Fri, Jul 3, 2020
The Lightning Hour hosts, Rico E. Anderson, Rachelle Henry and Sasha Kerbel chat with Cameron Nino his release of his EP, "Out" and his newest songs "Fake News" and "I Can't Breathe." Cameron shares that he got his first guitar at age 10 and his love of electric guitar and cello. He has performed at iconic venues such Carnegie Hall, NYC with his high school orchestra, and the thrill he had collaborating with Sheldon Reynolds of Earth, Wind and Fire. Cameron Nino discusses his advocacy with the Gen Z climate change organization, Zero Hour and encourages others to make changes to help preserve the environment. He dishes about his favorite Avenger and how representation and diversity in film and art matters.
Fri, Jul 10, 2020
The Lightning Hour hosts, Rico E. Anderson, Sasha Kerbel and Rachelle Henry are joined by Emmy Award winning director, John Jacobsen to talk about the popular PBS series John created, produced and hosted, The Artist Toolbox. John talks about interviewing iconic guests including Grammy winner John Legend, haute couture designer Zang Toi, famed violinist David Garrett, and many more. He charmed us with witty stories about his experiences about growing up, and his journey as he shares his experiences directing not only award winning films, but critically acclaimed theater productions. He talks about opportunities to direct commercials and stage productions, regionally and in New York, producing feature films, and about co-founding and running TheFilmSchool. He shares about teaching at The University of Washington, UCLA, Freehold Theater, as well as teaching master classes in acting, directing and writing and how much he learns while teaching, mentoring and how being involved with Big Brothers Big Sisters have impacted him not only as an artist, but as a person.
Fri, Jul 17, 2020
The Lightning Hour hosts, Rico E. Anderson, Rachelle Henry and Sasha Kerbel chat with Christian Hutcherson about his work as the English voice over actor for the role of Magnus Nielsen on the critically acclaimed and popular Netflix series, DARK. He shares his insights on actors preparation, the difference between working on a comedy vs. drama, and the differences in working as an on-camera actor vs. voice over acting, and so much more. Christian Hutcherson talks about becoming a member of SAG-AFTRA and AEA at the age of 5 years old. He shares about appearing in commercials for Verizon and Nike, as well as being directed by Emilio Estevez in The Guardian. Christian Hutcherson talks about working on the series, How I Met Your Mother, See Dad Run and Survivors Remorse (Starz). He discussed filming on location in Florida for the Netflix comedy, SWIPED. He also talks about his passion for giving back to others and using his art to make the world a better place.
Fri, Jul 24, 2020
The Lightning Hour hosts Rico E. Anderson, Rachelle Henry and Sasha Kerbel talk with guest Pam Vlach about not only her professional dance career, but that she's been teaching dance for 20 years in the United States and internationally in Portugal, South Africa, and Uganda. Pam shares about the mentors she had and how they inspired her to give back to her students, their families and the greater communities she serves. Pam Vlach has an M.A. in Dance Education from New York University and shares how while on a study abroad program, she brought some tap shoes with her to Uganda and taught tap to a group of students. She explains how that trip was the beginning of her journey to start Tap Uganda. Pam is the Founder and President of Tap Uganda, Inc., an arts education program providing opportunities to youth in Kampala, Uganda and surrounding areas, utilizing dance as a vehicle.
Fri, Jul 31, 2020
The Lightning Hour hosts, Rico E. Anderson, Sasha Kerbel and Rachelle Henry geek out with Godzilla aka MoCap master T.J. Storm about his Performance Capture work as Godzilla in Godzilla (2014) and in Godzilla: King of the Monsters. He talks about his journey from 8th degree martial arts and professional dancing to acting and performance capture. He shares about becoming the first American actor to play Godzilla and carrying on a 65 year-old franchise and its legacy. T.J. Storm explains the differences between acting, stunts, stand-in, and performance capture artists and how they can all play the same character such as Iron Man. The hosts ask about his roles as Maginty in Marvel's Punisher: Warzone, and his Performance Capture work as Colossus in Deadpool, the Apex Predator in The Predator and Darth Vader in Vader Immortal and in Star Wars: Jedi: Fallen Order, as well as his extensive work in video games. T.J. shares with us his passion for teaching and how it led him open the Mind's Eye Tribe Action Actors Academy in Los Angeles California where he teaches Motion and Action Performance.
Fri, Aug 7, 2020
The Lightning Hour hosts, Rico E. Anderson, Sasha Kerbel and Rachelle Henry go Full Force with Grammy winner Paul Anthony as he captivates us with his inspiring story. Paul dives into the beginnings of Full Force and their earliest collaborations such as Lisa Lisa &Cult Jam, Britney Spears, *NSYNC, and producing the "Godfather of Soul" James Brown's 1988 album. Paul is not only a producer, songwriter and lead singer of Full Force, he is also an actor and celebrating the 30th anniversary of the iconic film "House Party." He captivates us with his unforgettable story of facing cancer, undergoing a bone marrow transplant and how he uses positivity while fighting and conquering this challenge. Paul has been in remission for some time. After fighting off his cancer, Paul was inspired to create the Paul Anthony Foundation "Cancer Champion." We talked about that not only is Paul a Cancer Champion and Celebrity Health Champion, he has written and produced another single called "A Love of a Hero" featuring Brian Inerfeld. Paul is ready for the next chapter in his life which includes a start back in acting. There's no stopping this positively creative talent and he revealed that 2021 will bring the long-awaited Full Force Brothers' story biopic or documentary.
Fri, Aug 14, 2020
The Lightning Hour hosts, Rico E. Anderson, Sasha Kerbel and Rachelle Henry chat with Aria Brooks about her breakout role in the reboot of the Nickelodeon sketch comedy show, ALL THAT. She shares about auditioning for the role that changed her life, and her reaction when she got the role. Aria shares about growing up in a performing family and the impact it had on the natural path to pursue a a career in TV and film. She talks about her pivotal role in the award-winning film, Harriet, and playing the role of Anger, niece of Harriet Tubman. Aria talks about meeting Dolly Parton at the table read of Dolly Parton's Heartstrings. She talks about being a creative and that she makes her own content on YouTube, IGTV and Tik Tok so she can keep creating the art she loves. She has written and produced two singles "Truly Me" and "Time Off." The videos are available on her YouTube channel. She shares that outside of acting, Aria loves baking, doing crafts and filmmaking. Aria talks about being a passionate supporter of the Kilgore Music Foundation, founded by the famed saxophonist Ryan Kilgore, that aims to mentor, teach and inspire children to be lifelong musicians. Aria captivated us with a beautiful live performance of her song Truly Me.
Fri, Aug 21, 2020
The Lightning Hour hosts, Rico E. Anderson, Sasha Kerbel and Rachelle Henry spark up a conversation with Actress and Singer Sheila Houlahan tracing her early beginnings as a performer in opera, about her collaboration with Slumdog Millionaire's composer A.R. Rahman in performances including Jai Ho at The Venetian in Las Vegas, a feature in his 20th anniversary music video of his hit classic Maa Tujhe Salaam, The Rahman Song Cycle and Lord of the Rings The Musical with the Seattle Symphony. She shares her journey from opera singer into acting which led to her most recent role in the upcoming Warner Brothers film THE LITTLE THINGS starring Denzel Washington, Rami Malek and Jared Leto, written and directed by John Lee Hancock. Sheila Houlahan and host Rachelle Henry talk about their acting experiences in Passion River and Paradigm Studios' critically acclaimed feature film WALLFLOWER. Houlahan and Henry discuss the actual event that led a man to commit a mass shooting. Houlahan plays Optima Prime, one of the targeted ravers and she notes that it leads back to the impacts of mental health disorders. Sheila, a Celebrity Champion for Project HEAL, shares her passion about the nonprofit organization that helps people suffering with eating disorders pay for treatment. She uses her strong following on Instagram as a platform to spread awareness and to help end the stigma surrounding mental health. This powerhouse shares about her acceptance into Harvard as she utilizes the downtime that the COVID-19 pandemic provides for furthering her education and passion for helping others.
Fri, Aug 28, 2020
The Lightning Hour hosts, Rico E. Anderson, Sasha Kerbel and Rachelle Henry go in-depth with Chris Connell, actor, producer, model and a founder of Team New Awakening. Connell is passionate about the WWII film he wrote "The Promise", which is currently filming. He shares with our audience that the movie tells a story of a WWII Allied fighter pilot, whose plane gets rattled by enemy artillery while flying over the South Pacific, which forces him to crash land into Japanese occupied territory. Connell is also producing and starring in this drama/romance. He captivates us with stories of interviewing WWII veterans including Sidney Walton about his tour, "Go Sidney Go." Connell dishes about being in ABC's long running soap, All My Children, and his revealing role in Devious Maids. Connell talks about incorporating his skills as a model, host, and fitness instructor into his career as an actor and filmmaker and how the many sports he has played significantly impacts his mindset as a team player and his love of collaboration translate within the entertainment industry.
Fri, Sep 4, 2020
The Lightning Hour hosts, Rico E. Anderson, Sasha Kerbel and Rachelle Henry have an electrifying talk with Gloria Garayua about her latest Netflix series, 'RECKONING' starring Garayua alongside Aiden Young and Sam Trammell playing Detective Cyd Ramos. She shares about the season being shot in Australia although the series is set in Northern California, about her sightseeing and taking salsa classes after work hours during the four months during filming. She talks about being born and raised in the Bronx in New York City, getting her BFA in acting and immediately after college embarking on one national, and two regional tours with the Periwinkle National Theatre Company, and various plays in repertoire with the George Street Playhouse Touring Company in New Brunswick, NJ. Garayua dishes that while still living in NYC, Gloria was cast in "Two Sisters and a Piano" by Nilo Cruz at the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego, CA. Garayua decided to start auditioning in LA and immediately landed the role of "Blanca" the nanny in Jim Carrey's "Fun With Dick and Jane" starring Jim Carrey and Tea Leoni. It was Gloria's FIRST Los Angeles audition. For Gloria's second audition, she went on to book a role in the TV drama series NYPD Blue. She shares how her journey has brought her amazing opportunities for recurring roles in many well-known series. Gloria Garayua shares us some of what she's learned as an acting coach and teacher in the Los Angeles area.
Fri, Sep 11, 2020
The Lightning Hour hosts, Rico E. Anderson, Sasha Kerbel and Rachelle Henry talk it up with the cast of NC-16 stars Marielle Caldwell, Grayson Thorne Kilpatric, Emma Apgar, Jackson Geach, Serena Laurel, and Norton Leufven about playing high school freshmen trying to fit in in their own individual ways. They discussed how they made their characters real and the ways they are similar or dissimilar to their characters. The cast shared their perspectives on character development in Season 2 and wondered about doing a talent show in that season. The cast dished that NC-16 has become sort of a "Cinderella story" of a show telling us it had started as an independent web series that won multiple awards and then picked up by the streaming service, Seeka TV. They dished about what fun they had working with each other on set. Marielle Caldwell, Grayson Thorne Killpatrick, Emma Apgar, Jackson Geech, Serena Laurel and Norton Leufven reveal some of their actual talents that could potentially be seen in a talent show in Season 2.
Fri, Sep 18, 2020
The Lightning Hour hosts, Rico E. Anderson, Sasha Kerbel and Rachelle Henry have a heart to heart chat with Season 1 finale guest Shawn Ryan of America's Got Talent fame and co-founder of Young Actors' Theatre Camp. Shawn gave us the inside scoop about the opportunity to perform cabaret on the big stage of network television's hit talent show, America's Got Talent, and about being one of two of the competitors to get a perfect score and not receive any X's early in the competition. Shawn shares his background in cabaret and how performing on AGT opened up opportunities to be on popular television shows. Shawn dishes about his GLAAD media nomination for his role on The Mentalist and about recording two jazz albums and receiving a Grammy nomination. Shawn proudly shares about co-producing Young Actors' Theatre Camp with husband and producing partner, John Ainsworth, telling us they started the camp almost 19 years ago. He talked of writing, directing and producing CHARLIE and his excitement when it premiered at the Cannes film festival, the distribution that followed and how excited he was that he and John have had five films premiere at that festival.