L.W.S. Liming With Sandman Trinidad and Tobago

On this episode of L.W.S. come with me, as my God-sister, Sharde and I, try to catch public transportation in Trinidad as well as some of the fun things I do when I'm in Trinidad and Tobago.

L.W.S. LIMING WITH SANDMAN LONDON

Hey Guys,

This is the first installment in a series I like to call Liming with Sandman. It's basically footage I have accumulated over the past year of all my travels and the fun I've had along the way. My friends Alexandria and Eze thought it would be cool to put it up on the blog so here it is.

This webisode chronicles my first trip to London. I met up with my friend Rob who lives there and he showed me all the attractions over the course of three days.

2010 AND A HALF (part 1)

Hey Everyone,

I'm sorry I haven’t written in half a year but it’s been a really mixed and busy 2010 for me. Every year since 2008 I have come up with a lil motto to keep me going, this year’s version is “2010 my year again” it rhymes when you pronounce “again” “agen” but I digress lol. So far it has been my year but not without the ups and downs that go along with establishing a solid foundation for a career in the entertainment business.

The year started off on a high note as I was called by Grant Wilfrey Casting to be an extra in a Chanel Commercial that was being directed by Martin Scorsese. Yes the academy award, winning Director. It was to be a press conference scene where I played a reporter. No I was not the lead in this commercial, more like 1 of 60 journalist, cameramen and photographers covering the “story.” While we waited to be called to set it was actually quit comedic to see how most of the women would become extra perky when the Assistant Director walked into the room. I guess their display was a chance to catch his attention so that they would be chosen to say a line or two, or just to get a spot right in front of the camera. In any case sometimes it worked, as the woman to my left was chosen first to be placed and in others it didn’t as the woman to my right was placed directly behind the 6’4 mammoth of a man that was me.

Just as I settled into my 4^th row spot, with my pad and pencil in hand, I began to position myself so that when the commercial finally aired, my mother would be able to pick me out of the crowd. Yes you do have to commit to the scene but People were going to know I was in it lol. Anyway as we were about to begin, Martin walked into the room and decided to move some people around. I was actually one of these people as I was moved from the 4^th row up to the second. I know “Lucky me” you would have thought. Well not so much. I was told to stand in the second row, which I guess is fine but when a scene takes 5 hours to film that’s when I have a problem. Now standing too can be a good thing especially when you are in the second row. I mean you will definitely be seen but then Martin, look at me being all familiar with him calling him Martin but anyway Martin decided that I needed to be a photographer and his assistant gave me a huge camera to cover most of my face except a squinting eye. Thanks Martin.

Though we were there for 10 hours and the shoot really took about 5 hours for a 10 second scene, it was still an exciting experience to be apart of the process. Was this commercial the big break I was again waiting for? No, but it was a resume builder. On another note it was in the middle of shooting that I was made aware of the earthquakes in Haiti and my mind began to wonder to Laury from Make Me A Supermodel and her Family as well as one of my closest friends Bliss who also has family there.

The next experience on the agenda was Trinidad Carnival 2010. The Antilia organization who I had previously worked with in 2009, offered to fly me to Trinidad for the 2010 carnival experience. I had an amazing time. Ironically Beyonce was also holding the finale to her world Tour during the same time so I was able to see B perform live. She’s definitely worth the money. During my carnival experience I was able to shoot with Jonathan Mannion, celebrity photogrpher who you may have seen on the finale of America’s Next Top Model directing the Cover Girl commercial, as well as celebrity Make up artist Theodore Faulkner. This shoot was by far the best shoot I had ever done, as the environment was so relaxed yet exhilarating at the same time. Shout out to model Danille Prime and Kerry-Ann Murphy as well as my friends Pam and Zach.

March again saw me getting back in front of the lens for a catalog shoot for an up and coming men’s suit line. It was an easy shoot, just stand, click click, repeat 30 times and it was over. The collection was apparently geared to “my demographic,” insert snickering here, but I as well as the other male model might beg to differ on that one. The suits were oversized and though ornate in construction I must admit there is something as too much “PIZAZZ!!!”

TAR FINALE

I am one of the biggest fans of The Amazing Race. I have seen every episode since its premiere in 2001. I have discussed at length each episode with some of my family, friends and basically anyone who would listen, so it should come as no surprise that I jumped at the chance to meet the cast of the recently concluded Amazing Race 15.

That opportunity came this past weekend when RealityWanted’s Gina Scarpa contacted me about attending TARcon, an event organized by Amazing Race fans to meet and mingle with the other teams. After I accepted the invite, Gina gave me the contact info for Tiffany, who I thought was a publicist or an organizer of the event. When Tiffany asked me to also come to the private dinner for the cast, to be held on the Saturday before the finale at Essex Restaurant and Lounge, I assumed it was to get more reality faces at the event. Imagine my surprise when I walked into the restaurant and the Tiffany who greeted me was Tiffany, from team Maria and Tiffany.

As a huge fan of the show, being in the room with all the teams became almost too much for me. All of the teams were present except for Eric and Lisa, the unfortunate first team eliminated who did not even get to travel past the starting line and Mika and Canaan, the team that was eliminated in Dubai due to Mika’s paralyzing fear of both heights and water. As I got to know the cast a little better, I was asked by the three top teams who I thought won the race. I was originally a Globetrotter fan but, after they were eliminated, I switched to Brian and Ericka. They were the underdogs but one could not forget how well Cheyne and Meghan had run the race and the abilities of Sam and Dan, so I basically said the answer that anyone would have at that point: “Cheyne and Meghan.”

At the dinner table, I was seated with Brian and Erika, Cheyne and Meghan (who were actually fans of Make Me A Supermodel and knew me from the show), Tiffany, Big Easy, Sam and Dan. It was funny listening to the stories and antics that took place behind the scenes and really cool to see how close they had gotten after the experience they all had. The tattoos that eight of the racers got depicting the Japanese license plate symbol that eliminated the first team was a mark of just how close these teams had gotten. However, as a veteran reality personality, I realized this was the finale high that all cast members feel when there show is about to end. You believe that you will never lose touch with these people and that they will become a part of your family. However, time and distance has a tendency to slowly erase those bonds that, on finale night, seemed impenetrable. While I sat at that table, I really hoped that that would not be true for this cast who had accepted me into their family to join in their excitement.

Sunday night was the night of the actual finale viewing. The majority of the teams were there to celebrate the victory of two of their competitors and I felt privileged enough to be invited as the only non-related guest. The viewing was held at the Soho House, in a private theater that seats about 30 people. All that kept going through my mind was, “Who here is acting like they won?” I had been trying all weekend to get the answer out of them but no one was letting go of the secret. I thought for a moment that I would break Sam but a laugh and a smile was all I got. Cheyne and Meghan made sure I had an excellent seat for the viewing right between his little sister and Justin’s (of Justin and Zev) father.

It was crazy to actually be watching the finale with the cast themselves. Seeing their reactions to the editing and reliving the moments of this once in a lifetime experience brought back memories of my own finale night. Ericka was so proud of herself for scaling down the side of the hotel and Brian kept shouting, “That’s my baby!” throughout the entire scene. The entire room erupted in screams of “No!!” and moans of concern as the cab driver told Meghan and Cheyne that the Venetian was the most famous hotel in Monaco. Sam and Dan were on edge the entire night and it was especially funny to see how embarrassed Dan still was for forgetting Wayne Newton’s name. I must admit the editors of TAR 15 did an excellent job with the finale because the suspense was on from the start and never let up. I had predicted a Cheyne/Meghan victory but, when the show began, I didn’t know who was going to win.

The rest of the night was spent at the actual TARcon event where the fans were jumping for joy for their favorite teams. Some of the other reality personalities in the room were Kisha from the infamous team Jen and Kisha, who failed to make it to the final three of TAR 14 because Jen needed to go to the bathroom, as well as Survivor alum Eliza Orlins of Survivor: Vanuatu and Micronesia. It was an excellent weekend… TAR 17, here I come!

All Access Victoria's Secret

Being booked to provide comedic relief at the Victoria's secret fashion show is actually a lot harder than it may sound but it was a task that was completely worth it. Now if you read my previous post you know that I was booked to be an improv actor for the 2009 Victori'a secret fashion show. However, if you saw the show on CBS on DEC 1st you may have realized that you did not see me. "What happened?" you might ask, well here goes.

The night before the Victori'as secret fashion show was the rehearsal. Now this was the major rehearsal with all the effects, the Black Eyed Peas, Supermodels with wings and yours truly Sandhurst Miggins. Now to this point my co-host and I were told that we were basically going to be doing commentary backstage. Fooling around with the models, hold up that didn't sound right, lets try this again, playing with the models, hmm even worse. Okay just having fun backstage. Now here is where I started to see a problem with this vision. From a creative standpoint, having two guys backstage cracking jokes could be funny if executed well, however this is a fashion show and as a model myself backstage gets so hectic that no one is in the mood to laugh, even though the models look like they are smiling backstage as the run to change, they know the deal. They know the camera is on them and as such the smile and the "Oh I am having such a great time look is pasted on for the world to see" when in reality its more of a "Get out of my (insert obscenities here )way, I have to go on again in 2 seconds."

During the rehearsals everything was kept light, the models were having fun. I was trying not to faint and go into complete groupie mode as I started conversing with the likes of Chanel Iman Alessandra Ambrossi, Sessilee Lopez, Aminata, Marissa, Miranda and a really fun loving Candice Swanepoel who actually knew who I was. I had an excellent time backstage. It was a great experience interacting with some of the girls. Sessilee and I broke it down for the cameras hamming it up backstage. We even had a mock soultrain line going. I didn't think the night could get any better but then it did. One of the models had yet to show up so they asked me to be a stand in for her and walk the runway. So there I am waiting for my cue as Channel Iman walks out right before me. Walking the VS runway I must admit even though it was a dress rehearsal is extremely intimidating but it was fun. As I took my four seconds to pose at the crest of the runway I was like "Damn this is CRAZY!" Turning back to walk to the other side of the V I was completely caught off guard as Alessandra Ambrossi the Longest VS Angel beside Heidi walked out. The Woman is hot and being that close to her on the runway was almost too much I actually stumbled a bit by the shock of seeing her walk out after me. I think the moment became almost too big for me but I digress. The night was a success even though my partner and I were still unaware of exactly how tomorrow's show was going to work with the craziness of backstage.

The next morning as I woke up at 7 for my 11 o'clock call I was greeted by an email from Robert of Victoria's Secret with the Subject "Actor's Cancelation." Yes I had ben axed, fired, sacked, let go, released, I had been deprived of an even greater experience to top the one that I had last night yet all I could think of was "Yeah that's fine and all but I still get to see the show right?" I replied to the email thanking them for the opportunity and asked if I could still come see the show. A speedy yes was given to me and even though I still had my all access pass that was issued to me the night before for the actual show I was given two extra tickets. Not bad for a guy who two weeks ago was trying to sneak into the event. I was still going to get compensated for the job and I got to go backstage, it was great.

To let you all in, the cancellation was due to just what I had suspected the night before. Backstage was just going to be to crazy on the night of the show to have extra people there and they decided to get rid of the actors before we got a chance to get in the way. So is the way of the entertainment world, you have to be understanding. I didn't care though I got to interact with the most beautiful women in the world and I got to see both tapings of the show, once in the audience from, really great seats and once from the control tower right behind the director. I truly got an all-round all access pass to the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show.

Victoria's Secret Fashion Show

Hi All,

Hope you had a great Thanks giving I know I did. I decided to take some time to update the blog about what has been going on with my career. I know some of my fans have been wondering what I have been up too since leaving NYMM so I apologize for the delay.

Now if you are one of my friends on Facebook you may have noticed that I was updating my status frequently about the Victoria's secret Fashion show, well here is the scoop.

When on the 1st of November I found out that the Victoria's Secret Fashion show was headed back to NYC I decided that I had to find a way to get in to see the show. It was kind of like one of those things I had to do before I die kind of motive. I found out that the show was actually going to be taped on the 19th of November so I began a mad campaign called operation Find Victoria's Secret. It was basically an initiative to find any contact that I knew who would possibly be able to get me into the show.

A week had passed and after I spoke to models, stylists, make up artists and producers no one had a lead on how to get into the show so I decided to let the issue rest for a moment. As I was searching the internet for castings for Broadway I came across a casting for the Victoria's Secret Fashion show searching for Female Dancers, as someone who is familiar with the production I knew they usually had an all female dance crew so though I wasn't surprised I sat back and said "Damn they should have had a call for guys. I would have definitely gotten to see the show then." Three days later as I was checking the internet for castings again, my prays had been answered. There, illuminated on my laptop screen was a casting for Male Dancers for the Victoria's Secret Fashion show. "What luck" one might say after reading my last sentence but no, it was not meant to be. The date of the casting happened to be the same day I found it and the start time was the same time I was reading it, so getting from queens to Manhattan in 1 second all warmed up and ready to go was out of the question.

Now you might say this is when you gave up. No I refused to give up I kept telling myself someone of my contacts would come through and be able to sneak me into the venue. Maybe I could be a production assistant, maybe Bravo needed someone to cover the event somehow I was getting in. Five days before the show and I'm again searching for castings for TV, Broadway and any interesting projects and there it was Victoria's Secret Fashion Show searching for Male Improv Actors. Cue the celestial choir. Now, to tell you the truth, I have only had one acting class in my entire life, an acting for dancers course my first semester, freshman year so I would not exactly call myself an actor and improv comedy...ah...yeah about that, but I was determined to find a way into the VS fashion show. The call was scheduled for the next day so I had enough time to both psych myself up slash freak myself out as to the embarrassment of not knowing what I was going to do, however, I have never been one to care about being qualified to do something.

On entry to the casting I was met by around 25 other men ranging in age and ethnicity but all seemed to be seasoned vets at comedy and acting. There were some who had Nationally syndicated commercials, about five Law and Order, what I like to call third cop from the left's and the rest were stand up comics. Feeling completely out of my element yet strangely confident I walked into the room with two other actors and was asked by the Director of the VS production to act out various scenarios. To say I had a blast is an understatement. I thoroughly enjoyed making a fool of myself in the hopes of possibly seeing the most beautiful women in the world in lingerie. Surprisingly I was one of ten guys asked to stay for a second round of improv while everyone else was released. The second round of improv was basically movement based, no words just physical comedy. I must say this time I thought my performance was a bit weak but it still garnered some laughs from the director and his assistants. At the end we were given the "We will call if we are interested" line and then were sent home.

This was it, only 4 days left and this was my last chance to get into the 2009 Victoria's secret fashion show. As I got home from the casting, continuously replaying the days events, I decided that I needed to take a nap and just relax. If I got it then great, if I didn't then next year. Two hours later, I got up from my nap and literally five seconds after opening my eyes my phone rang.

"Hello, Goodnight" I always answer the phone with a double greeting

"Hi is this Sandhurst?"

"Yes"

"Hi this is Robert from Victoria's Secret. We thought you were extremely funny so we want you to come hangout backstage with the models."

Antilia Carnival Event

We had a good laugh about the role reversal. Tyson was my first Celebrity interview. Fitting because he is my mentor. And yes I am much taller than Tyson.

These Pictures were taken at the Antilia Carnival event promoting the Caribbean and the various presentations of Trinidad carnival for the 2010 edition of the greatest show on earth. Tyson Beckford and Former Miss Universe Wendy Fitzwilliam hosted the event and top Soca Artist Machel Montano provided the entertainment.

Progress Report

Hey All,

It's been a while, I know. It's hard keeping a blog about progress when you think you are standing still but I had to fill you all in on the happenings. Well for those of you who read my facebook status, you know that I left New York Model Management. To some of you out there you may actually think that it is insane for someone who goes through an experience such as Make Me A Supermodel to get a contract with a reputable agency, to just throw it away after five months. Well the truth is I left NYMM on good terms. I made the decision for myself based on my experiences in the fashion world during those five months. I got the hint, the industry is more about sizing than it is about your look and I had to come to terms with the fact that I wasn't fitting any of the clothes, a sad yet true fact. I am happy, though, that I was able to recognize it now, reevaluate, and change course to a new direction where I feel I would be more successful.

Since I left NYMM I decided to get back to the stage, so I have been auditioning for Broadway as well as TV. Why do I love to pick these highly selective careers? Auditioning has been fun but landing a broadway show is just as hard as landing your first campaign but once you get in it becomes easier...or so I've been told. It's hard but I am still keeping Positive.

Sandhurst

Male Model Tips

Hi all,

I know its been a while but I am still alive and well.

Some of you may already be my friends on Facebook so you may have already seen my Male Model tips but I decided to bring them over to the blog as a fun entry for you to read.

Tip to Male Models - if you are going to remove the hair from your chest using hair removal creams then make sure there is enough in the tube for the entire chest and not just a thin layer. Trust me it is extremely embarrassing showing up to castings with a patchy chest, or so I've heard

Tip number 2 for male models. Make sure that if you use the bathroom before going into a casting, remember to pull ur fly up. It could become an embarrassing situation if you don't ...or so I've heard

Male model tip #3 when asked to do your run way walk in an extremely small room from the back wall towards the camera, please remember how many steps it took to get there. Walking into the wall can lead to embarrassing questions about your sobriety... or so I've heard Male model tip

#4 it might actually be a good thing to go into a casting with your fly down the embarrassing moment will keep you fresh in their mind and you might actually get a call back ... Or so I've heard

3rd TIME'S THE CHARM

Well it happened. It finally happened. Sandhurst Miggins is a signed model and with the agency that gave him his first rejection no less.

It's funny to think that a year and a half ago I walked into New York Model Management not knowing a thing about the industry trying to fulfill a dream. I had no pictures and no book and I was dressed in some of the most ill-fitting clothing that one could wear to an open call. Let's just say I wasn't a model that day. My hair had grown out of its borders and to tell you the truth I don't know what I was expecting them to say, all I know is on that morning of January 7, 2008 I was politely rejected by NYMM. Now some people may have gotten the attitude of "I'll show them" or "How dare they reject me" but the way they did it was so professional, almost kind, like they knew I wasn't ready and knew it was up to me to do my homework and prepare myself to try again. I left the agency that day determined to come back, well that was if the other agencies in NYC felt the same way. 

Most people know that it was when I left the building that morning, I first saw the promotion for Make Me A Supermodel season 1. Did I suspect that this new show would have a life changing effect on my life in just 6 short months? To be honest. No. I just thought it would be a great learning tool for me about the industry. I mean the male side of the business had mostly gone undocumented compared to the various shows promoting the women. Anyway after watching the first season it was time to try again. This time I was sporting a fresh cut. my clothes were perfectly fitted and my pictures were existent, though amateurish, but then again that is all I could get. I sat waiting in the reception area for the open call to begin, confident that today was the day that I would be signed. Out of the corner of my eye a figure entered the waiting area. It was David Ralph the head of the men's board, I had recognized him from the first season of MMASM and knew I had to impress him in order to get anywhere. He stopped for a cool second, looked at me for a moment and then returned to to the back where all the agents worked. At that moment I thought to myself "I had this." 

Two seconds later the agent conducting the call came out to meet me and the three other models who arrived earlier in the morning. I looked at one of them and thought he looked like me from January. He was Indian, his clothes were so baggy that it was hard to tell what his frame looked like. His hair was all over the place and he had no pictures and as he was politely rejected as I had been 6 months earlier I thought to myself  "Go home and do you homework" That day I had finally cracked the first barrier. They liked me. The liked my look and wanted to take more shots.  "This is it!" I thought. It was going to happen. As we began to take more pictures the dreaded question was asked. "How tall are you?" Now I knew I was taller than the standard but I had heard stories about the exceptions so I said it "6'3." That's when my second rejection happened. "Well we like your look but, we are going to struggle with your height but we will keep you on file if anything"

What was I supposed to do now? I couldn't change my height. This is the point where most would have given up but I just knew that somehow it could work for me. It would work for me. Later that month came the open calls for MMASM season 2 and I thought to myself "Why not and if this doesn't work out for you then it really wasn't meant to be" Well it was, Even while competing on the show I knew I had to perform well, just to impress Cory and David because if I didn't win the contract from the judges I knew I would be making my final trip to NYC after the competition ended to try one last time with the exposure from the show. 

Well I did it. I walked into the agency for the third time and had proven my abilities to the board. I had shown perseverance, maturity, and brute determination and it was finally time to give me a shot. 

Now today I rejoice as it has finally been made official but signing a piece of paper does not mean anything more than I am represented. It is time to get to work, to actually build a career and live the dream. Signing on the dotted line ended one phase of the process but commences another. Looking back on this past year and a half you really have to think that the saying is true 

3RD TIME'S A CHARM