Hey guys & gals!
February 2015!? WHAAAAAAAT?! Things have been picking up lately. 2 auditions today! That hasn't happened in a while for me. I haven't been one of those actors that's blessed with multiple auditions a day or a week for that matter. But I am starting to see that shift, finally. The past few months besides the Holidays, I have been getting out for commercials more than ever. I would like to think it's something I have control of, but if you have been pursuing any creative career there are sooooo many factors which are out of our control. College Degrees don't necessarily matter, internships aren't the way to work your way up, but connections and relationships do, HEAVILY. It doesn't even matter if you have representation or not if your Reps don't have relationships with people who can help you get seen for work. Luckily, I have spent time in multiple areas of this business. Some days I can get down on myself thinking I have wasted a lot of time in casting or assisting someone and let myself lose focus on my career and that's why I don't have some of the credits I would like to have by now. I could even use that excuse and put the blame on romantic relationships I have had, that were definitely cause for distraction. AT THE END OF THE DAY, That's on me. There is no room to be victim or blame circumstances outside of myself, and the truth is if I haven't had those experiences I wouldn't be the person or the actress with the knowledge and depth that I have now. PERIOD. And doesn't that give me a little bit more of an interesting story to share than being a trust fund kid using nepotism to get jobs. Hey, I would take that fate, and enjoy the easy ride, but I will no longer allow myself to think my path was wrong. I am where I am. And it's proven to be a pretty good place. Because I have really good trusting relationships with others. Most projects I shoot now are by invitation from people I have worked with before, most of my commercial auditions are from my boss at a casting company I work with part time. I finally found a manager through a mutual friend who has the same goals for me as I do for myself. And has been sending my picture out to all the shows I would love to work on.
The only thing I can control in life is me, my reactions to things, my thoughts about things, my focus, my distraction, my gratitude, my preparedness, the lessons I learn, the opportunities I recognize and my attitude from day to day. I don't have control over whether my face is the perfect face for someone's project, and there are a lot of actors who change their features to try to be. If I were to ever do that it would have to be to create the perfect face for myself because any time we choose to make ourselves change for others only, it is bound to be met with disappointment or regret and resentment. That goes for anything in life, doesn't it? All I can do is do what I do, look the way I look, and trust that if it's meant for me it will be. I can give it a little bit more of a magically nudge with my visioning and affirm my belief in myself that this or something better is for me, and I have actually booked jobs that way believe it or not.
2 Lessons learned and nuggets I would like to share with any other actors. First: Sometimes we don't see ourselves the way others do, and it's okay to ride that wave to see where it goes. I wouldn't cast myself as a mom, because I am not one, I think of myself as more of a wacky aunt yet a few of my more recent auditions are showing me otherwise. I just booked a commercial that I will be shooting this month as a MOM. So yes, I do have that in me. Why not embrace that, and get paid for it?! So last night I went out and bought a few "mommy shirts" at Target so I will feel more like that character when these auditions pop up. Second: DON'T take Sudafed before an audition, unless you are auditioning for a drug addict role, haha, because it made me really jittery and you never want to come off nervous in an audition or look like a coke head for that matter. My sinuses were clear but it didn't help me feel grounded. Hopefully it wasn't noticeable to anyone other than me, but the camera usually sees all. So word to the wise, stay clear until after your audition.
Here's a nice little send off from my college professor Jim Beauregard that brightens my day when I hear it from him! And I would like to extend that favor.
You're #1, stay wonderful!
xo-me
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