Tag Archive for: acting

What to Know When Working with a New Rep…

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Getting an agent is just the entree into your new experience as a represented actor.  If you’ve followed the steps laid out in the last two posts(1) and successfully secured a rep(2), you now have new responsibilities.

I know a lot of actors who unfortunately leave their career in the hands of their agent thinking that they can rest, and other than a quick “touch base” here and there to remind their rep that they are around, do, well, nothing.  Your job in marketing your actor services never ends and now is the time to ramp up your own efforts because you are represented and part of a team.

Here are some guidelines to help you stay top of mind in your rep’s thinking and assist them in getting you in the door for more opportunities. Your goal is to have them happy to work with you over the long term and you them:

COMMUNICATION

  • Ask how often and the best method to be in touch – then do it. When you haven’t had an audition in a while, don’t assume anything.  Have a way of being in touch that works for both of you. Email?  Text?  Call?  When?
  • Respond to calls/emails for auditions immediately. This is PARAMOUNT.  Even an hour’s delay is too long. Confirm or ask for a reschedule if needed.
  • Be as available for auditions as humanly possible.  Tell them (book out) when unavailable. A huge pet peeve (that’s putting it lightly) is when you’ve finally been called in by the CD for an audition and you forgot to tell your rep you’re on vacation this week.  Booking out, even for a day, is necessary, as cancelling auditions makes both you and your rep look unprofessional in the CD’s eyes.

EXPAND AND GROW

  • Network and meet casting directors, directors, writers and producers every way you can. This is a continuing process and includes you announcing to your list of these industry contacts that you have new representation through email, postcards, social media or all of the above.
  • Inform your agent and/or manager who you’ve already met in the industry who knows you, your name, your skill, etc. for more leverage. Make sure they know who you are already connected to.
  • Be engaged in education, training, research and development for your business constantly. Every business person who is in business (that’s you if you haven’t figured it out by now) is always learning what’s new in their market to stay with or ahead of the curve.

INVEST IN YOURSELF

  • Become a wealthy artist instead of a starving artist or a “just getting by” artist by putting 10% of all income aside to consistently invest in your show business career.
  • Create a budget for your show (craft training) and another for your business (marketing expenses).  Then stick to it come hell or high water!  No money, no marketing, no business. Game over.
  • Spend your time, energy, effort and money on result producing products and services. Classes, marketing tools, online submission profiles and more are essential and keeping track of what you spend money on that works is too.

HAVE A PLAN/STRATEGY

  • Failure to plan = Planning to fail. When choosing to become an actor for a living, you weren’t thinking of it not working out.  Having a plan will create a path to your dream career.  Not having a plan keeps it a dream.
  • Make long term and short term goals with specific with dates and numbers. Measuring and monitoring your efforts and seeing what you’re doing that is effective and what is not will show you what and where to correct…and when to stop or continue.
  • Create quarterly written business plans with benchmarks in time.  Review weekly. Take out the mystery of your career progress.  What you focus on expands (The Law of Attraction).

Working well and in tandem with your rep will propel your further faster when you employ the things laid out above.  You want that right?  I enjoy your comments on my posts and would love to hear you share your thoughts, especially if you are currently represented.  Did you learn something new?  What will you begin today?

Interviewing with Your (Potential) Talent Agent – What to Prepare Before your Meeting

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Securing representation during the interview process should be your goal.  “Of course it is” you’d say to me, but I can’t tell you how many actors I’ve met, either interviewing with me or being coached by me, that have no idea if they have a rep by the time the meeting is over.  So here are some more steps to consider before, during, and at the end of interview process to be sure.  And to secure that YES!

FIRST BUSINESS, THEN SHOW

  • Do extensive research on both the agent and the agency (or management co.) before the meeting. I often asked actors I met while working at 90210 Talent if they did any research on me before the meeting. 95% said no. The few that did had my immediate and full attention.  Not because of ego, but because I was looking for someone who was business minded like me who would take their time to see if we were aligned.
  • Treat the interview like finding a life partner. Ask the most important questions first. Ask questions about some of the things you found out about them in your research.  Be more interested than you are interesting.  Trust me, this works!
  • Have basic knowledge of the shows and projects their current clients are in.

DISCUSS MUTUAL GOALS

  • Know in advance the answer to “so where do you see yourself a year from now?” Be sure, clear and concise.
  • Make sure you know the medium you’ll mostly likely make money in quickly (i.e. commercials, theater, independent film)
  • Talk just as much about financial goals as artistic goals.

WHAT YOU OFFER VS WHAT YOU WANT

  • Let your potential new rep know what you are doing on your own to make money acting. The thought that you can’t make money until you get a rep is backwards, especially in today’s open and internet driven marketplace.
  • Have your speaking illustrate what your acting provides other people’s projects.
  • Be confident in your value, artistically, financially and as a creator.

TEAM MENTALITY

  • Realize they need you as much as you need them. You’ll be working together.  A rep doesn’t work for you and you don’t work for them.  There is no “I” in team.  So cliché but so true.
  • Let them know that will be continuing to do your own work for audition opportunities. This is more than simply taking classes in your craft. They want to know what you’ll be doing to continue to market yourself via networking and meetings.
  • Relate to them as your equal and ASK them to be your representative.

This last part is the missing link – the ASK. There’s a lot of fear around this and I want to alleviate it by saying that if you think and feel it was a great meeting and that you are mutually aligned on most if not all aspects, the rep will feel it too! If they haven’t already offered to represent you, do NOT walk out of the door without asking this question.  Instant respect, whether it’s a yes or a no.

If during the interview process you know in your gut that something isn’t aligned and that you have missing pieces to fill in or that you and the potential rep don’t have the same perception of what you offer or what’s possible for your career to mutual benefit, you’ll know this too.  TRUST your GUT!

In my next post I’ll offer even more things to consider while working with your NEW REP to keep you top of mind, in step with your rep, all the while keeping inspired enthusiasm for your new partnership, even though they will have moved on to find their next great client.

Comments?  Care to share?  Please do!

Why Do You Want an Agent?

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We all know we want and need one, but what’s the real reason behind having someone in your court, fighting for you too?

You get to be one of the talented actors that has a committed partner in your career.  You won’t be on your own anymore.

You’ll gain access to those awesome casting directors and auditions that you otherwise wouldn’t. Stepping up a few rungs on the ladder to reach your dreams happens quicker because you’re part of a team.

The feeling of success that comes from working side by side with your agent towards a common vision – your vision – is realized.  The right agent is a faster track to you making a living with your passion and art.

Your resources and relationships will instantly expand.  With your combined network of influence you’ll experience the “whole being greater than the sum of its parts”.

Generally your casting opportunities for roles that are a pro-fit will increase. No guessing or submitting to any/every audition possibility on every on-line casting site.  You and your agent will have discussed and targeted the roles you’re most likely to book and are appropriate for.

Your agent will “push” for you when needed and get “feedback” on why it didn’t work out when it doesn’t.  Not all the time, but certainly when it counts the most.  This will speed your career up because you can correct and continue and learn how to make it better for the next audition.

Yep, the benefits of having an agent are plentiful.  Keep your eye on the prize and go after the kind of agent that you deserve!  Study them and choose wisely…they are not “one size fits all”.  Remember a pro-fit means PROFIT!

And up next – What’s in it for them?…YES, you want to know this too!

Feel free to comment and let me know personally WHY you want an agent!

What Does it Take to Get and Keep an Agent?

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When I was doing my live version of my most popular seminar on “How to Get and Keep an Agent”, I’d open with these questions:

“How many of you are currently looking for an agent?” and 70% to 80% of the actors would raise their hands. Then I’d ask “How many of you have an agent, but you’re looking for a better agent?” and most of the remaining hands would go up.

THEN I’d ask “How many of you are here for the ‘how to keep’ part?” And usually one person would raise their hand and often no one at all.

You know what that tells me?  You have an agent problem.

At 90210 Talent I worked with actors that I had never seen perform live in anything.  Yes I watched some demos to get a sense of what their talents were but for the most part I was looking at marketability (more on that later). Talent is in the eye of the beholder and very subjective.  We all have different points of view.  So if you think your talent is what is going to get you an agent, that’s a mistake. But I digress…

I’m simply making the bold statement here that what you think you know about getting (and keeping) an agent isn’t true.  It’s just what you think is true.

This is the part of the process I love to teach the most!  Your breakthrough in securing the right representation for you has less to do with your talent and more to do with your thoughts around what it takes to get one.

I’ve discovered a pretty pervasive scarcity mentality, an adversarial mentality, and worst of all, a hopeless mentality with regard to pursuing agency and/or management representation. This isn’t true for everyone of course, but if you have any negative emotion around gaining a rep or working with your present one, then keep reading this blog on what it’s gonna take for you to flip that switch.  What switch?  The thought process you have around what they’re looking for, your approach and responsibilities, and what it costs in terms of time and money.  Trust me, it’s a LOT easier than you’re making it!

After almost a decade of delivering this course in many formats the problem I’ve determined that most actors have is NOT how to get an agent but how to ATTRACT the right agent for them.

So how do you attract one? Stay tuned!

Your Agent Has Feelings Too.

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Remember how crushed you were when you had 3 callbacks for that pilot, were the first choice of the CD and the director, but lost the part to that name actor at the last minute? Sooooo crushed. Well your agent was crushed, too and that was the fourth time that same thing happened to one of her clients this week.  

And then it was that Network National commercial that she had two clients on “avail” for and they both got released, losing the booking. She talked each of those clients off the ledge, just like she did for you, while at the same time submitting on the breakdowns, closing deals for other clients who did book, and saw 8 new prospective clients at interviews.  She’s holding it together, but she’s ready to crack. Cut her some slack and know that she’s doing her best.

The greatest feeling for any representative is when you book a job. My highest highs when working at the agency were when the call came from casting with an “avail” for one of our actors, then waiting with great excitement and anticipation for the booking call to come. However, when I got “release” emails, or if casting actually took the time to call (rare), my lowest lows were when they didn’t book it.  I felt every bit of it, and then I also felt it again when I had to tell the actor. Talk about a roller coaster.  

I believe everyone is always doing their best and I want you to believe that about your agent too. Your agent is a person. There are emotional, financial, organizational and scheduling aspects to her biz that inform how she operates. She’s got a boss and co-workers, and then at home, her kids and dogs and a husband and, oh yeah, the gym and the book club.  Who am I kidding? There’s no time for a book club or even a book for that matter!  Again, being a representative is hard.

I know you want your rep to believe in you, take care of you and be interested in your dreams. But you believing that an agent lives to make your dreams come true is just plain stinkin’ thinkin’!  She is not responsible for your happiness or your success.  It’s her job to make her own dreams come true and it’s your job to tirelessly and passionately make yours come true. Choose to believe that the work, the marketing and the mindset is ALL ON YOU!  Taking control of your work (craft/business/networking) and being responsible for your own career happiness will have your agent calling you!  And doing all of these things to begin with, before you’re represented, will most assuredly give you your choice of agents and managers to work with.

Feeling good now?

To Your Success, Lisa

Are You Really Hearing Clearly? Communicating with Your Rep.

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My agent just doesn’t “get me” is a phrase I’ve heard a lot as a consultant and now since being in the shoes of representation I can honestly tell you why.  Ready? Your agent most likely doesn’t speak your language.

Though some representatives come from an acting background the majority have not, and chances are your agent isn’t in a weekly acting class. (By the way, you are, right?) No, she spends her evenings on the computer till midnight, because the breakdowns come out at all hours.  And I do mean ALL!

While many agents have great instincts about actors, they may not speak a language that suggests that they understand your artistic process. So, don’t expect them to. When they offer a note about your performance that may seem insensitive, don’t take it personally. Transform it into something that helps you grow and expand as an artist. And if it’s not helpful, just chalk it up to “their opinion”.

Again, and I’ll keep saying it over and over, agents are spending 10 or more hours a day on their computers, on the phone, sending email messages and making submission notes, all in service of getting you IN THE ROOM. When you call to talk to them in the middle of all that, don’t expect them to be super sensitive to the creative and delicate artist that you are.

I think folks loved having me work with them when I was at the agency because I was an actor/singer for 35 years (still am!) and could relate on that level and did take the time to consider their feelings.  But I do that as a general rule all day every day with everyone I meet!  Except the guy that cuts me off on the 405 at rush hour…I’m only human!

That was the saddest part of my leaving…a loss of that relationship for both of us.  However my clarity around what makes me happy on an on-going basis and the courage to choose my happiness above all else is what ultimately brought me back to what serves a much larger audience these days.  And I’m grateful to you for being a part of this community and reading this right now.  Thanks for letting me be me!

To Your Success, Lisa

Is Your Agent Cheating on You?

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Yes, your agent has other clients. Deal with it. Your agent would go hungry if she only had you as a client. She has to have “everything on the grocery store shelf” to have the best shot at making a living.

One of the fun parts of searching for and finding new talent is creating that awesome stable of actors with unique talents and skills that cover all of the possible casting needs in this crazy industry. We need one or two in every category.  Age, ethnicity, male/female, union and/or non-union, height/weight, languages, special skills, and every possible saleable commodity is needed so we can provide our shoppers, ahem, casting directors, with what they need. So when your phone call/email/text (pick ONE please!) isn’t returned right away, know that there are at least 20 other actors who are also demanding attention.

Again, I share with you that my love of actors and people in general was also the thing that had me leave the agency.  I was inundated with communication at all hours of the day and night because I didn’t set the proper boundaries I needed to have my own life work. This was a very valuable lesson learned for me and let it be one for you as well.  Please realize that while your focus is on ONE career, yours, your rep’s focus is widespread, on MANY others…it has to be. Give them the space and time to respond.  Here’s a great communication guideline to use:

  1. URGENT – Immediate (or within the next couple of hours)  – CALL them

     Examples:

  1. Car broke down/running late to audition
  2. Last minute accident or injury
  3. Having you sign something weird on set/at an audition

 

  1.  IMPORTANT – Something today – TEXT them

     Examples:

  1. Audition follow up – how it went/info
  2. You sent an email that you want to call attention to
  3. Checking in from set/audition and need something

 

  1.  INFORMATIONAL – Something this week – EMAIL them

     Examples:

  1. Recommendations for classes, photographers, etc.
  2. Review of new headshots or other marketing materials
  3. Invitations to performances

In my next post I’ll talk about not just the when, but the HOW to communicate clearly with your rep.  Stay tuned.

What are your thoughts on being “part of many”? Do you feel you’re on the inside; part of a team; listened to? Comment and share!

Your Agent Isn’t an Angel

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OK, by saying your agent isn’t an angel, I’m not disparaging their mood, mode or how they operate. What I’m trying to say is that your agent is not here to save you!  

Many actors suffer from the notion is it that it’s the agent’s job to dust you off, polish you to a brilliant shine, and escort you to the promised land. The belief is that the agent does all the work.

In fact this was MY mistake when I took on working with 90210.  Inherently the coach and teacher in me kicked in and I was spending an inordinate amount of time getting the talent I inherited and brought in by the last agent working there into what I considered to be “fighting shape”.  Polishing up their online profiles, telling them the best classes to take that would mean something on their resume and sending a lot of inspiring messages to prop up feelings of doubt, took time away from the most vital aspects of being a representative…submissions and bookings.  

I realized that even actors that are represented didn’t really know a lot about business and marketing and had the thought that it would and should be my job.  They’d do the “show” and I’d do the “biz”. And I was facilitating this…big mistake on both of our parts!

I had seen it for many years when coaching actors…this persistent thought that there’s someone or something outside of you that has the power to make dreams come true with little effort or output from you, and once you find that person, you’ll be rich and famous. But then it was “theory” and here it was in practice, evidence of this insanity.  I drove myself insane too, then I stopped it at the behest of the head of the agency.

I want to let you know that during my tenure there I had actors who never got an audition at all.  I was submitting them a TON and the CD’s weren’t calling them in.  Not because they weren’t talented (how would they know?) but because the materials I had to submit with weren’t viable and requests for new headshots or media on their profiles, updating resumes and other requests were ignored or took months.  I pushed the buttons knowing that they’d never get in the door…and it was a very disturbing place to be in.  Since I left, I’m fairly certain many of these actors have sadly been dropped from the roster.  A very avoidable situation.

Getting an agent doesn’t mean you’ll ever have an audition and it certainly doesn’t mean that you don’t have to do most of the work in getting opportunities yourself.  Leaving it all up to your rep is folly. You have to be in classes, write/shoot/produce/direct your own material, put up a play/Youtube video/Facebook live and get yourself out there. These days you have to work harder than your agent. Training in class consistently, creating your own material constantly, and doing whatever you can to engage with other artists is essential to your craft and your career. You have to give your agent the tools to sell you. Relying upon anyone other than yourself is career suicide. Giving up your artistic and professional responsibility to an agent is a grave error that too many actors make. Do the work and make your agent catch up.  

Stay tuned for more “insider” info in my next post.  To Your Success, Lisa

Aaaannnnnd Scene. Why I left working at the talent agency.

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After teaching so many actors for so many years “How to Get and Keep an Agent” my first reaction when I was invited by the head of the agency to train in the commercial department of 90210 Talent, and then take it over, was a resounding NO. My almost 2 decades of being one of the owners of Actors Connection prepared me for what I knew was going to be starting another new business. My gut instinct was in play and since my coaching/consulting company, Act Outside the Box, was doing great things with all of the insider info I now had, I felt it might not be the right move.  But after several days of thinking about it and conversations with the head of the agency, he convinced me to “try it on for size”. So I decided “why not”?

I took the opportunity to expand into what I thought was the natural progression of my own career – to become an agent.  Seemed like a good fit, but it actually wasn’t.  Here’s why…

I quickly came to realize that I liked, and was great at, HALF of the job. 

The part of the gig I loved was what I’d already been doing as a coach and marketing consultant, however the other half was being at the effect of outside influences that truly sapped my physical time and emotional energy.  These days, being an agent means being constantly tethered to a cell phone, computer screen and clients, casting directors, and crowds of other people (actors seeking representation, production folks with details for bookings, contract info, the union and the list goes on…) in a 24/7 business that never stops demanding attention.

First and foremost, I teach people that if you’re not enjoying what you’re doing and pursing your passion, move on…and fast!  Life is meant to be a joyful endeavor and we spend a majority of it at work, so you have to love your job.  Being an agent is hard work and though I’m one of the hardest workers I know, I soon knew I’d dug myself a hole that I had to get out of because I didn’t enjoy this kind of hard work.

Now don’t get me wrong, there are plenty of people and plenty of agents who thrive on this constant activity and do LOVE the fast pace of technology, but there are just as many others who are getting out of their line of work because they started out when the industry was quite different.  

As a coach and consultant, I have always had a huge respect for agents and have taught you that, in most cases, they work much harder in service of your career than you think. And in many cases more than you do. Yep, I just said that.  Working at the agency, I unhappily found that last statement to be true.  

When I realized that I worked all day, every day, in service of actor’s careers and that most of my clients did not treat their own career like they were actually in a business, I knew I could serve a LOT more actors by giving them yet another perspective on getting and keeping a rep. 

My thoughts about what the job would entail and what it actually was were very different and I’m going to share in my next several posts everything I learned so that you’ll have all of the vital and important information you need when seeking a rep or working with the one you have now. Stay tuned.

To Your Success, Lisa

 

Raise Your Vibration – Energy is Everything!

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Your personal energy is an extremely powerful thing that surrounds you all the time. It is everywhere and is a core part of us but most people don’t know how to manage it for their benefit. When I took a course years ago hosted by T. Harv Eker of Millionaire Mind fame, he said “Everything is energy and energy is everything”…and along side that he also said “The way you do anything is the way you do everything”.  So in my putting two and two together, I read into it that your energy determines the way you do things in the world….well duh!

I’ve noticed that a lot of people (actors) don’t even know that their own personal energy is directly related to their career milestones.  I’ve often heard people say of me that I have a ton of energy.  Well let me confess now that it almost always created, doesn’t come “naturally” and I have practiced generating it for years.  So to folks who don’t see me in the morning after a late night out, or after a full day leading a seminar when I am spent, I say to them…I created it and you can too.

Your potential as an actor lies just as much in your learning to manage and increase your personal energy as it does in your talent and skill set.  Honestly, what good is having all that talent if you don’t have the energy to market yourself, go to auditions or class, or muster the physical (and emotional) energy to STAY in this business through the many obstacles that WILL present themselves?

I’ve been working with vibrational energy a lot recently in conjunction with a good friend who has created a business all around raising one’s personal energy to increase the global energy on the planet.  Raised Vibration uses the acronym VIBE…Visualize, Intend, Believe and Experience.  I won’t go in to that too much here, but suffice to say, being AWARE of your personal energy and how you affect others with it, and how you are affected by the things you see, hear and think, ALL make a huge difference in the outcomes for the goals you have in your personal life and career.  Your personal energy is what allows you to live the life you desire and deserve.

The idea that energy can move and create is nothing new. Throughout history, different cultures have
benefited by tapping into and working with different forms of energy.  Eastern philosophies and practices that have seemed “mystical” are now much more accepted and common.  Holistic methods of healing are now sought out when traditional drugs and cures fail.  There is definitely something about this energy conversation…whether you choose to believe it or not.  It’s only recently that energy work has emerged in the West and for those who experience it’s amazing power, they soon realize anything is achievable.

And how does this relate to the art of acting?  Isn’t it that energetic connection that you are seeking when performing a scene with another actor, or the connection with an audience when on stage live and offering up your energy to move, touch and inspire?  In the end it’s ALL energy.

It also takes energy to DO all of the things it takes to get ahead in today’s show BIZ.  Look at any successful actor and they seem to have boundless energy.  Interviews, rehearsals, performances, photo shoots, special events and fundraisers, personal appearances…the list goes on.  Trust me, no one who is at the top level in the acting community got there sitting on the sidelines waiting for others to lead them down the path to success and a day “off” doesn’t exist.

Moral of this story is to find that place, space, and resource that provides and maintains the energy needed BEFORE you need it!  Really, right now is the EASY part.  When you are working at your biz, in your biz and on your craft DAILY, you’re gonna need it!

Check out www.raisedvibration.com for some great info and as a potential resource for your personal energy.  You’ll be glad you did!  Lisa Gold