Consider this to be the official pulling back of the curtain on one of the best kept secrets of the industry. 

We’ve all heard that making it in the industry is all about “who you know.” In reality it’s about who knows you. 

Most actors get it and know that the tides have shifted, however hardly any of them know how to actually pursue this. 

I’m inundated by requests to follow someone on Instagram or to give feedback on what they could be doing better. 

So, I end up reviewing tons of profiles and I what I usually find are duck faces and cocktail selfies. There’s nothing wrong with that, let me be clear, but there is a difference between entertaining your followers and growing your follower count. 

The right action taken at the wrong time will not produce the desired result. I learned this from one of the highest level strategic minds at WME, arguably the most effective agency in the world at launching talent. 

What is contained in this report is straight out of their playbook.

As someone trying to break into the industry and become a professional, full time, working actor you should study the show Entourage. 

You may not enjoy the subject matter and in fact you will likely be offended by some of it at some point. 

Pay it no mind! 

That’s why you should “study it” rather than simply “watch it.” There’s a distinct difference and goal when you study something. 

It is the most accurate portrayal of how the business side of the industry works. 

Most actors think that if they can simply get a well known agent with tons of connections, they will be set. 

If you were able to sign an elite agent, there are only so many calls they can make to get someone interested in you and there are only so many favors they can call in. The rest is up to you. 

If you are currently shopping for new representation, you should be asking everyone you interview about their launch plan for you if you decide to sign with them. 

And, as a side note, you should always be the one interviewing the agents not the other way around (that’s a topic for another day). 

All of the top tier agencies have a launch plan for new talent, whether they are brand new to the industry or making a comeback. 

No matter where you are in your career, if you were to sign to an elite agency like WME, the first order of business would be to get you in the press. This is where that network of contacts comes in handy. 

Most actors would simply throw up their hands say “I don’t know any journalists” and go back to doing the same things they were before. 

That begs the question. What can you do to get attention from press outlets and be featured so that you can launch your career the way the big agencies launch big name actors? 

Before we get to the how, I want to be clear that you don’t necessarily have to be featured for your acting work. In fact, that’s a tough way to get press even if you have the contacts and backing of a WME. 

Why feature you and your work, when an A-lister would pull thousands of readers or viewers? 

It’s much easier to “sneak in the back door” through something else. Are you a great cook with awesome recipes? Are you competing in a horse back riding event? Do you run marathons? 

See, when you are featured for subjects like that, not only is it much easier to get these kinds of features, they will still refer to you as “Katie, a professional actor…” 

Take a few minutes and come up with a list of things that you could possible be featured for or topics for articles that you could provide quotes for. 

Then, simply contact people that are writing about what you want to be featured for. 

Find similar articles, interviews, etc. that are about the same topic and write to the author. They are super easy to find online! In fact, many of them will have their contact information listed right there in the article. 

Start by providing an insightful comment about their article or interview and then mention what you could do. 

Here’s a tip: food features are incredibly easy because everyone is looking for something new and they are starved for content. One of our tribe members was featured in a handful of national magazines for a New Years Eve Dessert. 

It was a chocolate lava cake with golden colored sprinkles and a sparkler on top. What may surprise you is that, she is not a great cook…in fact, it wasn’t even her own recipe. She simply added the gold sprinkles and a sparkler which it made New Years Eve themed. 

The article received tons of attention. 

After you are featured, don’t just sit around and wait for the phone to ring. Ride that wave as long as you can by forwarding that article, interview, etc. to others using the same strategy of “maybe I could something similar for your story and your audience.” 

Most of us don’t let things like this cross our minds. Of course we all want to be featured for our roles in the productions we are working on but that’s not the only way to get your career off the ground. 

In fact, this is how the big agencies launch their own acts they just have access to different tools. This is why you might watch a music video and see someone playing a prominent role in the video, then 6 months later they are playing a supporting role in the summer’s biggest release. 

It’s a different path down the same road. 

This also happens when already established actors are in the launching phase of something new. Do you think Morgan Freeman became the official narrator of the world by accident? 

It’s all part of a carefully designed launch plan. 

When you have successfully been featured a few times, you want to start getting them in front of Casting Directors (or agents and managers if that’s what you’re after). Mail them a hard copy of the magazine with a tab to your feature and a hand written note that says “I Thought you would enjoy this article!” 

That’s it. 

CDs are always looking to hire actors that are up and coming, with some momentum behind them. This will show them that you have that momentum and they will be chomping at the bit wanting to have you read for them, especially if them actually enjoyed the article! 

They will of course still do some back work on you to see “where you came from” so make sure that what they find about you matches your goals. Here’s a quick way to make sure they find something positive.

Nobody wants to hire an actor that is just looking for any type of work. They come a dime a dozen. 

How you differentiate yourself is by getting some momentum going. This why Youtubers and Instagrammers are crossing over into the industry in droves. 

CDs are literally begging many of them to read but they are having trouble finding ones with enough of an acting ability to build a career. 

That’s where you come in. With your acting ability you could fill that gap, if you take the steps outlined in this report to get some momentum and attention around you and your career. 

Here’s another way to add fuel to the fire and skyrocket your efforts.

I have shared this with dozens of actors before now, and they either love the idea, run with it and get results or they like the idea, dismiss it and go back to doing what they were before and approaching the industry in a way that has the least chance of success. 

Don’t follow the crowd, because that’s a sure fire way to end up the same place they do. Pave your own path to success, even if it might look a bit different that what you had originally imagined and make sure that you stand out above the rest where it counts.

This is one of those areas that no one else in the industry dares talk about because it’s not what the masses want to hear. However, I’m committed to bringing you what actually works so that I can… 

See you at the top,
Scott