So this is me. No, not the stunt walkin Rabbi, but the Rabbi’s double. The guy who pulls the quick change and leaves the cabby at the end of the ad. Not exactly a masterpiece of modern commercial acting, but a piece of acting none the less that landed me my first ACTRA (actors union) credit, after banging my head against a wall to no avail for a good five years prior, to the point where I gave up on the whole endeavour and moved on to other things, only to return to my old agents in December 2011. Getting into ACTRA is no mean feat, and I like to call my entry an act of G-d. My casting for the role was pure serendipity — an application for a vague position posted on Jigsaw Casting Ltd.’s Facebook page that stated “Seeking!!! – Male, caucasian. To fit the following sizes. Height 5’8 / 5’9. Neck 16, Jacket 40, Waist 34. Possibly has curly hair but dont limit.”… and the decisive line… “does not need to be union.” I wrote in stating my stats which were in the right ballpark and forgot about it.
A day or two later I got the call to come in for the fitting and bingo-bango, I was in. To be honest, I was told very little about the role and almost didn’t show because I thought I was going to be used as a stand-in for the actual Rabbi (for no pay since the TJFF is a charity, making this a PSA). Good thing I sucked it up because little did I know that this was an ACTRA production, which meant that anyone on the set was elligible to join by default. And so, my life has changed as the little seed I planted, watered and nourished years ago, has now flourished. I wish I could quote some wise words from the Talmud or the Tanach because I’m sure there is a story in there that mirrors my experience, but I ‘ll leave that to the pros, and the more experienced Hollywood jews. I’m grateful for the blessings and my entry into the union couldn’t have been more fitting. Yes, G-d is great. :)
