectly placed cameo can be unforgettable, and even iconic. Cameos like these don’t just break the fourth wall, they leave a lasting impression and often become fan-favorite moments.
This new article from Deadline highlights ten of the most memorable TV cameos of all time, and it’s a fascinating reminder of how much impact one brief appearance can have on both a story and an audience:
https://deadline.com/2025/08/from-muhammad-ali-to-al-gore-ten-memorable-...
So let’s start a conversation:
What’s your favorite cameo performance in TV or film and why did it stick with you?
And for the actors here: Would you ever want to play a fictional version of yourself on screen?
Some of my personal favorites are Prince in New Girl, basically every Stan Lee appearance in the Marvel movies, Bill Murray in Zombieland, and Peter Jackson in Entourage. And more recently, Scorsese in The Studio!
Heard Taylor Sheraton say... that Billy Bob Thornton 'doesn't give a fuck' before admitting that he had to write him a part. Do you find non-attachment the best approach when going for a role?