Wizard World 2013 - A Fan's Story and Adventure

Hey everyone welcome back!  I know I haven't been on too much which is due to many personal reasons, but I am here to tell you all about Philadelphia Wizard World 2013! In case you guys weren't following me on twitter @phillyfilmgurl  I have some reporting from the convention for you guys now!  I was tweeting the entire time I was there and this report just expands my experience so enjoy!

I was unable to attend the convention on Thursday and Friday, but I did get to go on Saturday and Sunday.  Might I just say that this year the convention was bigger and better than ever.  Sure lines to meet and greet celebrities were long, but fans braved the lines to speak to their favorite actors and actresses for a couple of minutes.  All of the celebrities were very gracious and happy to be there for their fans.  From what I heard, the photo op line for Norman Reedus / Michael Rooker (Walking Dead) was two and a half hours, but I did not see one person leaving upset. 

 

Unfortunately I was too busy reporting live from the convention floor to wait to meet my favorite actors and actresses, but I did manage to attend a few amazing panels.  On Saturday I went to the Charmed panel, a show which I absolutely loved growing up.  In attendance for the panel were Holly Marie Combs and Brian Krause (whose name tag read 'Brain').  Sadly, Shannon Doherty had to cancel last minute citing medical reasons which Combs and Krause graciously wished her a speedy recovery.  Both actors were very appreciative to their fans and spoke about their favorite and least favorite memories from set.  Combs stated that her perfect ending for the show is that it would never end.  Combs also mentioned that her least favorite memory from set was donning the giant Glinda the good witch costume and said she thought the writers wanted to torture her on that episode.  Krause on the other hand said that he enjoyed portraying the evil side of his character because they gave him spikey hair.  The chemistry between the two actors was palpable and you can tell that they remained friends today even after working on screen as a married couple for eight years.

On Saturday I was hard at work costuming for you guys.  I began the day dressed as a Tardis, well ok it was just a dress I bought at Hot Topic, but it still counts.

 Around 1pm I changed into my second costume, Supergirl. 

I then changed a third time around 5pm into a Honey Boo Boo costume for fun, mainly because I wanted Pixie Sticks and to tell people that I'm sassy! 

The main costumes this year were from Doctor Who.  This is actually really great because back in 2010, I was one of the five people dressed in a Doctor Who costume.  I'm glad that the show has finally reached so many people.  The second most prevalent costumes I would say were obviously comic book characters from Marvel and DC.  There was a lot of Banes, Green Lanterns, X-Men, and Batmen.

On Sunday I opted to go with a classic Doctor Who costume and dressed up like Romana II from the Tom Baker era.  Many people knew who I was but I could tell some of the newer fans had no idea. 

 

On Sunday was also another big event, the John Barrowman panel which was amazing.  Barrowman decided to wear some attractive superhero sleep pants which he was very excited about.  Make sure you check out Wizard World's Youtube account because they are uploading a lot of the panels.  He even sang for the crowd, however he refused to sing Springtime For Hitler.  Even though his panel was only scheduled for 45 minutes, he asked if he could stay longer to answer questions for fans and actually held the Q+A for closer to an hour.  Every minute of the panel was entertaining.  Barrowman said that if he could play any Superhero he would choose Aquaman.  John Barrowman's panel was the highlight of the weekend and keep an eye out for it.  Barrowman even took time to invite a young fan up on stage with him.  Sadly no video could be taken of the panels, but there are some clips on youtube already so look out for that.

The best part about the Con this year is that it was held in a new part of the Convention Center and it was absolutely massive.  Lanes were no longer jammed with people and you could actually move through the crowds with ease.  Every year the convention doubles in fun and excitement.  Check out below for some great photos of the convention and see you all next year!  Thanks for reading and for the continued support!

Do No Harm Related Information

So sorry I haven't posted much in the blog for the past few months.  I have been extremely busy lately with so many things.  I am back now with all your filming information and I hope to make at least a few posts a month!

First of all in between the time I stopped posting on a regular basis and now, I had the opportunity to act in a television show entitled Do No Harm.  Since the show was sadly cancelled after two episodes over two months ago I figured it would be alright to discuss some of the information about the behind the scenes.

Here is the description of the show as taken from Wikipedia:

The series focuses on Dr. Jason Cole (Steven Pasquale), a successful neurosurgeon with a secret. Every night at 8:25 p.m., and lasting exactly 12 hours, Cole is switched into an alternate, evil personality  named Ian Price. Cole has been able to suppress Price by injecting a strong pharmaceutical  mixture that sedates their shared body, rendering it impossible for the evil alter-ego to function. But one night Cole discovers that their body has grown immune to the drug and Price has emerged in a rage. Angry at having been suppressed, Cole's alternate personality is focused on wreaking havoc on Cole's life, creating problems which could cost him his life, romance and career.

I got to act in the show on fou separate days.  The main actors were very friendly.  In the first episode that aired I am seen in one of the first shots when the main actor comes out of an elevator.  A fun behind the scenes secret is that on the first take, before exiting the elevator the main actor did something that lets just say made everyone laugh a lot.  Steven Pasquale is a very fun guy to be around and in between takes made everyone laugh.  The set was really like a family and I enjoyed it.

One of the days that I was on set I was set to play a mom and they gave me a 9 year old son.  It was a little weird, but the kid was very sweet and nice.  Sadly that episode did not air, but it was still a fun day.  Later in the day we went outside for a stunt scene that can actually be seen in the trailer when they push a gurney down the street.  I don't want to discuss certain characters involved just in case they decide to burn off the remaining episodes in the summer, which I hear may happen (yay!).  I was standing outside of the bar on a corner wearing a yoga type outfit.  My friend had given me a stuffed dog earlier that day as a present so I made sure to sneak him into the scene sticking out of my yoga bag.  I think we were on set that day until midnight.

There was another outside scene we filmed that it really felt like Groundhog's Day.  Typically, well all the time really, multiple takes of a shot are made and people have to continuously do the same action over and over.  Some of the extras were really getting into character and it was funny.  One guy kept running to catch a SEPTA bus every time it would go by and the bus would actually stop only for the guy to shoo them along.  Another guy almost got run over while screaming on a cell phone because he kept crossing the street back and forth.  It was also freezing out, luckily craft services handed out cream of broccoli soup with was really good.

The set that they used for the show was the best that I had ever seen.  They made an entire hospital inside of a Philadelphia building.  It was a permanent set that was extremely expensive to construct.  There were about 4 wings created including two administrative wings, a hospital wing, and a ER type wing.  The ER room was really creepy... there was a lot of fake blood everywhere.  The set was just amazing and I am glad I got the opportunity to see it.  Both of my scenes that appear on air where filmed in the administrative wings.  I was only in about three scenes in the hospital wing.  I was also in about 2 scenes in the downstairs area.

 

 

It is really a shame the show had such low ratings.  I really wanted to see more episodes.  I actually have a friend who genuinely liked the show before she even knew I was in it.  I hope that they at least air the remaining episodes in the Summer.  I really want to know what happens in the series.