Not Getting Seen, Not Getting Cast: A Message to Actors

I recently posted on the Bitching Post section of Audition Update in response to all the frustration I was seeing in the posts on the site about the current audition season. I received such a great response to it that I decided to re-post it here in blog form. If you like it and you know someone who needs to hear it, please pass it on.

In light of the frustration that is almost palpable lately, I would like to give you all my humble opinion. I know how hard this is. Every actor on this page knows. I often see the Union vs. Non-Union divide being illustrated on Audition Update, but I am here to tell you that it is frustrating no matter what your union status. My site is not a site for non-union actors. Nor is it a site for union actors. It is a site for ACTORS.

People look up to actors. They do so because they recognize in them the part of themselves that they wish they didn't compromise, and for one small moment, they are once again dreamers. Look at the face of the out-of-towners and how they light up when they find out their waiter is an actor. That happens because no ever grows up dreaming of being a customer service representative. Each and every one of you has done something so extraordinary. You closed your eyes and you leapt. No safety net, no parachute, you just jumped and you had faith that you would figure how to fly on the way down. The problem is that you SURROUND yourselves with others just like you and so you lose sight of how special it is because the people you are with every day are just as brave. What you have to remember is that most of the world is not like that. Most of the world is not that brave. That sort of bravery is EXHAUSTING! It depletes you physically, mentally, and spiritually. YOU NEED TO TAKE A DAY OFF. You need to not only rest, but to recharge you soul. If you don’t, there will not be much of a soul to bare when you eventually do get on stage.

There is a huge difference between skipping an audition because you are being lazy and skipping because it is what your art needs you to do to be better prepared for the next opportunity. PLEASE stop beating yourselves up over taking time off. And if you are beating yourself up for not getting seen, for God’s sake, I say take a day. Feed you spirit. We have all been where you are. We have all sat on those benches. Take comfort in knowing you are merely warming the spot of the person who will sit there after you and you are just there waiting to fill the seat ahead of you.

Stay strong, stay brave, and please remember that nothing worthwhile was ever easy. If nothing else, please know that I respect you all for what you put yourself through, because I have been there myself.

How Social Media Marketers and Actors Are the Same

“Successful people do what unsuccessful people are not willing to do.” – Jeff Olson

 You have probably asked yourself this question. Am I doing everything you can for your acting career? And you have probably answered it saying:

I got my headshots.

I look over Backstage weekly. 
I check and submit to the online casting sites numerous times a day. 
I am at Equity calls at 6am and wait all day to audition.
I am rehearsing for an Equity showcase play.
I am taking an acting class.
…a dance class.
…an on camera class.
…a casting director workshop (apparently called seminars in New York)

While all those things are necessary, and you should be doing them, the problem is the rest of the actors are doing the exact same thing.  I was in a low-budget feature film and during the cast party I was sitting with the producer asking him about his process from start to finish in creating the film. There were two leads in the film and about six major supporting actors.  He said for each role he had about 2000 headshots. Television casting directors say that they get between 1500-1900 headshots for a one-line co-star role.  So you say you submit online for roles, well so are the other 1999 actors that fit that role.

The question becomes, what are you doing that those other 1999 actors are not doing? What are some things actors do not do regularly?

Send a thank you card after every audition.

Have a regular mailing schedule to industry professionals.
Mail something other than an 8x10 headshot and resume.
Maintain a master industry contact list.
Be of service without expecting anything in return.
Commit to the profession longer than a few years.
Create Target lists.
Build relationships with producers and directors.
Consistently read the trade papers (not Backstage)
Commit industry professional names to memory (and I don’t mean the big names)
Do Drop-offs.
Have a long-term plan of attack.

Do you notice something about this list?  None of these activities will directly get you a job.  What they will do is help you build long-term professional relationships.  And relationships are worth more…in the long run.  That is the key…the long run.  If you can’t see your career past the end of the year, then you will never get to the second list.  If you have goals for your career 5 years or 10 years from now, you might some of those things to your daily actor to-do list.  This mind shift change automatically takes your craft into a career.  And once you are in a career mind set you can look at other people and how long it took them to get where they are at.  As other small business owners that are successful.  How long did it take them to get where they are?  My guess is 10-15 years.  But they were hustling the whole time and thinking long term.

So you want to know how social media marketers and actors are the same?  Watch the below video from Gary Vaynerchuck and every time he says social media marketer, replace it with actor. Here is a hint: Don't act like a nineteen-year-old dude and try to close too early.

http://www.youtube.com/embed/Wovzuy7Jxgw



Dennis Baker is an actor, teacher and web developer based out of Los Angeles. He is also the owner of Website for Actors, where he writes about the business at WFA’s Biz for Actors Blog. You can find him on twitter, @dennisbaker.