11. Woody Schultz

[podcast]http://uniteforstrength.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/ufs-woody-schultz-0908241.mp3[/podcast] 

“I was born a poor, fat child…” or so the story goes. The only child of a truck driver father and a soon to be single, bookkeeper mother, I was raised in the wilds of suburban Maryland. As luck would have it, my mother’s need to put me in nursery school while she worked resulted in my first taste of fame when I was cast there, at the age of 4, in my first play. I was brilliant. And by that, I mean I remembered my lines…both of them.

Bitten by the bug, I tried out for every school play until I graduated high school. Even then, I continued to audition they just refused to cast me since “technically” I was “no longer a student”. I had no choice but to go to college and audition there. Dissatisfied with the petty politics and backstabbing of college level theatrics I decided to move on to a more professional and level playing field: Hollywood. It was here that I discovered two things: Nobody cared that I had brought the house down in my high school production of Anything Goes, and I had the skills to be a great production assistant. While working as an onset PA I watched and learned as “background” was set and stand-ins took their marks. I decided this was my way in. I learned of a secret society called Central Casting. They instantly spotted my talent (and my checkbook) and signed me up.

My very first job resulted in an upgrade to a union voucher and ultimately to a one day contract for what would be a recurring character. Had anyone bothered to watch the show, that is. They didn’t. But, I didn’t care. All I knew was I was now in the union; the same union to which all my acting heroes, past and present, belonged. I was finally a professional actor.

Since that time I have worked on vouchers as a background actor (or “paid professional actor in a non-speaking role”, as I like to say) and stand-in, on commercial, stunt, and even dance contracts, as well as principal contracts in both film and TV.

For the past 5 years my bread and butter has been as a film and video game performer in the fast growing medium of motion capture. It’s a wildly imaginative and freeing form of animation filmmaking that some of the biggest filmmakers in the world are embracing. And in the last few years alone I’ve had the honor and good fortune to work with many of them.

I was introduced to the world of motion capture when Robert Zemeckis cast me in his pioneering film, The POLAR EXPRESS. I then worked with him on two more motion capture films: the Oscar nominated MONSTER HOUSE, and BEOWULF in which I played 11 different characters. That was followed by James Cameron’s AVATAR, for which I performed as both live action and motion capture characters. Most recently, I worked on THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN: SECRET OF THE UNICORN, the first of a planned trilogy for directors/producers Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson.

In addition, I’ve worked behind the scenes as an assistant director, production manager, and casting assistant. I’m also very involved in LA theatre, teach at the Young Actors’ Theatre Camp (www.youngactorstheatrecamp.org), and have produced several panels on the art of motion capture for the SAG Foundation’s Life Raft series and at AFI for the SAG Conservatory. I am a member of SAG and AFTRA. I studied drama at Towson University and Maryland School For The Arts.

Each of these experiences brought me greater understanding and appreciation of acting as both a craft and a business. I hope this crazy ride includes many years of service in the SAG boardroom so that I can fight for the changes necessary for all of us to continue pursuing our dreams.

SAG Board Candidate Statement

I joined SAG as a background performer. Since then I’ve worked on vouchers, stunt and dance contracts, and now work as a principal doing primarily motion capture for film and video games. I understand background actors are hit hardest by so much work leaving California. I know firsthand how studios take advantage of actors in the world of new media technology. I’ve experienced the way television work going to our sister union divides our earnings making it nearly impossible to qualify for pension and health. But I believe by uniting we can protect ourselves and our future. www.UniteforStrength.com