Let’s start out the new year with a little-known Vincent Ventresca project. When I first came across this project, I thought it was the trailer for a movie, but I found out from producer Jack Sollecito that it is actually a trailer for a TV pilot. The story is based on Jack’s experiences growing up in a boy’s Catholic military academy. Jack was kind enough to let me read the script as well as the query and cast bios.
Vince plays the lead role. His character, Daniel Cesta, is a freelance writer who returns back to his old school to teach history and English for a month. His motives, however, are another matter. Daniel, still bitter from his experiences at the school, is there to dig up dirt and write an expose on the harsh mental and emotional abuses that the boys are subjected to. Others at the school learn of Daniel’s true agenda and accuse him of being selfish and juvenile. In their minds Daniel really never learned anything in the time he was a student there. Slowly Daniel’s attitude begins to change and he begins to think more about helping the boys rather than just his own selfish goal. He decides to accept an extended teaching position that had been offered to him at the school.
I found the script to be well written and the subject matter to be unlike anything else I’ve ever seen covered in a TV show. This is the kind of show that I could see a cable channel picking up since they are usually more willing to take on unusual subjects and premises than the networks. Jack tells me that he’s had some good response from industry people that have read the script, so time will tell whether this project ever becomes a TV series.
I remember when talking to Vince a while back that he had mentioned that he was doing some writing for a pilot. Well, just recently I found out what it is about. It’s a TV series pilot that Vince co-created and executive produced with Erik Palladino and Matthew Leutwyler. If those names sound familiar, it’s because Vince also worked with Erik and Matthew on Dead and Breakfast.
Stuck, which is produced by Ambush Entertainment, has been accepted into the Independent Television Festival, which runs from July 31 to August 6. The first screening was on July 31, but there is one more screening you can catch on Wednesday, August 5, at 7:30 p.m., for those of you in the LA area. It will be playing at the Laemmle’s Sunset 5 at 8000 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood, CA. Tickets can be purchased at Ready Theatre Network.
The following picture shows Vince in attendance at, I believe, the opening night gala. I want to thank Russian fan Evgenia Koralskaia for bringing the picture to my attention.
Note: I took the picture down because of copyright issues. To see the picture of Vince and even more pictures, please visit jamd.
Synopsis: In any other town they’d be winners, but in Los Angeles….Erik and Vince are two “kind of” successful actors living in that world between EXTRAS and ENTOURAGE, while still waiting for their big break…at age 40.
I don’t know if the series will get picked up by a network, but we do get a peek at it via the following trailer. Enjoy!
My does time fly when you’re busy working on a film. Tomorrow is the premier of Paul Ben-Victor’s new series In Plain Sight! Not long ago it seemed so far off, and now it’s already here. Funny how that happens.
So I’ve been checking out the reviews and the critics run the range from like it to hate it. Jonathan Storm from Philly.com describes the show as “formulaic, but it works” and manages to insult and compliment Paul all in one sentence:
Mary’s boss is Stan McQueen, which, I guess, is funny because he’s played by schlumpy, shrimpy Paul Ben-Victor, a great character actor last seen as henchman to The Greek, the all-powerful crime boss in The Wire.
Here are some more reviews to check out if you wish:
Well, it looks like Nestor Carbonell, who has been playing the recurring guest role of Richard Alpert on Lost, might be taking a break from the series. He’s landed a series regular role on the new CBS drama Cane, which premieres tomorrow night, September 25, at 10:00 p.m. on CBS.
There’s been a lot of concern among Lost fans as to the fate of Nestor’s character and even Cane creator Cynthia Cidre gets asked if Nestor will be available to guest star in Lost in the following interview.
And she’s not the only one getting asked that question. Lost Executive Producers Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse also touch on that question in the Official Lost Podcast.
However, the Star Ledger takes it right to the top. CBS entertainment president Nina Tassler was asked whether she’d let Carbonell do a guest spot on Lost. “‘Probably not,’ she said, arguing that they’re trying to establish a new show and a new character, and she felt it would confuse the audience to see Carbonell playing roles on two different series at once.”
I think Nina may be underestimating the TV audience a bit, don’t you?
So there you have it. When and if Richard Alpert ever appears on Lost again remains to be seen. In the meantime, Nestor is in the enviable position of being in demand on two TV shows…an actor’s dream.
Batman
And just when you think things couldn’t get any better for Nestor, Variety reports that Nestor has been cast as the mayor of Gotham City in the new Batman movie, The Dark Knight.
Okay, I’ve got a whole gaggle of Paul Ben-Victor news to share with you, so let’s get started.
First, let’s get the bad news out the way. I’m sorry to report that, after only nine episodes, John from Cincinnati has been cancelled. Even though Paul’s character, Palaka, has been praised, the show itself hasn’t been getting many good reviews and it just couldn’t seem to find its audience.
Now for some good news. The Foxhole site has a really great podcast interview with Paul. In it they cover a whole range of topics from John from Cincinnati to TheWire to how Paul got his start in show biz and more. The podcast is an hour long and I should warn you that there are a couple of swear words in this interview.
In addition, there are a couple of links given during the course of the interview. One is to Paul’s old Atari video game commercial (You might remember that one from when I posted the link on The Invisible Man Online back in September of last year.) and the other is to Paul’s father’s photography website. Note: If you click on those links during the podcast, you’ll have to restart the podcast from the very beginning each time. It doesn’t pick up where it left off. So for your convenience, I’ve included the links below. Now you can listen to the podcast without interruption and then come here to click on the links or vice versa.
In the above podcast interview Paul mentions that he will be back in season five of The Wire in his role as Vondas. He will be in at least three episodes, possibly four. No word yet on when season five will start or which episodes Paul will appear in.
While one series ends for Paul, another series is getting underway. In Plain Sight is a USA original series being shot in New Mexico. It’s the story of a no-nonsense federal marshal who masquerades as a parking attendent, but really works in the witness protection branch of the FBI. It is purported to possibly start after the new year. Here are a couple of articles about the filming of the pilot:
In the feature film arena, Paul appears in the movie Randy and the Mob, which is scheduled to be released in Atlanta, Georgia, on September 21, 2007. According to the official website, which is still under construction, there will be a national tour to promote the film. In the meantime, go check out the trailer that is up at the official site.
Last, but certainly not least, if you haven’t been to Paul’s website in a while, go on over and pay it a visit. While still under construction, Paul’s website has been given a whole new look. Do some exploring and you’ll find some really great info about Paul’s character Bobby Hobbes. I’ve found that the site can be extremely slow sometimes in loading the links, but if you click one of the small pictures under Paul’s demo reel, you can get into the rest of the site.
My does time fly when you’re busy working on a film. Tomorrow is the premier of 
Okay, I’ve got a whole gaggle of 