GKN Weekly Update 10/27/08

Happy Halloween!

Anyone dressing up this year? I'm going to a party on Friday and I am tragically uninspired. My friend will have an extra banana costume waiting for me so I may just go with that. Are you guys doing anything fun?

I don't know about you, but business has been a bit slow on my end and I found out for a fact that is has to do with the economy. A client that I was supposed to do ten more commercials for said they just don't have the money to produce them anymore. My main clients are still around but a bunch of the smaller ones are tightening the belt. The good news is that historically the fourth quarter of an election year is good for the economy. Increased consumer confidence, etc, etc. We'll see what happens soon enough!

I only had one gig last week (ETS) but I did have a fun on-camera audition for Papa John's courtesy of Ingrid French. Let me tell you, pretending that a potato chip is a slice of pizza is no easy task!

I also auditioned for a grad student's animated film about a little boy who sneezes himself inside-out. Gross!

On the Project TERRA front, we have more sketches! This one is of Chromium Industries CEO Angela Miller:



Isn't Teddy amazing? Keep up the great work!

I'm also working on Project TERRA: The Movie. Basically I'm mashing all ten episodes of Season One together to make a 90-minute screenplay. So far so good!

I'm using Technorati and MyBlogLog to track the Project TERRA blog's site traffic. If you use either of those sites, please add Agent 122's blog to your Favorites:

http://www.mybloglog.com/buzz/community/projectterra

http://technorati.com/blogs/agent122blog.blogspot.com

BTW I'd really like to know what you think of the Project TERRA blog. I really enjoy writing it!

TIP OF THE WEEK: It's really important to keep moving forward. Always find something to help advance yourself both professionally and personally. If you're an actor, write that one-man show. If you're a dancer, choreograph a piece that showcases your talent. Just because the economy is sluggish doesn't mean you should be, too!

QUOTE OF THE WEEK: You know why it's best living at the water's edge? Because you've only got ***holes on three sides of you. And if they're coming from the other way you can hear them splash. George Carlin

FOOD FOR THOUGHT: What can you do to put yourself out there? How can you showcase your talent?

Have a safe and Happy Halloween!

My Quarterly Newsletter

Hello!

My quarterly newsletter "The Rognog" is available for your viewing pleasure. To check it out, please go to:

http://www.tomdheere.com/newsletter

Enjoy!

Tom

GKN Weekly Update 10/20/08

What's the dilly-yo!

Fall has fallen and Al Roker has issued a Tweed Alert. Who the hell wears that stuff anymore?

Last week was pretty darn busy in a lot of ways!

I had two VO auditions in NYC for ESPN and Quinnipiac University courtesy of IFM.

I also had an audition for an animated feature produced by Ari Arad. He's the guy that makes all of the Marvel Comics movies (Iron Man, Hulk, etc.). Fingers crossed!

I had another VO gig for Israel-based Eyeview Digital. This was a website intro for the new search engine Inquisitor.

I landed a new client! Kollins Communications in Mahwah, NJ hired me to narrate a PSA for the Safe Harbor Animal Center. The funny part was that fellow GKN members Paul Payton and Angelo Panetta recommended me for it and neither knew the other was doing it! Thanks for the votes of confidence, guys.

Good Project TERRA news! We have a great artist helping us complete our Press Kit. Concept artist "Teddy" of Heidelburg, Germany is doing some amazing work. Dig the sketch! You can see her other projects at www.c-art-toon.com.

TIP OF THE WEEK: I love busy weeks! My fellow VO talents can attest that it's feast or famine in our industry much of the time. One day you're watching the paint peel, the next day you can't even find time to eat! I've learned that one good way to get through the slow patches is to have a list of Quadrant Two activities handy. Quadrant Two activities are things to do that aren't urgent, but are important. They can be anything from cold-calling to working on next year's budget. Write them on a Post-It and stick it to your monitor. It also give you a sense of accomplishment. Try it!

QUOTE OF THE WEEK: Waste no more time talking about great souls and how they should be. Become one yourself! Marcus Aurelius Antoninus

FOOD FOR THOUGHT: What do you do when you think you have nothing to do?

Have a great week!

GKN Weekly Update 10/13/08

Hey guys!

Man, I am POOPED! The past two weeks have been pretty exhausting but I'm hopeful that tomorrow I'll be back on track and ready to move forward. Alright, let's get to the good stuff!

First off, I overhauled my website. It looks completely different and much better, if I do say so myself, and I did, so there you go. Please check it out at www.tomdheere.com and let me know what you think!

"The Upstate Four", the cartoon pilot in which I played one of the main characters, won top prize in the "TV for Children" category at the Ottawa Animation Festival a few weeks ago. It's yet another award for Fran & Will Krause's outstanding work and hopefully will bring them one step closer to success!

I have some great Project TERRA news!

First, Porject TERRA now has a MySpace profile in addition to the Facebook Group I mentioned last week. If you're on MySpace, please help us build our online fan base by joining!

Also, Agent 122's blog is up and running! You can find it at http://agent122blog.blogspot.com. I'll be making frequent entries giving you an inside look at the mind of Agent 122 and the strange world she has been thrust in...

We need to put together a press release for Project TEERA. John, I know you have experience in this area. Can you or anyone else help us out? Thanks!

TIP OF THE WEEK: Has anyone seen that commercial where the girl is protesting deforestation and her father is a logger who bails her out of jail? Have you been engaged in any heated debates with friends or family over the presidential election lately? I've noticed that it's hard for a lot of people to separate their feelings about issues from their feelings about other people. It takes a great deal of maturity to agree to disagree and still love them. Remember that the next time you argue with someone important to you.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK: A reputation is your photograph; character is your face. Bobby Bowden

FOOD FOR THOUGHT: Have you lost friends because of differing opinions about issues?

Have a great week!

GKN Weekly Update 10/6/08

Happy October!

I hope everyone had a fun weekend. I went to a 30th Birthday Party and an Oktoberfest. Bratwurst and Weisswurst and Knockwurst, oh my!

Today is the last day of the kidney stone saga. This morning I had the stent removed so all is well, thank goodness!

Despite three days of lying in bed I still got some stuff done. I had a gig for ETS on Thursday as well as gigs for both Oxford UK in NYC and then ETS. The trouble was that sitting down was pretty painful and I had to do a ton of driving, but I muscled through it. Pillows are my friends!

The Project TERRA Facebook Group is doing very well. We have 59 members so far and thanks to those of you who joined up. I should have the MySpace profile up & running by the end of the week.

Agent 122 now has a blog! It's not a production diary, it's an account of how she feels about her situation. Please go to
http://agent122blog.blogspot.com to check it out. When you get there, click on the "Follow this Blog" link under the "Followers" widget to show your support. I hope you enjoy it!

Some really exciting news is that a sci-fi website wants to interview me about Project TERRA! It should happen in the next few weeks. I'll keep you posted!

TIP OF THE WEEK: I'm still waiting on the lab report to see what kind of kidney stone I had and whether it was preventable. I know this is going to sound really cliche, but your health is the most important thing in your life. We take good health for granted and when something bad happens it affects every aspect of your life. Eat right, exercise, and get that annual check up, please! I wanna keep you guys around for a while okay?

QUOTE OF THE WEEK: I’ve learned that you can tell a lot about a person by the way he or she handles these three things: a rainy day, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights. Maya Angelou

FOOD FOR THOUGHT: When was the last time you had a physical?

Have a great week!