Casting Call in Philadelphia: What You Should and Should Not Do

[aang_aint_white]

Quoted from The Philadelphia Inquirer:

Be in an M. Night movieDirector-writer-producer M. Night Shyamalan is casting for The Last Airbender, a live-action film from Paramount and Nickelodeon based on the Nickelodeon animated series, shooting here from mid-March through July. (It's set in a world where human civilization is divided into four

Comments

The result

[cielblue87]

So I'm back from the protest, it was only myself and the lovely Dale (sp?) from this website but we also made two new friends (Rae and Claire) who decided to stay and help our cause instead of going in to audition. I completely forgot to take any pictures there, but the local press did so I will post their pictures as soon as I can find them. Below is a picture of me after the protest (it was my first protest, I'll document the next one better I promise! I was so caught up in staying focused and delivering the message.)
We started inside but they kicked us out almost immediately so we moved to the bottom of the front steps where people came in. A lot of people didn't care, but a lot of people also stopped and listened, although most of them went in to audition anyway, even though they agreed with our cause, disappointing yes, but creating awareness is the first step. Only 4 people turned around and left after listening to what I had to say because they agreed that they wouldn't contribute any time or energy to the movie until something was changed. Some people said some negative comments but nothing outright nasty or angry. A lot of people looked at my reference pictures and saw how deeply ingrained the Asian culture was in the show and agreed that the casting didn't make sense.
We stayed from 9:30 to 1:30 and I was pleasantly surprised how many people sympathized with our cause. The Philadelphia Inquirer took some pictures and took my name as well as some of the other supporters. Channel 3 news was there and the reporter said that even though she regretted wasn't there to cover our story she still completely agreed with our cause and wished us the best of luck. I know they only are allowed to cover the stories they're sent out for but it was nice to have a local anchor person and crew take time out of their busy day to support us. Though the local radio station KYW 1060 COMPLETELY ignored us even though it was interviewing people who auditioned RIGHT in front of us. The interviewees even said the protesters were the best part of the day!
Over all we created a lot of buzz and I made sure every person coming in and out heard our message of equality. I would have loved if every single person would have turned around and left but that obviously wasn't going to happen. Getting people to talk about it is the first step. We also handed out flyers with links to this site and Derek Kim's exceptional blog and and excerpt from his blog.
If there is anything else you want to know, or anything I have forgotten feel free to ask me/I will add more info when I remember it if it is exciting or relevant. Thanks so much for the wonderful support through this site, I wouldn't have had the courage to get up there and shout to strangers without all of you :)
-Charlee

Re: The result

[cielblue87]

charlee!

shoot me an email ASAP: min@scaryrealty.com

michael klein from the philadelphia inquirer wants to speak to the protesters!

i will give you his number

THANKS!

Re: The result

[aang_aint_white]

Thank you SO MUCH for doing this! I'm SO DAMN PROUD, seriously, and it's amazing that you not only stood your ground and got the message out, you made some new allies and maybe even changed a few minds. And that's at the core of what all of this is about -- not just holding Paramount accountable, but raising awareness and making people think.

Would it be all right with you if we posted about this in a main entry on the blog?

Re: The result

[cielblue87]

Sure go for it :) I don't remember Dale's LJ screen name but I'm sure she'll contribute as well.

Re: The result

[bluegreenpen]

Thank you for standing your ground and making our voices heard!!! Thank you very much indeed!

Re: The result

[glockgal]

You and djinnj are seriously amazing and so very brave. I am crying right now, like really. Hooray to you for going about this with such integrity and getting people informed. Hooray to the media who took an interest in our story!

Thank you thank you THANK YOU.

Re: The result

[cielblue87]

Hell yeah! I love you guys! Thank you!

I am disappointed that more people didn't arrive. I mean imagined if 90% of the people who promised they would protest ACTUALLY protested! We could've done more damage and brought more awareness! Well anyway, you guys rock for protesting. Hopefully more people will be around to help you guys in the future.

Re: The result

[aang_aint_white]

There's always next time! Hopefully we'll have more time to plan and to make sure our schedules are clear. :)

Re: Big time BRO-FIST

[cielblue87]

UGH, moderator please delete my last reply. Spelling errors everywhere! Take 2:

RESPECK KNUCKLES from NYC. Thanks for going out and raising some awareness and exercising your First Amendment rights!

Re: The result

[star_bolt08]

Thank you all so much for doing this!!! You're all so incredibly brave, and you've made all of us proud. I seriously love you guys! (Especially the people you met there who decided to help out.) I was worrying about you guys all morning, but I'm happy to hear that not only did you get media attention, but you were able to enlighten people, and even led a few to decide not support the film and walk out on the audition altogether. Thanks to you guys, we're really starting to get somewhere. Oh, I can't wait to see the pictures...and the to hopefully see the news story...and the newspaper article... *squeals*

Re: The result

[tallycola]

Only 4 people turned around and left after listening to what I had to say because they agreed that they wouldn't contribute any time or energy to the movie until something was changed.

Honestly, that is a HUGE accomplishment. I'm really proud of you and you should be too! Thing about how many people those 4 are going to tell, and even everybody else who still went in, how many dinner table conversations this is going to inspire? Lots of people are going to start to get it, and that it's not just about Avatar, because of you.

Re: The result

[vejiicakes]

You freaking ROCK, dude. I wish I could phrase this more eloquently and explain how much it means to me that you went out and did this, although I think "ROCK" has its good points as a descriptive of this scenario :B I've been involved in protests before, and know it takes a MASSIVE amount of courage to be one of the few in a much larger crowd. I'm pleased to hear that you obviously raised awareness and even changed some minds!

Raising a glass to you from all the way west in California's south bay. Thanks so much for doing this :)

Re: The result

[vejiicakes]

Incidentally, would you be able to provide a rough estimate of the types of people going in to audition as extras? Casual or "traditional costume" dressed? Young or old? Caucasian or people of color? Ditto an estimate of the people who seemed to agree with your cause but went in to audition anyway.

Re: The result

[cielblue87]

I'd say it was 70% Caucasian, 20% African American and 10% other. I roughly remember seeing about 20-25 people of Asian descent, though some were just parents there with their kids. Over all probably 30% were in traditional costume which ranged from Chinese, African, Scottish (kilt and all) and some regional Asian clothing that I wasn't exactly sure which country it was from but I think it was probably Mongolian or Hmong or something along those lines. The ages ranged from 5 yr olds to 70 yr olds, though the most prominent group seemed to be 15-30. I'd say 30-40% stopped to listen but went in anyway. Only a couple people said something negative, but I don't think it's necessary to reveal their ethnicity, gender, etc.

Re: The result

[drmoonpants]

Man, massive, massive thank yous to you and djinnj. I'm thrilled you guys put in the time and even got to talk to some media people -- it's amazing, and you're amazing. I wish to hell and gone that the timing hadn't been so utterly horrible and I could have been there myself (I think I was slaving over a keyboard literally the whole time the casting call was going on T_T), but I'm ecstatic that you made it and, from the sound of it, were really able to make a difference.

My hat is off to you, and here's hoping we'll all be there next time.

[and clearly I am also sick as a dog because my sentences keep falling apart on me!! ugh]