It's hard to build a career when all you’re ever cast as is barista #2, and the best you can hope for is that one of your facial expressions ends up on screen.
That won’t make Scorcese pick up the phone and call you anytime soon...
Almost every actor I’ve ever spoken with has encountered the same problem when trying to build their career.
They have trouble getting to the next level in their career because they have no experience and no credits at that next level. But, how are they supposed to get the credits and experience if no one will give them a chance because they don’t have it?
It’s a problem that has been around as long as the industry itself and it’s one that few actors are able to solve.
The ones that do, end up having long and prosperous careers.
If you want to be a professional actor and you’re having trouble getting to the next level in your career this is something you have to figure out.
Here’s where to start...
While there’s no one size fits all, magic bullet type of solution there is a simple formula you can follow.
Getting to the next level in your acting career comes down to opening yourself up to opportunities and seizing them when they come.
I know that sounds like common sense (and it is) so let’s break down what that actually means.
Opening yourself up to opportunities that are beyond the ones you have been working on so far, means that you have to make yourself castable for those opportunities.
For example, you might be a talented dramatic actor, but how many other talented dramatic actors can you think of just off the top of your head?
You can probably think of quite a few...
But, how many talented dramatic actors can you think of that can also wield a samurai sword and know martial arts?
Probably not many...
So, when a project comes along that calls for someone with those particular skills, your resume and your credits become an afterthought.
It’s not always an entire project that has to come along.
Things can change really fast on set, especially when you are working on a quality production with a great creative team.
Rewrites often happen in the director’s head, or in one of your costar’s head, so you could find yourself in a scene that goes in an entirely different direction.
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard from actors that have been on set when a director called out for someone who could perform a specific task or who could ad lib a scene they sort of rewrote in their head.
It’s literally happened more times than I can count, but the sad thing is that when it happens, no one is ever prepared to step up.
Just a couple weeks ago, I heard from an actor that was playing an extra on set when the director called for someone who could skateboard.
The scene didn’t call for a skateboarder and everyone kind of looked around confused. This actor was a pretty good skateboarder but he didn’t speak up.
The actor that did speak up, ended up getting pulled into a scene with what will end up being about a minute and a half of screen time.
He was also given 2 lines to exchange with one of the other actors in the scene, who just so happens to be a bonafide A-lister.
It may not sound like a huge deal, but imagine showing up on set ready to play an extra for a day and instead you end up with featured screen time and a couple lines with an A-lister.
Here’s the thing, the lines this actor was given were written for one of the supporting actors in the scene, but the director “gave them to the skateboarder because he said he liked his energy.”
Stuff like this happens all the time. You’ve probably found yourself watching a show and seeing someone with a tiny part that is all of a sudden everywhere.
Is the director going to remember “the skateboarder” and bring him in to read for whatever project comes next?
Probably not. Will the A lister demand that “the skateboarder” be given a part in their project?
No.
But here’s what will happen...
The skateboarder will end up with a credit on his resume that will show a huge jump in his career, because going from an extra to being featured in a scene with an A lister is a big jump.
That’s what CDs and industry decision makers look for. Everyone wants to work with actors that are on the rise.
Is this one isolated event going to put him on the map? Not likely, at least not this one thing alone.
What will do wonders for his career is continuing the momentum. See, when actors get stuck in their career it’s usually because they don’t have a way of getting to the next level, whatever that next level might be.
No one wants to give a featured role to someone with 5 years of experience as an extra or doing one lines,and no other movement. Yet, that’s where most actors find themselves.
To break out of that, you have to seize every opportunity when it presents itself. You also have to make sure that you stay top of mind with industry decision makers.
When casting directors start to build a cast, the last thing they want to do is start from scratch. It’s possible to do, but incredibly inefficient.
What they do instead, is look for actors that have played similar roles in the past and start there. That’s why it’s important to keep in touch with CDs and decision makers, even after production has wrapped.
We’ll talk more about that another time...
For now focus on coming up with your differentiators. That’s what really gave the actors we talked about today, the opportunity to get to the next level in their career quickly.
Whatever that next level is for you, getting there is almost impossible if there’s nothing to set you apart from everyone else.
As we’ve talked about a number of times, there are really only two ways to build your industry reputation.
You can either build an extensive body of work that you can leverage, which takes time and you run into the problem that keeps most actors stuck (no way of getting to the next level).
The other way is to make yourself highly visible to the industry while also building your industry reputation and credibility. I created this to help with that part.
Regardless of which direction you decide to go in, remember I’m always here to help. Leave me a comment below or shoot me an email.
I always read and respond, even if you just want to bounce ideas, because I truly want to...
See you at the top,
Scott