Bait & Switch Premieres on March 5, 2010 @ SAG Foundation!

As many of you know, my husband, Tyrone Howard, is an aspiring actor. He's been pursuing acting for years but only in 2008 he decided to pursue his dream full-time.

With the writers strike, bad economy, and being relatively unknown in the industry, he hasn't many opportunities. So, in 2009, he decided to take matters in his own hands: by writing, directing, and starring in his own project. The result? Bait & Switch.

The casting process wasn't easy, as it was not a paid project. Can't blame them, because not many people would work for free. But, we did end up with a great cast.

The day of the shoot was long and tiring, but was also very exciting. Cast & crew got along and had fun on set, so the day didn't seem so long. (Thanks to David Li, owner of Guppy Tea House in Hacienda Heights for letting us use the location for the shoot!)

It took months and months for Tyrone to work on the project: editing, music, etc. It was such a long process. It's his first project so he wanted it to be perfect. I can understand, 'cuz you would want to present your best work to the industry people if the opportunity arises, right?!

The film was finally completed earlier this year in January when all the sudden Tyrone wanted and decided to make trailers/previews before his comedy short feature presentation at the private screening, as if one was really going to the theater, to create the "whole" experience for his audience. The intent is to take this private screening opportunity to also showcase all cast in different genres of film. It was time to get to work again.

The shooting of the trailers took place exactly one month prior to the scheduled private screening. We had the whole weekend to shoot FOUR different trailers. It was raining on and off pretty much all weekend and even though there were some last-minute changes and so forth, everything, luckily, worked out pretty well and smoothly. Tyrone now has less than one month to edit and compose music for all of them. It was crunch time.

Tyrone worked hard and long hours to get this whole project together in time for March 5 private screening. The event went smoothly and attended guests had a great time and enjoyed the experience.

Bait & Switch isn't over yet. The next step is entering Bait & Switch to film festivals. So, unfortunately, I won't be able to share the short film in its entirety to you. But you can check out the following websites for Bait & Switch teaser, and the trailers that were made:

http://bit.ly/a8V5tF (Please become a fan!)

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1612248/

www.th3productions.com (You can also find this website link under Bait & Switch's Facebook page.)

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2592923/

http://twitter.com/th3actor

BTW, I'm now on Facebook! Find me under Rita Chen-Howard!

Chase Bank SUCKS!!!!!

It all started because my Chase credit card froze my account due to "suspicious activity". Well, they should have called me to verify instead of just freezing my account.

I only found out because when I tried to schedule an online payment (I've been paying online for at least a year) it said "your account is not accessible". So after I spoke with customer service to verify the transactions I was told that "the security has been released and online access will be available in 5 to 7 business days". Now, that's not very convenient for me, is it?

I told the rep that my payment was due in just a few days and I will need to make the payment. She said I can pay over the phone - but will be charged a $14.95 convenience fee. Well, again, that's not convenient for ME, is it, as I didn't create this problem in the first place. SHE DID NOT TELL ME THAT I CAN GO TO A CHASE BRANCH TO MAKE A PAYMENT!!!

So at 1:55 p.m. PST on the date the payment was due - which was only less than 2 business days since I spoke with the rep - I decided to try logging in to my account online. With a brief sigh of relief, I was able to access it. I proceeded to make the payment, only to find out that I was already after the 4 p.m. EST payment cut-off time for the day. Seriously?! WTF!!! In order for my payment to be posted on that very same day, I would have to pay - you guessed it - $14.95 processing/convenient fee.

I thought the situation with my account the few days prior that if a late fee was posted to my account, I would have a valid reason to demand for the charge to be waived. I also thought that with my excellent track record, it should be no problem in getting that taken care of. So, I made my payment "regularly", like I always do, as I am never late on making payments.

I checked my account in a couple days and found out that Chase did charge me a late fee. I sure was upset but waited 'til the next day to call them (since it was late in the day), thinking that there was nothing I could've done at the time and that everything would be resolved, in my favor. Oh boy was I wrong.

Explaining to the rep what happened and when I asked for the late fee to be waived, she said NO. She said the reason is because besides paying over the phone (and pay a fee), I could have gone to a Chase branch to make the payment (BTW, how many of you know that???). OMG, I was upset when she told me that! The first rep I spoke with just a few days prior did not mention that and I just so happened stopped by the bank that very same afternoon to make a deposit via ATM (yes, I happen to have Chase bank accounts as well)! Had I known that was an option, I could have easily - EASILY - gone inside the branch to make the payment!

Anyway, the customer service rep would NOT budge (what kind of customer service is that? How can they call themselves "customer service"?).

I have always made payments on time and am current with all my accounts. I have a high credit score and I try VERY HARD to keep it that way. I am VERY responsible financially and responsible period that I wouldn't jeopardize my "reputation". I avoid any kind of fees at all costs because I think they are so ridiculous and are just a waste of money. I would rather spend and happily enjoy that money instead of throwing it away to stupid money-suckers.

Anyway, what I don't get is that how is Chase credit card going to charge me a late fee when the money is coming from their own bank? It is so wrong. On so many levels. At least in my opinion.

I miss WaMu.

I hate Chase. They suck.

Me? A Hair Model?

Years ago (I won't say how long) I was asked by my hair stylist to be his hair model. I agreed but had no idea what I was getting into!

He dyed my hair black (BTW, since the dye my hair color has never been the same; it was much naturally lighter then) and on the day of the shoot put TONS & TONS of hair grease on my hair. I couldn't move around much because my hair was strategically placed. I also got teased a lot: people on set kept on singing the Addams Family theme song. Y'know, the part where they snap their fingers. Then, after I got home, I washed my hair at least 3 times trying to get the grease out of my hair. It was such a pain.

When I finally saw the pictures and saw that they picked one to put in their hair salon, I was extremely proud!

Here are some photos!

Picture of me with Shane Sparks!

This picture was taken almost a year ago at Wayne Brady's music video shoot, but I didn't get it until yesterday!

Kato In A Music Video!

The music video Kato was in is finally done!

Watch it on my YouTube Channel under Favorites!

He's in the beginning of the video and also about 5m37s into the video.

http://www.youtube.com/user/iliketosingalot

Go Kato!

So Much To Do, So Little Time...But I'm Unemployed?!

It's been awhile since I last blogged. What can I say? I've been busy.

I actually went on 2 separate job interviews in 1 week 2 weeks ago! That's a lot for nowadays. I am fortunate to have been chosen.

My husband and I are moving. Both of us not working can no longer justify paying the rent we've been paying, so we'll be saving a couple hundred bucks a month by moving to a slightly smaller apartment. Every little thing counts, right? I am extremely stressed out though. I seriously dislike moving. Seriously. On the verge of "hate".

I'm working on my husband's student film project. I was volunteered as AD. Man, what timing. Had to collide with our moving. Was supposed to do the casting last Friday but the casting location fell through. So, will be casting for actors this Friday. So much work. And I am so green. I hope I won't let my husband down. He has so much hope for me, due to my organizational skills. But, I'm so green, in this field.

I responded to a singer/songwriter who is looking for a background vocalist and have been practicing the songs for the past 2 days. Again, what timing? As if I don't have enough to do already or have enough to worry about. But this is an opportunity I am really excited about, so I've been spending a lot of time practicing, even though my life this past week or 2 has been so chaotic. I really have been working very hard on it and I think I'm ready! Can't wait to audition! I really would LOVE it if I can do this for reals and on a regular basis!

So the movers are coming this Sunday and even though we still have the current apartment until first week of July, we still have lots to pack before they get here. And I just remembered yesterday that I have to babysit on Sunday, the day and during the time the movers will be here...

SO MUCH TO DO, SO LITTLE TIME...BUT I'M (still) UNEMPLOYED?!

Better Safe Than Sorry

So my husband and I are looking for an apartment. We haven't found a place yet but I thought to be proactive about it by placing an ad on Craigslist to obtain quotes. Nothing wrong with that, right?

I surf the Craigslist site every single day. I have gotten lots of cool gigs from it - from film background work to catering server - and am grateful that I am still alive today (there are a lot of psychos out there; in case you don't know, a few people have been murdered by responding to some of the ads from the site). As much as I love finding gigs from the site, I am ALWAYS careful. ESPECIALLY being a female.

Anyway, since I've placed the ad on the site, I have gotten an overwhelming number of responses. In my ad I had specifically listed the furniture I have, and asked for a quote and the company info, if it applied.

Apparently not too many read carefully, because many of them replied still asking me what I had to move. Many didn't give me a quote. Even more did not give me their company information.

I came across one that offered the most affordable price for me and he claimed that his business is licensed and bonded. But, of course, he too did not give me his company information.

I thought to inquire further. I want to know who I'm potentially hiring. Is there anything wrong with that? I don't think so. So, I responded to his e-mail and asked him if he had a company website. He said no, and that he hasn't been advertising to save money. That didn't give me any information so I probed further by asking him what is the name of his business and/or his business location. This was the response I got from him:

"THIS IS WHAT TOTALY ERKS ME! YES I DO HAVE A LEGIT ADDRESS AND LOCATION BEEN IN BUSINESS IN PASADENA FOR OVER 16 YRS AND A MEMBER OF THE BBB...I QUOTE YOU A PRICE THAT NOBODY IN THEIR RIGHT MIND WOULD QUOTE CAUSE I CAN AFFORD IT AND I DO IT SO MY GRAND KIDS CAN GET A FEEL FOR THE BUSINESS AND YOU ACT LIKE IM MOVING THE PRESIDENT !!! DONT NEED YOUR BUSINESS LADY"

OMG!!! Is he kidding me? He can't give me the VERY BASIC information about his company and is getting defensive about it? Talking about something to hide!!! I was livid by his uncalled for response and did not know whether I should be mad or laugh at this situation!

Just wanted to share my story with as many people as I can. I don't believe in "asking too many questions", when your safety is or can be on the line. 

Please be careful and beware! Make sure to ask as many questions as you can and use your best judgement! Nobody, especially for private gigs or anything for that matter, should get that defensive and fault or snap at you for asking questions! 

BETTER SAFE THAN SORRY!

I Heart Mark Thompson of L.A.'s Fox 11 News

I have been unemployed for some time now so I am either on the computer a lot looking for jobs or just plain bored out of my mind. Since my unemployment I've become quite addicted to the computer and the Internet and have since jumped on the bandwagon of YouTube, blogging and Twitter. Because of it, my computer is almost always on.

As mentioned in my previous blog posting, I have been hooked on Mark Thompson, weather guy/anchor of Fox 11 News, and have started following him on Twitter since he announced it on the news almost a month ago. It was only yesterday, days after he mentioned my Twitter name, kato808, on the news, I heard from him again. 

So what does the computer being on all the time have anything to do with this? 

Well, I was watching the Fox 11 News at 10 and on the computer at the same time (I was multi-tasking) when I noticed that Mark Thompson was following ME on Twitter! I was so psyched I tweeted him right back almost out of disbelief. It was then he tweeted me back and told me - just MINUTES PRIOR - that they were going to show my YouTube video on the air. I was like WWWWWHHHHHHHHAAAAAAAA?!?!?!?!?!

When the story came on during the 10 o'clock news hour I was surprised and seriously beyond ecstatic! They showed a good amount of time of my video on the air! To my surprise they even said my name! Many times! I was shocked! Jaw-dropping, arms-in-the-air and jumping-up-and-down shocked!

I was already so surprised when they did the shout-out Monday night. But last night was definitely icing on the cake! Thanks for putting kato808 on the Twitter map!

I am so glad that I didn't give up on this project! Final Cut Pro was hard for me to learn and even though I was getting frustrated but was putting 12 hours into this project worth it?

DAMN STRAIGHT!

Here is the video I made that created media attention: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Txn-Pm0Dp8o&feature=channel_page

Here is the shout-out video that aired on Monday, May 18: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OELKYB4Rkx0&feature=channel_page

Here is the video that not only mentioned me but also showed clip of my video on Thursday, May 21:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n6Lh2DNH3a0

Hope you enjoy my 5 minutes of fame as much as I did!

I HEART FOX 11 NEWS TEAM! Thanks again for showing my video on the air!

Watch Fox 11 News weeknights at 10 on Channel 11 and at 11 on Channel 13! If you want to watch the "real deal" dance, stay tuned!

Follow us on Twitter!
Rita @kato808
Mark Thompson @markthompsontv
Carlos Amezcua @CarlosFoxTV
Christine Devine @DevineNews

Kris Allen Wins American Idol Season 8!

Kris Allen definitely has come a long way.

I admit that even though I've been blogging all season but I haven't been voting. I watch American Idol religiously but just am no longer eager to vote. Only after last night's finale began, I decided that I wanted Kris Allen to take the title. I suppose it made sense, since I called Kris on all 3 rounds on my blog.

It was definitely a surprise though. All season long Adam has proved to be unique, belongs on stage and seemed to be a clear winner, but Kris definitely has been upping his game and has been giving Adam a run for his money. It was definitely a surprise for me of Kris' win, since prior to Kris making the Top 13 I didn't think much of his performances.

There were so many memorable performances on the finale. I especially liked the performances by Cyndi Lauper with Allison Iraheta, Queen with Kris Allen & Adam Lambert, and Keith Urban with Kris Allen. What I didn't like was the song sung by Megan Joy and Michael Sarver.

I loved the special guest appearance by Norman Gentle. He was funny and so entertaining. What I didn't enjoy was the show inviting back Bikini Girl on stage, especially her sharing a kiss with Ryan Seacrest. I loved it though, when Kara surprised Bikini Girl on stage with a showdown. I knew Kara had a voice back during audition days and Kara definitely proved that she can out sing Bikini Girl any day. Bikini Girl's reaction was so un-classy - she looked so pissed off and even stared Kara down after she unbuttoned her shirt dress. (BTW, Kara, you look SO MUCH BETTER than Bikini Girl.) Bikini Girl demonstrated absolutely no class. As for Tatiana Del Toro...Was that all part of the script? Or...?!?!?!

When they did announce Kris being the winner and he would have to sing "No Boundaries" again, I was a bit worried. I thought in my head if they would change the key and I was so glad that they did! 

Anyway, congrats to Kris Allen!

American Idol Season Finale LIVE Report

Updated: 9:06 p.m. PST

Round 1:
Both sang songs they've performed previously. Not surprisingly, Adam delivered yet another solid performance. On the other hand, Kris might have had some pitchy problems here and there but his performance was AWESOME!

I say Round 1 goes to Kris. Simon agrees!

Round 2:
Both were so good in this round! Both Adam and Kris possess originality. I really liked Kris' performance though!

Simon calls Adam in this round but I'm calling it Kris.

Round 3:
I thought Adam's performance was okay. Didn't do much for me. I have a feeling this round will go to Kris. We'll find out after the break...

We're back.

Or maybe not. I thought Kris' pitch was all over the place! Maybe it wasn't the right key for him. Randy agrees. HOWEVER, I do think that the song is more fitting to Kris' style. And Kris' interpretation/arrangement is more believeable.

I'm calling Kris in the final round.

This is going to be a tough one! BUT! Regardless who takes the title, they'll both be making records. Probably some of the Top 13 will too!

Surprise performance by Carrie Underwood?! She's wonderful as always. Bitch! :P

Just joking folks!