General
Lola and Maisy McLeod-Riera acknowledged by NZ Fire Service
New-look fire safety campaign proves hit"The Fire Service's popular school Get Firewise programme has been revamped - much to the delight of new entrants who can't get enough of the colourful resources, firefighter visits and shiny red fire engines.
The Auckland phase of the national educational programme, which has undergone a major overhaul, was announced at Kaurilands School in West Auckland yesterday afternoon.
Get Firewise teaches children key fire safety messages, relevant to their age group. Yesterday's start was aimed at Years 1 and 2 with the key messages being based around the importance of working smoke alarms, the dangers of matches and lighters and what to do in the event of a fire.
Fire Service spokesman Scott Sargentina said while the aim was to teach children, it was hoped they will remind their parents about the importance of fire safety.
The programme began after an assembly at the school during which sisters Lola and Maisy McLeod-Riera were acknowledged by the Fire Service for their roles in a hard-hitting fire safety advertisement which aims to shock people into realising the deadly consequences of leaving cooking unattended."
from the NZ Herald, 3 March, by Elizabeth Binning
American Accent Coaching
With so many American productions shooting in New Zealand it is essential your American accent is indistinguishable from the real thing. Your accent could be the difference between having a successful and diverse career both in New Zealand and internationally.
American actor John Dybvig is available for either ongoing American accent lessons, and/or to work on a specific script with you before an audition. John is an experienced actor and teacher, who has been teaching the American accent in New Zealand for many years, having worked with Pacific Renaissance Pictures on both Xena and Hercules, on countless Disney productions and more. John has a unique perspective on the idiosyncracies and dificulties that New Zealanders face when learning the American accent being an American who has lived and taught here for many years.
We highly recommend you take lessons with John, whether it is the first time you have attempted the accent, or you are a seasoned professional who has not auditioned for an American production for a while. Rates are exceptionally affordable, at only $30 per hour, and lessons will be structured according to your specific needs.
You can contact John on 021 179 8925.
Please call us if you have any queries regarding this, or if you need help learning any other accent, we have resources available to assist you.
The following article - taken from ENCORE MAGAZINE also outlines the importance of have an impeccable American Accent:
Aussie actors must speak ‘American’
"Voice coach Troy Mackinder says Australian actors must be prepared to speak with a ‘standard’ American accent if they want to find work in international productions shooting in the country.
“You don’t want productions hiring people in LA and bringing them out to Australia, you want to get the work when it’s here,” said Mackinder, who launched his book Practically Speaking last month.
Mackinder, an American-born actor based in Queensland, has coached Australian and New Zealand talent to speak with an American accent. He has supported Australian talent on the set of Daybreakers, Accidents Happen and Triangle, and is currently working on the James Cameron/Andrew Wight production Sanctum.
“There’s been a low in terms of work volume, with the rise of the Australian dollar, but I think [international productions] are coming back,” said Mackinder
According to Mackinder, the idea for the book was to create a reference for the classes he was teaching, because there was no such material in the market. He started developing the book while working on the set of Daybreakers, hoping to reach a broader audience.
Mackinder says even American actors learn the ‘standard’ American accent, which helps them neutralise their voice so that the audience is not distracted from the story trying to identify where they’re from.
“To create the American sound, Australians and New Zealanders need to focus on elements that are different from the old academic guard; a more practical approach with less thinking about the accent and more thinking about the acting.
“This technique focuses on the emphasis on words within a sentence, and stress on syllables within the words. Actors [such as Claudia Karvan, who wrote the foreword of the book] say that it frees them up to concentrate on the acting,” said Mackinder
Mackinder has long-distance students in Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth, whom he teaches via Skype. His services have been promoted by word-of-mouth, but he expects that the release of the book will help him develop a stronger relationship with casting agencies and the possibility of master classes around the country.
One thing he will make clear to his current and prospective students is that developing this skill doesn’t mean they will be ready to conquer Hollywood.
“Many students come to me with those aspirations. Everybody wants to move to Los Angeles and ‘make it’, but they should learn the accent and get the work here first, then go over to the US.”
Mackinder defines the work of Karvan and the Australian cast of Daybreakers as “wonderful”, but believes his best on-set students have been the young cast from Andrew Lancaster’s upcoming Accidents Happen.
“Those guys had this huge film that they were a major part of, and they just skyrocketed from the minute we started,” he recalled.
Practically Speaking is available at Mackinder’s website".
The Players
from the New Zealand Herald, by Dione Christian"It's called Fresh Produce but it has nothing to do with farmers' markets or the current vogue for home-grown vegetables.
Instead, it epitomises the blossoming of live theatre in Auckland. The mini festival of new New Zealand theatre, written and performed by actors you may not have heard of, begins next month at the shabbily chic Basement Theatre.
Across town, Flipside, a play about the capsizing of the Rose-Noelle and the crew's epic 119-day battle for survival at sea, begins theatre company SmackBang's 2010 season at The Auckland Performing Arts Centre.
Meanwhile, performing arts outfit Hackman heads to Sydney next month to stage Apollo 13: Mission Control, where the audience gets to play the parts of Nasa staff rescuing three astronauts from space.
So many names, so many shows. The script for live theatre in Auckland is being rewritten thanks to a growing number of actors, writers and directors who are starting their own theatre companies...." for full article see http://www.nzherald.co.nz/arts/news/
John Dybvig invites Letterman to NZ
After hearing numerous references to New Zealand on the Letterman show - American sports commentator, actor, accent coach and author, John Dybvig explains his new home country to Letterman, and invites him to spend time in New Zealand with a series of short video clips.
Watch part one, part two and part three on www.youtube.com
And read an article on John's effors on www.stuff.co.nz
Voice Coaching
Cameron Rhodes is a professional and experienced voice coach, available for private or group sessions, one-off or on-going coaching.
Cameron has worked with many of our actors, as well as training many of the countrys top TV Presenters, Lawyers, University Professors and Directors.
He can assist you with vocal technique for stage and screen, accent and dialect work and much more - your session will be structured according to your personal requirements.
See www.camrhodes.co.nz for more details or contact Cameron on 021 474 256.