Yesterday, we hit the annual Greek Fest on Boundary Road…

Headed to the Greek fest: Ashleigh, a jubilant Remi, and some border guard we picked up along the way.

From right to left: Kerry, Carl, and extra special guest star Ming-Na!

Gyros up front, spit-roasted lamb in the back.

Kerry, just delighted to be in the company of friends. Carl, just interested in his food.

For real?!

Remi and Linda, ready for some power eating.

Ashleigh sweeps down on dessert like a seagull on french fries.

Ming loving her new iPhone. They were inseparable throughout the outing.

Lawren is soooooooo excited about that gryo.

I ended up scoring a half kilo of pure Athens Gold.

The sweetest dessert known to man: baklava! I finished it off and then was dizzy for the rest of the afternoon.

Loukamades, the Greek version of doughnut hole treats! Aristophanes used to love 'em.

It was a welcome warm and sunny respite from the dank and dark environs of the editing suit where I had spent most of the day, working on my producer’s cut of Resurgence with ace editor Mike “Marverick” Banas (see last issue, ed.).  It’s going to be a terrific episode, especially once Mark Savela and co. deliver the finished visual effects.

Speaking of Mark and our brilliant VFX team – congratulations go out to them on not one but TWO Emmy Nominations, one for Air, the other for Space. Read all about it here:

http://www.vancouversun.com/entertainment/Visual+effects+Emmy+nominations+show+ficapital/3254862/story.html

and here:

http://www.theprovince.com/entertainment/Shot+visual+effects+community/3254730/story.html

So, I gathered up your questions for Louis and sent them his way.  The next day, he emailed me back something along the lines of “Holy crap!  There’s a lot of ’em!”.  He suggested swinging by my office and fielding the questions while I transcribed his responses.  I offered up an even better idea: he swings by the office and I’ll just videotape his answers.  Well, a scheduling snafu resulted in Louis having to come in today, a day into his hiatus, something he was more than happy to do despite the fact that he was already in holiday mode…

This is what you get when you make an actor come in on his day off.

After shooting his scene, he dropped by the production offices to spread some summer cheer…

At this point, I think he was already on his third pina colada.

…and, of course, answer some questions.  So here we go with the first installment of an interview series I’m calling The Pineapple Diaries:

44 thoughts on “July 9, 2010: Greek Day! Two Emmy Nominations for Mark Savela and our Visual Effects Department! Holiday-mode Louis Ferreira Starts Answering Your Questions!

  1. Video is great! Looking forward to future installments. You need to get more of the actors to do video interviews.

    And if he’s the serious one…

  2. The jacket being worn by Louis Ferreira is beyond hideous. I realise that he was in a summery mood and it did cheer things up.

    But – who would design such an item? And did these designers actually expect that people would purchase it?

    😉

  3. Too short a video. But nice pool jacket! And could you scoot the pineapple over some next time. It’s blocking his pretty face.

    I think you need to video everyone who comes in your office. Either you’d have no friends and get lots of work done, or everyone would be super nice to you while visiting.

    My gosh, Will Waring is so handsome!!!!!

    PS: are you reading my mind?

  4. The video interview was great!!!!! Looking forward to seeing more. It was a nice anniversary present. (Today is my 16th wedding anniversary.)

    I also liked the pictures of the Greek food. We have our own Greek festival here every September.

    Have a great night.

  5. Hi, Joe.

    LOL! Love the video … not too sure about Louis’ pool jacket though, I think I burned my eyes looking at it. (Too bright!)

    Forgot to thank Mike Banas (and you) for his q &a yesterday.

    Best wishes for everyone’s summer hiatus!

  6. That outfit! I was cracking up even before the video started. Thanks Joe and Louis. Installment #2 comes…tomorrow, yes? 😀

  7. @ Mike Banas – Thanks for the comments, I now, however, must search every one of your episodes for Easter Eggs!

    Elminster

  8. That jacket is LOUDDDDD no wonder he’s wearing sunglasses 😉

    That is one big baklava..

    Hey Joe! Make your own Loukoumades – recipe from chef George Colombaris, on the show Masterchef Australia;

    Loukoumades

    2-3L canola oil, for deep-frying
    600g plain flour, plus ½ cup extra for dusting
    40g dried yeast
    750 mL water
    1 tsp salt

    For the loukoumades, place flour, yeast and 1 teaspoon salt into a large bowl. Heat 750ml of water to 42°C (or just above body temperature) to activate the yeast, then gradually pour into the flour mixture and whisk until smooth. Cover with cling wrap, then set aside in a warm place to prove for 30 minutes – 1 hour until the bowl is full and mixture is bubbly.

    To finish the loukoumades, fill a deep-fryer or large saucepan with oil until one third full and preheat to 170°C.

    Reach your hand into the batter and pull out a handful of batter, then pop them through your palm into the hot oil. Cook the loukoumades in the hot oil for 2-4 minutes until puffed and light golden. Use a slotted spoon to move loukoumades around in the hot oil so they brown evenly. Drain the loukoumades on paper towel.
    Eat!

  9. Holy crap that was awesome. If he has a lot of questions to answer, this is going to be one long series of videos.

  10. That looks like such a beautiful day….not a cloud in the sky.

    Ming Na is looking very glamorous as she models her new iPhone….

    Mmm I love Gyros (and Greek ribs). Baklava is one of my favourite desserts. However, that is one mutant piece of Baklava, it’s HUGE. I would’ve had to have saved some for later….

    Louis only answered ONE question. He was asked a million of ‘em. At this rate, you’re gonna be good for blog posts for the whole summer. Ahhhh maybe that’s your plan….

    That was very nice of Louis to come in on his day off and to dress up for the occasion. We are truly honoured.

    @ susan the tartan turtle – but someone DID buy the ‘lovely’ pool cover-up. (I’m just hoping it’s a joke and we haven’t hurt his feelings by questioning his taste in leisurewear).*chuckles*

    Congrats everyone on the Emmy nods!!

    Have a good one!!
    Kymm

  11. That’s because Louis is awesome so naturally he’l get a lot of questions, I think Lou Diamond got more on here I’m not entirely sure seems a lot of people myself included asked multiple questions. Young is my favourite SGU character anyways.

  12. Any misspellings here today are the result of blindness caused by that shirt. Ye gods that was gaudy! Loved the video format though. Perhaps you should consider posting on youtube or another forum that will allow longer videos?
    Attending Shore Leave. Spent 10 minutes following/stalking another attendee. All because of a strong resemblence to a certain Mr. Cooper. Not that I really thought that Mr. Cooper would be here, but the resemblence was strong enough that I wasn’t satisfied until I saw the name tag. You and your pictures are having a bad effect on me. Torri Higginson is one of the guests, and I’m looking forward to seeing her.
    Anyways, thanks for sharing with us. The greek fest looked nice, but for once it was something that I could find locally. Richmond puts on a pretty decent greek fest every year, and I didn’t see anything in the pics(well, other than the people attending) to make Vancouver’s version superior. Except now it’s 11pm and I have an urge for a gyro….

  13. Loved the video, but holy crap that get-up is violent! I think I may have been somewhat blinded by it. If my next comment goes something like “dkid tktsns ttlidd”, then you’ll know that I did go blind.

    I see that Will was in the background of one of those photos, so was that his pineapple Louis had in the pics and video?

  14. *mutters* Of all the days for Joe to post a Flash video, it hadda be this one… *curses Apple for not letting iPhone play with Flash*

  15. Hey, Joe.

    Congrats on the noms. Hope you receive more in the near future.

    Just have a few questions.

    (I’ve probably posted this 4 or more times already. Mailbag questions seem to be more likely to be answered on the weekends. So I’m going to try my luck again.)

    1.) Have you seen these?

    http://forum.gateworld.net/threads/69538-Sgt.-Hunter-Riley-Discussion-Appreciation-(-SGU)

    http://forum.gateworld.net/threads/75513-Riley-and-Brody-21-and-24

    See? Riley has fans.

    2.) Have you seen this, BTW?

    http://io9.com/5565598/how-to-save-stargate-universe-season-2

    Pretty interesting. What’s your take on it?

    It’s not really here nor there with me but there’s one part of that I VEHEMENTLY disagree with and that’s the Riley part. Riley is just too awesome.

    3.) Will you have an alien join the cast (and no, I don’t mean a Jaffa, Tok’ra or Lucien Alliance member)? PLEASE no “aliens/people with rubber foreheads” retread or any other human look-alikes. I mean a true, non-human looking alien. The majority of main-cast “aliens” in sci-fi television usually consist of humans wearing make-up and/or silly clothes and costumes. That’s pretty annoying. And this coming from someone who is a huge fan of Teal’c. Break that (rubber) mold.

    Why not one of the Blues?

    Having one of them onboard the ship would give insight into their race. Also, it not knowing how to speak English at first and examining how different it’s species is from humans both physically and culturally would make for a great story arc.

    4.) Now that Lost is over, have you guys thought about poaching some of their crew a little? You know, people like script writers, directors, producers and other areas of production? Writers and directors as freelancers, at the very least? It would be very awesome to see Damon Lindelof join the SGU crew.

  16. Looks like somebody’s gotten a little sun. Speaking of Louis, of course, it’s hard to determine your own complexion, Joe, from the dim reverse-shot in Ming-Na’s iPhone.

    The pineapple. Ha.

  17. Congratulations on the Emmy Nom! They are both so deserved, especially for Space, where the FX are just awesome! Of course the script paved the way for those special effects, right?

  18. Hey Joe,

    Love the pictures of Mr. Ferreira… Patrick Gilmore shared one yesterday on Twitter that made me laugh like crazy.

    Looks like you guys are enjoying the sun as much as I am! I’m just hoping it sticks around since it was looking more cloudy this evening… If this is all the sun we get this summer I’m going to be mighty unhappy.

    Just wanted to share this, if you haven’t seen it yet, with a review on the “Masked” anthology.
    An excerpt: “You might think superheroes are played out as heroic archetypes or sources of fresh stories. But you’d be wrong, and a new anthology, Masked, proves it. Anybody who writes superhero comics or movies, or just loves superheroes, should read it.”
    http://io9.com/5583647/the-book-that-anybody-who-writes-superhero-stuff-must-read

    How are the dogs with this heat?
    Bella is loving it. She stays outside even when she gets too hot, then comes inside and flops on the cool hardwood, then goes back out again… And repeats the whole cycle.

    Nadine

  19. You all look like you’re going on a field trip from school. The food looks good.

    Did he steal that jacket from someone before sitting down with you? That’s what it looks like to me. He’s hilarious. Please have more silliness.

  20. Louis Ferreira is Awesome Y/Y?

    I was doubling over in being hilaritized watching Louis talking about being the serious Colonel while wearing what he was wearing. 😀 The man knows humor. Can we have just one SGU episode where Louis gets to show off this crazy sense of humor that he has? It’d seem like a wasted opportunity otherwise.

    Man, Stargate sure employs a lot of beautiful ladies! One more reason why I’d love to work there. 😉

    A big THANK YOU to Maverick Mike for answering all those questions! They were fascinating. Also, answering Stargate questions while watching The Wrath of KHAAAAAAAAN? Why, isn’t that just a huge bucket of Awesome? Yes it is.

    And, of course, another big THANK YOU to Joe for arranging the Q&A in the first place!

    Finally, a big CONGRATULATIONS!! to Mark Savela and his team of magic people for creating some of the best VFX I’ve ever seen on TV!

    Ok, down to business, Joe. I’m talking about the Stargate movies. I know you’ve been fielding questions on them forever, so I won’t go there. I will, however, add in my support for the Stargate Movie Campaign that’s been circulating around here. It’s most unfortunate that a myriad of factors came together to cause a giant mess of things with these movies, but things can still be salvaged if/when they are made.

    I’m glad to hear that Brad is having talks with MGM about Revolution. That’s a good start. I wonder what the impetus for these talks were (unless they’ve been happening since the beginning), and why that’s not happening with Extinction? It would be great if both movies can come out to satisfy the fans of each or both previous series (and of course, those of us who love all of three).

    But, I’m sure you all know this. Still, it doesn’t hurt to repeat it. Also, I just like to state for the record that I (obviously) have no idea what’s really going on at MGM or Bridge and I don’t pretend to, but hey, we work with what little info we have.

    Well anyway, there’s not really much more to say besides the fact that I would snatch up Revolution and Extinction in a heartbeat, and I hazard a guess that many more fans will too. 🙂

    FIGHT FOR THE GREEN LIGHT!!

  21. Wow! Thanks to Louis for showing us what not to wear to the beach/pool this summer and stopping by to answer questions. Congrats on the emmy nods. Thanks to the Greek festival party for sharing their day.

  22. Congrats on well deserved nominations for Mark and the team. Good luck!
    Louis looks so happy, smiling, 3rd pina colada or not, thanks for sharing. I love the outfit, is it his bd or Will’s that he is celebrating? So Will made him come in, thus the pineapple reference. Such an infectious smile, makes everyone around him laugh or,,,wonder what he is up to?!? and he is very funny.
    Carls looks real content with the women surrounding him(understandable) and then it looks like he is checking to see if his food order(very important stuff) is right.. so give him some slack there( i mean its food we are speaking of)(ha).
    You are going to get into soooo much trouble with Ashleigh, making us think she is all about the desserts. When they are a very special part of a balanced meal. Yes baklava!! yum..
    I preordered your book, so they will ship it when it releases.
    Have a wonderful Saturday!

  23. Baklava….*shudder*
    The stuff is lovely but I’ve never been able to get more than a couple of bites in without the jitters and toothache setting in 🙂
    Almost better than caffeine…almost…

    I love the video answers 🙂
    Anyone else breaking into chuckles every time they look at LF? I think it’s the pineapple. there’s just something inherently funny about a pineapple :p

  24. Please find out for us where Louis actually got that jacket..it is hideous yet alluring in the same sentence,lol.

  25. yes!! the greek fest! thanks for sharing the pics, and reminding me that it’s on again! i am so there. i’m cutting it close too, itomorrow’s the last day!

  26. Thanks to Louis for that very funny video, and to you for sharing it! That jacket made me smile, despite the blisters on my eyeballs that it caused… The man has a terrific sense of humor!

  27. Hello Joe..

    Just wanted to say im going to be gone for a week with no internet starting tomorrow. 🙁 I might be here for todays entry though. Im going to miss everyone here. 🙁 Stargates been my life this summer (basically because of the campaign) so a week away seems painful.. but i’m sure ill survive. Except for the fact that a week after I get back I have 10 DAYS away in the wilderness. So itll suck.. but it’ll probably be fun to get away from the stresses of the campaign and my addiction to the internet.

    Thanks so much,
    Major D. Davis

  28. @Major D. Davis

    Goodluck with your travels and things like that. Also you’re going into the wilderness, do you mean that like literally? Sounds harsh.

  29. Congrats to the VFX dept on the Emmy nods! And it’s cool that the 15 years of SG have such a great legacy on Vancouver’s film industry.

    House of the Suns came in the mail this week, I was certain a couple DVD’s and maybe a brick were also in that big box but it was the one book; huge! Heavy! Dense! But really engrossing and fun, with enough action and adventure and story to fill four books, let alone one. It feels very condensed but in a good way, like a good hearty home made chowder.

    I’m only half way through but now that the heat wave is over (finally!) I can read on more comfortably and quickly than I have been this god awful hot week on the East Coast.

    I’m anxious to find out the truth about the House of the Suns, to know if Hesperus will be okay (and if he can be trusted) and to know the reason behind the atrocities commited against the Gentians. And even tho I haven’t read the first book in the series I don’t feel lost as I move through the books. One favorite thing in the book is Palatial, very cool! Like the coolest Sim game in the world.

  30. P.S. I pity Major Davis going without the net for so long. But it’s also very liberating to be cut free from the cacaphony of the web once in a while. I hope you will at least get to see the stars at night; big and bright as they say in Texas.

  31. I’m with PG15, I would snatch up both SG films (blueray) at the first opportunity!
    The food looks great, but as another post pointed out, that is a huge piece of baklava! It could serve as an entire meal.
    I got my lab test back and no abnormal results! A semi miracle at my age. I hope your test were all normal, also.
    How is Jelly?
    Good point Ponytail: The pineapple is covering up Mr. Ferreira’s pretty face. 😀 Thanks to him for doing the Q & A!
    Ming Na looks radiant, as always.
    Have a good day everybody!

  32. @Shiny

    ehh… im sure i’ll like it.. once its over. Its just the 10 days of absence at the end of july will kill me.. plus i won’t be around to do campaign stuff.. or constantly check for new SGU or movies updates.. At least we have the mail/media campaign up and running so there won’t be too much work for the rest of my team to do while im gone.

    @Randomness

    Well.. not really wilderness.. WE have tents and cots and food. ITs a camp but its in the middle of nowhere.

    It reminds me back in january when I went on a winter backpacking trip in the mountains.. It rained like turd at night even though it was like 30 degrees (the intense wind made it feel much colder) and our tent flooded because part of the ground cloth was sticking out. WE WERE SOAKED and freezing and lay awake for hours. We were lying down in a puddle of water the whole night.

    Now that was a harsh trip. Probably the worst night of my life

    Also, when the gear is soaking.. it keeps you from getting dying from frostbite.. but it doesn’t keep you warm whatsoever. As a result wee couldn’t fall asleep so it felt like the night went on FOREVER. Also the actual backpacking through the snow (it was un-compacted so often sink into the snow up to your knees) was probably the most physically exhausting thing i’ve ever done in my life.

    Sorry if that was a little long winded. LOL

    Thanks so much,
    Major D. Davis

  33. lol…man Louis cracks me up, love his style…can’t wait to read his Q&A….Thanks heaps to Mike Banas for his thoughtful Q&A and for answering all my questions – all of the editors do an amazing job. My question about Lost was more one of why that was different in style.

    Question for Joe:

    Do you mind if I borrow your photos for a little project I’m working on? You’ll really love the result.

    Can I also add that while the content of the photos are incredible as always I have found lately that the quality of the images is lacking. I really think you need a new camera Joe.

    Cheers, Chev

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