Let's Try And Make You A Star!

It's been too long since we took a look at the audition notices and casting calls that flood my email inbox on a weekly basis.  There's always a call for leading parts, background actors, singers, dancers and extras.  The role that makes your career might be just around the corner.  I hope one of these roles is perfect for you!

*Can you play a horse-like nymph in a surreal desert landscape?  Looking for dancers to star in an epic fantasy film that will alter the fantasy landscape.

*Can you read scripts like Jimmy Fallon while looking like Brad Pitt?  Seeking male 21-35 for a series of instructional videos revolving around how to make socks.

*Moral, Upright and Chill 25-30 Male?  Do these words describe you?  If so, too bad because we need the opposite of you to play a grad student high on things other than life in our pilot.

*Twerking and rapping female law school student needed for reality show segment.  Must be between 21-24 with a small waist.

*Seeking connected producers willing to take a risk on a show broadcast directly from my brother's place in Heaven.  Non-believers can apply if you have the right connections.

*Looking for a lusty female of any ethnicity 37-49 to play the den mother to a college fraternity in a new comedy.  Must be comfortable with rough language and tight clothing.

*Nerdy and overemotional 18-20 male or female to play a overexcited high school student who is running for class president.  Must prove your nerdy nature with your wardrobe.

*Looking for the next Indiana Jones!  Casting now for a rugged Caucasian male 25-35 to set off for adventure in our film about exposing the Illuminati.  Must be willing to do own stunts.

*Are you a 25-30 female who looks like a teenager?  Casting now for a high school set film where all of the parts are played by post-college actors.  Looking to cut costs by hiring actors who don't need to have an on-set teacher.

*Seeking 35-55 female to play a multiple personality disorder patient.  Must be familiar with the condition.  Please have the condition currently under treatment if you have ever suffered from the disorder.

*Love your motorcycle?  Attached to your minivan?  Get ready to switch vehicles and discover how life rides on the other side.  Think "Wife Swap" with vehicles.

Think you fit any of the above casting calls?  Great!  You just might be a star!!!

My favorite teen actor had two auditions last week.

The Story Of A Hollywood Rat

We had a major scare last week when our dog badly injured himself at our home.

We had gone out for the night ("we" being the three humans that live here and one of Zach's friends) to have dinner and play mini golf.  (Yes, I know we're living the wild Hollywood lifestyle.  I promise we're trying to control ourselves.)  We returned home that Thursday night just before midnight to find Doc whining and unable to come downstairs.  After quickly realizing he couldn't put any weight on his leg, we raced to the 24-hour pet hospital in our neighborhood.

I'm sure the people at the hospital thought we were nuts because it was four people sitting in the waiting room worrying and hovering over the dog.  After an examination and some x-rays, it was determined that Doc had a severely sprained shoulder along with some abrasions on his paws.  He was sent home with pain killers and an order to rest for 3-4 days.

Picture this face with more whining.

One of the reasons we had an extra kid is the fact he was leaving Los Angeles for a few months. Many kids go back home to visit family and save money before pilot season in January.  He wanted to hang with Zach for a few days before he left town.  The only downside to Zach's friend staying with us was the fact he always left the door open.  

Front Door? Open.

Patio Door? Open.

Garage Door? Open.

No matter how many times we asked him to close the door, it somehow always ended up being open soon after the lecture.  We kept warning the kid that some outdoor creature might get in the house if he left the doors open.  He smiled but wasn't listening to us (typical teenager).  We live in an area where coyotes walk down the street, bears go searching for food in garbage cans and the occasional mountain lion decides to explore the city.  It never hurts to be too careful.

Between Doc, the extra kid for a few days and work for all three of us, we decided to stay home on Saturday night. Zach's basement lair is known as "The Llama Room".  It has a pinball machine, video games and tons of room for teenagers to hang out and do teenage stuff.  It also has a refrigerator full of snacks.  If it had a bathroom, we'd never see Zach for days at a time.

The Llama Room (refrigerator not pictured)

Zach decided to sleep on the futon Saturday night.  On Sunday morning, he told me the fridge was making an odd noise.  I was afraid the fridge was about to die but it turned out to not be the refrigerator.  We found small poop droppings under our pinball machine.

Uh-Oh.

Dana, Zach and I inspected the evidence and determined that the culprit was a mouse.  We searched all around with no luck.  Since we were dealing with a nocturnal enemy we decided to spend the day preparing to capture him.  

We went to Home Depot and bought some traps and spread them all around the walls of the room. Rodents like to touch something when they travel so we figured he would be touching the walls when he came out for the night.  We set the traps around 4pm and proceeded to wait for the results.

By 11pm that night, there were still no results.  The mouse was nowhere to be found.

I decided to play at being a ninja and went into the llama room.  I turned off all the lights (even my cell phone) and sat on the futon in the dark.  After about 10 minutes, I heard a scratching noise coming from the fridge.

I hit the lights and rolled the fridge away from the wall.  I got down on my knees and shined a flashlight into the bottom of the fridge to see the cute cuddly little mouse.

The mouse turned out to be about 8-inches long with sharp teeth, evil eyes and a long tail.  He looked like a long-haired cross between a rat and a possum.

We had a scary looking rat in the bottom of the fridge.

After letting out a word I rarely say (it has the letters "M" and "F" as it's main components), I called Zach and Dana down to the basement.  We discussed our options and came up with a plan. We would simply roll the fridge out the door and then coerce the rat into leaving it's hidey hole. Easy-peasy.

We confidently rolled the fridge to the door leading to the patio.  Of course, it was too big to fit through the door. Commence Plan B. I went out on the patio while they wedged the fridge into the doorway.  I clanged and banged and hit the back and bottom of the fridge to try and get the rat to leave.  

He didn't move at all.

All of this was happening around midnight.  Quiet hours in our building start at 10pm so I'm sure the neighbors were loving the noise.

Since I couldn't get rid of the rat, Zach climbed over the fridge in the top of the doorway to come out on the patio.  He proceeded to help me hit the poor machine over and over to try and dislodge the scared rat.  He was not leaving his hiding spot.

We were wrong.

The next thing we knew Dana was screaming and jumping up and down in the llama room.  The rat tried to make a run for it through the bottom of the front of the fridge.  We could also hear Doc going crazy outside the closed basement room door.  We closed the room so the "mouse" couldn't escape and Doc couldn't enter to get his paws in the traps.

This is the face I imagined outside the door.

I jumped over the fence and ran around to the front of the building so I could get in the basement with Dana.  I ran in the room to discover her standing on a pillow that had a rat underneath it.

We had one final chance to get rid of the rat.  The first part of the plan was to open all of the fence gates behind the various town homes that lead to the sidewalk.  Back inside the llama room, I proceeded to count to three.  On three, I leaned the fridge towards me on its side.  Dana then proceeded to kick the hell out of the pillow which sent the rat flying out the (now) open door.  Zach took the broom and, just like a hockey player, nailed the rat and sent him flying through the open fence gates towards the street.  

The rat landed on the sidewalk outside our building and took off running.

We spent the next 15-minutes doing high fives, throwing away a box and rearranging the room. Afterwards, we walked to our neighborhood diner to celebrate our victory.  Plus, we were all wide awake after our adventure.  We also discussed the marks on the front of the fridge and then the events of the past few days started to connect.

• We got home and took a look at the front of the refrigerator.  The marks on the front of the fridge matched Doc's paws.  The abrasions were from Doc clawing at the front of the fridge.
• We took a look at the box we threw away before we left for the diner.  It had a poop present from the rat.  
• The box came with the extra kid we had with us for a few days.  The box came from the home of one of the friends of the extra kid.  The rat hid in the box and ended up in our place as an extra guest (thanks to our regularly scheduled guest).

So putting together all of the clues:

• The extra kid brought in the box on Thursday afternoon.
• We left to play mini-golf on Thursday night.  
• The rat decided to explore his new surroundings.
• Doc spotted the rat and took off after him.
• The rat ran for his life and ended up under the fridge.
• Doc clawed and scratched at the fridge to get to the rat.
• Doc injured himself trying to protect his family.

Our hero.

Our home is now free of the rat, the extra kid and all of the pillows in the llama room.  The room has been sprayed, cleaned and sanitized after our unexpected visitor.

I wonder if there's a blog in the world of rats where he tells his version of the story.

This actor nailed our visitor just like a hockey player.

The Language Of Being On A Set

Whether you're working on or visiting a movie set, it's helpful to understand the language spoken by the film crew.  Both movie and television sets are filled with cast and crew running around using phrases that are generally known only to those who work in the industry on a daily basis.

I write a lot about actors and their work process on sets.  It's time to spotlight the language of the crew behind the movies and shows you enjoy watching.  Here's a (not so complete) list of the language used on sets:

• Back To One - When the director calls for "back to one, he's telling the actors to return to their first position in the scene.
• First Team - The main actors in a scene.  When they're summoned to set, the Assistant Director calls for the "first team".  The stand-ins and extras are the "second team"
• "Eyes On" - Spoken when a person or object is located on set.  For example, "I've got eyes on Zach Louis" has often been heard over crew radios.
• Magic Hour - The magic time not long after sunrise or shortly before sunset when the sunlight is not as bright and harsh as the rest of the day.  It's also the time of the afternoon when crews are scrambling to get their last shot before the sunlight is gone for the day.
• Turnaround - The amount of time off guaranteed for the crew thanks to the various agreements made by the unions.  It guarantees a certain amount of time off between shooting days.
• Last Look - The last look starts right before shooting begins.  It's the moment when the hair and makeup people double check the actors to make sure they look exactly as needed before the director yells "action".
• Flying In - Sometimes a piece of equipment is needed immediately on set.  The crew member bringing the required equipment is said to be "flying" it to the set.
• Strike The Set - Once the crew is done with a certain part of the set they are asked to "strike the set" and put away the props not needed for the next scene.
• Hot Set - Filming is active on the set.  No one should be walking around the active set while the crew is busy working.
• Raise The Stakes - This is the director's way of saying to make a bigger deal out of the scene. Increase your energy and take your performance to another level.
• Find More Peaks and Valleys in a Scene - Sometimes a scene just isn't working.  The best directors don't tell an actor how to play the scene in order to get a different take.  They tell the actor to "find more peaks and valleys".  By letting the actor determine the flow of the scene, the peaks and valleys will come naturally to the actor and the scene.
• Print - The director uses this phrase to state which take of a scene is to be used in the film.
• 10-1 or 10-2 - The phrase used to signify when someone is going to the bathroom.
• Mark - A spot on the floor marked by an "x" that tells the talent where to stand so they will be in line with the camera.

The world of film is filled with tons of inside words and phrases.  The above list is just the tip of the iceberg.  Let me know if you'd like to see a follow-up post to help make sure you're able to talk like a pro on movie and television sets.

This actor speaks "crew speak" as well as "teen speak".

Some People Are Actors While Others Are "Actors"

If there's one thing you can say about Los Angeles, a good majority of the people living in this town are actors.  Some of the folks who claim to be actors are really nothing more than "actors".

What do I mean by "actors"?

There are a lot of residents who claim to be working actors but they're more actors in name and not in everyday life.  I don't mean that every person who says they're an actor needs to be someone you see on TV on a daily basis.  I guess the easiest way for me to explain the difference between actors and "actors" is to break down the various types of acting careers to be had in Hollywood.

• Big Time Movie or TV Star - Constantly hounded by TMZ.  The kind of actor that makes good (but not always great) money and enjoys a level of fame that involves being recognized by the general public.
• The Second Bananas and Secondary Characters - Never the lead in a movie or TV show.  They are able to make a full-time living being an actor.  If they're lucky, they get one spotlight episode per season as part of their TV gig.
• Part-Time Actors - The folks that work anywhere from a couple of times per month to a couple of times every six months (or so).  They might land some background work, a commercial or  even work as crew members on a low budget shoot. They have another job besides acting to help pay the bills.
• Background Actors - Some actors work almost exclusively as background talent.  They are able to find work on a set but, for various reasons both in and out of their control, they are unable to get their big break.  There's a big need in Los Angeles for background actors so a person who has good connections can end up making a decent second income as a background actor.
• The "Actors" - The people who talk the talk but don't ever walk the walk (act the act?).  They make connections and have opportunities but always seem to have a reason why things don't work out in their career.  "That part was too small." "The director and I had different visions for the role." "That part isn't right for where I am in my career at the moment."  They like to talk about being an "actor" but they never take any concrete steps towards being an actor

Once you make the decision to move to Hollywood, it's your choice to be an actor or an "actor". There's no shame in not reaching your goal as an actor.  As shown above, it's possible to stay as active as you want in this industry.  The big question you need to answer for yourself is:

What kind of actor are you going to be?

This teen is still discovering his full potential as an actor.

Memory...All Alone In The (Something Something...What's My Next Line???)

One of the main skills an actor needs is the ability to memorize the lines in a script.  Once you're in front of the camera, you won't have the script in front of you.  You'll have to know your lines by memory and be ready to perform.

The ability to know your lines and work without a script is known as being "off book". This topic is on my mind because Zach is waiting for a new script via email this week.

There are a variety of ways to learn your lines that don't involve sitting in a room and talking to yourself.  Here's some different techniques to help you keep from getting bored and disconnected from the material:

• Record your lines - One of the beautiful aspects of modern technology is the ability to consume media anywhere at any moment.  Record yourself reading your lines and then listen to the recording in the car, at the gym, walking around the neighborhood or cooking dinner.  You'll be amazed at how easily you'll retain the info even when you're handling other tasks.
• Run lines with other actors - It never hurts to have another set of ears when running a script. Your scene partner might have some insights into the script you missed because you've so close to the material.  The person running the lines with you can handle reading all of the stage directions out loud so you can focus on your lines.  Also, it never hurts to see how your take on the scene plays with an audience (even an audience of one).
• Practice the first two or three words of each line - Think of this as a mental shortcut.  Knowing the first few words of each line will help jog your memory because you've created a mental index of the order of the lines as well as the next set of words in the lines.  You're not necessarily skipping any important dialogue as much learning where everything goes (and in what order) in the script.
• Don't learn all of it at once - Depending on the size of your part, learning your lines can be a very daunting prospect.  Break the script down into sections and then memorize the various parts at different times of the day.  After you've memorized everything, run the entire script from start to finish.  Not only will you know your entire part, you won't be as mentally fatigued from learning everything at once.
• Write down your lines - Are you a visual learner?  It might seem like extra effort to write down your lines while studying them from a script where the words are already written down in front of you.  This technique can be a huge help for actors who are better at learning from visual cues.  The act of writing down the words helps you learn the rhythm of the scene.  Should some of the lines all run together in one big paragraph?  Or should each line be separated so you decide when to take pauses in your line readings?

The art of memorizing lines is not one that has an easy solution that fits every situation.  Mix and match the above examples to find out what method works best for you.  You'll enter each audition with more confidence because you won't have to worry about remembering your lines.

Break a leg and book that part!

This actor has a new script to lean later this week.

Now That You're An Actor, Are You Happy?

Let's take a moment and review the common fantasies of being an actor:

• Big part on a hit TV show
• Movie star
• Award winner
• Adored by the public
• Rich and famous beyond your wildest dreams

While some of the above items might not be in your personal dreams of being a successful actor, many people want most (or all) of them.  Will achieving those dreams make you a happy person? Will you be fulfilled by your chosen path? How can you tell if you're a happy actor?

1. Do you have a life beyond acting?

Acting is a wonderful way to spend your days.  One of the main reasons aspiring actors become disgruntled with their craft is a lack of outside interests.  If all you focus on is the next audition, writing a script or what roles other actors have landed, you will quickly burn yourself out on any enjoyment of your craft.  

Venture outside the world of acting by getting a day job, volunteering with a charity or playing sports.  It will help you appreciate the time you spend on acting even more than you did before you found outside interests.

2. Do you still enjoy watching other actors?

Everyone has a favorite TV show.  Most people enjoy going to the movies.  For an actor, watching other actors can be a big clue in determining if you're happy as an actor.  Do you view the work of another actor with envy since they got a part you really wanted or do your eyes light up while you discuss what great work they did and how much fun certain scenes must have been to film?  

You don't have to be excited each time you watch someone else work but it is a telling sign if you can't identify things you can learn from the work of others.

3.  What's your reaction when it's time for an acting class?

Are you happy to be going to class?  Are you not prepared and dread having to perform in front of others?  Do you look forward to supporting your classmates?  Are you counting the minutes until class is over?  

If going to your acting class is more of a chore than a happy occasion then it might be time to reconsider you passion for your acting career.

4.  Is it still an adventure?

Think about all the times your family has asked you the dreaded question, "When will I see you on TV?"  You can also use the word "movie" in place of "TV".  It's a question asked of almost every actor.  You can answer it by mumbling a vague answer or fill them in on your adventures.

Tell them about the time you had to make up bird calls in an audition.  Share the story of being in a creepy house in Illinois in the middle of the night with no running water.  Make them wonder why it was fun to go through a drive-thru window with fake blood all over your face while you acted like nothing was wrong.

Share the adventure of your journey with your family and friends.  The realization that you're experiencing moments that others can only dream about helps keep many actors happy and energized on their journey.

5.  Are you thankful?

While you might not have landed that big part in the Spielberg movie, you did get to audition for the role.  That's an opportunity that thousands of other actors did not get to enjoy.  

Step back and take the time to appreciate what you've been able to experience so far in your career. Keep the highs and lows in perspective and your overall happiness with what you've accomplished (so far) in your career will be easy to maintain on a regular basis.

Lilly Pulitzer once said, "Being happy never goes out of style."  Are you staying in style by remaining happy and positive about where you're going or are you focusing on what you haven't achieved and letting it drag you down?  

The answer to that question might be the answer you need to determine the future direction of your acting career.

This actor has plenty of funny audition and acting stories.

Welcome To Hollywood! How Are You Going To Earn A Living?

The actual act of moving to Los Angeles to chase your acting dream is one of the easier parts of the acting process.

Or to put it another way...You're taking a leap of faith and betting that your acting skills will make you stand out from everyone else fighting to achieve the same dream in the entertainment industry.

Once you arrive in town the next question is...What are going to do to earn a living?

Most aspiring actors will respond to the question with "acting".  That's a great idea but not an easy thing to make happen when you first move to Los Angeles.  Lucky for you, there are many job opportunities for struggling actors that leave you plenty of time to take classes, attend auditions, etc.

Here's just a few of the ways you can earn a living while pursuing your dream:

• Bartender/Waiter - It's a Hollywood cliche but it's true for a reason.  Most auditions take place in the late morning and continue until the late afternoon.  Landing a nighttime job in a restaurant or coffee shop leaves your days free for auditions.
• Freelance Writer - Craigslist is a great place to find freelance writing gigs.  While you might not get rich with these jobs, the money does add up to help pay the bills.  You should try to find jobs that pay by the article and not "per word".  You'll do a whole lot of work for next to nothing if you get paid by the word and/or per word count. (Bonus points for you if you have SEO knowledge to offer along with your writing skills.)
• Event Marketing - Being an event marketer can mean many different things.  The job title can cover anything from being an event planner to doing live demonstrations at Costco to dressing up as a character at birthday parties for kids.  It helps to keep your options open when you enter this line of work.
• Telemarketing - Many telemarketing jobs have early morning shifts that allow you the freedom necessary in the afternoon to attend auditions.
• Retail - Flexible hours which allow for time to audition and network around town.
• Video Editing - Have some editing skills on a computer?  Help your friends make their demo reels at half the price charged by professional production houses.  You'll be surprised how quickly it can become a profitable sideline job.

The list above doesn't include the dozens of other money making ideas such as dog walking, tutoring, house sitting and being an Uber driver.

I'm not saying it's easy to find the perfect job that allows you complete freedom to perform, network, audition and have a flexible schedule.  Once you find a paying position, it's up to you to make the position work for your lifestyle.

Just consider your future position the first step on your journey to a successful acting career.

This Thespian Is Paying Some Of His Bills With Acting Jobs