VanCon 2013: Saturday Report Part 1
Aug. 27th, 2013 08:22 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
hells_half_acreSaturday kicked off bright and early... I woke up with just enough time to eat a bowl of cereal, shower, and get myself downtown. Then commenced an absolutely jam-packed, unrelenting day...
Jim Michaels
Jim's porn name is Tabitha Susan. He was a little nervous, but he obviously enjoyed the experience of giving a panel. For the first part of the panel, Jim just asked himself questions and jumped around a bit from topic to topic.
He told the story about being deported from Brazil, because the Con organizers there brought them in on a visitor pass rather than an artist pass... but Jared escaped the deportation because he was late. Apparently, if he, Mark Pelligrino or Mark Sheppard ever want to go back to Brazil, they have to pay a fine when they arrive. Mark Sheppard tried to get out of be it because he's a british citizen, but Brazil still deported him.
What does a producer do? He basically plays the Price is Right. He keeps track of the money and makes sure that they don't go over budget, but also that they're not too far under budget.
Mark Sheppard apparently talks a lot and you can just walk away from him and Mark will carry on talking to whoever is close to him.
Jim talked about the logistical planning for Thomas' arrival. How they arranged the schedule around Gen's due date, and then Thomas didn't come... while he talked about this, he got the episodes wrong, because he named the season 8 episodes rather than the season 7 episodes. The logistical planning was called Operation Moose Drop.
He then told a joke about finding out Felicia was allergic to peanuts and playing a prank of putting peanuts on her sandwich and making her sick - the audience was stunned and horrified until Jim nervously said he was only joking and of course he wouldn't do that. I think perhaps Jim should work on his stand-up comedy a little more.
He said that they do like to prank new people at the crew lunches. Usually, they'll make their lunch order 10 times bigger than normal and see how they react. One time they made it 3 times smaller. One time, Jim managed to smash a pie into Russ' face. He's quite proud of that one.
Their head painter looks like Misha and sometimes body-doubles in a pinch. (This is true. I saw him on the tech scout on Thursday.)
Jim grew up in Chicago. He wanted to be a sports agent, but he actually got started in VFX. He worked with Bob Singer for 10 years, then they separated for a few years, and then Bob called Jim and asked if he'd be interested in working on SPN. Jim also knew Phil Sgriccia from when Phil did Max Headroom and Jim was working on PeeWee's Play House.
He was a producer for Everybody Hates Chris on UPN, and he survived the merge with the WB. He was asked to come on SPN in Season 5. He then binge-watched the first five seasons. He came up to Vancouver, and Russ was the first person he met.
Jim has never been associated with a show that has such a strong fanbase... and as opinionated a fanbase. Kevin Hooks recently directed an episode and while they were at lunch, Kevin told Jim (with amazement) that when Kevin directed Bones, he gained 45 twitter followers! Jim laughed and sent out a tweet, and by the end of lunch, Kevin had over 100 new followers.
Can Jim bring the PCA to the Con for the fans to see?
Jared might be bringing it. (spoiler: He didn't, but that's okay. Personal thought: I think Jared actually was the one that had the PCA for the SPNfamily specially made, if my memory serves me correctly. I'm wondering if it actually lives at Jared's house.)
Jim is currently homeless in LA. He recently had to go down and renew his drivers liscence. He cheated on the eye exam so that they didn't put down that he needs to wear glasses when he drives. (note to self - that was the second person on the weekend from the US who told me that they have vision problems but their liscenes don't say anything about it... be careful when driving in the states, people!)
The boys are signed through season 10.
Does his VFX experience help with this producer job?
Jim understand VFX on a practical level but doesn't know the technical details. But knowing what VFX can do helps with managing the money -for instance there's an upcoming episode where two actresses play the same character (young version and old version), but they have different eye-colours. Instead of getting contacts which would cost them thousands of dollars in the end, they can have VFX correct the eye-colour in close-ups for much less. Jim has nothing but praise for the VFX team.
How come there are less producers in S1 than in S8? Why do they need all those producers?
TV is different than film. In film, the director gets final creative say. In TV, the producer gets final creative say. Someone who has written for a long time on the show will negotiate for producer credit - it's a contract negotiation thing.
What was the moment when Jim realized how unique an experience Supernatural was going to be?
Jim came to VanCon during his first year and a woman asked for this autograph. It was before his name had appeared on any aired episodes and before the information was even up on IMDB.
How does he balance making the finances work with the desire to have really awesome things in the show?
Jim always goes for the big awesome things and then finds a way to save money elsewhere in order to make up for the extra cost. Sometimes though, he just has to say no. The original script for 6x12 Like a Virgin called for the dragon to snatch a woman out of a lake... so there was a shot in the script of the woman swimming through the water "JAWS style".... but it was November in Canada and it was too cold to swim anywhere except in heated pools - and it was too expensive to make a heated pool look like a lake/ocean.
What happens to all that salt on set?
Jared and Jensen once swept it up and put it in jars and auctioned it off for charity, but usually it just gets thrown out. They like using rock salt.
What would have happened on Odyssey 5 if it hadn't been cancelled?
Eventually they would have saved the world. Odyssey 5 died a sad death, because it was tossed between Showtime and Syfy and eventually just fumbled like a football.
How can we get more crew at conventions?
Creation runs a business, you have to vote with your money. (Sidenote: This is very true. The reason Creation doesn't have more crew/writers is because they know that ACTORS make money - everyone wants their picture with McDreamy, but not that many people want their picture taken with Producer #5. Therefore, Creation books more actors than crew. If you want more crew - or women - or whatever - at the conventions, then you have to actually show Creation that it's a finanically good choice to invite them.)
Do they have a style guide for guest directors? Do they ever have problems?
Supernatural has certain lenses that it always uses - but they allow different creative decisions IF it serves the story. Other than that, Kevin Parks keeps everyone in line (having met him, I can believe this).Jim told us that in an upcoming episode there's a scene where the script called for a young Dean to have a devil's trap on/under a bed. Kevin informed them all that it wouldn't be possible, because Sam and Dean didn't know about devil's traps until the end of season 1. (Can I just say that THANK YOU KEVIN! That would have driven me NUTS.)
Does Kripke have any involvement anymore?
He checks in from time to time, but he's busy with his new show.
Favourite/Worst part of the job?
Jim was experiencing his favourite moment at the panel. The fanbase is the best. The worst part of the job is having to say no, when they just can't do something that the writers wanted.
Would they PLEASE do an episode at Winchester House?
Winchester house is in California (so no).
Will Ben Edlund ever come back?!
Probably not this year, but never say never. Jim is still mad at Kripke for poaching Ben, because Ben always wrote the quirkiest things.
Would there ever be a Supernatural film?
It's up to the fans. Jim thinks it would be a smart money maker.
Anything he can tell us about the spin-off?
They're hoping that it will be partially shot in Chicago.
How do the budgets for Music and VFX compare? There's been less classic rock!
The budgets are the same as they've always been. The lack of classic rock is sometimes not about money and is actually a creative decision.
How do I get into the industry?
Jim jokes that they should marry him... he was not expecting the questioner to accept. The hardest job to get is the first job. You'd probably be better off moving to New York or Los Angeles, then when you get a job in Vancouver the fact that you're from there is an actually an asset. Make friends with your classmates, because the more friends in the industry the better. "Everyone I've ever worked for, I make sure they want to hire me again."
Will they bring Balthazar back?
Never say never.
Has the show ever been under budget?
Yes - 8x04 Bitten saved them $7,000 which meant that they could go over budget on later episodes.
Someone suggested a particular song for the show. Jim agreed that it's a good song.
What about poor Adam who is still in hell?
It's not addressed anytime soon.
Will they EVER have a Led Zepplin tune on the show?
Most music liscenses for 15-25,000. Led Zepplin's stuff is half a million.
At this point, Tara Larson got up from the audience and told Jim that there MIGHT be something coming up to look forward to.
The next questioner thanks Jim for being part of a show that the questioners ENTIRE family could watch and enjoy. Jim was very pleased to hear that. The question was are the Ghostfacers coming back? Jim says that the Ghostfacers ARE on the radar, but wouldn't say anything else.
If they made a feature film, would Jim stay on as producer or would he direct?
He'd produce, they'd never let him direct (and he's a producer, guys... COMPELETLY different jobs.)
Richard Speight, Matt Cohen, and Rob Benedict
The song that played before this panel was Not Yet Dead Redux. Very entertaining.
The three guys were absolutely hilarious. It's pretty much impossible to capture in written form, or even in my notes, as it involves a lot of conversation and comedic timing, but I'll try!
If they were on the cover of a Supernatural book, what would they look like? (Sidenote: I really wish this repeat questioner would have phrased their question differently, because not all actors watch the show or know what the books are. In my notes, I just wrote "pulp fiction cover" but I suppose not everyone would know what pulp fiction was besides a Tarantino film - so maybe that's no help.)
In answer to the question, they suggested the questioner come up on stage and pose Matt in a way that SHE wants. It was hilarious. Matt's response (to Richard) was "Bite me, Saxxon."
The next questioner wanted them to stand still so she could get a picture (both Richard and Matt move around A LOT while on stage, if they are on the stage at all during their panels.) In response, Richard and Matt moved MORE, while Rob held a pose. Eventually they capitulated and posed for the questioner.
Have they been on any bad dates?
Rob joked about the fact that he's old and hasn't gone on a date since the 80s. Richard and Matt joined right in on making fun of Rob. Rob then said that he was on a date once where the girl left with another guy.
Matt: I was that guy.
Richard: I was that girl.
If they directed an episode of SPN, what would happen on it?
All their characters would come back and go on a date.
If they were a disney princess, what disney princess would they be?
Rob declared that he had an answer immediately, while Rob and Richard seemed to be confused at the question.
Rob: You guys are so slow!
Richard declared that he'd be Ariel: "I just want to be part of your world."
Matt wanted to be "the redhead from Roger Rabbit" (Jessica Rabbit) even though he knows it's not disney.
Rob then realized that he hadn't actually chosen a princess - he had chosen the Hunchback of Notre Dame. Richard and Matt were very amused by this and then decided that Rob would be tinkerbell.
Will the Trickster come back in Season 9?
Richard says that their trying to figure it out, but they don't know. They have to figure out how to do it well, because Loki/Gabriel had such a huge impact whenever he appeared.
What is the best thing they've taken away from their experiences on Supernatural?
Matt points to Richard and Rob.
Richard agrees and says it's the friends that have been made at Conventions.
Rob also agrees and says that it's the Con experience. He says that it's hard to describe the connections that are made with fans and with each other. They spend 12 weekends a year with each other. Richard thinks it's kind of like being in a band, and Rob agrees.
Spirit Animals are so terrestrial... what's their spirit MARINE animal?
Rich - Platypus.
Matt - Geoduck. Google it. A woman in the audience does and gives Matt her phone so that he can show Richard and Rob and the camera. Rob is outraged.
Matt: "That's why Rich went home with ME."
Rob - shrimp.
Matt: "Cut yourself some slack and at least make it a jumbo prawn."
If they weren't actors, what would they be?
I didn't actually take very good notes for this question, so I don't know what they answered, besides "pasty chef." I must have been taking pictures.
The next questioner said they noticed Matt's tattoo during karaoke, do Rich and Rob have tattoos? What are their tattoos of? or what would they get?
Matt has a tattoo from his hip to his knee on his right leg. It's a bunch of stuff that's personal to him.
Richard joked that he'd get Jared and Jensen's faces tattooed on his pecs. His chest hair would serve as their flowing locks. He then did Jared and Jensen impersonations with his chest (the odd thing was that they were spot on.)
Rob wanted a tattoo once, but his wife said that he could only get it if he waited a certain amount of time without changing his mind about what he wanted to get. His wife won.
Have they ever done something in their acting career that was embarassing or uncomfortable?
Richard described doing Open Water 2, and how they were naked the whole time, so their wardrobe consisted of a sock. The first day they filmed, everyone was really timid and shy to be standing around practically naked, but by the last day, they were strutting around like they were in Hugh Heffners grotto. They actually had to pick out the right size of sock too, and that was embarrasing and uncomfortable. Sometimes the sock would fall off while filming and it'd float by.
Rob had to wear a banana hammock in one thing he did, and then someone turned it into a gif. At a convention in Europe (I think Jus in Bello?) "banana hammock" became Rob's safeword. It was because Ty and Rob were in Rome and they were messing around and Ty kept putting Rob in headlocks, and they hurt, so Rob had to come up with a safeword so that Ty knew when to release him from the headlock. (This sounds like really kinky sex when I type it up like this.)
They then proceeded to make fun of Ty, and about how he's like a big gorilla and you have to lure him out of and into his cage with promises of alcohol.
Matt says his most embarrasing acting gig was playing the transgendered woman in Cowgirl up, because he had to shave his legs and wear a thong. Shaving his legs was really hard, because there was so much hair. (Welcome to being a woman, Matt - do you think we're magically hairless already?)
What was it like to play Duel rolls on Supernatural, how did they manage the transition to the other part?
Richard said that the character was laid out very well, and the writers did such a good job setting it up, that he really just took everything about the character from the page.
Matt: "I had a nice time."
Rob agrees that the it was really the writing was so good it was easy to do.
Of course, this whole time there's little jokes between questions and inside answers, and I could possibly note all of them down - but I did note down this exchauge:
Matt: "When you think of me, picture a geoduck"
Rob: "I will. Is it edible?"
Matt smiles slowly: "Do you want to find out?"
If they were on a desert island, who would they ally with or kill/eat?
Rich would ally with Anna, actually he'd ally with all the women and make a "love cave".
Rob: They'll eat you.
Matt says that he and Mark Sheppard and Rob will ally and go to the love cave. Richard imitates Mark Sheppard "I actually carved that love cave." Matt says that then they'd kill Sheppard and then Rob and all the women, and then the love cave would be theirs!
Richard imitating Mark Sheppard still: "I actually taste delicious."
What would their characters think of the actions Sam and Dean have taken in S8?
"What did they do?"
Rob thinks they should find out what happened to Chuck, now that they've finally acknowledged that he's missing.
Matt: "I'd be excited that my sons achieved so much in their lives."
What's the strangest thing a fan has done?
Richard told us that at one of his first conventions he was asked what he thought of slash fiction. He didn't know what it was, so he thought they meant that the guitarist from GnR, Slash, had taken up writing. "It was a big eye opener."
Rob always finds it strange to sign body parts.
Rob: "It always makes me nervous."
Rich: "Ordering coffee at Starbucks makes you nervous."
What's their favourite pick-up lines?
Rob is not good at pick-up lines, he's not good at talking to women. He even messed up his marriage proposal. When he proposed to his wife, he actually said: "I was wondering if you wouldn't mind marrying me so much?"
Matt doesn't use pick-up lines, but his favourite is "Do you have any grapes?" No. "How about a date?"
Richard likes the Tennesee pick-up line (Are you from Tennesee, because you're the only ten I see) because he's from Tennesee.
Matt then told a story about how he saw Ty use a pick-up line when they were in Rome. Rob and Richard decided that they should act it out, so Richard played Ty and Rob played the woman, while Matt narrated. Ty walked up to the woman, looked up up and down, then zeroed in on her shoes and studied them for a while, then he looked at her and said, "Nice shoes. Wanna fuck?"
Okay, my notes suck for the final question, but I think it was: If you could bring your characters back in a 'jump the shark' type of way - what would it be?
Matt and Rob would be shirtless.
Richard: "So I put on my sock and I walk away."
INTERMISSION
We actually had a brief intermission while the photo-ops took place. I left the auditorium and ran into![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
missyjack and none other than Robbie Thompson, who had been in town because they were filming his episode (9x04). I also met Ryan Curtis from VFX. I didn't get to talk to Robbie very much, mainly because I suck at talking to people and also because when other people discovered he was there, he was surrounded by people who were better at talking to him than I was. I did manage to tell him that I loved his work though, and that I'm local, and possibly some other small talk. Ryan Curtis and I talked about wardrobe, because he scored a lot better at that wardrobe sale than I did. He managed to find Sam's clothes, which is good for him, since Sam and him wear similar sized clothes, but bad for me, because I WANTED THOSE CLOTHES, DAMN IT!
I also got a text from my younger sister's boyfriend asking if I could look up the number for the Super 8 in Portage La Prairie, because he thought he left his sunglasses there. I suggested he try 411. Man, younger siblings that aren't even related to you, am I right?
Russ Hamilton
Russ is a personality. That's my disclaimer. It's a bit hard to take notes, since he likes to joke around a lot. I sort of stuck with only taking notes that contained information about the show. Which is really my standard for taking notes, by the way, if you want a transcript of a panel, you'd be better off trying to find video of it.
Russ started by describing the location manager job. At any given time they have 10 locations going. While they're shooting on one, they'll be preping or wrapping 9 others.
There are 25 people in the department.
Russ has been posting the call and wrap times for this season on twitter, for our interest. The call and wrap times are ONLY for filming though, people are working before and after that too. So, it's roughtly 16-18 hours per day.
Russ had his daughter come up to read this years warning on his binder. She was, understandbly, very used to dealing with her father - so that was interesting to see.
How could someone get their start in the industry?
Russ was a truck driver for a dairy trucks, so he's not the best guy to ask. He suggests that they just keep plugging away, and try to start out as a PA.
Do they ever have to have extra safety measures for locations (like cops)? Are there some locations that they can't use because they're not safe?
Safety is always a concern, and it's not just bad neighbourhoods, it's stuff like air-quality too. There are many things to consider. They have to make sure the shooting crew is safe. They work with police and they also have a lot of PAs around. They won't work if it's not safe.
Russ recorded a get well message to someone who couldn't be there. Then he read the list of dos and don'ts that Creation had given him.
What was the worst location?
The mansion that got flooded the day after they finished using it. It was still technically their responsibility (even though it wasn't their fault), so Russ had to manage the repairs. It's just the job - "leave a location better than you found it... and drink."
How did they decide on the exterior location for the Men of Letters bunker?
Jerry Wanek wanted something unique. They thought under the bridge was just cool, because of the light and shadows from the bridge. They did have a little bit of trouble with it last year though, during Pac-Man Fever, when the road to under the bridge was shut down and deemed unsafe for cars - so they quickly had to move the car scene further down the road.
What would you do if you weren't a locations manager?
He'd be a stripper. He can't actually think of anything, he loves his job too much. He jokes that he'd own a sweatshop so that he could get free clothing.
Russ then told the story about how they once needed a sweatshop looking place for an episode, and they couldn't find anything - and Russ discovered that it was because the employee he'd asked to make the phone calls was actually asking clothing manufacturers in the area if they "owned a sweatshop" and causing everyone to immediately say no, and hang-up. That employee is no longer working for Russ.
The next questioner started asking Russ a question about the mytharc and the many different versions of what hell looks like and whatnot - oh man, it was super awkward. Russ answered remarkably well though, saying that Supernatural has the freedom to switch things up and do whatever they want to serve the story.
Favourite location?
Russ likes the locations where nobody shoots or places they haven't already been. On Thursday they were shooting somewhere really cool (9x04). The location tour actually nearly drove right by it, but Russ distracted everyone in the bus. (I think I actually saw it, but I was so sleepy and I'm sort of used to seeing random productions in town, so I didn't think anything of it.)
Will they ever film up in Squamish again?
Russ can't say - it's not in the first half of S9 anyway.
Has there ever been a location that they weren't allowed to shoot at?
Russ always tries to work it out, "I get that we can't film here, but how do we film here?" Some places, though, try to extort money from them, and then they'll just find somewhere else. There's never been anything devastating.
If they went to England to film, where would he like to film?
A pub.
With Russ' panel over, Richard came back out and then pulled Robbie Thompson up on stage, joking that Robbie was a writer so he loves crowds. Robbie waved and said hell while Richard joked around.
Mark Sheppard, Mark Pellegrino, and James Patrick Stuart
Their pornstar names are Fitz Torington, Frankie Longridge, and Nigel something. Richard didn't know Sheppards and JPS's until they were on stage though, so the screen with their names on it displayed them as "Sketchy" Lord Fiddleston, Frankie Longridge, and James petted Stuart (and Stuart liked it).
Now, sadly, for the first part of this panel, I was taking pictures and also obviously thinking about something... because I missed the first question, but I know it resulted in Sheppard listing Crowley's pets - (Dog- Growley, Owl - Owley, Cat - Meowley, Chicken - Fowley, ect.) And that Lucifer would like the fight Crowley.
Favorite Monsters?
JPS is partial to the leviathans. Mark P, questions whether Lucifer is even a monster.
JPS joked, "well, when they first told me that Misha was going to hold my head back while Jensen shoved a bone down my throat... then I saw Jensen and I thought, well... he's a goodlooking man - furthest thing from gay, but yeah."
Someone asked JPS about Kingdom Hearts, and he started to answer, but then decided that a SPN Con wasn't the forum for the discussion, so asked the fan to send him a twitter message about it and he'd discuss it on there.
What is their favourite Doctor Who creature?
Mark S. was most afraid of cybermen as a kid. Mark P. suggests the weaping angels, and Mark S. agrees that they are great.
What are Mark S.'s favourite rolls? And suggests that the other actors on stage can weigh in with their favourite rolls too, if they like.
Mark S. jokes that what the questioner was saying is "You guys can jump in, but I don't give a shit."
Mark S. enjoyed the rolls that the fans enjoy the most. He then said that he did an interview where the interviewer asked him, "what's left for you?" He responded with "What am I? Dead?"
JPS then chimed in with "Did you really just answer with 'I enjoyed what you enjoyed'? What the hell is that? Are you running for office?"
Mark S: "Dick."
What would happen in a parallel universe where their characters were the good guys?
JPS: "I'm already the good guy. To me, the story is about a couple of pricks who won't do what I tell them."
Mark P. "YEAH!"
There is a question asked about Dexter, which leads Mark S. to talk about his father, Morgan Sheppard (also an actor) who just turned 81. This lead into the story about the first time Mark S. met JPS. JPS was coming to town and needed a ride from the airport and a girl told him "don't worry, my boyfriend can drive you" and Mark S. showed up at the airport.
JPS: "Shows how far you'd go for a shag!"
Mark S.: "She was worth it."
What are their favourite jokes?
Mark S.: How do you get a bunch of Canadian out of a swimming pool? You say, "excuse me, could you please get out of the pool?"
JPS: "A very religious man rents a hotel room for the night, he asks the front desk if the porn channel is disabled. The front desk says, 'No, it's just regular porn, you pervert.' *JPS then mimics dropping the mic as the crowd laughs*
How would they design Hell?
Mark S. would make it the same as Crowley did.
Mark P. would make it the IRS.
JPS: "I don't know, but Ben Affleck would be batman"
The crowd burst into laughter and cheers, JPS mimics dropping the mic again.
The next quesitoner wanted Mark S. to talk about Firefly.
He says they were good people. Joss is a funny guy. He talked about the injustice of cancelling it. He bumped into Nathan Fillion the other day and they were talking about it, and how it was the beginning of bringing back mainstream scifi, but it was just ahead of it's time. Joss is always 10 years ahead of his time. Mark S. says their now too old to ever reprise their roles. Mark P., JPS, and the questioner objected to that and cited Harrisson Ford coming back as Han Solo soon - but Mark S. argued that there was possibility it wouldn't be the the Han Solo we know and love, and cites the fourth Indiana Jones movie and how 'slow' Harrison Fords acting was.
Mark P. was asked about The Big Lebowski and any stories from that set.
No stories, it was just a normal working environment. It was fun. He really felt at the time that Jeff Bridges was an unsung genius. It was a lot like going to a master acting class, because he learned so much. JPS told us that Jeff Bridges was actually offered Forest Gump, but turned it down.
Mark S. told us that if we wanted an acting class, we should get the Iron Man DVDs and watch Robert Downey Jr.'s screen test, because he had to do one. "I couldn't work out whether I wanted to fuck him or give him the roll."
Mark P. thinks that Leonardo DiCaprio deserves more credit too.
Mark P. played a character in The Big Lobowski called "Carl Hungus" - this led them to laugh about porn names, and JPS thought the name sounded Scottish, and then did an accent that Mark S. thought sounded like a pirate... and then Mark S. thought it sounded like Air Lingus, Irelands national airline.
Favorite scene?
JPS liked when he killed Bobby. The crowd was sad. "What too soon? It's been a year!"
Mark P. liked the scene where Dean shoots him in the head and he just gets back up again - because there was such a huge build-up to it. Mark S. liked that episode too, where he gives the boys the Colt and Sam tries to shoot him in the head.
Mark S. also liked the contract scene between him and Dick Roman. He and JPS actually started reading the document and discovered that someone had actually written it! "There's Canada!"
My note for the next question just says "Hammer of the Gods?"
Mark P. said that was also one of his favourites. It was sad.
What would they be if they weren't actors?
Mark P. would teach history (be still my heart).
JPS would be working in a scuba shack with sandals on in the bahamas... or he'd do pirate porn.
Mark S.: "It drives me nuts!" - and then Mark S. had to explain the joke about the pirate with the steering wheel attached to his belt.
How do they find working with prosthetics?
JPS described the bone he had to wear.
Mark S. talked about how complicated and amazing the scene was where he was tortoring himself.
Mark S. also informed us that the toilet top on one of his toilets is a statue of his head and shoulders that they made when he did Star Trek, because his shoulders were the same width as the toilet back. It's "very disturbing" and he's had guests ask if they can use another bathroom. His kids like to put hats and sunglasses on it.
The next question was about being evil, I didn't note it down, but all the guys agreed that they weren't evil.
"Busy, not evil."
"Piurposeful, driven, passionate, upset."
Favourite villain?
Mark S. likes Goldfinger - the actor was amazing.
JPS likes the shark from Jaws.
Mark S. thinks the best villains are aparthetic.
Mark P. likes Javier Bardem in the last Bond movie.
Mark S. likes Robert Mitchem in Cape Fear.
JPS thinks Rob Lowe was good in that thing he did where he killed his two wives.
If they were on a desert Island who would they ally/kill/eat?
JPS thinks that just being honest and playing Fuck/Marry/Kill is better.
The questioner also said she had a friendly warning for Mark Sheppard about watching his back - which caused the guests to laugh, though I found it a little awkward.
How would their characters dance in a club, could they demonstrate? (Dance monkey dance question LITERALLY)
JPS did demonstrate though.
Mark S. just snapped.
Mark P. did a hip wiggle.
The next fan up to the mic had met JPS in a donut shop after Chicago Con, and JPS had tweeted afterwards "Can't a brother get a muffin?" This lead to some subtle inuendo jokes, of course.
How does Mark P. approach a part when his character is someone's hallucination?
He treats it as reality. The biggest challenge was having Bishop's hair.
Does Mark S. want to come back to Dr. Who? Because the questioner would really like to see him on that show again.
Mark S.: Of course!
JPS: "He's on like every other show on television!"
Here, of course, is when the audience yells out that he's not on Sherlock yet, and then "Superwholock!" is shouted.
What does Mark S. think of the new Doctor for Doctor Who?
It is what it is. He's looking forward to seeing it. Matt Smith was very good, and he's looking forward to seeing where they take it next.
Can Mark P. tell us anything about the Tomorrow People?
It premieres Oct. 9th. He thinks it will do well. He plays an ally/enemy.
Do they like playing Protagonists or Antagonists?
Mark P. says that the nice thing about antagonists is that they drive the action. Mark S. likes protagonists too, JPS likes antagonists. Mark S. repeats a saying that there's only two things worth playing - the last sane man in the universe, or the one who kills them.
They were asked about fight scenes, but Mark P. misheard and thought they said "fart scenes." He laughed at his mistake, but said that actually the scene where Lucifer ices the window and draws on it - right before they rolled, Jared farted.
Mark S. said that he has enough fight scenes off camera, because Jared picks him up and shakes him.
JPS then realizes that the questioner has an accent (it's the cute Australian guy) and says, "I'm sorry! I thought there was something wrong with you!" Then Mark S. tells the Australian that wombats kill more people in Australia than any other animal. The Australian can't believe that, but Mark S. insists it's true because of car accidents.
Can Mark S. talk about his Irish heritage?
Mark S.'s dad is Anglo-Irish. He became English, because before U2, it wasn't cool to be Irish. It's been very cool for Mark S. to see that change over the years. Mark himself is part of the "plastic paddy" generation that are London Irish. They're neither one thing nor the other.
Mark S. actually opened for U2 when they played Dublin on their tour for Joshua Tree. JPS is floored by this. Mark S. confirms that it did indeed happen, he played along with Lou Reed and the Pogs, and then walked home with the crowd at the end of the night. JPS is amazed.
And thus ended their panel.
Upcoming Ghost Tours:
Chad Lindberg came on stage briefly before the next panel to tell us that he's teamed up with Creation to offer Ghost Tours in Burbank and Vegas as part of the Supernatural Cons there... and that he'll have surprise guests with him, so if anyone is interested, please buy tickets!
Part 2 up shortly
Jim Michaels
Jim's porn name is Tabitha Susan. He was a little nervous, but he obviously enjoyed the experience of giving a panel. For the first part of the panel, Jim just asked himself questions and jumped around a bit from topic to topic.
He told the story about being deported from Brazil, because the Con organizers there brought them in on a visitor pass rather than an artist pass... but Jared escaped the deportation because he was late. Apparently, if he, Mark Pelligrino or Mark Sheppard ever want to go back to Brazil, they have to pay a fine when they arrive. Mark Sheppard tried to get out of be it because he's a british citizen, but Brazil still deported him.
What does a producer do? He basically plays the Price is Right. He keeps track of the money and makes sure that they don't go over budget, but also that they're not too far under budget.
Mark Sheppard apparently talks a lot and you can just walk away from him and Mark will carry on talking to whoever is close to him.
Jim talked about the logistical planning for Thomas' arrival. How they arranged the schedule around Gen's due date, and then Thomas didn't come... while he talked about this, he got the episodes wrong, because he named the season 8 episodes rather than the season 7 episodes. The logistical planning was called Operation Moose Drop.
He then told a joke about finding out Felicia was allergic to peanuts and playing a prank of putting peanuts on her sandwich and making her sick - the audience was stunned and horrified until Jim nervously said he was only joking and of course he wouldn't do that. I think perhaps Jim should work on his stand-up comedy a little more.
He said that they do like to prank new people at the crew lunches. Usually, they'll make their lunch order 10 times bigger than normal and see how they react. One time they made it 3 times smaller. One time, Jim managed to smash a pie into Russ' face. He's quite proud of that one.
Their head painter looks like Misha and sometimes body-doubles in a pinch. (This is true. I saw him on the tech scout on Thursday.)
Jim grew up in Chicago. He wanted to be a sports agent, but he actually got started in VFX. He worked with Bob Singer for 10 years, then they separated for a few years, and then Bob called Jim and asked if he'd be interested in working on SPN. Jim also knew Phil Sgriccia from when Phil did Max Headroom and Jim was working on PeeWee's Play House.
He was a producer for Everybody Hates Chris on UPN, and he survived the merge with the WB. He was asked to come on SPN in Season 5. He then binge-watched the first five seasons. He came up to Vancouver, and Russ was the first person he met.
Jim has never been associated with a show that has such a strong fanbase... and as opinionated a fanbase. Kevin Hooks recently directed an episode and while they were at lunch, Kevin told Jim (with amazement) that when Kevin directed Bones, he gained 45 twitter followers! Jim laughed and sent out a tweet, and by the end of lunch, Kevin had over 100 new followers.
Can Jim bring the PCA to the Con for the fans to see?
Jared might be bringing it. (spoiler: He didn't, but that's okay. Personal thought: I think Jared actually was the one that had the PCA for the SPNfamily specially made, if my memory serves me correctly. I'm wondering if it actually lives at Jared's house.)
Jim is currently homeless in LA. He recently had to go down and renew his drivers liscence. He cheated on the eye exam so that they didn't put down that he needs to wear glasses when he drives. (note to self - that was the second person on the weekend from the US who told me that they have vision problems but their liscenes don't say anything about it... be careful when driving in the states, people!)
The boys are signed through season 10.
Does his VFX experience help with this producer job?
Jim understand VFX on a practical level but doesn't know the technical details. But knowing what VFX can do helps with managing the money -
How come there are less producers in S1 than in S8? Why do they need all those producers?
TV is different than film. In film, the director gets final creative say. In TV, the producer gets final creative say. Someone who has written for a long time on the show will negotiate for producer credit - it's a contract negotiation thing.
What was the moment when Jim realized how unique an experience Supernatural was going to be?
Jim came to VanCon during his first year and a woman asked for this autograph. It was before his name had appeared on any aired episodes and before the information was even up on IMDB.
How does he balance making the finances work with the desire to have really awesome things in the show?
Jim always goes for the big awesome things and then finds a way to save money elsewhere in order to make up for the extra cost. Sometimes though, he just has to say no. The original script for 6x12 Like a Virgin called for the dragon to snatch a woman out of a lake... so there was a shot in the script of the woman swimming through the water "JAWS style".... but it was November in Canada and it was too cold to swim anywhere except in heated pools - and it was too expensive to make a heated pool look like a lake/ocean.
What happens to all that salt on set?
Jared and Jensen once swept it up and put it in jars and auctioned it off for charity, but usually it just gets thrown out. They like using rock salt.
What would have happened on Odyssey 5 if it hadn't been cancelled?
Eventually they would have saved the world. Odyssey 5 died a sad death, because it was tossed between Showtime and Syfy and eventually just fumbled like a football.
How can we get more crew at conventions?
Creation runs a business, you have to vote with your money. (Sidenote: This is very true. The reason Creation doesn't have more crew/writers is because they know that ACTORS make money - everyone wants their picture with McDreamy, but not that many people want their picture taken with Producer #5. Therefore, Creation books more actors than crew. If you want more crew - or women - or whatever - at the conventions, then you have to actually show Creation that it's a finanically good choice to invite them.)
Do they have a style guide for guest directors? Do they ever have problems?
Supernatural has certain lenses that it always uses - but they allow different creative decisions IF it serves the story. Other than that, Kevin Parks keeps everyone in line (having met him, I can believe this).
Does Kripke have any involvement anymore?
He checks in from time to time, but he's busy with his new show.
Favourite/Worst part of the job?
Jim was experiencing his favourite moment at the panel. The fanbase is the best. The worst part of the job is having to say no, when they just can't do something that the writers wanted.
Would they PLEASE do an episode at Winchester House?
Winchester house is in California (so no).
Will Ben Edlund ever come back?!
Probably not this year, but never say never. Jim is still mad at Kripke for poaching Ben, because Ben always wrote the quirkiest things.
Would there ever be a Supernatural film?
It's up to the fans. Jim thinks it would be a smart money maker.
Anything he can tell us about the spin-off?
They're hoping that it will be partially shot in Chicago.
How do the budgets for Music and VFX compare? There's been less classic rock!
The budgets are the same as they've always been. The lack of classic rock is sometimes not about money and is actually a creative decision.
How do I get into the industry?
Jim jokes that they should marry him... he was not expecting the questioner to accept. The hardest job to get is the first job. You'd probably be better off moving to New York or Los Angeles, then when you get a job in Vancouver the fact that you're from there is an actually an asset. Make friends with your classmates, because the more friends in the industry the better. "Everyone I've ever worked for, I make sure they want to hire me again."
Will they bring Balthazar back?
Never say never.
Has the show ever been under budget?
Yes - 8x04 Bitten saved them $7,000 which meant that they could go over budget on later episodes.
Someone suggested a particular song for the show. Jim agreed that it's a good song.
What about poor Adam who is still in hell?
It's not addressed anytime soon.
Will they EVER have a Led Zepplin tune on the show?
Most music liscenses for 15-25,000. Led Zepplin's stuff is half a million.
At this point, Tara Larson got up from the audience and told Jim that there MIGHT be something coming up to look forward to.
The next questioner thanks Jim for being part of a show that the questioners ENTIRE family could watch and enjoy. Jim was very pleased to hear that. The question was are the Ghostfacers coming back? Jim says that the Ghostfacers ARE on the radar, but wouldn't say anything else.
If they made a feature film, would Jim stay on as producer or would he direct?
He'd produce, they'd never let him direct (and he's a producer, guys... COMPELETLY different jobs.)
Richard Speight, Matt Cohen, and Rob Benedict
The song that played before this panel was Not Yet Dead Redux. Very entertaining.
The three guys were absolutely hilarious. It's pretty much impossible to capture in written form, or even in my notes, as it involves a lot of conversation and comedic timing, but I'll try!
If they were on the cover of a Supernatural book, what would they look like? (Sidenote: I really wish this repeat questioner would have phrased their question differently, because not all actors watch the show or know what the books are. In my notes, I just wrote "pulp fiction cover" but I suppose not everyone would know what pulp fiction was besides a Tarantino film - so maybe that's no help.)
In answer to the question, they suggested the questioner come up on stage and pose Matt in a way that SHE wants. It was hilarious. Matt's response (to Richard) was "Bite me, Saxxon."
The next questioner wanted them to stand still so she could get a picture (both Richard and Matt move around A LOT while on stage, if they are on the stage at all during their panels.) In response, Richard and Matt moved MORE, while Rob held a pose. Eventually they capitulated and posed for the questioner.
Have they been on any bad dates?
Rob joked about the fact that he's old and hasn't gone on a date since the 80s. Richard and Matt joined right in on making fun of Rob. Rob then said that he was on a date once where the girl left with another guy.
Matt: I was that guy.
Richard: I was that girl.
If they directed an episode of SPN, what would happen on it?
All their characters would come back and go on a date.
If they were a disney princess, what disney princess would they be?
Rob declared that he had an answer immediately, while Rob and Richard seemed to be confused at the question.
Rob: You guys are so slow!
Richard declared that he'd be Ariel: "I just want to be part of your world."
Matt wanted to be "the redhead from Roger Rabbit" (Jessica Rabbit) even though he knows it's not disney.
Rob then realized that he hadn't actually chosen a princess - he had chosen the Hunchback of Notre Dame. Richard and Matt were very amused by this and then decided that Rob would be tinkerbell.
Will the Trickster come back in Season 9?
Richard says that their trying to figure it out, but they don't know. They have to figure out how to do it well, because Loki/Gabriel had such a huge impact whenever he appeared.
What is the best thing they've taken away from their experiences on Supernatural?
Matt points to Richard and Rob.
Richard agrees and says it's the friends that have been made at Conventions.
Rob also agrees and says that it's the Con experience. He says that it's hard to describe the connections that are made with fans and with each other. They spend 12 weekends a year with each other. Richard thinks it's kind of like being in a band, and Rob agrees.
Spirit Animals are so terrestrial... what's their spirit MARINE animal?
Rich - Platypus.
Matt - Geoduck. Google it. A woman in the audience does and gives Matt her phone so that he can show Richard and Rob and the camera. Rob is outraged.
Matt: "That's why Rich went home with ME."
Rob - shrimp.
Matt: "Cut yourself some slack and at least make it a jumbo prawn."
If they weren't actors, what would they be?
I didn't actually take very good notes for this question, so I don't know what they answered, besides "pasty chef." I must have been taking pictures.
The next questioner said they noticed Matt's tattoo during karaoke, do Rich and Rob have tattoos? What are their tattoos of? or what would they get?
Matt has a tattoo from his hip to his knee on his right leg. It's a bunch of stuff that's personal to him.
Richard joked that he'd get Jared and Jensen's faces tattooed on his pecs. His chest hair would serve as their flowing locks. He then did Jared and Jensen impersonations with his chest (the odd thing was that they were spot on.)
Rob wanted a tattoo once, but his wife said that he could only get it if he waited a certain amount of time without changing his mind about what he wanted to get. His wife won.
Have they ever done something in their acting career that was embarassing or uncomfortable?
Richard described doing Open Water 2, and how they were naked the whole time, so their wardrobe consisted of a sock. The first day they filmed, everyone was really timid and shy to be standing around practically naked, but by the last day, they were strutting around like they were in Hugh Heffners grotto. They actually had to pick out the right size of sock too, and that was embarrasing and uncomfortable. Sometimes the sock would fall off while filming and it'd float by.
Rob had to wear a banana hammock in one thing he did, and then someone turned it into a gif. At a convention in Europe (I think Jus in Bello?) "banana hammock" became Rob's safeword. It was because Ty and Rob were in Rome and they were messing around and Ty kept putting Rob in headlocks, and they hurt, so Rob had to come up with a safeword so that Ty knew when to release him from the headlock. (This sounds like really kinky sex when I type it up like this.)
They then proceeded to make fun of Ty, and about how he's like a big gorilla and you have to lure him out of and into his cage with promises of alcohol.
Matt says his most embarrasing acting gig was playing the transgendered woman in Cowgirl up, because he had to shave his legs and wear a thong. Shaving his legs was really hard, because there was so much hair. (Welcome to being a woman, Matt - do you think we're magically hairless already?)
What was it like to play Duel rolls on Supernatural, how did they manage the transition to the other part?
Richard said that the character was laid out very well, and the writers did such a good job setting it up, that he really just took everything about the character from the page.
Matt: "I had a nice time."
Rob agrees that the it was really the writing was so good it was easy to do.
Of course, this whole time there's little jokes between questions and inside answers, and I could possibly note all of them down - but I did note down this exchauge:
Matt: "When you think of me, picture a geoduck"
Rob: "I will. Is it edible?"
Matt smiles slowly: "Do you want to find out?"
If they were on a desert island, who would they ally with or kill/eat?
Rich would ally with Anna, actually he'd ally with all the women and make a "love cave".
Rob: They'll eat you.
Matt says that he and Mark Sheppard and Rob will ally and go to the love cave. Richard imitates Mark Sheppard "I actually carved that love cave." Matt says that then they'd kill Sheppard and then Rob and all the women, and then the love cave would be theirs!
Richard imitating Mark Sheppard still: "I actually taste delicious."
What would their characters think of the actions Sam and Dean have taken in S8?
"What did they do?"
Rob thinks they should find out what happened to Chuck, now that they've finally acknowledged that he's missing.
Matt: "I'd be excited that my sons achieved so much in their lives."
What's the strangest thing a fan has done?
Richard told us that at one of his first conventions he was asked what he thought of slash fiction. He didn't know what it was, so he thought they meant that the guitarist from GnR, Slash, had taken up writing. "It was a big eye opener."
Rob always finds it strange to sign body parts.
Rob: "It always makes me nervous."
Rich: "Ordering coffee at Starbucks makes you nervous."
What's their favourite pick-up lines?
Rob is not good at pick-up lines, he's not good at talking to women. He even messed up his marriage proposal. When he proposed to his wife, he actually said: "I was wondering if you wouldn't mind marrying me so much?"
Matt doesn't use pick-up lines, but his favourite is "Do you have any grapes?" No. "How about a date?"
Richard likes the Tennesee pick-up line (Are you from Tennesee, because you're the only ten I see) because he's from Tennesee.
Matt then told a story about how he saw Ty use a pick-up line when they were in Rome. Rob and Richard decided that they should act it out, so Richard played Ty and Rob played the woman, while Matt narrated. Ty walked up to the woman, looked up up and down, then zeroed in on her shoes and studied them for a while, then he looked at her and said, "Nice shoes. Wanna fuck?"
Okay, my notes suck for the final question, but I think it was: If you could bring your characters back in a 'jump the shark' type of way - what would it be?
Matt and Rob would be shirtless.
Richard: "So I put on my sock and I walk away."
INTERMISSION
We actually had a brief intermission while the photo-ops took place. I left the auditorium and ran into
missyjack and none other than Robbie Thompson, who had been in town because they were filming his episode (9x04). I also met Ryan Curtis from VFX. I didn't get to talk to Robbie very much, mainly because I suck at talking to people and also because when other people discovered he was there, he was surrounded by people who were better at talking to him than I was. I did manage to tell him that I loved his work though, and that I'm local, and possibly some other small talk. Ryan Curtis and I talked about wardrobe, because he scored a lot better at that wardrobe sale than I did. He managed to find Sam's clothes, which is good for him, since Sam and him wear similar sized clothes, but bad for me, because I WANTED THOSE CLOTHES, DAMN IT!I also got a text from my younger sister's boyfriend asking if I could look up the number for the Super 8 in Portage La Prairie, because he thought he left his sunglasses there. I suggested he try 411. Man, younger siblings that aren't even related to you, am I right?
Russ Hamilton
Russ is a personality. That's my disclaimer. It's a bit hard to take notes, since he likes to joke around a lot. I sort of stuck with only taking notes that contained information about the show. Which is really my standard for taking notes, by the way, if you want a transcript of a panel, you'd be better off trying to find video of it.
Russ started by describing the location manager job. At any given time they have 10 locations going. While they're shooting on one, they'll be preping or wrapping 9 others.
There are 25 people in the department.
Russ has been posting the call and wrap times for this season on twitter, for our interest. The call and wrap times are ONLY for filming though, people are working before and after that too. So, it's roughtly 16-18 hours per day.
Russ had his daughter come up to read this years warning on his binder. She was, understandbly, very used to dealing with her father - so that was interesting to see.
How could someone get their start in the industry?
Russ was a truck driver for a dairy trucks, so he's not the best guy to ask. He suggests that they just keep plugging away, and try to start out as a PA.
Do they ever have to have extra safety measures for locations (like cops)? Are there some locations that they can't use because they're not safe?
Safety is always a concern, and it's not just bad neighbourhoods, it's stuff like air-quality too. There are many things to consider. They have to make sure the shooting crew is safe. They work with police and they also have a lot of PAs around. They won't work if it's not safe.
Russ recorded a get well message to someone who couldn't be there. Then he read the list of dos and don'ts that Creation had given him.
What was the worst location?
The mansion that got flooded the day after they finished using it. It was still technically their responsibility (even though it wasn't their fault), so Russ had to manage the repairs. It's just the job - "leave a location better than you found it... and drink."
How did they decide on the exterior location for the Men of Letters bunker?
Jerry Wanek wanted something unique. They thought under the bridge was just cool, because of the light and shadows from the bridge. They did have a little bit of trouble with it last year though, during Pac-Man Fever, when the road to under the bridge was shut down and deemed unsafe for cars - so they quickly had to move the car scene further down the road.
What would you do if you weren't a locations manager?
He'd be a stripper. He can't actually think of anything, he loves his job too much. He jokes that he'd own a sweatshop so that he could get free clothing.
Russ then told the story about how they once needed a sweatshop looking place for an episode, and they couldn't find anything - and Russ discovered that it was because the employee he'd asked to make the phone calls was actually asking clothing manufacturers in the area if they "owned a sweatshop" and causing everyone to immediately say no, and hang-up. That employee is no longer working for Russ.
The next questioner started asking Russ a question about the mytharc and the many different versions of what hell looks like and whatnot - oh man, it was super awkward. Russ answered remarkably well though, saying that Supernatural has the freedom to switch things up and do whatever they want to serve the story.
Favourite location?
Russ likes the locations where nobody shoots or places they haven't already been. On Thursday they were shooting somewhere really cool (9x04). The location tour actually nearly drove right by it, but Russ distracted everyone in the bus. (I think I actually saw it, but I was so sleepy and I'm sort of used to seeing random productions in town, so I didn't think anything of it.)
Will they ever film up in Squamish again?
Russ can't say - it's not in the first half of S9 anyway.
Has there ever been a location that they weren't allowed to shoot at?
Russ always tries to work it out, "I get that we can't film here, but how do we film here?" Some places, though, try to extort money from them, and then they'll just find somewhere else. There's never been anything devastating.
If they went to England to film, where would he like to film?
A pub.
With Russ' panel over, Richard came back out and then pulled Robbie Thompson up on stage, joking that Robbie was a writer so he loves crowds. Robbie waved and said hell while Richard joked around.
Mark Sheppard, Mark Pellegrino, and James Patrick Stuart
Their pornstar names are Fitz Torington, Frankie Longridge, and Nigel something. Richard didn't know Sheppards and JPS's until they were on stage though, so the screen with their names on it displayed them as "Sketchy" Lord Fiddleston, Frankie Longridge, and James petted Stuart (and Stuart liked it).
Now, sadly, for the first part of this panel, I was taking pictures and also obviously thinking about something... because I missed the first question, but I know it resulted in Sheppard listing Crowley's pets - (Dog- Growley, Owl - Owley, Cat - Meowley, Chicken - Fowley, ect.) And that Lucifer would like the fight Crowley.
Favorite Monsters?
JPS is partial to the leviathans. Mark P, questions whether Lucifer is even a monster.
JPS joked, "well, when they first told me that Misha was going to hold my head back while Jensen shoved a bone down my throat... then I saw Jensen and I thought, well... he's a goodlooking man - furthest thing from gay, but yeah."
Someone asked JPS about Kingdom Hearts, and he started to answer, but then decided that a SPN Con wasn't the forum for the discussion, so asked the fan to send him a twitter message about it and he'd discuss it on there.
What is their favourite Doctor Who creature?
Mark S. was most afraid of cybermen as a kid. Mark P. suggests the weaping angels, and Mark S. agrees that they are great.
What are Mark S.'s favourite rolls? And suggests that the other actors on stage can weigh in with their favourite rolls too, if they like.
Mark S. jokes that what the questioner was saying is "You guys can jump in, but I don't give a shit."
Mark S. enjoyed the rolls that the fans enjoy the most. He then said that he did an interview where the interviewer asked him, "what's left for you?" He responded with "What am I? Dead?"
JPS then chimed in with "Did you really just answer with 'I enjoyed what you enjoyed'? What the hell is that? Are you running for office?"
Mark S: "Dick."
What would happen in a parallel universe where their characters were the good guys?
JPS: "I'm already the good guy. To me, the story is about a couple of pricks who won't do what I tell them."
Mark P. "YEAH!"
There is a question asked about Dexter, which leads Mark S. to talk about his father, Morgan Sheppard (also an actor) who just turned 81. This lead into the story about the first time Mark S. met JPS. JPS was coming to town and needed a ride from the airport and a girl told him "don't worry, my boyfriend can drive you" and Mark S. showed up at the airport.
JPS: "Shows how far you'd go for a shag!"
Mark S.: "She was worth it."
What are their favourite jokes?
Mark S.: How do you get a bunch of Canadian out of a swimming pool? You say, "excuse me, could you please get out of the pool?"
JPS: "A very religious man rents a hotel room for the night, he asks the front desk if the porn channel is disabled. The front desk says, 'No, it's just regular porn, you pervert.' *JPS then mimics dropping the mic as the crowd laughs*
How would they design Hell?
Mark S. would make it the same as Crowley did.
Mark P. would make it the IRS.
JPS: "I don't know, but Ben Affleck would be batman"
The crowd burst into laughter and cheers, JPS mimics dropping the mic again.
The next quesitoner wanted Mark S. to talk about Firefly.
He says they were good people. Joss is a funny guy. He talked about the injustice of cancelling it. He bumped into Nathan Fillion the other day and they were talking about it, and how it was the beginning of bringing back mainstream scifi, but it was just ahead of it's time. Joss is always 10 years ahead of his time. Mark S. says their now too old to ever reprise their roles. Mark P., JPS, and the questioner objected to that and cited Harrisson Ford coming back as Han Solo soon - but Mark S. argued that there was possibility it wouldn't be the the Han Solo we know and love, and cites the fourth Indiana Jones movie and how 'slow' Harrison Fords acting was.
Mark P. was asked about The Big Lebowski and any stories from that set.
No stories, it was just a normal working environment. It was fun. He really felt at the time that Jeff Bridges was an unsung genius. It was a lot like going to a master acting class, because he learned so much. JPS told us that Jeff Bridges was actually offered Forest Gump, but turned it down.
Mark S. told us that if we wanted an acting class, we should get the Iron Man DVDs and watch Robert Downey Jr.'s screen test, because he had to do one. "I couldn't work out whether I wanted to fuck him or give him the roll."
Mark P. thinks that Leonardo DiCaprio deserves more credit too.
Mark P. played a character in The Big Lobowski called "Carl Hungus" - this led them to laugh about porn names, and JPS thought the name sounded Scottish, and then did an accent that Mark S. thought sounded like a pirate... and then Mark S. thought it sounded like Air Lingus, Irelands national airline.
Favorite scene?
JPS liked when he killed Bobby. The crowd was sad. "What too soon? It's been a year!"
Mark P. liked the scene where Dean shoots him in the head and he just gets back up again - because there was such a huge build-up to it. Mark S. liked that episode too, where he gives the boys the Colt and Sam tries to shoot him in the head.
Mark S. also liked the contract scene between him and Dick Roman. He and JPS actually started reading the document and discovered that someone had actually written it! "There's Canada!"
My note for the next question just says "Hammer of the Gods?"
Mark P. said that was also one of his favourites. It was sad.
What would they be if they weren't actors?
Mark P. would teach history (be still my heart).
JPS would be working in a scuba shack with sandals on in the bahamas... or he'd do pirate porn.
Mark S.: "It drives me nuts!" - and then Mark S. had to explain the joke about the pirate with the steering wheel attached to his belt.
How do they find working with prosthetics?
JPS described the bone he had to wear.
Mark S. talked about how complicated and amazing the scene was where he was tortoring himself.
Mark S. also informed us that the toilet top on one of his toilets is a statue of his head and shoulders that they made when he did Star Trek, because his shoulders were the same width as the toilet back. It's "very disturbing" and he's had guests ask if they can use another bathroom. His kids like to put hats and sunglasses on it.
The next question was about being evil, I didn't note it down, but all the guys agreed that they weren't evil.
"Busy, not evil."
"Piurposeful, driven, passionate, upset."
Favourite villain?
Mark S. likes Goldfinger - the actor was amazing.
JPS likes the shark from Jaws.
Mark S. thinks the best villains are aparthetic.
Mark P. likes Javier Bardem in the last Bond movie.
Mark S. likes Robert Mitchem in Cape Fear.
JPS thinks Rob Lowe was good in that thing he did where he killed his two wives.
If they were on a desert Island who would they ally/kill/eat?
JPS thinks that just being honest and playing Fuck/Marry/Kill is better.
The questioner also said she had a friendly warning for Mark Sheppard about watching his back - which caused the guests to laugh, though I found it a little awkward.
How would their characters dance in a club, could they demonstrate? (Dance monkey dance question LITERALLY)
JPS did demonstrate though.
Mark S. just snapped.
Mark P. did a hip wiggle.
The next fan up to the mic had met JPS in a donut shop after Chicago Con, and JPS had tweeted afterwards "Can't a brother get a muffin?" This lead to some subtle inuendo jokes, of course.
How does Mark P. approach a part when his character is someone's hallucination?
He treats it as reality. The biggest challenge was having Bishop's hair.
Does Mark S. want to come back to Dr. Who? Because the questioner would really like to see him on that show again.
Mark S.: Of course!
JPS: "He's on like every other show on television!"
Here, of course, is when the audience yells out that he's not on Sherlock yet, and then "Superwholock!" is shouted.
What does Mark S. think of the new Doctor for Doctor Who?
It is what it is. He's looking forward to seeing it. Matt Smith was very good, and he's looking forward to seeing where they take it next.
Can Mark P. tell us anything about the Tomorrow People?
It premieres Oct. 9th. He thinks it will do well. He plays an ally/enemy.
Do they like playing Protagonists or Antagonists?
Mark P. says that the nice thing about antagonists is that they drive the action. Mark S. likes protagonists too, JPS likes antagonists. Mark S. repeats a saying that there's only two things worth playing - the last sane man in the universe, or the one who kills them.
They were asked about fight scenes, but Mark P. misheard and thought they said "fart scenes." He laughed at his mistake, but said that actually the scene where Lucifer ices the window and draws on it - right before they rolled, Jared farted.
Mark S. said that he has enough fight scenes off camera, because Jared picks him up and shakes him.
JPS then realizes that the questioner has an accent (it's the cute Australian guy) and says, "I'm sorry! I thought there was something wrong with you!" Then Mark S. tells the Australian that wombats kill more people in Australia than any other animal. The Australian can't believe that, but Mark S. insists it's true because of car accidents.
Can Mark S. talk about his Irish heritage?
Mark S.'s dad is Anglo-Irish. He became English, because before U2, it wasn't cool to be Irish. It's been very cool for Mark S. to see that change over the years. Mark himself is part of the "plastic paddy" generation that are London Irish. They're neither one thing nor the other.
Mark S. actually opened for U2 when they played Dublin on their tour for Joshua Tree. JPS is floored by this. Mark S. confirms that it did indeed happen, he played along with Lou Reed and the Pogs, and then walked home with the crowd at the end of the night. JPS is amazed.
And thus ended their panel.
Upcoming Ghost Tours:
Chad Lindberg came on stage briefly before the next panel to tell us that he's teamed up with Creation to offer Ghost Tours in Burbank and Vegas as part of the Supernatural Cons there... and that he'll have surprise guests with him, so if anyone is interested, please buy tickets!
Part 2 up shortly
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no subject
Date: 2013-10-25 04:22 pm (UTC)Saturday was a busy day. I loved Jim Michaels panel, full of great information. He was very engaging, and I actually liked Russ' panel this year. He talked about the show, instead of his booze - go figure. Good for him.
I think the highlight of Saturday was the Rob/Richard/Matt panel. Those three were so funny, I could have listened to them go on for a long time.
And the Mark s/Mark P/JPS panel - I wish we had less of Mark S and more of JPS. Actually, I wish that JPS had his own panel. I would love to hear more of his stories but felt he got overshadowed quite a bit by the two Marks.
It was good to revisit these panels. thanks for the write-ups.
no subject
Date: 2013-10-25 05:13 pm (UTC)I think Creation has to strike a balance between offering a large quantity of guests, but also making sure they don't book so many that there's no time to really enjoy the guests. I think this year was SO booked, especially on Saturday, and especially with the last minute addition of Felicia (who I loved!) - but yeah, BALANCE. There's only so many hours in the day!
no subject
Date: 2013-10-25 05:33 pm (UTC)I do agree though, that the three did offer up a very hilarious panel, although it still was too Mark S. sided.
Creation does need to learn how to strike a balance with the guests. It is wonderful that we get so many, but they do need to space them out a little more, especially Saturday. Saturday was such a long and exhausting day. I don't see why they couldn't have moved a couple more guests to Friday. Friday is so light, that they could definitely fill that day up a little more, and start us earlier in the day than they did. I understand that it might have to do with the actors schedules, but still, it would be nice to have a heavier day Friday, and a less hectic day on Saturday.