Being an actor requires you to be put in some very uncomfortable situations.
Sometimes this might mean, pushing the boundaries on your comfort zone and allowing yourself to be put in situations you may not otherwise find yourself in.
Think Tom Cruise hanging off the side of a cliff (it was not CGI!), other times it’s much simpler but still highly uncomfortable.
As an actor you are judged constantly and you are judged on everything.
Whether it’s at auditions, acting class, or at Thanksgiving, you are always under a microscope, so it’s no surprise that actors tend to look for a comfortable support system anywhere they can.
Unfortunately this often leaves us vulnerable because we sometimes do need to hear those harsh truths. It is important that we don’t just pat each other on the back but instead deliver the nitty gritty things that would be as uncomfortable to deliver as it would be to hear them.
Because I get to speak with so many actors, I have a unique perspective on what is working right now.
I also have a unique perspective on what is not working and I have come to realize that 99.99 of all actors are simply spinning their wheels and don’t have much hope of ever making significant career progress.
It’s easy to figure out which group you belong to. Here’s how…
Actors that end up “making it” in the industry realize that talent is not enough.
They know that at the end of the day, Hollywood is a business and they seek to surround themselves with people that know this too.
Your entire team has to be onboard with this concept. Your agent, your manager, even your acting instructors should all be on the same page.
If everyone around you is on different pages and never they never communicate with each other, that is a sign of a weak team. You should get everyone in the same room at least once a year, if not more often, to strategize your next steps.
Actors that make significant career progress understand the importance of having a good team in place and they put a lot of energy into finding the right agent, because a good agent is essential to your success.
Almost all actors go about this the wrong way.
When they go out to look for a new agent, they try to find one with the biggest client list, at the biggest agency and think that it will solve all their problems if they can make that happen.
You have to give them tools to work with, and this is by far one of the most effective I have seen.
Agents are resourceful and a good agent, doesn’t have to be at one of the big agencies. They don’t even need to have a list of celebrity clients.
What they must have is tremendous belief in you and a passion for seeing you succeed. Many, many elite actors are still with the same agent that they signed with early on in their careers, because a good agent will grow with you.
Actors will never be recruited for work, simply because of who they are being represented by. However, agents will be recruited to work for the big agencies because of who is on their client roster.
So, when you see that an actor is being represented by WME, 9 times out of 10 the agent was brought into WME because of their successful clients.
Successful actors stand for something, but it’s not what you might think.
We exist in sort of a bubble, where our friends, our coworkers, and just about everyone else we spend time with are on the same page and have a similar background and set of beliefs.
This becomes sort of a sounding board that echoes our ideas.
This is such a hot topic that is extremely polarizing, so I want to be clear that my only interest is in seeing you succeed. What your beliefs are, that’s completely your business.
Because we live in a time when the political spectrum is so divided, the voices on both sides of the isle are incredibly loud.
As I said, I have zero interest in what your own beliefs are, but what I want you to notice is who those loud voices are coming from.
This is only important because so many actors look up to and emulate the wrong people, simply because they are one of the “loud voices.”
The perpetual D-Listers that you see on the evening news shouting about whatever made them angry that day, speaking at rallies, etc. are not the ones you should be emulating.
On the other hand, notice that the established actors are not among those loud voices. They are the ones that have found a positive (that’s the keyword) movement to associate themselves with that is much bigger than themselves.
For some, they use their celebrity to dig water wells in 3rd world countries so people can have access to clean drinking water. Others partner with organizations that build schools, or homes for children orphaned by war.
Successful actors attach themselves to causes like this out of a sense of duty and a wanting to “give back.”
It’s also good business and that’s ultimately what the industry is.
See, it used to be cool to drive a Rolls Royce and be wrapped in a Chinchilla coat. That used to be the mark of a movie star.
Today, you will see actors like Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Beckinsale driving a Prius with a bumper sticker that shows off their pledge to the World Wildlife Fund.
Successful actors find a positive cause and support it with their time, energy, and influence.
This is a great strategy for you to use, no matter what career stage you find yourself in right now.
Instead of opening yourself up to disagreements with people who could otherwise be your fans, you can open yourself up to other people that will support your mission of doing good in the world.
Then, there’s an element of reciprocity when you have a new project to promote.
When you approach building a career this way, you tap into the power of the 7 layers of human relationships. That’s something we’ll get into over the coming weeks, because understanding that adds so many layers to your performances.
First, I want you to be on the right track with the mechanics of your career. If you have that right, everything else will fall into place more easily.
If you don’t have the right team on board, start looking to make changes.
Polish up your packaging and start looking around for new representation. Many agents recruit actors straight from IMDb because it’s such an incredible tool for them to leverage.
It’s why I built this, so that you can be seen in the best possible light.
The final piece of the puzzle is to get out in front of as many industry decision makers as possible. This will require you to step out of your comfort zone, search them out, and make contact.
Lastly, don’t leave the site of having learned something and say that you will get around to it later. Do something right now, that will move you closer to your goal.
Look for that cause that is bigger than you, start compiling a list of possible agents to interview, do something to move you closer to your goal and I will…
See you at the top,
Scott