Did I get an Agent?!

Yes I did. WHAT?! I know. There I was minding my own business, posting my stuff on casting websites, sending out submission packages to agencies – hoping for the best, expecting nothing. Then BOOM! I receive an email from Nuance Talent Management!!!! They found my profile on Casting Workbook and thought “she has a nice look!” and they reached out! I did some research and learned what I could about the company – https://nuancemgmt.com/ and I signed with them yesterday!

So here we go folks! This is a big step for me, “I got that “excited/scared” feeling. Like 98% excited, 2% scared. Or maybe it’s more – It could be two – it could be 98% scared, 2% excited but that’s what makes it so intense” – Oscar from the movie Armageddon

I’m so excited/scared to see what happens next! I can’t wait to get my first audition, I can’t wait to not get the audition, and I can’t wait to audition again for something else!

I’m not quitting my day job just yet, but I am very jazzed to have this opportunity!

Almost a full year… oops

Alrighty, we’ll see how long I’m back for this time. I needed to write something so I came back to this old thang to write a blog post about this past year. I signed up for and completed two different acting courses through different studios. I thoroughly enjoyed learning at Railtown Actors Studio – we got to do a bunch of different scenes and film them each week, get feedback the following week and re-shoot with the feedback. Very helpful, though I think I have a lot to learn.

I was then promoted to Guided Tour Guide this year – I was bumped up from the Hop On Hop Off bus, to the tours that actually leave the city (for Capilano, Grouse Mountain, and Whistler!). It’s a stressful job – Taking buses of 40 + people on trips up the Sea to Sky highway made for an interesting summer – I only lost a couple of people along the way (I found most of them again). I had a family who realized they had left their backpack, WITH passports in it, at our stop at Shannon Falls… 15 minutes behind us on the highway. Had a family who thought I had said 12:45 return time, when I had ACTUALLY said 11:45 return time – had to leave without ’em. Had a lady who broke her foot in two places. Or the lady who pooped her pants. It was an exciting summer!
My tense-ness got the best of me though, I got a bulging disc in my neck near the end of August, extreme pain and discomfort. I’ve had to scale back the tours I’m able to do for the rest of the season. I’m also going to physio to help the healing.

Though here’s a tip for Vancouverites – go to Whistler for medical treatment. I was able to get into a clinic AND get a CT Scan done within 2.5 hours – they called me later with the results as I was only in Whistler on a tour and had to leave to catch the bus I was guiding. It’s worth the drive, you’ll end up waiting at a hospital or clinic in Van longer than it takes to drive to Whistler and wait there!! It worked for me anyways, I also may have gotten lucky.

Sarah and I have made a point of seeing a concert almost every month this year (on top of seeing Billie Eilish TWICE in December 2024) – Eivor in Feb, Lun in March, Felix Cartal in April, Lights in May, we missed June, Mannequin Pussy in July, missed August, Aqua and Noah Cyrus in September, nothing for October YET, Bif Naked in November, and we’ll find something for December.

That’s about it so far, not a lot to report on the acting side of things, though I plan to shoot some self-tapes and create another demo to send out to agencies. That’s the plan today anyways, we’ll see what happens tomorrow.

Summer

It was a long summer. I worked as a tour guide for the summer in downtown Vancouver. I rode around on buses and gave live commentary to the guests on board. I met people from all over the world and realized how useless only speaking english is. So far I’m 342 days absent from Duolingo, Duo is piiiisssssed. I was trying to learn German, but that didn’t pan out.

At the start of the tour season, April-ish, I was put on a new medication that seems to have dulled most of my emotions; this was a bit of a bonus because it also dulls my anxiety. Throughout the summer I was placed with different bus drivers on different buses. Some drivers understood we were on a sightseeing tour and some figured the faster we get through the tour, the longer the break. Not cool when I’m trying to speak as fast as you’re driving and you’re driving at a clip I can’t speak at!! I can’t imagine how anxious I would have been WITHOUT my meds. One driver would spit out the window as we drove about the city… I was always in the splash zone sitting behind him. He was always surprised he didn’t make very good tips.

It was a good summer though, I made pretty good money, I met very interesting people. Tour guides are a weird bunch, we love to be the smartest in the room and usually, the loudest, so when we’re all together it’s pretty much just shouting facts at each other. I Was asked to do the training for the new tour guides, so I did get to meet them individually and in a group and teach them how to be a good guide and public speaker. That was fun, I’d do that again.

I’m now looking at becoming a 9-1-1 call taker/dispatcher. I’ve been doing a lot of research and trying to learn as much as possible about the job and the environment. I know it’s a stressful job, but I am hoping the ol’ meds will help keep me calm and collected. I’m very interested in this position. I love to be busy and I love to help people, I don’t mind shift work, or working holidays (extra pay!), I sleep weird hours anyways, and it would be different every day. I’ve got a presentation to go to next week all about the job, I’ll get to ask questions and learn from real dispatchers.

I’m also signed up for a “Crisis Communications” course where I will learn how best to communicate during a……….. crisis. Whether that is through media, in person, over the phone, or press. I’m hoping it will be a good precursor to the dispatch job.

I don’t know what I’m doing. I’m grasping at straws and hoping for the best. I need a career that doesn’t make me want to jump off a bridge everyday. I’ve tried so many different jobs and I just can’t find something I want to do for the next 20 or 30 years. Ugh.

A Positive Thing

Daily writing prompt
Describe a positive thing a family member has done for you.
View all responses

Well, I suppose the time my sister saved my life.
We were on a family vacation to Florida in 2001, and everything was amazing! Disney World, Epcot Centre, Islands of Adventure, Universal Studios – we were absolutely spoiled on this trip. We also had an awesome hotel, we were staying at a Holiday Inn resort of sorts. There was this huge pool area my sister and I spent a lot of time at. One evening as we were about to go down to the pool, we were looking for something to bring to play with, so we brought some coins to toss in the pool and dive for; mostly nickels. My sister and I were diving for a nickel and pushing each other under and such, having a great time, when I decided to hide the nickel in my mouth.

Please note that I am 12 in this story, and my sister is barely 15.

As I surfaced with the nickel in my mouth, feeling clever, my sister gave me a playful shove and I inhaled the nickel. Right down the ol’ blowhole. It turns out, a nickel is the exact same size as a 12 year old’s trachea. So, as I tried to breathe but was immediately hindered, I gave the international sign for choking (hand around the throat, terrified look… you know) and my sister understood right away what was happening – she had choked on a “Sweet-Tart” type of candy as a child too, don’t ask what our issue is with choking on small round objects – and she pushed me to the side of the pool, up onto the deck. I was on my hands and knees, staring at the pool deck, trying to cough, but feeling the nickel in my throat flip up (open) as I breathed out, and flip down (closed) when I breathed in – I could only breathe out. My short life was flashing before my eyes!

I could hear my sister screaming for help as she climbed out of the pool; I looked for help but only found a newspaper headline about 9/11 staring back at me. The man reading the newspaper did look over his paper at me, but immediately went back to reading it. My sister saw this, thought “NOT TODAY!” and hauled me off the pool deck performing the Heimlich. Just as things were starting to go black, the nickel was Heimlich-ed out of me into my hand. A lady came over to see if I was ok, the pool boy came over to check on us and asked us our room number. We found out later that he called up to our parents saying “Your children are not breathing” which was a cause for concern. We made our way back to our room where I wrote about the incident in my travel journal, I even taped the nickel to the entry, which I have to this day.

1001!

Huzzah! 1001 people have visited my page! is it possible 901 of them are me? maybe. Could it be my mom? Possibly. Do I appreciate every one who has visited? ABSOLUTELY I DO! Thanks everybody, you’re all wonderful people and I hope you’re safe and warm.

Weird Month

It’s been a weird month everybody. February always feels so, off. It’s the month that shouldn’t be. This is the month I should escape to somewhere hot and maaaayybe never come back. I live in Vancouver, so it’s pretty dreary here during the fall/winter/spring months. You know, the Pacific Northwets (that was a typo, but it works really well). Apparently “The Last Of Us II” is filming here at the moment, so I decided to replay the game, for those of you who don’t know what happens…. hold onto your butts. No big spoiler, but a lot of it takes place in Seattle, and the weather IS cooperating.

That’s how I know I’m getting older, I talk about the weather too much.

The Perfect Day

Daily writing prompt
Describe your most ideal day from beginning to end.
View all responses

I’d wake up with the love of my life, which I’m lucky enough to do every day, we would have whatever our hearts desire for breakfast, and head off to our respective vocations. I would have a full day of recording and editing the commercials for big, expensive, companies. I’d also find the time to audition for all the best scripts I’ve read from all the upcoming LGBTQ+ writers and directors. I’d finish the day researching the next day’s commercials and auditions and have a big ol’ pasta dinner.

The lottery…

Bloganuary writing prompt
What would you do if you won the lottery?
View all responses

If I won the lottery, and we’re talking millions and millions here, I’d do what my mum suggested: I’d give my friends and family a certain percentage of my winnings. I’d make sure all my family was taken care of: houses and educations paid for. Then I’d set up my friends so they’re at least a little a head if not a lot ahead of themselves. I just want to help everybody out. Thats what would be the best part about winning the lottery! Giving it away!

Then I’d buy a bouncy house and put it on a trampoline and go swimming in a pool of Jello. I remember writing a “Life List” in elementary school, a list of all the things we wanted to do, my top three were:
1) Go Bungee Jumping (X)
2) Go Skydiving (X)
3) Swim in a pool of Jello ( )

In the wise words of Meatloaf, 2 outta three ain’t bad. But there will come a time when I’m able to get all three, if I have to wait till I win the lottery, so be it.

I suppose one should play the lottery in order to have any hope of winning the lottery.

Trying for the big leagues

I’ve sent an email to a talent agent. I know, I know, pretty big leaps and bounds happening here. But I was really nervous to send the email, it took many days of staring at the draft before I actually typed in the email address, and another couple of days of staring at that. But I finally hit send. Now I wait. Anxiously. I’m really not expecting much, trying to keep myself in check, but I figured I’ve got to get this first one out of the way even if it is a rejection. Fingers crossed.

I’ve also signed up for another voice over class with On The Mic Training. I took classes with them back in 2020 during the pandemic. I’ve landed on a “Building the Commercial Read” class, as that is the field I’d like to get into – commercials. Commercials also seem the most fun, there’s a thousand different ads we hear every day and I want to be one of them!

I’m also trying to think of a better way/better content for my Some Things About Mary podcast, it’s become stale to me, so I can imagine it’s somewhat stale to the few listeners I do have. So I’m going to try to revamp that situation.

Anywho, I’m going to go over my old class notes from 2020 and see what I can pull out of the ol’ noggin.

Stay safe!

New episode of Mary Maxine Likes to Talk…

I’ve just added a new episode of my short-form podcast “Mary Maxine Likes to Talk…” In this episode I like to talk about The Titanic. Here’s a link to the episode on my website: https://marymaxine.ca/mary-maxine-likes-to-talk/

I’ve just always been interested in the Titanic, ever since I was a kid, before the movie even came out! It’s always fascinated me, the idea that the the most grand ship in the world, deemed “unsinkable,” by the press mind you, Thomas Andrews, the architect of Titanic, never claimed it was unsinkable, would sink to the bottom of the Atlantic and be lost until 1985. I hope you enjoy learning about the Titanic too!

Anywho, I’ve compiled a bunch of facts about the disaster itself and the 1997 movie. I hope you enjoy, any and all feedback is extremely helpful and appreciated.

Stay Safe!

Mary Maxine