I Need A Wintervention

Just got back from watching Warren Miller's Intervention. The place was packed and the energy electric. I love how ski movies are part of our pre-season ski conditioning. They get you drooling for the white stuff the way a cupcake makes a five-year-old's chin drop. You shut your eyes and imagine the same cold smoke wash over you. But I have a problem with this year's Miller entry.

The skiers are getting farther and farther away from being relate-able. I'm never going to ski Antarctica or Georgia and there's no resort (ie Telluride) that's going to send me out with a guide to ski deep untracked before allowing public access to it. WM producers would have you think the only people who ski inbounds are jibbers who use the lift shacks and towers as terrain park features.

In Utah, we have some pretty mind-blowing turns but to send the Crists over to ski Cedar Breaks National Monumentwhere NO ONE that's not with a film crew is ever going to ski because 1) it's not a true ski area and 2) everything is mandatory air, is pushing it. To be fair, the filmmakers did say that this 61st annual installment was meant to be exotic. I just would have liked the exotic to also be realistic as a destination.

The running theme on addiction and staging a 'wintervention' for your recovery hit home. My favorite quote of the night was "I keep turning down my future just to go skiing one more time."

Anyone who anxiously watches the fall weather patterns for those first signs of snow knows what it's like to Jones for winter. The segments of the late Arne Backstrom floating in Heavenly's untracked (shot at 7 .m. before the mountain opened to the public) were right on the money. And those crazy Kiwis ripping at the Freeskiing Championships and bungee jumping in the New Zealand segment were sick.

No Warren Miller production would be complete without a narrator and Jonny Moseley has finally gotten a handle on his voice overs. They're more friendly and casual- much more like he's talking than reading us something someone else wrote. However, the movie sound in Abravanel Hall was so loud that most of what was said by the athletes was distorted and difficult to understand. Wish I could say that the music was better but it seemed a bit 'off' as well. The songs themselves were great but they didn't complement the moments. Take Mr. Scruff "Music Takes Me Up", for example. It's a very cool song... about music not skiing. And not life. And how about the punkish Grinderman? Something about sucking her dry and biting him on the 29th floor?

Still, you can't get too technical about a Warren Miller film. They call it ski porn for a reason. It's not 'real'. The athletes and photographers bust their butts to bring you some stunning imagery and inspiration so even if you will never spend a night in a tent on a Norwegian island surrounded by polar bears, you can appreciate the effort. Besides, at the end of the night it gets the job done. Wintervention reminds you that it's time for a fix.

Wintervention plays at 8 p.m. in Park City, Oct. 29/30 at the Eccles Center for the Performing Arts.

More film dates.

Skip School and Still Ski

Just because you don't go to college doesn't mean you have to pay extra to ski. Alta's got a new season pass option for slackers. The Young Adult Pass is $599 if you buy it before September 29. That's $300 less than the regular pass price. The pass is for adults 18-25.
"We are in a unique economic environment where more and more of our college-age skiers are having to work more hours and take fewer classes," said Alta’s Connie Marshall. "The old model of offering an incentive to full-time college students has become impractical." Alta says they want to make sure cash-strapped youth still ski. Alta's college, college spouse, military and senior passes are all $599 before September 29. If you don't fit into any of those categories I suggest marrying a young'n or getting a fake senior ID.
FYI- Park City Mountain Resort also has a College/Youth season pass for $450 for 18-24 year olds.

A little about me.

I've known about Frank Garrish's acting class for years but have always been hesitant to enroll. He's scary- or so I've been told. He'll make you cry. He doesn't hold back. It's not that I can't take the criticism but I'm hardest on myself so when I hear from someone else that I'm not measuring up, I double that criticism and get discouraged. The last thing you want to be in acting is discouraged.
I've been at it for as long as I could control my own life. My parents refused to drive me to auditions or pick me up from play rehearsals so I had to wait. I combined my ability to write with my interests in media and - no- I did not become a screenwriter but a broadcast journalist. You know those people you see on TV telling you the news every night? I did that.- at KSPN in Aspen, Colo. and at KUTV in Salt Lake City. Then I was laid off. So I addressed another passion. Skiing. I joined Deer Valley's Ski School and taught skiing to all ages and abilities. I have been skiing all my life- including a stint as a racer in college at UCLA. Came in 7th in slalom out of 36th. Not bad but my dad says if I don't win, it's not anything. See where I'm going with this? He poo poos acting too- If you don't get a role, it's not anything.
I absolutely love acting and the training of an actor. I have studied with practically everyone in Utah- Anne Sward, Geoff Hansen, Jeff Johnson, Catrine, Kate, Judy, Molly Benson and anyone else who sounds like they have something to offer. Not because I think they're going to win me a roll but because I can practice with my peers, grow as an actor and 'disappear' for moments into others' skin. If I make it past the audition and into a callback, bonus!
I'm SAG eligible. Got my card after five days as a featured extra on Doctor Quinn Medicine Woman. I had spent the summer in LA working for a talent agent at ICM (who's now president of Warner Bros.) and did the stint on the Dr. Quinn set. I moved back to Utah and scored more roles - Promised Land, Touched, I was the soccer coach in Return to the Secret Garden and have three national infomercials to be (not so) proud of. I've done a handful of short films and if you asked what I dream of when it comes to acting it would be to star in a (good) independent that wins raves at Sundance. I have no desire to move back to LA. Ick. I have a strong freelance writing career, an adorable 3yo, a hot, loving boyfriend (her daddy), a great home in Park City and I ski 70 days a season. Why would I want to give that up?
To be honest, I want to nail more callbacks. I'm hoping Frank's class will advance that goal. Please, Frank, don't make me cry too much.
Update: Frank's not so scary at all! We did some Meisnerish type things that got you out of your head, talked about acting technique and started to work a short scene we'll do next week. As I was leaving he told me "You did good! And you listen, that's important." It felt like my dad had just told me he was proud of me.