(When I heard good mate and Saffer comedic legend, Cokey Falkow, was leading in a new Indie Film based in Venice, I had to get you the lowdown. i got this totally bizarre Gonzo, Harold Geiger, who lives at the beach, to head down and get us the down low.)
A buddy told me about a film that's being shot in Venice
called “Body High”. After a couple
calls I weaseled my way down to set to check it out and talk to the cast. It's a small town so it wasn't hard to
find it. I'd tell you where the
set was but then I'd have to kill you.
So here ya go:
It's a indie flick about a pot dispensary that's down on its
luck but comes across a magical strain of weed that might just save the day, as
long as the gangsters don't get to them first.
The second I got to set the producer, Lije Sarki, greeted me
and showed me around. This did not
look like an indie film to me.
This was a full on production and nothing was spared. I was impressed from the get go. Lije took me right over to meet one of
the leads, Bug Hall.
Most of you will know Bug from his very first role as
Alfalfa in The Little Rascals or most recently recurring on Nikita. We started talking about his past and
it blew my mind that 1993 was almost twenty years ago. He said he still remembers every outfit
and every scene from that movie.
He was eight years old.
That's when he decided he wanted to “play” forever. I asked him why he wanted to do this
movie. His reply, “After I
met the director I realized how much fun it would be to do an indie film with
heart that shoots in Venice and works with a bunch of stand-up comedians. I was in.” Then the director walked up to see what
I was doing.
He introduced himself as Joe Marklin. Joe is a first-time feature maker from
the east coast. I asked him about
the film and his vision. “This
is really a family environment and this movie is a tribute to all the great
90's indies like Clerks, Friday, and
Office Space.” I
asked how him it was going.
They've been shooting for almost a week and he had this to say, “Watching
the dailies has taken a life of its own.
I couldn't be more proud of what the cast and crew are bringing to the
table. Every day I am amazed with
the magic we capture.” Joe
used to live about a block from where they are shooting. He actually wrote the movie for the
exact neighborhood they are working in.
That makes it easy, right?
I went and grabbed Lance Allen before he walked out the
door. I guess he just wrapped for
the day. He plays a gay security
guard with a hell of a sense for fashion.
I said to Lance to give me one good sentence about the film. Anything. He said, “It was either this or I would have to keep
stripping for potato salad.”
He must be one of the comedians.
Then I looked over and saw a dude who I know belonged
here. He looks like he could be my
neighbor, I live down the street.
His name is Cokey Falkow.
He's a South African star and comedian who is about as down to earth as
anyone you have ever met. So calm
and cool. I asked him about his
experience so far and he said, “Venice is the star of this film – I am
the co-star and that is a dream come true.” Well said, Cokey.
I said, “Where are all the girls?
I heard there are a ton of beautiful girls in the film.” Just then the producer came back up to
me and walked me to one of the bedrooms that were part of the set.
In there lay Mackenzie Mason. She was napping but he woke her anyway right after telling
me she was Cortana in Halo 4.
“What if she whoops my ass?”
I was a little nervous since she just woke up. Never wake someone from a nap and then drill them with
questions, especially a hot chick from a video game! I tried to be gentle and just asked for a little blurb about
her experience so far. She said, “I'm
excited for people that don't get to live here experience what an awesome world
Venice, CA has to offer, the style, the culture, everyone's gonna get a glimpse
of this wonderful little world.”
That was it. I
thought. I started to head for the
door after thanking Lije and he said I had to meet this girl from Germany and
she was the only lead in the film that I hadn't met. So I met Bella Dayne, a beautiful girl playing opposite of
Cokey Falkow. I asked her how she
felt about working on the film and she replied, “The characters perfectly
capture my first Venice experience coming to L.A. It's its own little world and it's been a blast to live in
it.” Well said, Bella.
So there you have it.
They invited me back again next week but before I left they gave me a
little USB drive with some stills from the first few days. Enjoy,
Harold Geiger
(Sounds like this could be one hell of a funny movie!)
