Doug

HOW PERSIAN CATS EVOLVED:
MY CURRENT PROFILE SONG is "America" by Victoria Vox. I've used Victoria's music in three of my films. I haven't used this song. But it's been used as background on a network TV show. Give her profile a visit. You'll be glad you did.
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MY DEFAULT PHOTO is from my film "Hurt." In this comic relief scene, my character (an off-duty Homicide Detective) is trying to cheer up a depressed, suicidal person by doing a Dick Van Dyke style dance number. Yes, that's a "urine hat" I'm waving. Like I said, it's comic relief. :-)
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Hello. I guess I'm well above the average age on this site. But I was 50 when I re-entered Show Business, and a lot of other things I've done in my life have been "against the grain" as well. One thing Alzheimer's and MySpace have in common is, you're always meeting new Friends.
I hold earned Degrees in Medical Technology, Theology, and Computer Programming / Systems Analysis, plus an earned Radio Broadcaster's License. I'm an ordained Pentecostal minister. I've worked professionally as a Medical Technologist, as a Computer Programmer / Systems Analyst, and in Materials Management.
But the primary reason for this MySpace profile is my film involvement. I've won awards as a screenwriter, and have optioned one screenplay. Films I've produced and directed have won awards as well, and have been shown on Indie TV stations from Memphis to Muskogee.
I've been married for 36 years. Yes, all of it to the same person. My wife is gracious about my ShowBiz involvement, although she doesn't have much interest in it herself. She has a teaching degree, and she homeschools. We have a teenage daughter at home. She's a great kid. Wants to do the right thing, just because it's right. Thinks of others. Likes to take care of younger children. Can Interpret for the deaf at church. Is thinking of being a Psychologist, or maybe an interior decorator, or a chef, or a beauty consultant, or a massage therapist. It changes from time to time. Privilege of youth.
[BTW ... this MySpace, although it contains personal information, is primarily my ShowBiz page. Therefore, there are no recognizable images of my family anywhere, nor am I calling them by name. That's deliberate.]
I was a part of the Sixties protest movement. Antiwar and Civil Rights stuff. Eastern religions. So-called Psychedelic ["mind-expanding"] Drugs. Make love, not war (as though making love and dropping Acid would somehow bring the boys home from 'Nam faster -- yeah, it really seemed to make sense at the time, although it sounds ridiculous to write about it now). It took me a long time to see through the emptiness and hypocrisy of the Counterculture movement and to admit that, although some of the things I was trying to accomplish were worthwhile, I was going about them the wrong way.
In 1969 I gave my life to Jesus, and that's one thing I've never regretted for a moment. The only thing I regretted was not having done it sooner...and the many things I did wrong as a result of that delay. When you've been forgiven, the whole world looks different, and you can freely forgive others. I was (and to this day am) still opposed to how the Vietnam War was handled. But at the same time, I regret the violent protests in which I once engaged, because I made life harder for the GIs who were just doing their job, and especially for the POWs. I believe that there've been some bad mis-steps in the present Middle East action as well; but I'm not going to make that same mistake again. Ever.
There's nothing at all wrong with Jesus. I do admit, though, that some churches push their own agenda rather than teaching the truth of the Bible. Probably the thing that angers me most is the many perverse and sneaky ways that people regress into a pattern of teaching (and believing in) salvation by their own works rather than by grace. But for anyone out there who's had a bad experience along this line, I want to be clear...(1) The message of Jesus is still real and meaningful for your life, regardless of how some people may have mistreated you, and (2) If you look hard, I'm pretty sure you can find a church where you're comfortable with what is taught and can enjoy meaningful fellowship.
I'm a Medical Technologist in a Mayo hospital lab by day. And an actor / filmmaker, and singer / songwriter, on my own time.
I've been a writer all my life. Writing things that, whether fiction or nonfiction, were meant to actually be read by the public. Screenwriting is different. A screenplay is read by very few people, and it's just a blueprint for shooting a film. How did I make this transition / expansion? Glad you asked.
Writing movie reviews for a couple of conservative websites (starting in 1998) forced me to analyze screenplay story structure...which led me to try screenwriting for myself (in the first Project Greenlight contest, in 2000)...which in turn led to dipping my feet back into acting (also in 2000). Besides producing my own films, I've appeared in other people's films, and (as mentioned) I'm an award-winning and optioned Screenwriter.
Once I started chasing strong dramatic roles rather than just bit parts, for my own peace of mind I was forced to abandon my old "Method acting" type training and to learn an emotionless technique instead (more about that in my blog archives, if you're interested).
So far I've done some lead roles in low-budget films, but only tiny roles in high-budget films. I'm cast as the male lead in a fairly ambitious project, but the producer / director is still chasing funding for it.
My most notable film exposure to date is a bit in the Katherine Heigl movie "Side Effects." (Katherine is one of the stars of TV's "Gray's Anatomy.") I support "Side Effects" and its timely message on health care (written and directed by Kathleen Slattery-Moschkau, who was a drug company rep for 10 years). Katherine's character (a fictionalized version of Kathleen) has loser parents, and that's an important plot point -- it helps us understand why it's hard for her to walk away from a cushy but ethically-questionable job. They wanted me to play Katherine's loser father in the film. Having scenes with a top-flight actress would have been great for my demo reel, of course. But the role would have required me to momentarily grab [or at least realistically appear to grab] a scantily-clad waitress's butt. That's a violation of my personal acting code. I took the simple, neutral role of a Pharmacist in the film instead, which meant I didn't have scenes with Katherine. No regrets. I'll do old-fashioned romantic scenes; but I won't do nudity or "groping" / "sexual contact" of any kind under any curcumstances, even if it's comedy.
If the waitress scene would have been faked, AND shot waist-up in a way that conveyed a message to the audience that it was faked, I'd have been okay with it. To me, that makes a great deal of difference. Not being in creative control, I of course couldn't guarantee how that scene or anything else would be shot. A bit actor is lucky if he's even able to find out anything of what will be required of him before agreeing to a role. Actors are often treated like whores or circus animals, expected to perform on command, no questions asked, and be thankful for the opportunity. When I AM in creative control -- in films I myself produce -- I treat my actors with more respect than that.
As long as I'm on the subject of my acting code... I've appeared to be drunk and drugged on screen, and I've ACTUALLY, visibly shot up on camera (I'm a Med Tech in real life, so it wasn't that difficult), but I won't smoke or realistically appear to smoke. I'll use racist language and epithets, but I won't use strong profanity as expletives (I may use certain language like "damn" or "hell," if it's meant LITERALLY rather than as an expletive -- I'd have to judge the literality on a case-by-case basis). I have other restrictions too, and you can probably guess how they run. Some of this may sound inconsistent and arbitrary, but the key is (1) "imitative behavior" and (2) what things an audience will perceive as "real" versus "just acting." When I'm working for someone else, I can limit only my own role -- anything beyond that is none of my business. But when I'm in creative control of a film, I pretty much apply these same rules to the entire production. [One exception -- if an actor is a smoker in real life, and is portraying a very negative character, I may have the actor smoke on camera. But that's a rare exception. My mother, my father and my father-in-law all died from cigarettes. I NEVER want to be responsible for inducing some wet-behind-the-ears kid to take up the habit.]
I care about a film's effect on my fellow actors, and about its effect on the audience. I always have a reason for what I do and for what I choose not to do. The movies I produce tend to be "message" films. They deal in adult themes, but in my opinion they're never sensationalistic or exploitative. They just tell the story in the most effective way that's within my code. I'm especially careful with sensual content. When shooting, I use an indirect, Hitchcockian "less is more" approach, and only ask actors to do the minimum I need in order to get my footage. When editing, I only show what I need to in order to get the point across.
My screenwriting, and my film work that I wrote myself, includes but is not limited to:
Film projects:
"Zero Hour" -- Principal photography October 2004, still in reshoot and postpro, Directed by Heidi Priddy, belongs to Hidonia Films. This film contains some fairly strong yet tasteful material. It deals with the conversion of an aging Hitman.
"Lightning Strikes Twice" -- I shot an 8 minute demo in April 2005, Directed by Todd Roberts of Start Pictures. This film, too (the full feature version, that is), contains the on-screen conversion and life-transformation of a lead character. Aside from that, it deals with family relationships and conflicts, disease (cancer), and death. And it's full of music.
The Micro films "Stuck in the Moment" (music video) and "Abusive Relationship" (drama) were shot in September 2005. Directed by Damon Blalack of Major Brand Productions. They're edited and released. Both of them were nominated for best of category at the Spring 2006 Bare Bones Fest in Muskogee. "Abusive" took a Top Ten award at the International Digital Cinema Convention in Kansas City in Fall 2006. I re-entered "Stuck" in the Bare Bones Fest in Spring 2007, and it WON Best Music Video. Second time's the charm.
"Midlife" (32 minutes) was shot in a weekend in October 2005. Directed by Damon Blalack. Edited and released. Won Best Mini-Feature at the Fall 2006 Bare Bones Fest in Tulsa.
"Hurt" and "The Interview" were both shot in one weekend in December 2005. I directed them myself. Pickup scenes for "Hurt" were shot later. "Hurt" follows a young couple in the aftermath of a crib death, with a Detective suspecting foul play. "The Interview" is about a U.S. Senator who's being considered as a dark-horse draft possibility for the Presidential nomination during a deadlocked Republican convention.
A 56 minute version of "Hurt" was entered in the Spring 2006 Bare Bones Fest, but too late for judging. I've since shot more material and expanded it to Feature Length (76 minutes), trying for distribution. This new version of "Hurt" was nominated for Best Feature, and won Best Oklahoma Soil Feature, at the Fall 2006 Bare Bones Fest. It also took a Top Ten award at the International Digital Cinema Convention in Kansas City in Fall 2006.
I shot and directed "Lucky Day" in basically two days in 2006. This is probably my strongest-content film to date, surpassing "Zero Hour." There's no actual sexual content of course (only implied), and no profanity to speak of. But some of the things it deals with are very distrubing. It promotes a prolife worldview and a conservative political agenda in a non-preachy way, by the use of an in-film media interview and by juxtaposing those "message" segments with some stuff that's very rarely dealt with, even in Indies. So, regardless of what you believe in, this film should have something you like as well as something you dislike.
I finished editing "The interview" (24 minutes) and "Lucky Day" (120 minutes) in January 2007. They're now being submitted to Festivals, and I'll soon start shopping "Lucky Day" for distribution (while continuing to try to sell "Hurt" as well).
"Lucky Day" premiered at the Spring 2007 Bare Bones Film Fest in Muskogee. It also screened as a Fantasy at the It Came From Lake Michigan horror / Sci-Fi / fantasy Film Fest in Milwaukee in October 2007.
"The Interview" premiered at the Spring 2007 Bare Bones Fest. It also screened at Fall 2007 Bare Bones, and at the January 2008 Trail Dance Fest.
My Short, "Roughing It Up," which I directed in 2006, finished editing in July 2007. It deals with a female standup comic being told to vulgarize her material, but successfully resisting the pressure to do so. The film premiered at the Fall 2007 Bare Bones Festival.
I shot the Short film "Deadly Love" in Oklahoma the week before the April 2007 Bare Bones Fest, and the Short "Now and Again" before the Fall 2007 Fest. Both of them are in editing.
I'm planning to shoot my new Feature script, "Not Quite Lyin' Eyes," soon. As well as the full Feature version of "Lightning Strikes Twice."
Some of my material is explicitly Evangelical. Most of it is not. But generally, there are some very serious moral issues kicked around in my stories. Racism. Greed. Dysfunctional family relationships. Manipulating people for personal gain. Things like that. For the most part, things that almost everyone agrees are wrong and need to be addressed.
I manage to find a role for myself in every film I produce. Usually a substantial one. Hey...executive privilege is good. Why not make use of it?
Writing projects (other than those that I've already produced):
"Lost Boundaries" (Feature Western, based on a true story) won a number of awards (including from the 2001 Nevada Film Office contest and the script contest within Spring 2002 Bare Bones), and is optioned to Buzzmedia Networks BV in The Netherlands.
"Amber and Gray" (Feature cop drama) was written in 2003 to spec for the officers of the Creative Actors Alliance of Los Angeles, designed with lead roles for all seven of them. It won some contest awards, and the C.A.A. nearly optioned it (until their lawyer advised them not to option and shop a bunch of films as a group). It, and a sequel, are available.
"Mr. Almost" (Feature romantic comedy) won awards, and is available.
"The Honeymoon" (a possibly-supernatural mystery-thriller Feature) is available.
"Irregular Pairs" (a romance between an Hispanic big-city girl and a Scandinavian farmboy) is in process.
"Angel on Snowshoes" (the true story of Northwoods pioneer physician, Dr. Kate Newcomb) is in process. When it's done, an older Hollywood actress and a certain production company (with ties to Hallmark, WE and Lifetime) have first-look privileges at it.
"The Lanakai" (the true story of a pre-WWII ship that was deliberately designed to provoke/trick the Japanese into attacking the U.S. Navy and thereby starting a war) is in process.
I have many other projects in the works, in various stages of creation, writing, and rewriting.
I'm one of two associate writers on the projected TV series "The South Ward," created by LaVonne McIver James. The series focuses on a multiracial inner-city church that tries to help anyone who needs help. A Demo/Trailer for the Pilot episode has been shot. In the Pilot, a newly-paroled middle-aged former pedophile applies for church membership. If this series is picked up, and LaVonne keeps me on as a writer, well... there'll be my employment for who knows how long. That'd be fine.
If you want to view the Demo, go to:
http://www.favorentertainment.com
I've been contracted to do a rewrite on an in-process Feature film that I won't name at this time. They were already shooting, and decided that they needed to go back to square one and get some better dialogue.
Partial list of my Film Acting (other than in my own projects):
I was in "Hollywood, Wisconsin" (Treasure Island Pictures, 2001), directed by Ted Roesgen. Ted has mostly made late-night cable stuff, but his heart is really in doing family films like this one.
I was an uncredited background extra in Bernie Mac's "Mr. 3000" (Disney, 2004), directed by Charles Stone.
As mentioned, I was in Katie Heigl's "Side Effects" (Mo Productions / Hummingbird Pictures, 2005), directed by Katherine Slattery-Moschkau.
I was a credited but no-dialogue character in "Soulmates" (Back Corner Productions, 2005), written and directed by my friends Carl and Vivian Adams. It's a workplace romantic comedy about 12 interns at a Dating Service. Considering the story setting, it's a remarkably clean film. It does deal with racism and some other hot-button issues. It's distributed by York Entertainment and is available all over the Internet.
I'm in "Dolls" (Mirror Productions), directed by Daniel Messer, which was shot in August 2006 and released in Spring 2007. The lead characters are a group of eight-year-old girls, all but one of which is a snot. I'm one of the jerky fathers, i.e. one of the many reasons that the girls are snots. Thoughtful film.
I'm in "The King of Barron" (My Town Pictures), directed by Scott Thompson, which was scheduled to be shot in June 2006 but is on hold indefinitely.
I'm a Featured Extra (the Photographer with a dorky 8MM movie camera) in the Wedding scene in the black-and-white 1950s Sci-Fi tribute film "It Came From Another World," directed by Christopher Mihm, shot in Fall 2006 and released Spring 2007. In making these tribute-style films, Chris has hit on a good formula, and his films have guaranteed distributorship before they're even shot. He makes one film of this type per year.
I'm an extra in "A Broken Family," directed by Brooke Lemke and produced by Silent but Deadly Productions.
I've been cast in a film from Nikki Kruex's production company. I haven't yet been told the film's title.
I'm a 1960s Abortionist in the pro-life, non-supernatural monster / horror film "Xoanon," produced by my friend Cari Breske of Cleopatra Perry Productions.
I was cast as the male lead in "The Ferry Woman" (NyTex Productions), directed by Donald Iarussi, based on the novel by Gerald Grimmett. This is a fairly big-budget endeavor, and I love my role. He's a real historical character, a Godly man trapped in a questionable social and religious community, who's trying to figure out how to do the right thing within the limits of where he finds himself. We shot a staged-read version for publicity purposes in Spring 2005. Fundraising is still in process.
I've also done some stage acting recently, including Buffalo Bill in "Annie Get Your Gun" and a 73-year-old senile hitman in the comedy farce "Flaming Idiots."
My acting name is Doug Phillips. That's also my screenwriting name. [I use a different name for my film review work. Don't want to offend a director and lose a shot at an acting job because I flamed his/her previous film.] You can find me and some of my film credits on IMDb.com
Anyone surfing my homepage...please note, pretty much all of my MySpace Friends are actors, filmmakers, Indie recording artists or "artsy" people of some kind. So if that's your thing as well, feel free to follow the links and check them out also.
If you're interested in purchasing "Side Effects," you can click on the image below and go right to the producer's store (that way, I get a kickback on the sale). Caution -- it's rated R (just barely R) for brief nudity, sexual situations and language. I think they were going for a Titanic-style PG-13, and didn't have enough pull (the film only had one-one thousandth the budget of Titanic -- it was made for $190 thousand). Farther down this side of the page, there's also a brief Side Effects trailer. Have a look.