BUILDING THE GLENJMPIRE: CHAPTER 8

From Chapter One: “The primary purpose of ‘Building the GlenJMpire’ for me, is to figure out how I got to where I’m at today, by having a look back at every step along the way. In other words, I am very forgetful.”

I had taken a healthy break from writing the chapters of my long-awaited memoirs once the novelty of doing so had worn off and it started to just feel rather masturbatory.

Well hold on to yer butts because the novelty is back! Need a refresher? Read Chapter Seven: YouBoob The Musical.

CHAPTER EIGHT:
“Movie Magic”
Spring 2006

I felt like a nervous wreck going into my meeting with the creators of THE TEETH BENEATH, Jason Eisener & John Davies regarding their upcoming feature film STREETS OF DOMINATION. This was my first experience with “networking”, but Jason and John quickly calmed my nerves by buying me a beer and launching into their pitch.

Since the whole be-a-professional-wrestler plan fell apart, I really had no idea what I wanted to do. As they told me more and more about their film, it became pretty damn clear that this was it.

During the conversation the two of them referenced a million different movies, all of which I told them I had never seen, instantly provoking an explosive “WHAT?!” from both of them. Their enthusiasm for the films they were describing really lit a fire inside of me, a fire that I hadn’t felt since the pro-wrestling ship sank. They wanted to create something that they absolutely loved, and there was no way that they were going to be stopped.

By the end of the conversation, they gave me the script and we went our separate ways. A week later, I received an email informing me that they cast me as Billy Chambers, the mother-effing lead in STREETS OF DOMINATION! You best believe that there was some bedroom dancing that day.

The stars had re-aligned and my attention had officially shifted to acting.

This prompted me to sign up and audition for Neptune Theatre’s Pre-Professional Training Program, an eight-month training program for actors where I would hopefully begin to hone my talents, along with a handful of friends who I had met while working on JUMP! AN 80’S MUSICAL.

We started shooting STREETS OF DOMINATION and I instantly, absolutely, shamelessly fell in love with filmmaking. The long hours, the comradery, the sacrifice; these were all things that I was preparing myself for in a life as a professional wrestler. All of the fun, without the crippling chronic-pain? Sign me up!

That’s not to say that filmmaking (especially non-union filmmaking) isn’t without it’s dangers: (1) on the first few days of shooting, we had to drive a car that had no brakes (not part of the script), (2) cliff-jumping, (3) we crashed the car with no brakes while I was on the trunk (twice), (4) giant, un-choreographed fights with real weapons, (5) Eisener was chained to a motorcycle and dragged behind it on a gravel road, and many, many more stories of “how did no one get hurt there?”

After a couple months, due to the changing seasons and everyone’s lives starting back up in September, we took a hiatus from shooting, deciding to start back up in the Spring. I was accepted into Neptune Theatre School, so I would be attending PPTP in the Fall.

The ball was officially rolling.

***

That’s all for Chapter 8 of “Building the GlenJMpire”, but I wanted to let you know that you can watch the trailer for STREETS OF DOMINATION, right damn now!..

The film is 99% shot, but Mr. Jason Eisener and John Davies had to go and make HOBO WITH A SHOTGUN before finishing it, so it’s officially been placed on the back-burner. It’s simmering.

Someday it will be released, and I think people will really be shocked with what we were able to put together with no resources. It could very easily go down as one of the single-most ambitious no-budget films ever made.

Keep your interest piqued.

To my Streets brothers, Owen Bonnar, John Han, Mike Hampson, Peter Hughson, Anthony Wicks: Keep hope alive.

PAST BUILDING THE GLENJMPIRE CHAPTERS:
Chapter 7: YouBoob, The Musical
Chapter 6: Quitter
Chapter 5: VHS FTW
Chapter 4: Two Chapters With One Stone
Chapter 3: Honk If You Happen to be Horny
Chapter 2: Junior Hierarchy
Chapter 1: Prologue

0 0 1 1