To Act or Not to Act?

I have no interest in acting as a career choice for myself, but I did get to hear some advice from a professional actor during an enrichment class. Deidre Goodwin was her name, and she had just finished... something... yeah, my memory of the specifics are bad. Anyway, she essentially had the following advice:

1) Move to NY. If you plan to act professionally, you need to be in an area that hires people to do so. As far as I know, Chicago also worked, but I think I remember her saying NY was where she loved to be.

2) Start by looking for auditions, and go to as many as you possibly can. Having an agent makes this part easier, as they can find them for you and get you the scripts so you can spend more time practicing, but you can still make it without one.

3) Don't be afraid of being told no. It will happen a lot, and there's nothing you can do about it besides get up the next day and continue auditioning.

4) Make connections, and keep them. The connections you make with casting directors, choreographers, etc. will be key to getting early notice about closed or quick auditions. Obviously, this is difficult to do before getting your first part, but once you do, keep making and keeping connections.

That's what I remember her saying. As a side note, don't ever rule out the practical life. If you try acting professionally and your vision of it doesn't match the reality of it (and you dislike the reality of it) then stop and move on. With a poli sci major, you can do several different things, and having the acting experience could add a lot of flair to your resume/CV. Good luck on acting! I hope you get some advice from others who are more knowledgeable, and are able to fulfill your dreams!

 

All I have to say is hats off to you my friend...I would have loved to act or sing but pressure from people forced me to go into something more 'practical.' And I hate it.

 

As you're presenting it here, I see no reason for you to not at least try.

So try it. See if you can get some gigs and build a reel, and see if you can make a go of it, and see if the doing is everything you hoped it could be.

If it works, that's awesome! If not, then you have another major you can try to parlay into a more practical gig.

 

Well theres no way at achieving anything without giving it a try. Not one mainstream actor would be where they are today if they didnt even try. If this is your passion then follow it.

 

I'm not an actor but I plan on being one when I get older. I would imagine it would probably take a while for someone to get a good job, or famous. As far as finding a good agent try to avoid paying them in full before any work gets done. Also I wouldn't be gullable to easily manipulated but that's all I know currently.

Go for your dream good jobs, or anything you want for that matter, will always be hard to get.

 

I'm in the same boat as you my friend! Want to act, the only support I actually have is from my boyfriend, who is going into photography so there is the slight difficulty of both of us wanting to go into things that aren't as practical as say, medicine, public relations, w/e

 

You have a dream, Pursue it they are always very rewarding and make your life happy. Do not let anyone tell you that you cannot reach your dream.

 

Hi there. I'm not an actor, but I am planning on becoming a performing artist (an opera singer). The first thing I notice about your post is that these two are not mutually exclusive. To be honest, it sounds like you're depressed and this is reflected in your thinking. One of the hallmarks of depression is something cognitive therapists call "all or nothing" (or "black or white") thinking: basically, you tend to see things in an either/or light: "Either I give up acting completely and become a corporate drone, or I go balls-to-the-wall and become an actor even if it means starving."

The reality is that most actors, musicians, and other performing artists these days need to have some sort of "day job" for additional income, at least in the beginning. I have one. All my singer and actor friends have one. (Look here for an interesting list of Academy Award winners' "day jobs.") It's not that bad and can even be quite rewarding if you plan right. The best approach is to have some sort of qualifications so that your day job doesn't suck: in other words, you want to make sure you won't be waiting tables until you're 40, or working intellectually deadening temp jobs, or call center positions, or whatever. My best advice is to aim for the business world: a job that doesn't require too much of you emotionally or physically (you don't want to be zapped of energy at the end of the day before you head off to an acting gig), but also offers some degree of stability and satisfaction. There are plenty of jobs of this ilk out there. They tend to have nebulous names like "managing developmental coordinator" or somesuch.

Law school and medical school require a HUGE monetary, time, and emotional commitment; they're not things you just jump into because you feel you "should." Unless you want to be a lawyer just as much as you want to be an actor, law school is not really a realistic option for you. Law school sucks and you have to be willing to put up with that intense degree of suckitude for three years or else you'll flunk out. Good law programs are designed to weed out all but those who are most committed to that career path. Business school is probably a more appropriate choice (and your political science major would fit in pretty well). Alternatively, you could do what I did and get a Master's degree in something like marketing, information technology/computer science, applied health physiology (<- that was my choice; I now work as a part-time science writer and work in physical therapy/personal training).

As for the first steps in making it in the acting world, my best advice is to talk to people in the business. Find online forums/message boards for working actors, ask professors/fellow students/alumni, etc. The reason you don't see anything on the horizon is likely because you haven't yet formed a realistic idea of what you're facing other than thinking in very broad terms ("I want to be on Broadway/on television by this time two years from now" etc.) Gather information, build up some stage/screen experience (look for internships/summer programs/volunteer opportunities around your university and off-campus, etc.) and you will gradually have more and more of an idea of what the acting world is really like. Opportunities will present themselves to you one by one, and you'll have some tentative idea of what steps you'll need to take to get into certain gigs in the future.

In conclusion: Follow your dream, but focus on turning that dream into something more earthbound and tangible. Make provisions for the inevitable "day job" but don't feel like you have to deny your love of acting.

 

You need to start out by getting a job even if you don't intend to keep it. When you're just starting out acting probably won't be enough to put food on the table. You can always leave your job later to focus on acting if you have some success.

 

Whether you take a logistical, mathematical, scientific or even a Freudian stance; the answer is always going to be ACT!

Every reaction comes from an action!

If acting is what you truly want to do, then I suggest you do it. A person can't be happy in life if they don't enjoy their career!

In regards to acting, I an offer very little advice sorry.

I used to work casually as a booker for a modelling agency, so I'll try some advice from the similarities between modelling and acting.

1. Not only should you never take someone saying 'No' or criticism to heart, no matter how harsh, you should seek it out. But never just leave it at 'No', ask why and LEARN.

2. Accept criticism, because you'll get a lot of it. Don't let it get you down, learn from it.

When I was working, every day I would tell people 'No, I will not sign you to our agency'. This wasn't because always because they weren't attractive, not because they didn't have the right look or body or experience, sometimes it was just because there was someone slightly better, their look wasn't in demand, or we simply had no need for them.

3. Never say no to an opportunity. Theatre, film, TV, commercial, promotion or stage, whether you're into it or not, every performance/audition increases the worlds awareness of you and your connections.

4. Volunteer, volunteer VOLUNTEER. As long as you can keep food on the table, every spare moment should be given to volunteering to something, ANYTHING acting related.

Don't bother with an agent yet, IMO, make a name for yourself, even if it's just smalltime, before that.

What I would suggest though, is join Entertainment Centre troupes. They're not acting troupes, which are often selective, they're the people the run and maintain the venues for performances. Often, they're the first and best step for good information on auditions and good connections.

 

DON'T THINK! When you grab that handle, don't pause, just walk in. Don't even think about it, just do it.

 

Be careful though, just remember that IF an agency asks you for money, walk away. NEVER pay for representation, they get 15% of whatever you make. Now the ones you went to sound legit, asking for headshots is more than fine, but if they ask to pay them for said headshots again be careful. Good luck though!