The Temple

Hey Guys!

I want you to be the first to get a crack at watching this new motion comic I was involved with called THE TEMPLE. The Temple was written by my awesome pal Alex Greenfield and Michael Eitelman. These guys brought this full length feature to life in an amazing 4 months! (For those of you that are unfamiliar with animation production times, an 11 min episode of a TV show my girlfriend works on takes a full YEAR to make.) This project was underwritten by Amazon Studios.

The Temple is not intended for viewers under 18 due to coarse language and extreme violence.

I play the character Derek, a Lieutenant with a US special ops. unit deployed in the no-man’s land between Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Here is the link to watch the full length feature:
http://studios.amazon.com/movies/13729

Enjoy!

All Things Possible,
Chris

Awards Season 2012

It's that time again!

Not just the time to be shocked by your credit card bill from the holidays...
or making it a full two weeks before breaking this year's resolution...
or even bowl game season (meaning making it through several bowls of chips and dip while coaching your favorite football team from your living room.)

No, of course, I'm talking about awards season!

Yes, there is a method to this madness that I'm so impressed by. Genius marketing, really! Hollywood has discovered that if they create a COMPETITION around some of their less mainstream movies, they can still sell them to a mainstream audience! Everyone gets vested in ___________(fill in the blank - football, movies, figure skating, etc...) when there's competition involved!! It's a brilliant plan and one that really works! Now we all have to go out and watch a bevy of movies so we can pontificate on the virtues of our favorite shows and actors.

And it's no accident that awards season is strategically placed at the beginning of the year. This time of year is known in the industry as the bone-yard for movies. Meaning, if a big production company makes a movie and subsequently decides it's a dog, they "bury" it in January (or September.) However, because of that, January and September are good times to release independent films because they're not competing with big studio tentpole cinema events with their tentpole marketing budgets. (That is, if you don't count all of the Christmas releases that are still playing.)

All that said, I know it sounds like I'm slamming the nefarious motives of the entertainment industry. I'm not. Actually, I'm a huge fan. With all of the various awards shows coming up (Starting this evening with the Golden Globes) this is the one time that the industry focuses more on compelling stories and quality performances over eye-popping special effects. It is truly the movie industry's Bowl Game season. So grab a bowl of popcorn and saddle up to the Tinsel Town Bowl!

Because I'm a member of the Screen Actor's Guild, I get to vote for the SAG awards - the rarely watched and virtually un-publicized ugly step sister to the Academy awards. (*For those of you interested, the 18th Annual SAG Awards® will be broadcast live on TNT Sunday Jan. 27th at 8 p.m. eastern and 5 p.m. pacific) However, being privy to the contenders for the SAG awards gives me some insight into what may be coming down the pike for the Oscars. Here is a complete list of the movies and TV shows nominated:

Outstanding performance by a male actor in a leading role
DEMIÁN BICHIR as Carlos Galindo - "A Better Life"
GEORGE CLOONEY as Matt King - "The Descendants"
LEONARDO DiCAPRIO as J. Edgar Hoover - "J. Edgar"
JEAN DUJARDIN as George - "The Artist"
BRAD PITT as Billy Beane - "Moneyball"

Outstanding performance by a female actor in a leading role
GLENN CLOSE as Albert Nobbs - "Albert Nobbs"
VIOLA DAVIS as Aibileen Clark - "The Help"
MERYL STREEP as Margaret Thatcher - "The Iron Lady"
TILDA SWINTON as Eva - "We Need to Talk About Kevin"
MICHELLE WILLIAMS as Marilyn Monroe - "My Week With Marilyn"

Outstanding performance by a male actor in a supporting role
KENNETH BRANAGH as Sir Laurence Olivier - "MY WEEK WITH MARILYN"
ARMIE HAMMER as Clyde Tolson - "J. Edgar"
JONAH HILL as Peter Brand - "Moneyball"
NICK NOLTE as Paddy Conlon - "Warrior"
CHRISTOPHER PLUMMER as Hal - "Beginners"

Outstanding performance by a female actor in a supporting role
BÉRÉNICE BEJO as Peppy - "The Artist"
JESSICA CHASTAIN as Celia Foote - "The Help"
MELISSA McCARTHY as Megan - "Bridesmaids"
JANET McTEER as Hubert Page - "Albert Nobbs"
OCTAVIA SPENCER as Minny Jackson - "The Help"

Outstanding performance by a cast in a motion picture
"The Artist"
"Bridesmaids"
"The Descendants"
"The Help"
"Midnight in Paris"

TELEVISION

Outstanding performance by a male actor in a drama series
PATRICK J. ADAMS as Mike Ross - "Suits"
STEVE BUSCEMI as Enoch "Nucky" Thomson - "Boardwalk Empire"
KYLE CHANDLER as Eric Taylor - "Friday Night Lights"
BRYAN CRANSTON as Walter White - "Breaking Bad"
MICHAEL C. HALL as Dexter Morgan - "Dexter"

Outstanding performance by a female actor in a drama series
KATHY BATES as Harriet Korn - "Harry's Law"
GLENN CLOSE as Patty Hewes - "Damages"
JESSICA LANGE as Constance - "American Horror Story"
JULIANNA MARGULIES as Alicia Florrick - "The Good Wife"
KYRA SEDGWICK as Dept. Chief Brenda Leigh Johnson - "The Closer"

Outstanding performance by a male actor in a comedy series
ALEC BALDWIN as Jack Donaghy - "30 Rock"
TY BURRELL as Phil Dunphy - "Modern Family"
STEVE CARELL as Michael Scott - "The Office"
JON CRYER as Alan Harper - "Two and a Half Men"
ERIC STONESTREET as Cameron Tucker - "Modern Family"

Outstanding performance by a female actor in a comedy series
JULIE BOWEN as Claire Dunphy - "Modern Family"
EDIE FALCO as Jackie Peyton - "Nurse Jackie"
TINA FEY as Liz Lemon - "30 Rock"
SOFIA VERGARA as Gloria Delgado-Pritchett - "Modern Family"
BETTY WHITE as Elka Ostrovsky - "Hot in Cleveland"

Outstanding performance by an ensemble in a drama series
"Boardwalk Empire"
"Breaking Bad"
"Dexter"
"Game of Thrones"
"The Good Wife"

Outstanding performance by an ensemble in a comedy series
"30 Rock"
"The Big Bang Theory"
"Glee"
"Modern Family"
"The Office"

Outstanding performance by a male actor in a television movie or miniseries
LAURENCE FISHBURNE as Thurgood Marshall - "Thurgood"
PAUL GIAMATTI as Ben Bernanke - "Too Big to Fail"
GREG KINNEAR as Jack Kennedy - "The Kennedys"
GUY PEARCE as Monty Beragon - "Mildred Pierce"
JAMES WOODS as Richard Fuld - "Too Big to Fail"

Outstanding performance by a female actor in a television movie or Miniseries
DIANE LANE as Pat Loud - "Cinema Verite"
MAGGIE SMITH as Violet, Dowager Countess of Grantham - "Downton Abbey"
EMILY WATSON as Janet Leach - "Appropriate Adult"
BETTY WHITE as Caroline Thomas - "Hallmark Hall of Fame: The Lost Valentine"
KATE WINSLET as Mildred Pierce - "Mildred Pierce"

HONORS FOR STUNT ENSEMBLES

Outstanding Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Motion Picture
"The Adjustment Bureau"
"Cowboys & Aliens"
"Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows -- Part 2"
"Transformers: Dark of the Moon"
"X-Men: First Class"

Outstanding Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Television Series
"Dexter"
"Game of Thrones"
"Southland"
"Spartacus: Gods of the Arena"
"True Blood"

48TH LIFE ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

MARY TYLER MOORE


Let me know what you would pick and why!

All Things Possible,
Chris