LadyKayoss, here's the gist. Luminarias was a very low budget but important little film. "Important" because it was one of the first movies in fairly wide release produced entirely within the Latino community (around 2000). Low budget in the sense that the producers basically borrowed locations to film in, and would show dailies to investors to get money to continue the project. All of the extras were family of the director, writer, and producer, so they didn't have to pay them. They talk about how they flagged this random guy down on the street and asked if they could use his truck in the movie! It's based on a stage play about 4 Latina women in LA looking for love, and how they see themselves as Latinas dealing with the wider community. The entire cast and most of the crew were Latino/a, except for one character, a Jewish lawyer (SB) that the lead character falls for.
So on the DVD behind the scenes extras, there's an interview with the producer, Juan Luis Valenzuela, and the director/star, Sal Lopez, where they tell this story: The script crosses SB's desk (along with hundreds of others) and he's intrigued by the script and the spirit of the project. He calls the producers and asks to meet with them. He wants to see if they like each other and can work together. So JLV and SL go to SB's office. They talk and, according to the interview, they find him nice and charming, perfect for the role of Joseph. SB says, well, if you like me, I'm happy to do the picture. JLV says, Do you maybe have a sample tape so we can see some of your work? SB goes, Um, okay, let me talk to my secretary, see if she can dig something up for you. He goes out and gets something (they don't say what he gave them). They shake hands and JLV and SL go out to the car. The director is ecstatic; he keeps shouting, We got Scott Bakula! We got Scott Bakula! The producer says, Yeah, we got Scott Bakula. (beat) Who's Scott Bakula?
They're cracking up at this point in the interview, and the producer says, Of course, after I looked at the tape, I couldn't turn on the TV without seeing the guy. I had no idea who he was, and I asked him for a tape!
They were obviously so impressed that SB didn't go all diva on them (What do you mean do I have a tape? Don't you know who I am?) He was just really humble and never let on that he was this big star. The producer goes, Boy did I feel stupid!
Luminarias isn't a great movie, but it was very well received in the Latino community; it really hit home for Latino/as (kind of like Waiting to Exhale did for the black community). Probably the reason it got funded, finished, and released was because of SB's name on it.
By the way, SB talks about the "audition tape" conversation in his interview, and you can tell he thinks it's the funniest thing in the world.
So on the DVD behind the scenes extras, there's an interview with the producer, Juan Luis Valenzuela, and the director/star, Sal Lopez, where they tell this story: The script crosses SB's desk (along with hundreds of others) and he's intrigued by the script and the spirit of the project. He calls the producers and asks to meet with them. He wants to see if they like each other and can work together. So JLV and SL go to SB's office. They talk and, according to the interview, they find him nice and charming, perfect for the role of Joseph. SB says, well, if you like me, I'm happy to do the picture. JLV says, Do you maybe have a sample tape so we can see some of your work? SB goes, Um, okay, let me talk to my secretary, see if she can dig something up for you. He goes out and gets something (they don't say what he gave them). They shake hands and JLV and SL go out to the car. The director is ecstatic; he keeps shouting, We got Scott Bakula! We got Scott Bakula! The producer says, Yeah, we got Scott Bakula. (beat) Who's Scott Bakula?
They're cracking up at this point in the interview, and the producer says, Of course, after I looked at the tape, I couldn't turn on the TV without seeing the guy. I had no idea who he was, and I asked him for a tape!
They were obviously so impressed that SB didn't go all diva on them (What do you mean do I have a tape? Don't you know who I am?) He was just really humble and never let on that he was this big star. The producer goes, Boy did I feel stupid!
Luminarias isn't a great movie, but it was very well received in the Latino community; it really hit home for Latino/as (kind of like Waiting to Exhale did for the black community). Probably the reason it got funded, finished, and released was because of SB's name on it.
By the way, SB talks about the "audition tape" conversation in his interview, and you can tell he thinks it's the funniest thing in the world.