Dan is joined by character actor, Mark Rolston. You may have seen Mark in many television series and movies over the years including The Shawshank Redemption, The Departed, Aliens, Saw V, Ahoksa, Bosch, Star Trek: Enterprise, and 24 to name a few.

We chat about being in the moment, not judging your character, self criticism, filming his death scene in The Departed, the wonders of film editing, getting told you'll be busy after being in big films, The Shawshank Redemption, turning down The Green Mile, advice from Morgan Freeman, always being satisfied in what you do, how ballet helped with carrying himself on stage, serendipity, dubbing Jackie Chan, the love of transformation, working door to door sales, keeping busy, a career as carpenter, not slowing down, his experience working on the Star Trek and Saw franchises, an on set incidents, and a whole lot more!

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From the vault - recorded in 2023 and never before released until now. Dan and Harman are joined by character actor, director, and writer, Saul Rubinek. Saul has appeared in television series and movies including Frasier, Curb your Enthusiasm, Stargate SG1, Warehouse 13, For All Mankind, Schitt's Creek, Blackberry, and Nixon just to name a few.

We chat about early childhood memories, growing up in a refugee camp in Germany, Saul's parents surviving the Holocaust, an early recurring nightmare, intergenerational trauma, asking the right questions, inspiring people to explore their own family history, sharing a common humanity, always being involved in storytelling, being a violent kid, the nomadic lifestyle of an actor, working on Warehouse 13, the courage & genetic makeup to get back up once you've been knocked down, approaching work uncynically, the solitary nature of your own imagination, staying creative, tricking your mind, and a whole lot more!

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From the vault - recorded in 2023 and never before released until now. Dan and Harman are joined by writer and producer best known for his work on the Stargate franchise and cult sci-fi hit Dark Matter, Joseph Mallozzi.

We chat about script writing, getting a start in animation, being more articulate with the written word, breaking a story for an episode of television, working to a deadline, the down time, forming a writing partnership with Paul Mullie, coming into the world of Stargate, the role of a producer and showrunner, itching to break out of Stargate to launch his own show, the creative freedom of working in science fiction, creating fun characters, being an avid reader, frustrating script contrivances, finding inspiration in other works, the cancellation of Dark Matter, the improv with the script from Richard Dean Anderson, selling Stargate, and a whole lot more!

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From the vault - recorded in 2023 and never before released until now. Dan and Harman are joined by Gruen panelist and advertising guru, Camey O'Keefe.

We chat about the Barbie and Oppenheimer phenonium, a day in the life of Camey O'Keefe, working as a suit, managing expectations, finding the balance of working with creatives, bringing people out of their bubble, asking the question of why you are doing something, having to play the game that may quash creativity, defining advertising, commercial storytelling, working with Kmart & Ford, how brands get it wrong, being a macro/micro thinker, important of investment, the prospect of A.I., the messy beauty of humanity, broad spectrum of creative thinking, and a whole lot more!

Read more about Camey! Link below.

https://gambol.com.au/about-camey/

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From the vault - recorded in 2023 and never before released until now. Dan and Harman are joined by artist, Ben Aitken.

We chat about what kind of person Ben was in high school, graffiti, gaining an attraction for art, what goes on in Ben's head while painting, the immersive experience of painting, the process, finding purpose in painting, knowing when to stop, the pressure on producing work, the Archibald, prison affecting the art, dealing with life coming out of prison, the slow pace of time in prison, honesty, thoughts on religion, reflecting on COVID, drugs, social anxiety, putting on art shows, mental health, therapy, Ben's love for Fanta, and a whole lot more!

Check out Ben's website and his artwork below.

https://www.benjaminaitken.com/

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The 200th episode is here!

Dan's guest for the 200th episode is someone who has performed in musical theatre, concerts, and cabaret, and is also a member of The Fabulous Singlettes!

Melissa Langton is someone I grew up watching through my formative years as a young person, most notably in the G&S Essgee productions of Pirates of Penzance, The Mikado, and HMS Pinafore alongside Jon English and Simon Gallaher. We're bringing things full circle for this special 200th episode of the podcast!

We chat about her memories of working on the Essgee productions, not being in a traditional musical, becoming a Fabulous Singlette, Toni Lamond, German cabaret, learning to react and be yourself on stage, the rocky road on HMS Pinafore, not being good with long shows, the megamix, remembering Jon English, Michael Falzon & Kevin Hocking, coming from a non musical household, finding your people, moving around a lot, her parents reaction to performing, getting her first job in Jesus Christ Superstar with John Farnham, auditioning in the 80's, luck, the love of concert work, breaking the fourth wall, working in cabaret, being relatable, Curtains, never being interested in the lead role, understudying, communicating with the audience, mistakes, and a whole lot more!

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Dan is joined by actor, director, and writer Ted Raimi, who played Joxer in Xena: The Warrior Princess, so this is my childhood really coming full circle! 

We chat about the character of Joxer in Xena, the creative freedom on Xena, whether the show would hold up to modern standards, not wanting to be an actor initially, rough beginnings in Manhattan, growing to love acting, performing for a deaf school, feeling like an enormous imposter, having a better sense of who you are, an early gravitation towards comedic acting, breaking out of comedy, Bruce Campbell, knowing your value, trying to desperately not to read reviews, going to museums and graveyards, Dungeons & Dragons, understanding it can take a lifetime to figure things out, and a whole lot more!

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Dan is joined by actor, Matt Passmore who as appeared in multiple film and television shows over the years including The Glades, Playschool, McLeod's Daughters, Underbelly, Satisfaction, 13 Reasons Why, and Jigsaw to name a few.

Matt is a lot of fun so strap in!

We chat about living and working in America, coming from working class routes, acting 'as if', having a great gift of naivety, getting an education in how American television operates, how to make the story better, knowing the landscape of what you're dealing with, respecting and understanding everybody's role, becoming the leader of a TV set, dealing with the end of The Glades, learning from falling flat on your face, always being attracted to an ensemble, working with Tobin Bell on Jigsaw, being a firefighter, thriving on uncertainty, thinking that you're possibly mundane, finding freedom from self, quitting drinking, doing a game show, expecting the worst, finding additional purpose, and a whole lot more!

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Dan is joined by actor, Derek Wilson who has appeared in multiple television series including Future Man, The Boys, Gen V, and Preacher.

We chat about working on Future Man, ending the show, being an anxious person, getting reassurance you're on the right path, making a big swing & bold choices in performances, feeling the pressure as a guest star, working crazy hours, starting out as a series regular, the quick turnaround time from finishing with Preacher to commencing work on Future Man, the freedom of creating the character of Wolf, wanting to be an optometrist, being cast as a dog, facing the fight or flight moment before performing, the thought of doing stand up comedy, worrying about loosing the talent, needing to more active of self producing, fighting the guilt of not creating, finding balance, and a whole lot more!

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Dan is joined by actor, Omid Abtahi who you've seen in TV shows including The Mandalorian, 24, Better Call Saul, Shameless, American Gods, Fear the Walking Dead, and The Boys to name a few.

We chat about working in genre television, conventions, working on The Mandalorian, meeting Jon Favreau, keeping secrets, the pressure of carrying an episode of The Mandalorian, having a love of soccer, finding acting therapeutic, bleak world circumstances leading for career opportunity, external validation, having a steady flow of work, finding a home as an actor, everything being temporary, having a sound foundation of doing your best work, allowing for failure, always pushing yourself, working in casting, being curious about people, appearing on 24 twice, not knowing what you want, and a whole lot more!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.