Headshot by Michael Maples

TAEM- Our magazine is currently running an exciting new comedy Web Series titled ‘Pink Slip’, produced by Muriel Campbell. Muriel is the wife of famed producer Robert F. Campbell, who produced many of the ‘Law & Order: SVU’ programs that we have watched on television. We have also interviewed Robert in one of our past issues.

We would like to present a multi-talented actress who stars in the web series and can be seen regularly in the Web Series section of our magazine. Emma Zerner is not only a budding actress, but is also a well known model. Emma, when did you first begin your modeling career?

EZ- I first started my modeling career in 2009! I had always wanted to do fashion shows, and had dreams of walking the catwalk, showcasing designers’ creations, but I just didn’t know how to get started. A few years before that, I had done some smaller shoots from LA based beauty schools, modeling the students hair and makeup creations. It wasn’t until 2009, I did my first fashion show, which was for Bright Lights LA, and I got the chance to model brands Finn Apparel and Dawning of Our Lives Denim. I was so excited, it was like a dream come true! From there,  I got my first fashion show shots, and started to get numerous fashion shows back to back. I ended up doing Official LA Fashion Week in 2010 for the Millinery Guild (couture hats), both in March and October. (more…)

TAEM- The Arts and Entertainment Magazine is proud to present actor and filmmaker Nik Vikkers to all of our readers. Originally born Nikolay Velikanov in Russia, Nik traveled to the United States to realize his dream of filmmaking. Nik, please tell our readers about your youth, and your decision to come to America.

NV-   From as long as I can remember I dreamed of becoming an actor. When I was a kid my dreams, hopes and wishes were different from the other kids. One of my teachers told me that I should be an actor when I grow up. However, my parents wanted me to attend the Russian New University in Moscow, and major in Socio-cultural Services and Tourism. During five years of my studies there, I still thought about what it was I really wanted which was acting and making films. Upon completing my studies, I decided to pursue my real dream. Because the American film industry is so powerful, I made my decision to come to America to pursue my dream.

TAEM- What inspired you to take of filmmaking as a career?

NV- While growing up, I watched American movies and was fascinated by Hollywood. Arnold Schwarzenegger, Johnny Depp, Val Kilmer, Jim Carrey were my heroes.

I wanted to make films that are entertaining, educational and ultimately change people’s way of thinking. (more…)

TAEM- The Arts and Entertainment Magazine has a strong background in the horror genre theme of movies and an extreme interest in that segment of the motion picture industry. One of the more active players in that area is actress Sarah Nicklin. In the first five years of her career she has starred in more than seventy projects based out of New England. Now living in Los Angeles, she is pursuing her career with earnest.

Sarah, tell us about your childhood start in theater and how it set in motion your desire to pursue this professionally.

SN- I’ve always had a very active imagination. Even when I was younger one of my favorite things to do was to play “make believe” games with my sister in the woods behind our house. I guess theater and acting was just the next logical step. All though, I was terribly shy when I was little, so I really had to work at getting over that in order to pursue this, even though I think it still shows at times. The main reason I stuck with it when I was little even though I was terrified was that I was that I was completely in love with the child star Jonathan Taylor Thomas and was convinced that if I could become a big actress that we would meet and immediately fall in love and all that stuff. Of course my motives have changed a bit since then, but that’s really what pushed me into it. (more…)

TAEM- The Arts and Entertainment Magazine loves to do interviews with actors in all stages of their careers. Often we reveal actors in their early stages, but more important to those actors we interview those with more experience. Our next celebrity is very important to us as he has had years of experience to share with those new to the craft. Actor Mark Christopher Lawrence has been plying his trade since the 1980′s, and the lessons he can share with those just starting out is invaluable. Mark, please tell us about your earliest acting experience, and the training that you received to pursue your career.

MCL – My first acting experience was in high school as the learned professor in the play Bus Stop. Like most actors, it was during this first experience that the “Acting Bug” bit me. Once bitten the passion for the craft was ignited in me and I found myself seeking out opportunities to learn and play on the stage.

Theater brings with it a unique opportunity for actors, in that, there are variables that are beyond our control that must be accounted for and overcome in order to be successful on any given night. For example, the audience is a very different beast for every performance and it often times brings into the theater with them a very different set of realities, pressures, fatigues, and mindsets. Other actors on stage with you have very complicated lives outside of the theater and sometimes those complications find themselves onstage in the form of energies that affect the set performance of an actor and ultimately the set performance of the play. An actor’s daily life outside of the theater affects one’s strength, stamina, beliefs, and sensibilities and in turn lends itself as a variable agent to your performance.  I recognized these variables very early on in my career and sought out intensive training. (more…)

Actor Byron Habinsky

TAEM- The Arts and Entertainment Magazine has an around-the-world following with those interested in the Entertainment and Literary fields. For that reason we reach out around the globe in search of actors and writers who will fill the interest of our readers. One such actor is Byron Habinsky who immigrated from Riga with his family and learned his trade here in America. Byron, tell our readers about your early youth and your family’s decision to come to the United States.

BH – I was a regular kid growing up.  I’m an only child so I always relied on myself for entertainment, therefore active imagination was a must.  It’s amazing of the things you think of when there’s no one else around all the time.  In major Russian cities there were these small communities of several buildings with a common playing ground in the middle.  So all your friends usually came from that same community.   And just like most boys, sport was a huge part of my growing up.  My father was an amateur boxer when he was young, so he made sure to get me involved in sports early.  His good friend was a well-known trainer in Russia, so he took me under his wing for a while. I still remember being seven, eight years old and being thrown into training with the older kids, going through all the same paces, it was insane but definitely served a good purpose.  Then at eight I discovered hockey and everything else instantly took a backseat to it.  We’d play day and night, right out in the street during winters.  When it got warm we’d sneak into the arena where the local hockey team played and play until someone noticed us and kicked us out.  We did that every day, we’d cut school to go and play.  Until they finally realized they wouldn’t stop us, so they allowed us to use the ice before practices.  Then suddenly at ten years old, you’re told that you’re moving away.  You don’t have a choice in the matter, nor do you really care why or would even understand if you knew.  So you do what your parents decide.  It was bittersweet but it was the best thing that we could have done for ourselves.  I’m forever grateful to my parents for making that decision.  We were actually one of the last to leave, soon after the immigration window closed and two years later Soviet Union no longer existed.  We spent the next half a year being vagabonds in Europe.  We lived in Austria for a bit.  I celebrated my eleventh birthday in Italy.  Then in fall of 1989 arrived in New York City.   (more…)

Producer / Writer / Director - Jason Figgis - COPYRIGHT: FARRIS GERARD

Jason, we understand that your film company is based in Ireland, and deals in filmmaking world-wide. Many of our readers are Students of the Arts. Please tell them how you first became interested in the motion picture industry and of your early start there.

JF- I have always had an interest in film. It probably goes back to my father’s collection of ‘Photoplay’ magazines that he had piled beside his bed, all of which I would devour to feed my ever growing interest in all things cinema. My parents Anne and Peter (avid film-goers) always encouraged this love of movies and the theatrical arts in general (my brother Daniel was a well known child actor, having starred in productions with Peter O’Toole, Jenny Agutter and Donal McCann, amongst others).

TAEM- Please tell us a little about your company, October Eleven Pictures.

JF- My younger brother Jonathan and I started our television and film production company in 2000 thanks to the advent of broadcast forms of digital technology (in our case the Sony PD150p DvCam) as we wanted to explore the capabilities of this technology and see if we could get on the professional ladder in a very competitive Industry. We were lucky in that our first production, in collaboration with the internationally acclaimed photographer, Sir Simon Marsden and Oscar-nominated Actor John Hurt was nominated for two IFTAs (the Irish equivalent of the United State’s Oscars) in 2003. This helped to propel us seriously onto the British and Irish scene and allowed us to develop other productions; the first of which was an examination of the life and work of the late theatrical legend Dan Crawford of London’s King’s Head Theatre in Islington. This also gave me the opportunity to work closely with such greats as the late Oscar-nominated Susannah York, Joanna Lumley, Alan Rickman, the late great Corin Redgrave and Richard E. Grant, amongst many others. This film ‘A Maverick in London’ was subsequently acquired by BSKYB and played for three years on Sky Arts One to critical acclaim.

(more…)

Photo by Jerald Council

TAEM- All films start somewhere and The Arts and Entertainment would like to introduce to our readers, who are Students of The Arts, the beginning and making of all films. Anthony Faust is a director of the film ‘A Rock and a Hard Place’ and we would like to probe this film with him to show everyone how this process works. Anthony, we met you recently at the World Music and Independent Film Festival in Washington, D.C. where your film appeared. Tell us how you first started in making films and what drew your interest in this career.

AF- My first foray into making films came in 2002 when I joined a 48 hour film project team in Washington, D.C and served as a Grip on set. I built on this experience by making a film called “Hunter’s Quandary” on a shoestring budget later that year.

TAEM- What is the theme behind this film, and what genre is it in ?

AF- The genre of this film is drama, but it is a unique film because it is ten minutes long and contains no dialogue. The story centers around a jailed man who hatches a clever (and sinister) plan to rid the massive rock in his father’s backyard.

The theme of the film is power. We see a man behind bars, powerless, alone, and bloodied by powerful prison guards. When he sets his plan in motion, he gets his revenge. In the closing moments of the film, we realize the ones who are really behind the bars are the outwitted prison guards. (more…)

 TAEM- The Arts and Entertainment Magazine delves into many venues of entertainment. These include Movies, Television, Literature, Stage, Music, and Radio. With radio we recently became aware of ‘The Bradshaw Chronicles’ and its host, Christy Bradshaw. Christy, tell us of your educational background and how it gave you the foundation for your program.

CB-Through the courses within my graduate degree in education which was based in instructional technology, I learned how to reach people at a distance as well as in person. This brought me to video/audio design and presentation by planning learning videos throughout the degree program.  All people whom portray their talents to the world have excited me from when I was a child. Being a host of my own show in a way is still in the educational field of work. It is educating the people of the world about different choices available for them in the entertainment business.  The guests that I bring on my show tell of their talents and what it took them to get to the place where they are now.  This gives new ideas and thoughts to the audience whom may need to plan a strategy in fulfilling their own goals in the entertainment field.

TAEM- ‘The Bradshaw Chronicles’ is an internet radio show for those readers who have not heard of it, yet. Christy, when did the program first air and where can it be located ?

CB-The Bradshaw Chronicles was broadcast first in January of 2011. The show grew very fast and now has over half a million viewers per month in the video versions of the show alone. My home base for the show and the upcoming new show that I have planned Behind The Scenes With Christy Bradshaw is www.christybradshaw.blogspot.com but the show can be found in many sites throughout the internet.  There are three main broadcast stations for the show now and people from all over have shared it with many other internet venues.  In video internet television you can find it on my blog as well as here www.worldtv.com/thebradshawchronicles, Ghost Tales TV www.worldtv.com/ghosttalestv, and in audio with WROM radio www.realmsofmusic.com. (more…)

Photo is courtesy of Brandin Rackley, photographer.

TAEM- Acting has many venues, and many actors forge their careers in assorted film genres. One such actor is Mark Weiler who has appeared in various films and television shows. Mark, we have many Students of the Arts who follow our magazine for inspiration. Please tell us what inspired you to take up acting as a career.

MW-  I grew up in the woods of northern Wisconsin.  There wasn’t a whole lot of stimulating opportunities beyond those that I created in my mind.  My only outlet to the rest of the world was television and I was fascinated by it.  It seemed so much more interesting than the deer, trees and cows I was surrounded by.  Even in kindergarten I took to the stage and fell in love with the creative process.  So I’ve always drawn to acting, even though it was not encouraged as a career.  It took a lot of courage to quit my day job and say, “I’m an actor now, and that’s all I do.”  I guess ultimately what inspired me to take up acting as a career was the realization that absolutely nothing else could make me as happy.

TAEM- Who was your greatest influence to do so?

MW-  That’s a tough question.  I was living in San Francisco at the time and was taking a good hard look at who I was, and going through a deeply spiritual process.  So my friends of spirit influenced me quite a bit.  I’ve been a long time fan of Sean Penn and Gary Oldman, so unbeknownst to them, they’ve been an influence on me.  Beyond that it was just a voice or a drive inside of me that said, “I can do this.  I have to do this.  And I at least have to try.” (more…)