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The Tracks Nobody Sees, But Every Marketer Should Hear.
This podcast celebrates the hidden gems of marketing insight found across all professions—both within and beyond traditional marketing roles. Just as B-sides on a single contain brilliant tracks that are treasured by true fans, every profession contains marketing wisdom that isn't obvious at first glance but is incredibly valuable when discovered.
Tom Hootman (03:59)
when I was at this conference, there's, there's a podcast promotion company. And she was doing interviews with people at the reception the second night. And, and I was waiting to go to do my 10 minute interview with her, her team. And I was like, Hey, It's super easy to start podcasts. Like, why doesn't everyone, why, why would someone need you to help produce a podcast? No offense.
And she was like, anyone can record a podcast, but no one knows how to promote it. And I was like, that's a good answer. Thank you very much.
James (04:23)
That's a great answer. mean, marketing.
Tom Hootman (04:24)
Yeah.
Yeah. And it's interesting because, I, when I started this, I didn't even think I thought marketing, am going to talk to marketers all the time? And in all honesty, I was thinking about this while when we met, when we were in Seattle for my wife's birthday trip and you said, I mean this in all honesty, it was an offhand comment. I'm sure you don't remember it. We were just chatting at one of the sites on the Twin Peaks tour and
You talked about your time of getting the role and like your how to get roles as an actor. And you mentioned like you had to market the hell out of yourself. And it literally like that statement you made to me, it kind of like the light bulb went off. And I thought, wait a minute. Everyone's a marketer. Like everyone in every role has to market themselves or market their business or do something on it. It's not just about what media agency do you work for? And you actually helped kind of create.
with that offhand comment in our conversation, The Marketing B-Sides because I like, I open with the same thing every time where I say, it's the podcast where everybody's a marketer and absolutely none of us pretend to have any of it figured out. Like it's, it's especially in these days. before we get really too far into it, my opening question for everybody, two or three songs, right? That would be on your playlist to define your career.
James (05:28)
Yeah, especially today, like in these days. Yeah.
Tom Hootman (05:42)
This is my favorite question.
James (05:44)
That would define my career.
Tom Hootman (05:47)
soundtrack to your career. Two or three.
James (05:50)
Who were three songs?
Yeah, one is Led Zeppelin's When the Levee Breaks. Just because the way that Plant screams and yells, that energy.
Probably, I know this is a cheat right here, but the whole soundtrack,
Fire Walk With Me,
And I know that's a cheat because it's a one album, been listening to it nonstop as I'm making this film. Also with Twin Peaks, it's just kind of aligned. And then I would say one, oh, this is gonna be so random, dude. Okay, in Lord of the Rings, when Aragorn is giving the necklace to Gwen or Liv Tyler's character, that song, that Enya.
is singing in the background, that song as well. That's just like, that's like epic cinema that when I was a kid watching Lord of the Rings, that on the big screen, And that was again, that fed into my desire to want to be an artist.
Tom Hootman (06:46)
James, that's a phenomenal. Those are three choices that are all phenomenal. Number one, When the Levee Breaks is a a banger. It's like a it's a banger. Number two, I love that you the Twin Peaks piece because you're you're shooting a Twin Peaks film, right? Like you've been on Twin Peaks like and it's also you didn't know this when you said this. Fire Walk With Me is my favorite of any of the
James (06:51)
Yeah it is.
Tom Hootman (07:10)
the genre of Twin Peaks. Like I could watch Fire Walk With Me over and over and over and over again. And then it's a great film overall. I just absolutely love it. It's hilarious. It's a horror film. It's everything.
James (07:15)
Me
Great horror film.
Tom Hootman (07:23)
Little James watching Lord of the Rings, you're like, I want to be a creative. You started your career at 14. The first time you get that $200 check, I'm sure you were like, this is, I'm getting paid for this. see, you've had a long career at this point. I asked everyone this because you're, because you're old, James. I'm kidding.
James (07:33)
yeah.
Yeah.
Tom Hootman (07:41)
You're fucking younger than me.
In your career. What's a moment that you look back on and you can laugh about now. But like at the time you look back and it just wasn't fucking funny that you were like
James (07:51)
⁓
let me think. You know, that's actually, I'm gonna segue into Twin Peaks because, ⁓
It's more funny than it is like, oh man, I really screwed that up. I've had some auditions that are just like bombs, know, making improvising jokes that I shouldn't have improvised. And, oh man, well, there was something that had to do with Jake Gyllenhaal's dad. He was directing a film up here and I wanted him to remember me. And so there was a line in the script and I decided to make a certain joke and
Tom Hootman (08:11)
You walk out of the room and you're like, that didn't go well.
James (08:27)
crickets in the room dude like jaws on the ground and all I'll tell you is Stephen Gyllenhaal Jake's dad looks at me and like okay let's do that again but don't ever say that ever again I was like okay yeah but uh yeah yeah
Tom Hootman (08:41)
⁓ God. It's one thing to not acknowledge it and be like, okay, thanks, but to like say, let's do it again. And by the way, fuck you.
I mean, cause you got to reset and do the scene and in your head, you're like, well shit, I'm fucked here.
James (08:55)
Yeah, this
is for everybody else in the room. This isn't for me. No, so I would honestly just say my ignorance of really knowing who David Lynch was. I think it served me not really being a big fan. I grew up and I was a fan of like Martin Scorsese, Stanley Kubrick. More being a fan of actors than I was of directors.
And so I think going into this situation where they were like, yeah, you're on Twin Peaks. And I was like, that's a big win for me. Then I called my mom. My mom starts crying. And then I kind of have this like this feeling of like, maybe this is bigger than than I thought. Yeah. And so the ignorance of it going in, I look back on and I'm just kind of like, wow, man, that, you know,
Tom Hootman (09:33)
We have a cover of People magazine. ⁓
James (09:44)
Kudos for not being intimidated, but also next time, like, do some homework. And I was Tobey Maguire's body double when I was about 19... 20. And the same thing, man. Like, just remember I was like, oh, yeah, that dude was Spider-Man. That's really cool. But like, no concept of, this is like Leonardo DiCaprio's best friend. This is a Hollywood elitist. This is like as big as big can get.
And I think sometimes maybe the stoner ignorant guy inside of me sometimes serves my journey because I don't think so much about the caliber of the people I'm working with. I just look at it very much like this is work. This is a chance for me to really collaborate with people. It doesn't matter who you are. I'm just collaborating with you. And then working with Lynch, looking back on that,
Tom Hootman (10:21)
It's.
James (10:35)
I was very much like, this is probably the most influential guy I've ever worked with on me at this point. Like this guy, that guy changed my whole perspective of art.
Tom Hootman (10:44)
I mean, you talk about Scorsese and Kubrick, Lynch is there, like, lifetime achievement award, like he is there, like he's in the same sentence. And so it's fascinating to me because to me, it kind of boils down to, I love ignorance, because when you just don't know yourself, and if everyone could just be themselves, it's to be a much better place. But people get locked in their own head. And it's like, if I see someone famous at an airport,
James (10:47)
Mm-hmm.
Tom Hootman (11:14)
I never go up, I'm like, and then some people don't have any guardrails and they're like, Hey, great to meet you. And they talk their ear off and it's like, just leave them alone. trying to board a flight, right? It feels like people fall into two camps of like, Holy shit, that's a famous person. what do I do? This is a huge opportunity. And then you're not yourself or people lose all their EQ and like just wander through the room and bug the hell out of them. And there's like, for you, you have like that right balance of like, I'm auditioning for a role. This would be pretty cool. not realizing it's fucking
James (11:15)
Mm-hmm.
Mm.
Tom Hootman (11:42)
David is like the grandeur like the like the Mount Rushmore of directors that he would be on.
James (11:48)
Yeah, and I didn't know what I was going in for either in the audition. They didn't tell me, they said it was, you can't tell me what it is. I just had to show up. And so I get to the audition and I'm putting my ear, like I'm putting my ear to the door because my buddy's auditioning in front of me and this cat's doing Shakespeare, man. Like he's busted out of Shakespeare monologue. And I'm sitting on the other side of the door, shaved head, I had a beard, like a beard of a guy that can't grow a beard. And I was like, man, I'm so cooked.
I'm not gonna get this job. And then I go into the audition. and the casting director looks at me, she says, well, what do you do? And I was like, well, I bartend and I teach yoga. And she said, well, what do you like about bartending? And I said, well, you learn no matter who you are, no matter where you come from, we have more similarities than we have differences. And... ⁓
She was like, okay, cool. Thanks. That was it. And so as I walked out and I'm a drummer and so I can't really hear, I thought she said, we're submitting him for the baby. And I was like, ⁓ God, dude, I'm going to, yeah, someone's going to put me in a diaper. And then I didn't quite hear again, ignorance. She actually said the deputy. And so I got the phone call and it was like, yeah, you're the deputy. And I was like, okay. This makes sense.
Tom Hootman (12:47)
What the hell is this?
James (12:59)
And then I didn't even know I even know Twin Peaks was about deputies like I watched the show and I'm sitting there I'm watching show and I'm just like watching it and I look at my girlfriend and I was like I think this has to do with deputies and cops and sheriffs and so I don't know what my role is gonna be but Sounds like it's gonna be fun. So here we go
Tom Hootman (13:20)
I mean, it's so that's this is fascinating to me because so when you go in, you didn't know what you were going to read for what it was going to be. It was just kind of like spur the moment. like, did they normally like when you audition for a role for the uninitiated, do they send you pages and like, here's what you're going to read for.
James (13:36)
Yeah, they'll send you sides, little scripts, maybe a scene. If they're really kind of pushing it, the monologue, know, they'll throw a monologue at you or something. And, you know, that's great. That's great. I think, again, like I think working with Lynch and seeing what he does with casting, he doesn't audition you. He'll talk to you and he'll look at you. And if you have an interesting look, if you have an interesting mind.
I just went to the Neptune Theater here in Seattle because they were having a Twin Peaks thing. Sabrina Sutherland, the producer, Harry Goas, Kimmy Robertson, Cheryl Lee, and Ray Wise were there. Kimmy Robertson was telling a story about how Chad, John Pirichello, who played Deputy Chad, was looking at Kimmy and he was like, I don't know what's going on. What am I doing? And Kimmy looks at him.
And she says, just trust David. He saw something in you, so just trust it. And that was her only advice. And I think that's a great way to direct. Because I'm doing that now. Anytime I cast, I don't give people lines. I just take them out to lunch and chat with them and just get to know them. And if they got good vibes, I want to work with them. Because anybody that's an actor can act.
Tom Hootman (14:45)
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
James (14:51)
You can always direct. Yeah, it's just, it's cool to get to know people.
Tom Hootman (14:54)
It's
Okay. I love that because that's an element of like how you and I got connected. And it's interesting to me because on my side, having worked in like large, like media agencies with big teams, we're always interviewing people constantly hiring, constantly hiring, and I'm not a technical expert. So like I got into this business from the side as like a director of new business. And so like, if I'm in someone's Google Ads or Facebook or Tik Tok and I'm managing it, we're in trouble.
James (15:09)
Mm-hmm.
Tom Hootman (15:23)
And so my interviews, it's same thing though. My interviews, I was always like one of the last interviews and it was vibe check, vibe check and fit. And it was, let's talk about, I mean, yeah, we'll talk a little bit about marketing and what you do, but like, I just want to meet you. I want to talk to you. And you're kind of looking for people who are themselves, who are again, going back to like, they're a little bit of ignorance, but at the same time, I would always, one of my secrets,
James (15:37)
Mm-hmm.
Tom Hootman (15:48)
is like sometimes people are too comfortable. Too comfortable too soon is what I call it. And if they're in the interview and they're like way too chill and they're like, fuck man, you seem cool, fuck. And yeah, I'm like, whoa, like I'll be cool with them. And then afterwards I'm like, no, like there's an element of you have to be buttoned up a bit, but also be yourself. Like I'm like, I've always want to work with good people, right? And there's like, give me lunch with someone, give me a drink with someone, a coffee with someone or 40 minutes on a Google meet just to talk.
James (16:03)
Mm-hmm.
Tom Hootman (16:17)
And if the vibes are right, I'm pretty good judge of that character.
James (16:21)
Great, Tom. I'm learning that, you know, navigating the professional world these days as well, not just as an artist, but as a professional, like creating career. ⁓ There is almost this mental expectation of I need to be a master of something when what I'm learning is, you know, like you just said, is like, you got to just be your light, but also be buttoned up, be professional, be eager to learn.
Tom Hootman (16:30)
Yeah.
James (16:47)
be eager to move forward and grow. And I notice that employers seem to appreciate that more than just a straight-laced genius with an antisocial disorder.
Tom Hootman (17:01)
There's a lot of those in my business. I mean, you talked about ignorance and I was going to mention this earlier. so like you talked about how you love actors and I'm a huge Orson Welles fan and as a love Orson was he's my favorite actor of all time. My dog is named Orson. Like I love Orson Welles. The third man is my favorite Orson Welles film, Citizen Kane as well. And there's one of my favorite quotes from an interview. They said, so you were 24 when you made Citizen Kane groundbreaking film.
James (17:12)
wow man.
Yeah
Yeah.
Tom Hootman (17:31)
from a cinematography perspective, you broke every rule. How did you know what you were doing? And he was like, ignorance. He's like, everyone on that set had never done it before. So we didn't know the ground rules of what to do. So we just did whatever we could to get the shot we needed. And then after the film came out, we realized, ⁓ we broke every rule in the book and people loved it.
James (17:44)
Mm-hmm.
Okay
Tom Hootman (17:56)
because everyone else at the time was like, no, if we had someone with experience on that set, they would have been like, you can't do it that way. Just like the ignorance allows you to push through boundaries, which is, think, it tells a lot about what your story, like getting the role, like that ignorance helped you push through the boundaries. I've got to ask you, was David Lynch, when did you first meet David Lynch? Tell me about your first time you met him.
James (18:11)
Wow,
Also, that's a really cool thing you said. Yeah, so the first time I met David Lynch was, you you go in for the costume fitting, didn't see him then. You go in to go get your script, didn't see him then. I went into the makeup chair, didn't see him then. So I was just kind of like, well, this is interesting. You know, no, no rehearsals, man. It's just like, just gotta show up.
So the first time I saw him, think would probably make any Twin Peaks fans just totally nerd out they put me in my deputy outfit and then they walk me to the set where we're about to film and I get to the R &R diner and that was the first place that we're filming is right at the R &R diner and there's these roadblocks that are kind of on the perimeter of the diner across the street.
and there's just hundreds of people all on the other side of those barriers. And I'll always remember they're walking me through and there's just people, people, and they're walking me through and then they remove the barrier. And then I walk through the people and then that's when I see David and Dana, Bobby Briggs, Dana Ashbrook, really nice guy, sitting, you got the front door of the diner.
They're right to the right of that front door in front of the window at this little tiny coffee table, this white little coffee table and these three little white chairs. And one of the chairs was empty and that was my chair. And so I went up and then the first thing David did was, Jesse, welcome to Twin Peaks. And then sit down and then that's when he pulls out a little piece of paper, which I wish I stole like, cause it was really cool. He's an animator, you know he draws. Yeah. And so he draws like a little outline of like, he's like, all right, so I want you to.
Tom Hootman (19:50)
He's an artist, amazing artist.
James (19:55)
Take the police cruiser around the building and you're gonna spin it around. you drift around the building? You're gonna get out, you're gonna go up to Bobby and you're gonna say everything really slow like it's a conspiracy. And he's like, can you do that? And I was like, yeah, man, I got you. But what I didn't tell him was I haven't driven a car in like 10 years. So on the first time they they said action, I had the emergency brake on.
and I'm hitting the gas and I'm burning rubber. And he's like, all right, cut. Let's try it again. So I took the emergency break off and I was like, ooh. But it was, yeah, it was a dream. And the fact that, I didn't go to LA. And David wanted, I didn't go to LA. And David wanted to shoot as much stuff as he could in Twin Peaks on location.
So I feel like I just, got the best of both worlds where it was like, it was here in my home, Hollywood came to me, and it was a very magical experience of just like welcome home or welcome back to Twin Peaks. Yeah.
Tom Hootman (21:01)
Yeah, I love the
vision I get of like them pulling up the barricade and you walking through the people like into. There's my seat, it's real. Also, I would expect nothing less out of a David Lynch story than not meeting him until you got on set.
James (21:08)
Dude, yeah. Yeah.
Yeah, I mean also it makes sense
think about it the guy he's a director like he just got he's probably just doing so many things and I think the cool thing about him is that he does put his faith in you as as the artist like he just knows you're gonna do just fine and I love too how We had someone was forgetting their lines and it was so cool man, cuz he was just like don't worry we're shooting on digital like
I've had directors, man, where if you drop a line, it's like, bleh, like they freak out. And he was just like, man, it's all good. Like, it's so cool. Yeah, it's chill.
Tom Hootman (21:53)
Just chill.
That's so how many like what was your like how long were you shooting like you're in like four or five episodes.
James (21:59)
⁓ I shot for...
I shot for... I think three or four days? And what it would be is... And this is about the... is like going even more into the weirdness and tumultuous world of acting is I would shoot a day, then David would say, come back another day, and I just keep coming back. And then finally, on my last day of filming up here,
He brought me into a room and it was filled with everybody and he had his blow horn thing and he was like, Jesse's wrapped and he's coming to LA. And I was like, ⁓ that was like right when I first heard it. He's like, I was like, well, what? And so Sabrina Sutherland pulls me aside, the producer, she's so sweet. She was just like.
Tom Hootman (22:39)
Okay.
James (22:45)
And this is like the greatest compliment, you know, is she pulls me aside and she's like, David really likes your character and he wants to see it evolve. And, you know, I don't need an Academy Award. That's all I need to hear. Yeah. Yeah. And he, but she was like, OK, but wait, we want to bring you to L.A., but wait about a month. And so then I waited a month and I didn't hear anything.
Tom Hootman (22:56)
That's magical. Congratulations. That's wonderful.
James (23:10)
And so then I gave her a call and I was like yo is this still happening and then she was like well, no We've decided to take it into another direction And I've been cut out of films before In the past and so I think my brain just kind of connected it as "shit I just got cut out of a David Lynch thing" and so dude it felt like someone took an ice cream scoop and just scooped up You know my insides And for about a month to two months. I was just like sad
And ⁓ I remember my girlfriend was coming back home from Thailand at the time, because I thought I wasn't going to LA. So I was going to go to Thailand. But I said, no, I'm going to go to LA. And she came back from Thailand. And then she was like, yo, I'm going to go get more training in yoga and meditation. And I was like, well, I've got nothing going on. So I'm going to go do that with you. And so it basically just ended up getting more certifications in meditation and yoga.
And I got to this really wonderful place mentally and spiritually. And then it's the day I graduated the yoga cert, I got this letter in the mail and it was, you're invited to the premiere of Twin Peaks. And so I looked at that with like an eyebrow raise and I was like, well, that's nice if I'm in it or not. I don't know what's going on. So I flew down there, go to the premiere, walked the red carpet. It was so cool.
I'm sitting in this chair and this man comes up to me and he says, James Grigsoni. And I was like, I don't know who you are. He's like, my name is Dwayne Dunham. And I was like, hi Dwayne. And he was like, I edited this show. And I was like, whoa, shit, nice to meet you Dwayne. And he's like, yeah, he was like, you're gonna look great in it, man. Like I put you in these episodes and you really pop. Like your character pops, it's awesome.
Tom Hootman (24:39)
Hi.
Yeah, hello.
James (24:59)
And so I'm sitting there and I had a glass of wine in my hand and I just looked at my partner. I was like, I guess I'm in the show. So you just, yeah, you have no idea what's going on until it's already shown.
Tom Hootman (25:05)
That's when you found out. And you have no idea.
Yeah, What do they show at a premiere? Is it the first episode? The first.
James (25:12)
They showed the first two episodes
at Charlie Chaplin's theater, really gothic looking. Yeah, you know, yeah, the first two episodes, which if you've seen season three, the first two episodes are pretty out there. And so again, I remember sitting there being like, I don't know what's going on. Now I do, but yeah, so it was just the first two episodes and then the rest I was watching up here in Seattle.
It was awesome. Especially episode eight, the atom bomb.
Tom Hootman (25:36)
Yeah.
Atom, that's Amy's favorite episode. Is that the Gotta Light episode? ⁓ Yeah, yeah.
James (25:40)
It's an amazing episode. And there's like, yeah, God, why, yeah. There's like little to no dialogue,
but it's like if David Lynch directed Fantasia. Just so out there.
Tom Hootman (25:50)
Totally.
I mean, people ask about like, what's been appointment television for you for like the past 10, 15 years? It's that. Like it was, it was, couldn't wait to see the next episode.
James (25:56)
Mm-hmm.
Tom Hootman (26:01)
When you were filming, did you film any scenes that were cut? Were there any moments where?
James (26:05)
There's one
line cut that determined my old character which was funny because When you get on set you only have your five I only like five pages and there was lines and As an actor you use what you got to make a character And so I had all these very amorphous unclear lines to where I was like, what's the context? I didn't have the context and ⁓ the first scene that I shot
was when the diner, a bullet goes through the diner and I show up when Bobby is there and there's the traffic and the horns and the dead or the kid. Where there was a line in there, I go up to Bobby and said, was at Big Ed's gas farm and you know what? In the show, it's, and you know what? I heard shots. But in the script,
It says, you know what? The price of gas is really low these days. I heard shots and that line of the price of gas is really low these days. made my imagination dive because I basically was like, okay, cool. So when America starts to invade a country with oil gas prices begin to get low. So then I'm privy to the idea that America is about to invade another country.
Okay, with that knowledge, where am I coming from? Okay, I am a veteran. I've been in the military. I've been overseas. I know what this is about. Now, let's go from there. I have seen things I don't ever want to see again, but I believe in being authority and I believe in helping people. So I'm gonna move to a small town and join the sheriff's department. So that is like my whole back end story.
And then I have friends and family in the military, in the Marines. And so I started chatting with them and learning as much as I could with that. Going through their own workout training programs and everything like that to embody the character. And then I showed up on set and did all that. You as a viewer have no fucking idea. You have no idea. But that's just the work that an actor has to do is take what you got and make something.
And then the direction of David was slow, go so slow and then don't move. like when you move, there needs to be a purpose. There needs to be a reason and a meaning behind it or don't move.
Tom Hootman (28:26)
⁓
James (28:26)
think
is when you take things slow, you, ⁓
you're more mindful and you're more immersed in that moment. Cause I remember when I was doing, was running dialogue at first and I looked at Bobby and I get no context. And so just look at Bobby and I was like, I was at Big Ed's gas farm and you know what? Price of gas, it's really low these days. And David was like, all right, great. Now say it really slow. Like it's a conspiracy. And the idea of him saying it's a conspiracy, even makes like, it even makes like my eye, like, you know, kind of like.
you know, my eyes, ⁓ my brow, you know. Yeah, so it changes, it just changes. It's really cool.
Tom Hootman (28:58)
Great direction, honestly.
Do you still stay in touch with anyone from Twin Peaks who was on the show?
James (29:07)
Yeah,
I'll talk to John, Deputy Chad, Harry, Andy, the characters and the names, Harry Goez, John Piericello. I ran into Dana and Michael Horse, who played Hawk, amazing, awesome guy. ⁓ I ran into them, I think a couple months ago up in North Bend.
Tom Hootman (29:20)
Hawk. Yep.
James (29:26)
I'll hit up Sabrina every now and then and just be like, hey, hope you're doing good. Much love to you.
Tom Hootman (29:32)
It's their friends. It's a family, right?
James (29:34)
everybody's
very like when David passed away, I started getting these text messages on my phone and I didn't realize I got roped into a group text message with all the actors. I was like, dude, like that's pretty cool. This is nice. It's nice to feel like a part of a community. And yeah. And so, you know, whenever you run into each other, it's just a lot of love and it's a lot of appreciation. But I will say is the
Tom Hootman (29:47)
That's amazing.
James (30:01)
I, you know, getting associated with the Twin Peaks tour is, was, it was like the greatest gift because I don't just, it's not just about the actors. It's like, I get to talk to people like you and I get to give these, these tours to these fans that literally like travel from all over the world to come to this place. And then since I was an actor on the show taking them around, they trip out and
David Israel who does the tours he created the tour He's like an encyclopedia He knows everything about everything and then me when I give the tours I know a lot but I'm also way more into talking about art and the philosophy and the spiritual elements and like Really having deep conversations with people about all things Twin Peaks and David Lynch To where I've like created lifelong friends by just chatting with people
came out to take the tour.
Tom Hootman (30:57)
It's an incredible accomplishment. I mean, it is something that for the rest of your life you have, and you get to make people's lives like you, you get to be a part of that pilgrimage,
James (31:05)
Yeah. Yeah, you make magic, man. You know, regular people just making magic. Yeah.
Tom Hootman (31:11)
That's awesome.
I want you to talk a little bit about projects you're working on now. Like, what are you excited about? What do you got going on?
James (31:17)
Yeah, so, you know, it's kind of interesting because I'm kind of doing, I'm kind of like fractured right now. I, so about a year ago, I shot the first episode of this series that's like a Twin Peaks spinoff and we call it the Blue Rose. And we had zero dollars and we used whatever fame that I had to kind of leverage getting into shooting in the diner.
Going on locations. I mean given the tours I know all the locations and so we were just going on to these locations and shooting different stories and My buddy is a brilliant cinematographer and he spent his whole life getting all this gear together And so I just was like, you know one day I'm hanging out with David I think we might have had a couple too many drinks and we just started talking about marketing for the Twin Peaks tour and I was saying like well, what if we market the tour
by creating kind of a story that Special Agent David has to solve, but it keeps, you know, it'll take you back to the tour. And he's like, that's a brilliant idea. So we went in the mountains with just David and I, and we filmed with my phone, some just advertisements. But then on the way back, I was like, a sec, what if we just film a series? And then he's like, that's a great idea. And so then the Blue Rose Part One manifested.
with no money and just the kindness of fans. Fans showed up to just volunteer their time. Then we edited that, shared it, and now as we're doing this other one, we raised a little over seven grand to basically help make it more professional looking, better quality. And we have some stuff that I just got that is just like...
Tom Hootman (32:57)
That's awesome.
James (33:02)
mind-blowingly cool costumes props. I got a character. That's just a puppet that like it's gonna be trippy and weird
Tom Hootman (33:09)
Are you shooting it now or are getting ready to shoot?
James (33:11)
We're shooting it now and I have a GoFundMe up for the Blue Rose series. It's still up. It's great that we went through GoFundMe because there's no time constraints. So as production's going on, it just keeps throwing people back to it. But we're filming it now for the next three months. Next week, we're shooting three days next week. And I'm just so stoked. Like we were doing camera tests yesterday and it's just gonna look so good.
And then a lot of people watch the first one like with most people watch David Lynch stuff a lot of people watch the first one they're like what the hell's going on and it's cool because now the second one it connects and so if you've paid attention It you'll be like Now I know what's happening and there's still some mystery, but that's what I love about Lynch
is you can create a story and it might not make sense to most people but if you have a beginning and middle and an end and then you as the creator have the connective tissue do whatever the hell you want to do have fun and then it'll manifest in the way it's going to manifest
Tom Hootman (34:13)
Have fun.
It reminds me of like David Lynch would, he would film the scenes and he would never tell you how to think or feel about them. And there was a great interview I saw where someone said, someone got up and asked him, they kind of had their theory on, I think it was maybe Eraserhead. Where like, this is what it meant to me. And I want to know if, if like how, like how close I am to what it meant to you. And they kind of walk through this story. Here's the meaning it had to me. And his response was, sounds good to me.
James (34:24)
Mm-hmm.
Tom Hootman (34:46)
Like, it is the art is about how you interpret it versus me forcing how I want you to interpret it upon you, which I think is beautiful.
James (34:48)
Yeah
Yeah, and I feel like,
I feel like too is, you know, you as an artist or anybody that you, anybody, anything you do, there's gonna be people who like it, people who hate it, and people who are indifferent to it. And so I think that if you're making art or if you're doing anything to satiate other people's expectations, you're shortening yourself, you're shortchanging yourself. You know, work hard, like work hard at what you want, work hard at what you believe in, but...
you know, hold true to your light and hold true to your vision. I also find that when you're collaborating with people, I come from bands and I've broken, I've had band breakups and it's always that lead singer that's like, this is my band, you know that guy? that guy, and what I've learned through that is don't hold so tight to your vision. Open it up for other people to collaborate with. Also the universe works for you.
Tom Hootman (35:37)
Yeah, and we on with that guy.
James (35:50)
So also open it up to the universe working for you. You never know, it could be rain, rain, rain, and then the day you're gonna shoot, it's sunny. So like the universe is always working for you if you allow it to.
Tom Hootman (36:02)
love the yoga training coming out at the end. That's very, it's good. It's good. It's good for me. I appreciate that. We're all learning. James, thank you very much for your time. This has been fantastic. We've become friends through the tour. You're an amazing, amazing friend. I really appreciate you making time. And now I'm already worried like we got to get back out to fucking Seattle and see James again. So I hope to see you again soon. I appreciate it.
James (36:07)
I'm learning, man. I'm still learning. Still growing. Yeah, man.
Yeah, really.
Yeah, and you guys are awesome. Yeah, man, you asked me out
for a drink that one night. And if you ever come back out, man, let's meet up. Cool. Yeah. See you.
Tom Hootman (36:27)
We'll be back out there soon. Take care, bud.