It's All Good...begins!

My new film is moving right along... Still haven't worked out the exact shooting date but I'm getting closer. There are three main elements to bring together for the shoot. To get them all to meet at the point in time I wish, I have to nudge each a bit, pulling them all in until they converge on the date I want. It's tough, but it's also fun. I enjoy working with people and finding the best way to bring them into the production.

My new film is a short movie that follows a husband / wife couple who are philosophically at odds with each other. Throw into the mix an alien parasite and it's looking to be a typical story from the demented mind of Norman England.

I got two wonderful actors to star in the film. One is Shogen, a model / actor (or is that actor / model?) from Okinawa. I met Shogen at the Yubari Film Festival last year along with his manager Taka Yamashita. Both Shogen and Taka are immensely cool guys and it's my pleasure to be working with the two of them.

I'm also pleased to announce that along with Shogen, the movie will feature Stephanie, who starred in the latest Shusuke Kaneko film PRIDE. I saw PRIDE for the first time at Toei last November and really liked Stephanie a lot. Although it was her first film, she had a natural style and she fit the role to a T. But, although I had already written the script for this film, I hadn't even thought to use her. In fact, I was planning to do the film in Japanese all along. But then I cast Shogen, who, although 100% Japanese, has a strong western look, probably a result of his being from Okinawa. Stephanie, I should point out, is a mix of Japanese and Armenian blood, with her dad being born and raised in the US. Stephanie, too, grew up in LA and moved to Japan when she was 14. Stephanie is a singer by trade, and is signed to Sony Music in Japan. She has an amazing voice with a five-octave range. Check out this video or her on Youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k68EajO0hYg&feature=related

After casting Shogen I wondered who would have a look that would compliment him. It was following my second screening of PRIDE that I it hit me... "How about Stephanie?"

I'm happy to report that she read the script and loved it!

I met with Stephanie and her manager Tanaka along with director Kaneko last week. It was a fun meeting. Both Stephanie and her manager are really kind and enthusiastic. Stephanie's English is as natural as any I've heard, which is what I hoped for. Plus, she has a unique look, which is another plus for the production. Her personality is completely unpretentious too and just after a few minutes of talking I felt as if I'd known her for the longest time.

In any case, one of the first hurdles of IT'S ALL GOOD is over. Now it's trying to get everyone's schedule in sync. That's the bigger trick!