Success & Happiness in the Entertainment Industry with Daniel Strange

Announcer: Welcome to Producing Unscripted with Joke and Biagio.

Angry Man: Is this some kind of joke?

Confused Woman: Biagio-WHO???

Biagio: Who did this episode? It’s episode 102, and today’s special guest shares tips to find success and happiness in the entertainment industry. Commercial director and unscripted TV producer Daniel Strange shares insights on finding your career path, dealing with famous people, facing and embracing the realities of a career in the entertainment industry, and comforting words for an 80s icon. If Richard.

Daniel Strange: Marx is listening to this, Richard, your stuff was never in danger.

Biagio: Music courtesy Dave Pelman. Music Dave Pelman.com. Hey, everybody. She’s Joke. He’s Biagio. We’re married. We make unscripted film and television and want to help you do the same.

Joke: Hopefully by teaming up with us.

Biagio: Well, welcome to episode 102. We hope you’re having a great 2018. Today’s episode is a little bit of a different format. Okay, but before we get to that, we have a quick announcement.

Joke: Yeah. CNN and HLN just announced the premiere date for our documentary series, Unmasking a Killer. It is Sunday, March 18th at 9 p.m. Eastern Pacific on HLN. Set those tvOS right in your appointment book. Make it happen.

Biagio: Please.

Joke: It’s a five part series. We’re really proud of it, and we can’t wait for you all to see it.

Biagio: Yeah, and stay tuned for an upcoming podcast episode with Todd Lindsey, the producer who brought this project to us. He’ll sit down to discuss the journey from initially tracking the case to landing a TV series and making it with us.

Joke: All right. But for today, this special format.

Biagio: Yes, but mixing.

Joke: It up. We have a smart guest for you. Very articulate man. Commercial director and unscripted TV producer, Daniel Strange. Dan is an old friend. He dropped by our offices like about a, I don’t know, a month and a half ago or something. And we just spontaneously we were like, let’s record a podcast.

Biagio: Dan is amazing. So our initial hope was that it would be a conversation that included practical tips and advice for those who want to work in the entertainment industry. Well, Dan gave us that, but he also gave us so much more.

Joke: It got deep people. It got real deep.

Biagio: It really did.

Joke: The conversation led to some very honest and uncensored statements about finding happiness in the business or dealing with famous people, finding creative satisfaction when to say no. A lot of stuff.

Biagio: Here’s the amazing conversation we had with Daniel Strange. Hey. Is Biagio.

Joke: Oh my God, you’re so close.

Biagio: It’s so close. We have everybody. It’s Biagio over here. I got a podcast for you. So you know us so well. And I’m Dan, and.

Joke: That tells you everything you need to know about Daniel.

Daniel Strange: She kind of does.

Biagio: Yeah. We are here today with one of my favorite people on the face of the earth, Daniel Strange. And I’m not just saying that we go way back with Dan.

Joke: When we were in the little production offices in Hollywood, when we did our very first pilot, he was in a room next door to us.

Biagio: We actually have fairly similar backgrounds. We both did a little acting. We both. Well, yeah you did. You scared the heck out of joke in our living room.

Daniel Strange: Well.

Biagio: Okay, that doesn’t.

Joke: Sound like acting.

Biagio: No. He was. No, she was watching. She was watching dad.

Daniel Strange: Watching TV. And someone was at the window.

Biagio: She was watching a short film that Dan wrote, directed, and acted in. There was a part so terrifying that joke screamed.

Daniel Strange: I guess I forgot that I was in that, because I don’t think of myself as having come from acting, not a professional way like you did. I’ve always wanted to be a director.

Biagio: So. So let me let me tell you a little bit about about Dan. First of all, Dan, much like me, you know, we both had a little bit of an editing background. And when we met Dan, he was editing and quickly moving into a career as a director. We were also lucky enough to bring him over on one of our own shows, Commercial Kings with Rhett and Link, which was so incredible to make, and Dan was a supervising producer on that and really helped bridge the world of unscripted and scripted because it was a difficult show. It was it was a show where we needed to cover the reality and, you know, and treated like a documentary series. It was for IFC at the same time, we had to make sure we were given the guys what they needed to make a commercial, and we knew that you were someone who really understood that because you have such a unique background. So I think we wanted to talk a little bit about today is being a director because you are a big time commercial director. Well, I yeah, in my book, in my book your big time know there.

Daniel Strange: Are there are big.

Biagio: Let’s say you’re not Michael Bay.

Daniel Strange: Yeah. I’m definitely not I’m, I’m pretty low on the totem pole of commercial.

Joke: He wants to make sure people know that they can afford you. Definitely call and check and see if he’s available. He can always say no, but.

Biagio: Okay, well.

Joke: We make him so big that people are like, I can’t even call Daniel strange because he’s so out of my league.

Daniel Strange: I’ll I’ll tell you why. I’m hemming and hawing. I’ve done over 100 commercials. I’ve worked with movie stars, TV stars, famous musicians.

Biagio: Nobody gives it.

Daniel Strange: That’s why I’m hedging. So thank you. It’s nice to hear Biagio.

Biagio: Well, okay, so, listen, maybe you’re not the world’s biggest commercial director, but you are extremely talented. All right, so, Dan, having worked with us on Commercial Kings and having directed over 100 commercials, you’ve worked in both scripted and unscripted and, and I think that there’s more and more people who are able to straddle both worlds, but you being one of them, even though you’ve done more scripted and unscripted. I just wonder if you could just talk to our people a little bit about some of the things that are common between the two worlds.

Daniel Strange: Working with crew is the same. You know the director has to get the best out of the team, and I still, I don’t know if I would say struggle a lot, but I still am always asking myself, am I doing the best possible job of getting everybody to perform their best on Commercial Kings? I actually thought it was easier in some ways, because we had a small crew that was consistent for the most part, aside from a person or two that had to get fired over over the course of like what, a month and a half? And on commercials, it’s a much shorter turnaround, so you have less time to get to know the people. I think it’s usually about three weeks from start to finish. Obviously, most of that is prep and then you shoot for a day and then everything’s done. You’re just gone. You’re out the door. So you try to carry over the people that you can, but you know, everybody has their own careers and they have to take whatever jobs come their way in the meantime. And so a lot of it is spent learning how people work best and how to manage them effectively. Try to you just try to be the best director you can by getting the best out of your crew.

Joke: Well, how? Give me some tips on how to get the best out of your crew. What are your go to?

Daniel Strange: I always think that humor goes a long way. When things are stressful, you have a choice in that moment to either add to people’s stress or take away from it. And you know, humor is a good tool for taking away from it. When people are like, oh my God, how are we? We don’t have the money to do this thing and you crack some. You just always crack a joke like, oh, well, if we just need an extra million dollars, why don’t I just, I just I’ll just take out my checkbook. I’ll just write a check. Everybody laughs because it’s stupid. And they know that I don’t have $1 million. And that’s, you know, they relax a little bit. That’s a bad example. But, you know, there can be specific things that they’re very stressed out about. And it usually comes down to, is my boss going to think that I’m screwing up my job here? So you can use humor to let them know it’s okay. I understand we don’t have all the money in the world or like, this is what’s against us here. You know, they want a 12ft tall puppet, and you can only make an 11ft tall because of whatever x, Y, or Z reasons I get it. I’m going to crack a joke about it and everything’s okay. That is one tool. But the flip side of it is sometimes you don’t want to make people feel good about, you know, maybe sometimes someone screwed up, then you don’t let them off the hook, or you express disappointment or you act a little distant. That’s a tool I like to use. Just sort of be like, oh, okay. You know someone, for instance, if Biagio, you came up to me and you were like, I know you asked for a brown dog, but the only dog we could find was a white one. I might just look at you and be like, oh.

Biagio: He looks really disappointed right now. I know you can’t see him, but my heart is broken just looking at him.

Daniel Strange: And all I’m really doing is I’m just thinking, what is something I can do to avoid giving Biagio any sort of closure right now? So that’s what I’m doing, right? You know, I’m just. And you see me thinking about it, and then I might just, like, walk away or whatever. And now you’re going to feel a little bit like, oh, I should try harder.

Joke: But I mean, this is parenting 101.

Daniel Strange: It is based on parenting. Actually. I’m going to tell you guys another secret. That whole thing about disappointment, like, I’m a little disappointed in you. I actually got that from an interview I read with Barack Obama where they were asking him about his parenting techniques.

Biagio: Wow. Your directing Sal was directly inspired.

Daniel Strange: By Barack Obama. That’s amazing, because his point was that if you yell at somebody, then it creates an antagonistic right? But if you withhold, if you just expressed disappointment now they want to like, oh, oh, let me try to make it up to them.

Joke: Or if they’re three and five that just break down crying or play and then you feel worse.

Daniel Strange: Do you have three and five year olds on your crew.

Biagio: Some days?

Joke: Oh yes I do. The home crew, for sure.

Daniel Strange: So I feel like what I just talked about, there was some really specific psychological manipulation.

Joke: Welcome to the business.

Daniel Strange: Yeah. Okay.

Joke: Those are good leadership things I think translate across businesses. I mean, I don’t think that’s even unique to us. I think if you’re in a leadership position and you have a team like, you know, you can’t just be yelling at them all day long. So you have to kind of do the carrot in the stick and you kind of have to. That is true, you know? So I think those those are good examples. And it’s nice to know that, you know, they work also on set. It’s not just these are not just things you find in how to be a good CEO book, but it’s also things that if you’re in a leadership position on set orders as a director or a producer, these are good things to know. If you’re leading a team and you have to keep them inspired and motivated districts for that.

Biagio: Now, what else I want to talk about, because you shy away from the idea that you’re a super successful director. I understand why, but, you know, a lot of our listeners would be like, wow, this guy has directed over 100 commercials. He’s worked with movie stars, he’s worked with famous musicians, he’s worked with TV stars. He must feel like life’s a breeze. He must. He must be walking on air every day. I mean, he’s got everything I’ve ever dreamed of doing. You know, life must be great all the time. Is that what it’s like?

Daniel Strange: Let me answer this as honestly as I can. Yes and no. Depending on how much money is in my bank account at any given time, I. For me, there’s like a level, like a number. And I’m sure everybody has this number where if it’s above that, then I’m like, I’m on easy street and if it’s below that, then I’m like, where’s my next job coming from? I don’t want to undersell the idea or the importance of being happy, of having a home life that is rewarding and nourishing because that’s, you know, when when I’m above that level in my bank account, then I’ve got literally everything I need because I’m not worried about providing for my family, and then I just get to luxuriate in being at home with my wife and my cat and just spending time with her and, you know, thinking about my next project or, you know, trying to get my next thing off the ground. I do really enjoy that. And you’ll also notice that that has absolutely nothing to do with the work. I think your question was sort of couched in this idea that if I get to work with movie stars, or if I get to hang out with famous musicians or whatever, there’s some reward in that. And the truth is, there kind of isn’t. At least for me, maybe for other people. But I usually find those people. I find myself at odds with those people. Because if you’re a director, if you have the kind of personality to be a director, I think there’s a large part of that that comes from just I want to be in charge. And when you’re working with a person who is significantly more famous than you. They’re the one who is in charge, which negates your power as a director, you know? And whatever you want to do on that set, you can be overridden by them simply saying, I don’t feel like doing that. So literally, what you were hired to do, you’re kind of constrained in. So I really dislike that, which I think is part of the reason I’m not a bigger or more successful director is because I try to avoid those situations. You know, hey, Dan, a job just came in for you with so-and-so, and I’m like, I don’t want to do it because I know what that sets going to be like. It’s going to be like me sitting there while that person runs rampant. You know, they’re a little mini tyrant, and they have all these things that they do or don’t want to do that are not directly related to the quality of the work, you know, that are more ego driven things. And like, I just know, no thanks. I don’t want to be there. And as a result, I don’t spend a lot of time with famous people. I don’t spend a lot of time with celebrities, and I don’t make a lot of friends with them. So those are skills that I don’t have, and that I think that prevents me from, from, from going.

Biagio: I don’t think that skills that you don’t have, I just think that you are listen like us, you’re in a happy marriage. You value certain things in life. There’s certain things that you that make you happy, and they’re not superficial. And I think that says a lot.

Joke: But I think it’s also, I think for people from the outside looking in. Right? You you’re outside on the street and you look into beautiful shiny window display and, you know, it looks beautiful and it looks glamorous and everything, but but it’s cotton candy, right? So I think, you know, maybe the first time you work with a celebrity, it’s.

Biagio: Like.

Joke: Wow, I’m working with a celebrity. And then you realize, oh, wait, my entire power dynamic has shifted and now I’m no longer in charge. Maybe it’s not so much fun working with a celebrity. And so I think that you you really just instill it down to our life is just like Joe to plumbers life, where it’s like, okay, as long as I can pay my bills and my home life is in order, then I’m happy. Whether I’m a plumber or I’m a director doing commercials, that’s what matters. All the other stuff is fun, and obviously we would much rather be making commercials than plumbing, because plumbing is just not my forte. But at the same time, it’s not as glamorous and as glossy and as tasty as I think people may believe it is from the outside.

Daniel Strange: I agree completely, and I do also think there’s another element to it that is sort of connected to that which the reason that that stuff seems glamorous and there’s a good reason for it is because in a capitalist society, achieving that dream also equals financial success, right? If you’re a movie star, you’re also rich. The good thing about money is that that the more money we have, the more freedom we have, the more we can do whatever we want. Part of what makes glamor glamorous is that it’s a shorthand for freedom. I would love to be more successful. I would love to be directing multi-million dollar features, because once you’ve got that kind of money, you can just do whatever right for, you know, if you want ten swimming pools, you’ve got ten swimming pools if you want to, I don’t know, finance your own book of poetry and, and have it in every bookstore across the country. You can do that too. And like, all those things sound really good. So I don’t want to I don’t want to make it seem like that isn’t.

Joke: It’s a goal.

Daniel Strange: It’s a goal.

Joke: It’s a goal to still be successful. But I think, you know, I mean, Hollywood was the first creator of fake news, you know, I mean, when I started working as an assistant for different people, I realized, okay, I thought these people had way more money than than they actually do. Or I thought that these actors were way more successful than they actually are. And, you know, I know them. Everyone in this country knows them, their faces in tabloids. But they literally just walked into the office with a Starbucks application going, I haven’t worked in six years and I don’t know how to pay my, my bills, you know? And so that was really eye opening for me. Early on in my career, where it’s like the picture doesn’t necessarily even mean ten swimming pools, it just makes you think it’s ten swimming pools. So I think that also kind of changes things where you’re like, yes, there are there are select few that have that, that have that freedom that, that money buys and, and where they can blow it and do whatever they want with it. But it’s not even that many people as you think it is.

Biagio: What’s that? I mean, there’s big time, you know, bigger time directors now who like on their first movie that was like big, got like $250,000, which to some of our listeners sounds like a ton of money, but.

Joke: They worked.

Biagio: Three years for them. They work three years for that $250,000. Some of our listeners still think that’s a ton of money, but it’s not by ten swimming pools. Money, especially not in Los Angeles. No.

Daniel Strange: Definitely not. Yeah.

Biagio: Yeah. So so it’s.

Joke: Five swimming pools.

Biagio: I want people.

Joke: To.

Biagio: Have a.

Joke: House or a land to put those swimming pools in.

Daniel Strange: And also after a year of maintenance like, you know, you can’t you the chemicals, the pool boy. Yeah. Forget about it.

Biagio: But but I think the message here and this is what, what I like about you so much and why I like hanging out with you. If you’re going to work in this business, you have to remove the sort of rose colored glasses that probably got you into it in the first place. Understand? What about working in this business actually makes you happy and separate that from the stuff you thought would make you happy when you were a kid?

Daniel Strange: I think that’s extraordinarily well put. I think every aspect of that is worth repeating. Actually, the the rose colored glasses that get you into it is the fantasy that, you know, for me as a director, it was that I was going to arrive on set. And, you know, I could outline what my vision was going to be and then people would do it. And because it was well conceived and creative, people would like it, and then it would be a smash success. And then the reality of it is that you are just a cog in the machine, no matter where you are in the process. There’s someone below you and there’s someone above you, and the person above you is telling you what you need to do to not get fired. And then you tell the person below you what they need to do to not get fired. And that’s just the reality of it. And as a director, you can have a creative vision and then you find out. Well, there’s not enough money to do that or well, to do that would take two days and we only have a one day shoot. And so you would just to the reality of it. And if you’re an actor then you might have that, you know, fantasy. The rose colored glasses would be that you’re just by the sheer dint of your talent, you’re going to become a superstar. But there’s other things to it besides that. It’s like we all have these rose colored glasses, and then we all learn the reality of it. And the reality of it, like joke was saying, is that it’s basically a job. And because it is, and whether it’s plumbing and you’re working with pipes or whether it’s directing and you’re working with other personalities, you’ve still got your task that you do, and then it’s done and then you what you’re left with is the rest of your life, your your family and your bank account. You can tell what’s on my mind right now and, and like, you know, whether that makes you happy or whether it makes you sad, it’s just, you know, that’s on you. That’s that’s it.

Biagio: Well, this is listen, this is this has been great so far. And, you know, we’ve talked a little bit about the realities of the business, which I think is important to remind people because it’s a hard road. But then you do great work, and I’ve seen you be really happy about some of your work. So what is it about the industry that still makes you happy?

Daniel Strange: More and more, I find that I just really enjoy when I work with other people who I think are talented and I’m able to create a space. And I think that we did this on Commercial Kings. You know, some of the best stuff on that show was the stuff where I just had nothing to do with it, or it was just like, hey, Rhett and Link, go make your commercial. I’m just going to watch on the sidelines is when I work with talented people, and I’m able to create a space for them to use all of their creativity, and I’m able to nudge it if I need to, so that everyone’s paddling in the same direction. And that’s what’s most fun for me, is watching other people be creative and seeing, you know, I’m a fan of of creativity and other creative people. So seeing what they come up with when I give them the task and then just that’s very rewarding for me.

Biagio: You know, and you make a great point. James Gunn, who we all know who worked on our show Scream Queens. And of course, now he’s directing Guardians of the Galaxy. So there’s a guy who’s been very busy, but he kind of also spoke to what you just said. And he said, you know, in a lot of ways, everything we do is sand castles. It’s all temporary. It’s all going to get knocked down. So the only thing you can really walk away with is the creative, fun, awesome experiences you have making something. Because even after the movie is done, people aren’t going to remember it 2 or 3 years from now.

Daniel Strange: Yeah, I’ve heard Ben Stiller say the same thing. He said that, you know, he used to the movie used to matter to him and now not to. I don’t want to misrepresent him. It’s not that the movie doesn’t matter. It’s that now he also values the experience of making the movie.

Biagio: Yeah, yeah.

Joke: I mean, I know we’ve been kind of very pragmatic and realistic in all of this and taking off, you know, a lot of the rose colored of all of it. But I do feel like and I’ve never played golf, but because and I don’t get it. But, you know, someone once explained it to me, like when you hit that perfect swing, it’s like it’s the highest high and you literally go and chase that the whole time.

Daniel Strange: I think that was me.

Joke: Was that you?

Daniel Strange: I think it might.

Joke: Have been play golf.

Daniel Strange: I do, and that’s exactly how I feel.

Joke: But that’s how I feel about the business. I think when you have that team and everyone’s gelling and is at their creative best and like, you know, you’ve put out a great product, there is something that’s so profoundly satisfying and exciting and inspiring and passionate. Like every project, that’s what we chase. Is that feeling that that high, that perfect swing where you’re like, yes, like it worked this time.

Biagio: And it’s, you know, and it’s crazy because it makes us sound a little bit like drug addicts, I guess I was.

Daniel Strange: You know, it was I thinking the same thing when joke was vocalizing that. But I have thought that many times in the past it is a high right. And I think that’s part of human nature. I think that if we all look at our behavior, I think more and more most people are getting highs from using their iPhones. Not to sound like cranky old man, but, you know, there’s research and studies that back this up that basically since a year that more people owned iPhones than didn’t, we’ve seen a lot of weird trends happening in terms of socialization and all this stuff. I think that people I think that humans are wired to get high from something, and it’s basically just pick your poison. Is it your iPhone? Is it drugs? Is it making commercials? You know, and in in our case it happens to be working in the creative industry. We we, we get high from doing creative things and having those moments where we’re like, oh, we made something and and we had fun doing it. That yeah, that’s what makes us creative people.

Biagio: So I would love it. Dan, if you could impart one piece of advice to the kid, the boy or girl, the man or woman who’s sitting on the other end of this podcast, living in Cleveland, Ohio, where I’m from, or anywhere America, and really wanting to work in this business. What is your advice for them?

Daniel Strange: Oh gosh. Okay. The real advice, and I’ve heard so many variations on this, so I want to stress that this can really sound like a platitude if you don’t think about it. Like if you just take it at face value, it’s just going to sound, this is going to sound completely meaningless. But over the years, in my own experience, as I examine my own behavior, I realize over and over the truth of this. Number one, you’ve got to love it. You’ve got to love it. And the reason you’ve got to love it is not just that it’ll be hard later on, and you’ll want to quit, and you’ll need something to keep you going besides just the dreams of fame and fortune, but also because loving it is what’s going to keep you doing it all the time. I’m going to use it as an example. Glenn Gould, the pianist who was a child prodigy. Right. And I think it was like 21 or 22 when he came out with the Goldberg Variations, which is the album that just, you know, sort of redefined everything, turned him into a superstar, sort of redefined how people looked at classical music and Bach in particular. And he didn’t get to be a genius just because he was a genius, but because since the age of eight, 11, 12 hour old, he was he was just playing the piano every single day for hours and hours because he was obsessed with it. And the more you love it, the more obsessed you’ll be and the more that you will do it, which is the other part of the equation, the more that you are doing it, the more you’re learning about it, and the more that you’re thinking about what you’re doing and why you’re doing it. And not just, you know, falling into habits and then repeating them, but asking yourself, well, is this working for me? And how can I improve this? And based on what I’ve just done, what have I learned from it, and how can I use that to improve myself and all that stuff? The more that you’re doing all that, the better you’re going to be getting. Just because that’s the way the world works and the human body works, that the more we practice, the better we get. So I would boil it down to those two things. Love it. And if you don’t, then maybe find something that you do love and do that. And the other is do it and do it and do it and do it and do it and do it and do it and do it and do it. And not to beat a dead horse or sound like a cliche here, but kids these days, you guys have all the tools, all of them.

Joke: All of that.

Biagio: How much would we have killed for the stuff they have today, back in the day?

Daniel Strange: Here’s the thing. When I was 12, I had to hook up two VCRs just to edit, right? I had to, first of all, I had to have two VCRs. So I was very lucky that my parents actually owned two. And then, you know, I had to work out. I had to figure out the cables and plug it together. Nowadays, iPhone, you’ve literally got everything I would have killed for an iPhone. You can shoot with it, you can edit with it. You can do whatever the anything.

Joke: You do graphics, you could do music on it, you can mix it. It’s crazy on the phone.

Daniel Strange: So do it. And and and don’t stop doing it again. The more that you’re, the more that you do it and not just do it and, you know, run out and shoot a five minute video with your friends and say, that’s it. I’m a director now, but the more that you think about what you’ve done, the more you analyze it and then think, oh, okay, well, I could do this better and invent, you know, invent so much. I think it’s important. I think it’s really easy to look at what someone else has done and then just do that. But it’s way more interesting if you come up with your own sort of like, well, maybe if I put the camera over here, I’ve got an idea. It might be crazy, but let me just try it. Then you start to develop your own style, and that’s a marketable thing. You know, when you’re establishing yourself as a professional, the more distinct your voice is, the more people can say, oh, well, that guy does that thing. Get me that guy?

Biagio: I think so, I think, but my wife was like, she has something to say.

Joke: I just, you know, it’s all been so heavy. I wanted to ask, what is your fondness memory of commercial kings.

Daniel Strange: Richard Marx.

Biagio: Yeah. Richard Marx, I gotta you know what? I’ll put that picture up with the post. Me, you and Richard Marx. Yes. Yeah.

Daniel Strange: Richard Marx was just really fun to work with. He expressed an interest in being it. And I was like Richard Marx. Right. So we meet him, and it would have been super easy for him to be I’m in and I’m out. But he was a real pleasure to work with. And sitting in the room as he starts playing and singing like the hairs on my arm went up because I was like, oh.

Biagio: It’s Richard Marx!

Daniel Strange: And he’s singing and I’m in the room.

Biagio: And like, that’s his voice.

Daniel Strange: So here’s what’s great about Richard Marx. He comes in, he’s just so happy to be there. I’ll do whatever you guys want.

Joke: He really was up for anything. I mean, we put him in a commercial.

Daniel Strange: Yeah. And he was like, the only thing is, I only have, like, two hours, and I have to be on the road at 430.

Joke: You had to catch.

Daniel Strange: A flight because I have to catch a flight and we’re like, okay, cool. So we go into the park and we start shooting with him. And for the thing that we’re shooting, he has to have his pants off.

Joke: Because he’s getting a colonic, y’all.

Biagio: Right?

Daniel Strange: So it’s like, take his pants and take his, his luggage, put it in the van so that it doesn’t get stolen, you know, while we go and we shoot this thing in the park and then we the second we start shooting, somebody comes running. It might have been you. Biagio comes running up to me and like, oh, my God, we accidentally locked his stuff in the van and the keys are back in the hotel, and it’s like, oh, no. So Rhett and Link are like, wrapping up with him, and it’s like, too early because we haven’t gotten the van. Like, no, someone has to go back to the hotel and get the keys, and we got to unlock the van. And like, the last thing we need is for him to be like, okay, I’m done shooting and has to be like, well, we locked your stuff in the van and now you can’t go to the you missed your flight. Thanks for working with us. Right. So right. And link are like wrapping up with him and I’m like, hey guys, you know, and just like, trying to, like, whisper because he’s he’s there with them I can’t like I’m like, keep it going, keep it going. We need more. We need more. And they’re looking at me like, no, we got this. And I’m like. Trust me, we need more. So we kept we just kept it going for, you know, the extra 15 or 20 minutes. And if Richard Marx is listening to this. Richard, we. Your stuff was never in danger. Really? Biagio said he would break the window.

Biagio: I was ready to break. I was so mad at the PA that locked the van. I’m like, I’m breaking the window. And our head of production is like, dude, I break the window. I’m like, I own the company. I’ll break the window, I don’t care. We’re not gonna hold up Richard Marx.

Daniel Strange: We’re not.

Biagio: Holding.

Daniel Strange: Up Richard Marx.

Joke: So remember this? I was stuck on a plane in Lubbock, Texas.

Biagio: That’s right. You’re playing it.

Joke: No. Flying to Dallas for another shoot. And you’re like, babe, just so you know, they said, I can’t break the window, but I’m going to have to break this window. And I was.

Biagio: Like.

Joke: Oh, Lord.

Daniel Strange: But it all worked out. The window didn’t need to get broken. We got the keys. Richard Marx left none the wiser and everything. Everything was good.

Biagio: All right. So Dan, so if people want to, you know, check you out, maybe pay you millions of dollars to direct a commercial, how can they track you down? Where can I find.

Daniel Strange: You, Daniel? Strange.

Biagio: Wow, look at that. That’s fantastic.

Daniel Strange: Yeah.

Biagio: Thanks. All right. Well, thank you so much for being here. I appreciate you being so open, so honest, and still being our friend after all these years.

Daniel Strange: I think that’s where you end it. Right there.

Biagio: Yeah.

Daniel Strange: Yeah, that’s really good.

Biagio: Good advice from a good editor.

Joke: Directing till the end.

Biagio: Producing Unscripted with Joke and Biagioas you.