Comments on: Acting Advice From A Professional Me

By: dancemonkey

dancemonkey — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 17:07:39 +0000

Thanks Hugo, that’s what a terrible self-promoter I am. You didn’t even know I had my own blog.

Thanks for commenting too, now go out there and be the best yourself that you can be!

By: Hugo

Hugo — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 08:31:20 +0000

Hey Drew! You have a bloggy sitey thing! I didn’t know! I only follow you in responses on Yuri’s blog or formely at http://www.breakaleg.tv (why am I plugging that?-habit I suppose) Thanks for the insight, its probably more important than all the acting theory and the insider tips for actors looking for commercial work. Me and my girlfriend who has spent considerable time in LA rap about the industry and generally end up ranting about what we think the machinations of casting, directors, and actors are about. We generally agree that trying to be a more relaxed, genuine and less narcissistic person will only make you more, not less desirable to work with. I think this goes with acting theory hand in hand actually– so much of pressure put on actors in the substance of acting is to transform into someone else, to embody the character, the put on layers of: voice, characterization, intensity— instead of viewing it from the angle of discovering who you are, uncovering yourself, using all of yourself in a role, finding what you have in common. And why ever did you cross out that trauma bit???

By: dancemonkey

dancemonkey — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 22:39:34 +0000

I became an actor for the same reason most men become actors: to get close to ~~other dudes~~ chicks.

Classes? I would say yes, but then I don’t take classes so it’s easy for me to tell you to take them. In general I’d have to say acting classes are necessary and desirable, I just always found myself getting bored and would just stop going. So to save time I just stopped signing up.

Agent? The short answer is send them your headshot and resume and cross your fingers. The better answer is to know someone who’s already represented, get them to put in a good word, and be creative. DON’T just send in your headshot and resume and cross your fingers, in other words.

That’s pretty much good advice for getting any job or foot in the door at some place or other, isn’t it? Be creative, use whatever advantages you can scrape up, and don’t take no for an answer.

LA? Moving to LA depends on whether or not you want to make a living at being an actor. That said, I think something like 99% of “actors” in LA are waiting tables, so who the fuck knows? At least in LA you have the sheer volume of opportunities to get work: theater, commercials, soap operas (don’t snicker, it’s hard work and it pays tons), and of course pilot season.

In SF we have a lot of industrials and a few commercials, but of course we have FAR fewer actors cluttering up your audition waiting room. To put it into perspective though, where would I be if I had moved to LA fifteen years ago instead of SF? Either rich and famous, burned out and on drugs, or shooting porn.

Or yeah, maybe I would have just quit and moved back home to Monterey, there’s that option too.

The real deal is that LA is a much more likely place for you to catch your “big break”, because more people are looking for the Next Big Thing. In San Francisco they’re looking for the guy who will say their ad copy in a little moving postage stamp-sized video window on their client’s internal website, not the next What-The-Fuck’s-His-Name-From-Twilight.

I can honestly say though that the only thing keeping me in SF right now is Yuri Baranovsky. And my family. And my job. And the fact that San Francisco is a much more pleasant place to live. And Yuri. And my awesome apartment.

By: Yuri Baranovsky

Yuri Baranovsky — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 19:35:58 +0000

Good post, Drew!

Tell us more! How do you become an actor? What do you start with? Are classes necessary? How do you get an agent? Do you HAVE to move to LA? So many questions…

By: Sina

Sina — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 15:32:06 +0000

Amen