Keep Your Eyes Open

I've been an actress since the sixth grade. I got my start in musical theatre playing "Dorothy" in The Wizard of Oz as my very first character role, followed shortly thereafter by the lead role in Annie. I've wanted to walk the red carpet ever since.

Thanks to a fantastic drama teacher and coach, Mr. Morris Cornell, I learned the theatre ropes at an early age, and still keep his insight into acting and career professionalism instilled in me today. Because of his teachings and his faith in me, I have continued along this path not often taken in my "neck of the woods" (a very far reach from L.A. or N.Y.C.) and would like to share a bit of wisdom I have learned about my chosen "profession" as it were.

Breaking into this industry takes training, determination, talent, and let's face it -- luck. The best way to get "Lady Luck" on your side is to keep your eyes open. You've heard the phrase, "You never know where your next job is coming from." Well, keep your eyes open and you'll see opportunities open up around you.

Local news:
I was watching the local news one night and they had a story at the end of their newscast about a local director who had just completed his first film. I called the TV station to get his information and they gave me his website address. I looked up his website, wrote down his address and sent him my headshot and resume with a letter saying I had seen his story on the news and would love to be considered for any future projects. He called me back a few days later to say that this recent project was his first and that (because I have had actual experience) he was afraid his small little films wouldn't be my cup of tea. I told him that was fine, I liked working on all kinds of projects (even the independent, non-paying kind), and he said he'd keep me in mind. Well, the next summer he did do another short film and used me in a role that had no lines, but I was an integral part of the storyline. I was the comic relief. It was the first time I had ever done comedy and I found that I really enjoyed it.

He liked my professionalism and willingness to adapt on set, so he wrote another short film (comedy again) called "Norma" and gave me the leading role. It was great fun and really gave me a chance to flesh out a comedic character. He entered it in festivals, and it won several awards. Since then, he has gotten more serious about making great films, and we've established a great working relationship. I've now been in a total of five of his films so far and these films have given me great material for my demo reel.

Through this connection, I've also gained the experience of being an assistant director on one of his films, the make-up artist for the lead "undead" character in that same film, and I even co-wrote a screenplay with him that was adapted from a novel written by a local writer. All great things to have on my acting resume. All because I saw a story on the news and made a phone call.

Acting classes:
My husband knows I like to act. He was talking about it with a co-worker of his a few years ago and she told him about an improv class she heard of taking place at an ad agency here in town. She said that it was a free class held every Tuesday night for two hours and they provided pizza too. My oldest daughter was two years old at the time, so I looked at it as a couple of hours to myself in a creative environment (and free dinner to boot).

When I got to the agency, I found out that the first hour was spent auditioning for their clients' radio scripts, which changed weekly depending on what their clients needed. The second hour was spent either recording the client's radio scripts, or for those who weren't selected, the time was spent doing improv and improving each of our skills. This turned out to be an amazing learning experience. Not only did I get a chance every week to audition for clients, I got to exercise my creative and improvisational talents (a must for aspiring actors). We weren't paid as talent if we were selected to record the spots, but they fed us pizza, and we got copies of those radio spots for our voice-over reels. It was a win-win for everyone involved. They got free talent, and we got free training and experience we could carry away with us. I have several years' worth of voice-over and improvisation experience thanks to them, and to my husband who likes to mention that I'm an actress to his co-workers.

The agency disbanded the improv classes a couple of years ago, but because I have a previous relationship with them, they now call me when they need female voice talent for their clients. The best part -- I now get paid for recording their radio spots and TV voice-overs.

Online casting calls:
[Let me preface this by saying that you should always be careful before responding to online casting calls. Please use your best judgement. If something sounds fishy, or charges money just to get the information, or doesn't provide enough information and leaves you with too many questions, please beware.]

I am a member of several acting websites that host my headshot and resume and list local casting calls where I can look for acting work. I found a listing on a different acting website (that charges money) posted by a couple of local directors looking for talent for a special contest called the "48-hour Film Festival". It's held all around the country, and there was one being held close to my hometown. Since this listing was on a site that charged money, I did a web search for this festival and found it's official webpage and a way to contact my local coordinator. I sent him my headshot and resume and asked if he knew of any directors who were looking for talent. He sent me an e-mail back saying that he had forwarded my info to all 22 teams participating and wished me good luck. The next day, I had two calls saying they would like to use me, and within the next week, ther were five other teams who sent me e-mails asking me to be a part of their team.

The way the festival works is that each team assembles on Friday night at 7 p.m. and they are all given a character they have to use, a prop that has to be visible, and a line of dialogue that must be used in the final 5-7 minute short film. Then they have 48 hours to make a film -- meaning script written, locations secured, scenes shot, film edited, music laid in, and final product delivered by Sunday evening at 7 p.m. It's an absolutely crazy event, but I have to say that participating in this festival was a blast. Not only did I gain the experience of making a film at lightning-speed, I worked with new contacts in the local film industry, and I went to the screenings of the other 48-hour films and networked there as well.

Commercials/Media:
So I was watching TV one day, shortly after Christmas last year, and I saw a commercial advertising a national contest that would fly weekly winners to LA for their big break. "Just download your video, and you could win a trip to LA to meet with casting directors, recording companies, dance studios…" I have always wanted to go to Hollywood and see if I have what it takes to run with the big fish. So I uploaded my video and strong-armed all my family and friends to keep voting for me week after week, and on week #9, I got my big break. I got to fly to LA and audition for a terrific casting director and got amazing new headshots taken so I could really set my career in motion. BigShotLive.com provided me with a fantastic opportunity and I am very thankful and grateful to all the people I met there during that surreal and career-changing experience.

All of these aforementioned opportunities happened because I was open to looking for them. Becoming a "star" even in your own local market takes hard work and vigilance. The choice roles won't be handed to you on a silver platter -- you have to network, and research, and put in your time, and slug through some trenches. So keep your eyes open and reach for the stars (not literally, of course -- celebrities get restraining orders for that sort of thing…).

See you in the bright lights!