In the midst of the first week of Fall classes at LMU, working on Alan Clay’s feature film Courting Chaos, finding out I was nominated and selected to participate in the LMU Regent Mentor Program, and getting involved in the early stages of preparations for Film Outside the Frame 2013, I received an unexpected email from the multi-award winning entertainment advertising, content and production company, Mob Scene Creative + Productions — producers of FXM’s Life After Film School — offering another incredibly cool opportunity to work with them.
Mob Scene is producing a new project for FX Networks, called Anarchy Afterword. It’s a live web series that will air immediately after key episodes of FX’s mega-hit television series Sons of Anarchy, beginning with the Season 6 premiere on September 10th.
Their offer was to act as a stand-in for SOA creator/executive producer/writer/showrunner Kurt Sutter (!!!) at the rehearsal for the premiere episode of Anarchy Afterword — on the actual SOA set in North Hollywood! How cool is that???
After accepting, I was advised to refresh my knowledge of SOA Season 5 and be prepared to participate in a Q&A during the Anarchy Afterword rehearsal with host Chris Franjola (Chelsea Lately). The show would feature Chris talking SOA with guests Kurt Sutter (Otto), Jimmy Smits (Nero), Kim Coates (Tig), and celebrity superfan Margaret Cho and allow fans to ask them questions directly, both by phone and social media.
When I arrived at the studio, I have to admit it was a real thrill to find myself standing right in front of Teller-Morrow Automotive. Inside the soundstage, I walked through several sets SOA fans know so well, including the police station, Gemma’s house, Nero’s Diosa Norte agency, etc. [Side note here: I was a shocked to see how tiny the garage’s office really is — that’s one tight space to shoot in.]
During our rehearsal for Anarchy Afterword, SOA would also be shooting a future episode on the property, so some areas were off limits and most of the sets were too dark to take pictures, but I did get a few shots where I could.
Although I wasn’t too familiar with Chris Franjola before this, I now know he’s one funny guy and is going to be a great host for Anarchy Afterword. While I was channeling my best Kurt Sutter, the director suggested that I improv some pretty wild answers to a few of the questions Chris asked to see how he would react and he came through with flying colors.
This gig was a great way to kick off a really hectic week!
