It’s been a while since I sat down and wrote something. Life’s been a little bit crazy. Generally crazy good but a little bit of crazy bad. Sometimes I just feel like I have too much going on, too many balls in the air and eventually something is going to get dropped. So far, so good, though.

I did another shoot with Lucas Gilman a week or so ago. He’s just such a great guy and a phenomenal photographer. I’ve posted some of the pictures below.

Coleman has started up again and we are having one or two shoots a week, which is great. I love our afternoons outside shooting with good friends.

Production jobs have been flowing in and I’ve recently cast for a few different things including a print job on an oil rig. I think I’ll be casting another one along the same lines soon so hit me up if you’re interested. I was helping out on a shoot for Keystone as well and some other smaller shoots.

Since Coleman has taken a little longer to get going, I’ve been spending time doing fun stuff like running, golfing and spending time in the mountains. It’s been a great break for me and I’m enjoying the time to get some other aspects of my life in order.

Also, here’s a link to the yoga commercial I did late last year. It’s finally finished!

[youtuber youtube=’http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kx8BZkO-ha8′]

And another picture from my shoot with Joe Morahan earlier this year.

That’s all for now. Stay in touch and let’s figure out a way to work together!

xoxo,

Kari

It was a great week!

I was busy but not ridiculous like some weeks, which is always nice, especially with all the extracurricular stuff going on in my life right now.

I filmed a Tuff Shed commercial on Tuesday with my buddy Steve. He plays my husband a lot (we have another commercial out for a law firm now) and he’s always a blast to work with. The Tuff Shed guys were great as well and the film crew was Garce Works so Garce and Hunter. All very fun people so we had a good time working outside on a beautiful Colorado morning.

On Friday morning I was up at Red Rocks bright and early shooting with an amazing sports photographer, Lucas Gilman, for Garmin. I got to ride a beautiful new bike with Jason, who used to be on the Team Garmin. Quite an experience, to say the least. Jason was a monster on those hills, just flying up them. Again, very cool guys. We shot in the studio on Sunday and I got to ride the same gorgeous bike on a trainer for 45 minutes or so while Lucas took more pictures for this awesome ad campaign they’re doing for a new product (top secret but seriously amazing). So look for me in the cycling magazines coming out soon. I think it’s going to be really cool. (pics below)

This past weekend I also did an adventure scavenger hunt around Denver, which was so much fun. It was my first one ever and we did great. We took 8th out of 149 finishing teams. There were many teams that didn’t even finish so 8th wasn’t too shabby for our first time, although I was hoping we were going to do better than that. We were two minutes away from 4th place come to find out. We made a wrong move right in the very beginning of the race that ended up costing us later on but overall it was a blast and we’re qualified for the national race in Las Vegas this fall.  I have a feeling that’s the first of many adventure races I end up doing.

This week is starting out good as well. I have a shoot for a Public Service Announcement tomorrow and then an audition as a sports host of sorts. I’m not really sure what it’s all about but I figure I’ll get more information at the actual audition. I also spoke to someone today about hosting an adventure sports show. Sounds interesting but they’re filming almost entirely on the weekends and my weekends are often up in the air with other shoots, etc. I would love to shoot a couple of times with them and see where it goes, though. It sounds like a really fun concept and something I could get into. That’s the hardest part about my job. There’s so many interesting people and concepts out there that I often want to do them all. There’s just not enough hours in the day, though, so at times I have to pick and choose what I do. I love that I’m in this position to be able to pick and choose but I hate turning down cool opportunities.

Anyway, that’s about it for now. I hope all you lovelies are doing well and keeping cool.

Good morning, friends.

I hope everyone is having a fantastic Father’s Day today.

Life is moving right along. I can’t believe it’s summer already and hot. Very hot.

So last week was a great week to get caught up on all that stuff I’ve been putting off for the past month or two. I am making some major changes in my life and so it was a great week to get things aligned and moving forward.

The week before that I was on a Marriott Shoot at the TownePlace Suites out by DIA. I was contacted by a producer from Florida that needed an assistant on the shoot and she had somehow gotten my name. I was originally going to work four to five days but ended up working seven assisting on the model/lifestyle shoot as well as on the architectural shoot for the last couple of days. It was a great learning opportunity on how to style architectural shoots and assisting but I’ll tell you what, it was exhausting. We put in 12-15 hour days for seven days and it took me all last week to really catch up.

This week I have a shoot for TuffShed on Tuesday as well as a shoot for Garmin on Friday. For the Garmin shoot, they’re looking for triathletes so I think we’ll be riding bikes, which is always fun.

That’s about it for now. It was nice to have a little break last week and get some projects done. We’ll see how long it holds out, though.

XOXO

I’m back!!!

The last two weeks were just as crazy as I anticipated and then some. I’ve been running around for 15 days now and today is my first day off. I’m not quite sure what to do with myself, although I have a lot of “normal” stuff to get caught up on.  Here’s a synopsis of the past couple of weeks.

Book cover reprints – This went great. I was working with Paul Wedlake and Patrick Loehr and we did two studio shoots with 20 people for 11 book covers and inserts. Paul was the photographer and Patrick takes the pictures and transforms them in post. He’s really amazing. The shoots went well and I’ve seen some of the end results from our first shoot on May 5th. I’ll post some once I get them since it’s really awesome how different they look from the shots that were taken in the studio. This was a really fun project to work on with great hair and make up and awesome photography and post production. I was there for the organization factor. I cast the majority of the models and set up the call times and kept the shoot moving.

Coleman – We made it through two weeks, two catalogs, 5 locations and about 60 models. I handled casting, catering and wardrobe. We had three shoots that were rained out and had to be rescheduled but otherwise it went relatively smoothly and we got some great shots. Brian Bailey from Aspen was the photographer for the catalog and Brooks Freehill was the photographer for the water recreational equipment catalog shoot for Sevylar and Stearns. Both are great to work with and extremely talented. The first week was mainly shot up at Buffalo Creek up 285 but the second week was mainly shot at Big Soda Lake in Bear Creek Park. The weather was amazing the second week and so it was a much easier shoot. I’ll post a couple of pictures in the behind the scenes section. I miss my Coleman peeps. It’s hard to spend 2 weeks straight with people and then go cold turkey and not see them for a while. I’m having with-drawls.

Delirium Tremens – This show was playing at The Dairy Center for Performing Arts in Boulder. Opening night was Thursday, May 9th and it didn’t go great, which really freaked me out. We could have used another week of rehearsals but unfortunately we didn’t have that and had to go with what we had. The second night was a tremendous improvement and it just kept improving from there. By the second week of the show, we were all confident in our lines and performances and so we were able to  play up the characters a lot more. This show came right in the middle of a stressful work period but I’m so glad I did it. I met some amazing actors and reconnected with a few great friends as well. I had a huge wave of sadness yesterday that comes once you end a show. It’s tiring when you’re doing it but after you miss the constant companionship that comes with working so intimately with a small group of people. I hope to work with a bunch of them again soon.

I also did two voice overs in the midst of all the madness. One was for Cameron’s Products, which sells non stick barbecuing accessories. You can view it (and hear my voice) if you go copy this link…

I don’t have a copy of the other one yet but it was for Colorado Casual Furniture, who I filmed a commercial for a few weeks back.

So that’s about it for now. I have an audition today and then I have jobs the next couple of days so busy again. Tomorrow I’m doing a team building session where we lead a corporation through a wheelchair build. We’ll be building 48 wheelchairs with 250 people. I have 5 assistants working with me on this and they’re all great people and good friends so it should be a fun time. Thursday I have a shoot for Restoration Robotics where I will be mountain biking and rock climbing for a few hours. Sounds fantastic, right?  I’m looking forward to it!

Thanks to everyone that helped me the last two weeks and hung in there when I was slightly psychotic due to sleep deprivation. I love you all.  xoxo

Tomorrow begins the perfect storm of my life. And I’m nervous.
I have 15 days of non-stop go time.
Two shoots for 11 book reprints consisting of 25 models, full wardrobe, make up and studio & location shots.
Ten 12-hour days of shooting where I’m handling casting, wardrobe, catering and the occasional modeling.
And that’s during the day.
Starting Sunday I have four dress rehearsals and 8 shows for Delirium Tremens in Boulder at the Dairy Theater.
I’m hoping to get 3 hours of sleep Sunday night before my 4 AM call time Monday morning at a location an hour and a half from my house. Hoping.
So, what I’m saying is….
THIS IS AWESOME
And…
Don’t try to have any sort of meaningful conversation with me until at least May 22nd, because I won’t remember it.

I think I’ve worked out the logistics of the next 15 days as well as I can. Now I have to rely on my calendar, phone, check lists, friends, intuition and shots of red bull and Stranahans to get through this.
So, I’ll see you on the other side.
Wish me luck.

It’s Saturday night….

I’m sleepy.

This was a busy, busy week. Production management is going nuts. We had the Pioneer Drama shoot last weekend and it was fantastic. 21 kids in 4 hours and everything went off so smooth. Mark Woolcott was the photographer and his energy is contagious. I have no idea how he keeps the banter going the entire time but after 8 hours he was still as perky as ever. He took 1500 pictures and 1300 of them are usable. It was a great shoot and I think everyone was pleased all the way around.

I have two weeks of shoots planned for Coleman coming up the end of April and beginning of May. Ten full days of shooting that are up in the air due to this crazy weather we’re having. It will be a last minute go situation to staff about 60 models in those ten days. If you’re interested in modeling, hit me up. I am looking for a variety of types and I’m really excited about the people we have so far.

I am also casting 11 book reprints. I think we’re just about done but I probably have two more parts to fill. That day will be crazy as well with models every hour shooting. We’ve got some great people lined up to come in and I’m excited about how awesome this is going to turn out. It should be a really fun shoot coming up in early May.

Other than that, I’ve had a ton of auditions. Time has been flying by and I feel like I’m struggling to keep up. I’m starting a show in Boulder so rehearsals are three nights a week. The show will run the 9th through the 12th and 16th through the 19th of May. It’s the show I used to do in Estes, Murder on the Rockies, but it’s been changed, recast and renamed to Delirium Tremens. Thankfully I’m the same part I’ve always been in the show, an ex stripper alcoholic floozy, so I don’t have to memorize any new lines. I was cast this second time around in another role at first and I’m not sure I would have had it in me to learn another part. Plus, the role of Norma is close to my heart. Her childlike, slutty personality is so fun.  I really love playing her.

So that’s about it for this past week. I’ve posted some new pictures that I got back from Joe Morahan from our shoot at Vail Pass. Check them out under the commercial section of my portfolio. I’m also posting a picture below from the Pioneer Drama shoot.

I spoke too soon.

In my last post I mentioned going to the Rockies opening day tomorrow and, as Murphy’s Law has it, I booked a commercial that just happens to be filming tomorrow in Colorado Springs at noon. So I will go one more year in my very long life without attending opening day. I’m a little bit bummed but honestly I will never turn down work. Now I’m not going to get all sappy on you and tell you how lucky I am to have a job that I love and all that but….I am.

My job ROCKS!

So instead of battling the crowds tomorrow, I’m sitting on a patio now, getting some work done and enjoying a lovely Colorado beer. Odell, best brewery around if you ask me. I like Avery as well but nothing compares to Odells.

I had a wedding shoot today. A five hour wedding shoot, which is a long time to be in a tight wedding gown. Also, a long time to not go to the bathroom, because, in a gown that large it would have taken two assistants minimum to help me.  I worked with Maureen Bacon, who is a wedding videographer and she was great. My handsome groom was Grant Benjamin and he was awesome to work with.  I am going to apologize now for any long term back problems Grant now has due to having to lift me up and spin me around multiple times. He was a trooper, though, and only almost dropped me once.

Just got back from Puerto Vallarta and I’m so much more relaxed. I was getting a bit tense. Ok. Maybe more than a bit tense. Maybe a lot tense. Definitely a lot tense. But I’m much better now and I’ve attached a few pics of PV at the bottom.

This year started out a little bit slow but it’s picking up speed. In terms of production management, we cast our first female spokesmodel for Hind and she’s been announced. It’s Nicole Gugliardo (http://www.facebook.com/NicoleMarieFitness) and she is fantastic. Check her out and take a look at the Hind Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/hindperformance?fref=ts to see some of the pictures from our shoot last summer and more about Nicole

Coleman also got started a little earlier than expected this year. I just cast our first shoot and although I was in Mexico for the actual shooting day, I heard it turned out fantastic. We had an adorable family that I piece-mealed together to copy a Coleman life vest shoot with the cast of the Deadliest Catch. Lot’s of fun and from the shots I’ve seen, the end result was awesome.

I’m currently working on a shoot with Mark Woolcott and 22 kids, which we did last year. It’s for a company that writes and sells scripts to middle school and high school schools. We’ve cast these kids for a five hour shoot where we’ll have a make up artist and costumes. They’ll be reenacting some plays and doing a variety of shots to use in their upcoming catalogues throughout the year. It’s always a fun but hectic shoot getting that many kids and their parents in the door, in front of Mark in street clothes, to wardrobe, make up and back in front of Mark. I love it. I mean that, too. I really love this part of my job.

The acting and modeling has started picking up a lot more as well. I’m still waiting on Joe’s pictures back but our yoga video that we shot a while back is almost done. I saw part of it today and as always, Joe is incredible. Hopefully I’ll get some of the snowboarding shots we took a couple of weeks ago back soon as well.

I have a shoot tomorrow for a commercial for Colorado Casual Furniture. Looking forward to that and it’s with a group of guys that I’ve worked with in the past so that’s always nice.

Thursday I have a wedding shoot in Thornton. I honestly don’t know much about it yet. That seems to be the nature of my life, show up and figure out what I’m doing.

Then Friday is Rockies opening day. Yay! Stay tuned for more soon.

Hugs

I just found this blog with a shoot from last year. Scroll down on the blog (you’ll have to cut and paste). I remember it was SO cold.

Hypothermic, sit in your car with the heater and seat warmers on high for an hour cold.

http://www.youaphotography.com/TheBlog/tag/missoula-fashion-photography/page/2/

BTW, the lighting is accentuating more than is really there, if you know what I mean.

🙂

Happy Thursday! I’m enjoying a much needed glass of wine and looking forward to the weekend. It’s been a busy, busy week.

I had a shoot last Saturday with the prolific Joe Morahan. Awesome as always. Joe is so great to work with. He comes prepared with a detailed vision and that’s what we work towards (and he achieves). I saw about 10 of the shots today (pre PhotoShop) and they’re so amazing. I love working with photographers that I know will give me some great portfolio shots. Look for them soon. I’ll post them in my portfolio once I get them. We also shot video so I should end up with an awesome behind-the-scenes video as well.

I had an audition today with some guys for a golf web series. It sounds like it will be awhile before they’re ready to start shooting but it was a blast today. We did three 60-second spots to see what the end result would be after editing. I’ve worked with a few from this group before so it would be fun to do something more long term with them. And it sounds like golf clothes are an added perk. Clothes are never a bad thing. Well, except for the laboratory shirts I modeled. Those were simply not becoming.

So here’s a picture that one of our Coleman models sent me. She was in Arizona and saw it on a box at a Wal-Mart for a Sevylor water product. Nothing like seeing yourself on a box in a bathing suit smashed against a tube. Every girl’s dream, I tell you. I love how it says “air tight” on the packaging. Hmm…..So, I’m Wal-Mart famous. I’m not sure that’s a good thing but it wouldn’t be the first time. See the second picture below.

So I had an audition this week for a car dealership.  Not worth mentioning really. I bombed it. Seriously. I’m not even sure the client knew I was in the room. I’m not even sure I knew I was in the room. It was so bad that the client was asking about the girl before me. Although I have to say the girl before me did have a super cute haircut. And in reality, I didn’t do much to stand out. I wasn’t on my A game. I should have given myself my usual pep talk….”Kari, you don’t be bringing your B game to Barkley camp.” Ok, for those of you that don’t really know my sense of humor, I don’t really give myself that pep talk but I know I heard that a long time ago on some commercial and it has stuck in my head ever since (and usually pops out my mouth, leaving people confused, hence this clarification).

I must be going. I need to send my agent a picture of myself that resembles a mug shot for an anti DUI campaign for Wyoming (that’s the for realz reason I’m drinking the wine). Wish me luck on looking like a felon. No need really, I have a face that law enforcement and lawyers love (yes, I have two lawyer commercials out right now). So if you are driving through Wyoming and see a giant billboard with my mug on it, take a pic and send it to me. I have a habit of getting jobs that I’m not really sure I want, like DUI billboards, or Brian “the bulldog” Murphy commercials that run for 8 years where I claim I received $250,000. Yeah, it seemed like a good idea at the time.

Peace out, my peeps (I’m in a slightly gangsta mood, bare (or bear) with me.

KJ

PS –  this has just become a non-hypenated blog. So for any of you that are hyphen-lovers, I’m sorry. (you know who you are)