The Secret Of Theatrical Space

. . . A New Series of Career Development Workshops for Actors

Just west of that city block long neo-gothic work of crisscrossing iron girders (the Port Authority Bus Terminal of New York City), The DRAMA BOOK SHOP on W. 40th street, has started holding monthly workshops on the various aspects of the business of acting: $20-$30 for two hours -- perfect: inexpensive and just enough that I can easily absorb in an area I find dauntingly large/overwhelming.

Today was: Effective Pictures and Resumes:
Panel:
Casting Director, Andrea Shane, Shane/Goldstein Casting
Agent, David Krasner, Bloc NYC
Photographer, Jared Slater, J & J Photography
Make-Up Artist, Jeanne Slater, J & J Photography
Resume Consultant, Annie Chadwick, Up-To-Date Theatricals

A career consultant, casting director, agent, and representatives of photographic services specializing in, or exclusively devoted to, headshots, comprised the informal panel. Very interesting -- it's all part of something one can't really know enough about.

Some role definitions:

Agents - (the first order sellers) represent and recommend actors to...
Casting Directors - (the second order sellers) who decide if an actors is right for a role based on their resume and headshot (and agent recommendations). They are the audition "gatekeepers," scheduling actors in auditions for...
Directors and Producers - (the buyers). They hire the actor (pay the casting director for their service), and the agent gets 10%.
Actors - products/commodities.

Some observations -- Resumes:

1. Assume a person looking at the resume will only give it 30-40secs.
2. Therefore, put the most memorable/impressive performance credits right at the top, shows and roles likely known to the person (agent, casting director, director)
3. Training - best/most interesting/impressive training only : performance credits take precedence.
4. Special skills - anything and everything interesting and potentially useful: surprising number of casting decisions in TV and film are made from the "special skills" section, e.g., one casting director was hired for an action game project where all the computer animated characters would be based on motion capturing actors in various scenes and scenarios. They needed anyone with military training, and so this casting director pulled up all her files w/anyone said they had military training, and all where hired for this very high profile, well paid professional job.

Idea: Summarize/highlight the most important/impressive credentials right at the top of the resume. This should be in an area of focus (e.g., theatre, or film), perhaps followed by a secondary area of focus, followed by training, i.e., a "mini-"resume right at the top.

In sum: the resume should reflect 1) who I am, 2) what I do best, 3) what I'd like to be doing . . .

. . . This above all: to thine ownself be true (Polonius, 1.3, Hamlet).

Some observations -- Headshots:

The headshot artists had a lot to say, but they kept coming home and hammering away at the following points:

1. Find and interview photographers with whom I feel very comfortable.
2. Bring in lots of outfits, 4-6 changes, but everything should be personal, clothes that mean something to me. Personalize everything.
3. Know myself, know my "type." This is what I want to project. This is the basis of casting.
4. Don't' go cheap. Be prepared for a session in the range of $400-$500, but only every few years.

Next Month (March): Mailings & Contacts

Last Sunday and today, workshops that have focused again on the business side of acting: while taking advantage of the type of opportunities discussed in these seminars is for me (relatively) far into the future, I'm definitely interested in 'advanced' topics that interest professional working actors.

Last Sunday, a session at The Drama Bookshop covered: Self Promotion. Where to Begin & How to Keep Going...

Panel: Casting Director Kristine Bulakowski, Kristine Bulakowski Casting
          Agent Phil Cassese, About Artists Agency, Inc.
          Career Consultant, Annie Chadwick, Up-To-Date Theatricals
          Henderson Mailing Labels, Sue Henderson

These workshops, organized by Annie Chadwick, have been excellent, especially for a beginner: well organized, highly informative, positive, common sense and good advice that's clear and practical. There were several components to this seminar that I found quite helpful:

Interesting . . . Ways to promote yourself (to agents and casting directors):

• If I'm in something, announce it, but use targeted mailings (I'm not exactly sure of the calculus that produces good targets, but this is the idea).
• Keep in touch (again, pick my target's well) with creative, 'eye-catching' post-cards.
  (NOTE: these two method are used to create repeated exposure of oneself to agents and casting directors, so that you become familiar to them in case something comes up. Over and over again, knowing your type, targeted mailings and target exposure is stressed over and over. This is the marketing end of the business, and however it's done exactly, every working actor today does this).
• Networking: if, if an fellow actor has an agent, and if they like you and your work, and if they seem receptive to the idea, one could ask if they think their agent would be a good fit for you.
• EPA -- Ah, Equity Principle Auditions: something I did not realize until last Sunday was that non-union people can audition for EPA, but you always have to wait until the end (i.e., last person) and only if there's time. Even if the show is already cast, the real opportunity is 1) more audition experience 2) Go, Be Seem. (But the monologue and/or cold read skills need to be solid). So there is some risk here, i.e., you don't want to make a bad impression, but it is a calculatable risk.

A question again was ask about "type," and this led to an interesting discussion:

One way to "discover" one's type is to watch film and television -- which "characters" resonate with me, which could I see myself playing. Not a perfect guide, perhaps, but this method could definitely uncover some clues.

Another way happens to kill two birds with one stone: in between jobs, the down times, stay ready and stay primed by studying (this is why professional/working actors are always studying -- acting's there business, and they stay in shape). Ready-to-go is also where you want to be when opportunity knocks. The other advantage of this, (and for me, this gives me some focus of the type of training I'd like to have) is to work on and keep alive a few things things that are really fun and interesting for me (e.g., Warren Leight's Stray Cats). This is actually an excellent idea, and it can help me to discover:

1. What's unique about me.
2. Really understand the "package" I'm selling (someday) to agents and casting directors.

Today, keynote & Guest Speaker Glenn Alterman was part of an Acting Career Seminar with an agent and a high energy casting director, actor, and audition coach (Craig Lechner) uptown at Micheal Carson Studios on West 54th Street, just north of Times Square.

Glenn is a very talented guy: writer, playwright, screenwriter, actor, monologue coach, and career development expert. Once again, the best, the absolute best training in acting seems to be in New York City.

I've been reading several of Glenn's excellent books on auditioning and the business side of a profession in the arts, so I won't repeat anything in detail here. However, he gives great advice, probably the best beginners and seasoned professionals will find anywhere, because not only does it apply to career development, it could just as easily apply to life and personal development.

Some points:

• Be Pro-active, take a chance, have fun, do your best, and then . . . just let it all go
• Know what I want.
• Focus on that.
• To be a working actor: it's all about marketing and focus: the most important step is to find/discover (create?) my type. All else, type of headshot, which audition to submit for, will follow from this.
• Interestingly, when casting directors look at a resume, then first look at the actors training rather than their credits . . . I'm not sure what the logic is, but I'll need to see if I can find this out.

He also spent a great deal of time on monologues -- but that's for tomorrow's entry.

The Mayor's Office of Film, Theatre, and Broadcasting tax credits has made the film and television industry the fastest-growing employment source in New York City, creating 10,000 jobs over the last year and pressuring California to consider similar incentives.

Central Casting celebrated its 80th year in Hollywood by opening a second office in New York City on April 17th 2006. They're registering all types of talent: Union, Non-Union Adults as well as Children. Most of the work I'll get will be non-union background, but there is work in commercials and featured background roles.

I am now registered with Central Casting New York City.

I'll get work two ways: 1) there's a hotline number (updated daily) that I'll call. It will list all available work. If something sounds like I'm a good fit, I'll be put through to a casting director who'll look at my resume and headshots and they'll decide whether or not to book me. 2) Central Casting will do some casting footwork on their own, and they'll call me if they think I'm a good fit for something. Central Casting will also let me update my digital headshot once a month, if needed.

We'll see what adventures await! Thank you Michael!

Walls and Faith

We had an interesting conversation last night in class about the frustrations of working and working and working and feeling that NOTHING is working, e.g., we're not getting cast, we don't feel we're getting any better at what we want to so desperately get better at, and in those times, I always try to rely on a couple of insights to help me get through those frustrating times:

The first is a very short story about perseverance that I heard long ago, and it's always made sense to me.

Second, and definitely related, is the "punctuated equilibrium" theory by the great American paleontologist & writer, Stephen Jay Gould. It's a new and now widely accepted theory of evolution that basically states that change, evolution, is not smooth and continuous but instead is a process of nothing happening for a long time, and then suddenly, you get a big change

It turns out this idea is also a great model for just about any type of complex system that evolves and grows, from businesses, to technological breakthroughs, economics, our careers, and -- I suspect -- to artists trying to grow in their craft.

Perhaps 99% of the time, it always looks, in the moment, like "nothings happening" (in the sense that we don't feel a big jump forward), but this is the difference between appearance and faith: it looks like you're not getting anywhere, but you have to have faith that you are -- because it's true: you are.

Alan Nusaum, Founder and CEO of TVI Actors Studio, has a great blog, actor-preneur.com, that focus on the practical side of acting, the business side.

A few days ago, he posted an article about how the beginning of an acting career is like a "start-up," and how a start-up is more likely to succeed if you commit to a "failure is not an option" mind set.

Actress Leslie Becker, another successful business person, gives exactly the same insight and advice about identifying and committing to those things you know you need to do to succeed. Realize that certain things ARE non-negotiable.

Work at Deborah Carlson's Word of Mouth @ A/C Studios is starting to pay off.

As part of my plan to earn my living (or a good part of it anyway) by acting, I auditioned for Ray, one of the talent agents at Actor's Reps Of New York & Lost Angeles, Inc. Because I'm non-union, they'll cast me mostly in background/extras parts (in my book however, that still a paid ACTING job), and with a little luck, maybe some under 5's, which would be great!! Actor's Rep gets a 10% commission of any work they book for me.

Anyway, Actor's Reps require a cold reading, a monologue. It's really an audition to see how you handle text, how you cold read. For a non-union person like me, they really just want to meet me to make sure I'm not (too) crasy -- nevertheless, I took the reading seriously. After the reading, he said "who ever you're studying with -- keep studying with that person. That was a good reading."

That was a great compliment because I'm sure the very short 30sec monologue is something he's heard 1000s of times -- and he's been in the business for 32 years!

Actor's Reps deal with both union and non-union talent. Their their main objective is to help the "start up" actor.

I'm a novitiate, a beginning actor, and I've been putting more time into learning about the business side of acting, and I want to comment on how important is to recognize your true opportunities, and to be grateful for them.

A while ago, this empty-headed post appeared on the BackStage.com community message board:

For all of you newbies here are some names for you to stay away from. These people have scammed and scammed over and over again. They will not pay you, or they will charge you to be part of their company or they will tell you that your pay is one amount and pocket the difference. They will always tell you to make sure your vouchers are filled out to their companies: {names and casting agencies removed}. There are some more. Keep these names on an index card with you at all times. Do not get caught up in their scams. NO JOB IS WORTH it!!! Believe me then you are known as one of their people!! (oh your one of their people) Go ahead next time your on a set mention any one of their names and see what type of feed back you get, YOU will BE surprised!!! Good luck to all of you. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!!

I was shocked to see this -- First: it's NOT TRUE. It's simply not true. Period.

Second -- The Mayor's Office of Film, Theatre, and Broadcasting tax credits has made the film and television industry the fastest-growing employment source in New York City, creating 10,000 jobs over the last year pressuring California to consider similar incentives.

There is right now, today, more opportunity for New York City actors to make a living then ever before, and Actors Reps, Extra Mile, Divine Management, Dorothy Palmer, Desiree Agudo, Stanley Kaplan provide a critical, necessary, and invaluable service to the New York City acting community.

I was so angry when I saw this posting, that I replied on the community message board, and I'd like to give my reply a wider audience here:

A while back I wrote a post titled Attitude Is Everything, and I'd like to hand the ball off to Christopher Stadulis who I met during call backs for The Upside Down Mirror.

Christopher Stadulis epitomizes the beginning actor who "gets it," and who has the necesary winning attitude:

Rejection doesn't prevent me from moving forward, it only strengthens me as I feed off of it. I am passionate and dedicated about my craft and career. I don't believe in waiting for my BIG break, I believe in creating it! For me, success is not how much money I can make but how much of an affect I have on people when watching me perform. I have a responsibility in telling a good story. Having an audience connect, relate, feel the emotions I am experiencing as I take them on my journey, are very gratifying for me. To me, that is success. If I accomplish that, then I have done my job. In addition to being a Firefighter & Actor, I am a Father, Husband & caretaker for my disabled mother who suffers from Multiple Sclerosis. People always ask me how have I accomplished so much in being an Actor for only 3 years and having so much on my plate. I tell them it's about having a balance, staying focused, dedicated and very hungry towards becoming a TRUE Actor. I am a firm believer in doing something productive everyday towards my career, shaking as many hands as possible, always maintain a professional positive attitude and understand that this is a business. I am the CEO of my own business and should always showcase myself in the best possible light.
~ from www.myspace.com/actingsuccess

Check out his career and life advice articles and writings on his myspace blog . . . (you need to have a myspace account to read them):

Through my facebook account, I was virtually introduced to the Artistic Director of the Collective Theatre's Group 2 Theatre Acting Workshops NYC. The classes are very inexpensive (I have to interview, possibly audition, to get into the class), and I liked their tag line: Its about the craft first, then the business.

It's close to my own: It's about the craft AND the business as I've decided to focus on both at the same time (i.e., training, actually working, & focusing on Acting As A Business, all at once), despite my fears and inexperience . . .

Dear Reader of The Secret Of Theatrical Space,

        This blog has now qualified to become a member of Smorty, blog for money -- from their web site: Smorty is a bridge between bloggers and advertisers. Advertisers start campaigns with us and we deliver them to the right bloggers for publishing an opinion on their Blogs.

In short, I'll get paid to blog by 1) advertising on this on blogs and 2) by writing about what I think various products and services have to offer my readers (artists, actors).

        So -- an experiment in Capitalism, and a way to continue to indirectly support myself as a actor, but in a way that's is directly related to, and definitely part of, that main goal. Smorty will point me to products and services that are targeted to readers of this blog, and I'll do my best to point out their value for you from my perspective, as someone living in New York City and learning to become a better and better actor.

       A second, and almost even more important, reason for doing this (though it's great to get paid for my time) is that one of my goals is to become a great commercial actor -- because it's fun, and it pays, and what Smorty is asking me to do is write my own commercial copy!

      So -- the benefits of Smorty for me and you: 1) you get to read about products and services that I hope will be of interest to both you and myself, 2) In addition to learning how to handle commercial copy in front of a camera, I'll now get a chance to apply what I'm learning as a commercial actor to writing my own commercial copy, and 3) . . . I GET PAID!!!!!

     Money is definitely not every (or the only) thing, but it is definitely ONE thing -- it's a hell of great motivator.

I just auditioned for membership with One on One. Like Actor's Connection and The Network, they function as middlemen between actors (sellers) and casting directors, filmmakers, agents, managers and producers (buyers), but their audition process is not just a formality.

I was rejected, but they invited me to try again, and I thought I'd share the feedback I got -- feedback I found constructive, solid and professional.