What No One Is Telling You About Being An Actor in 2020
Saying that we’re living in uncertain times would be a huge understatement.
Because I interact with so many actors on a daily basis, what I’ve realized is that most actors are feeling anxious about what’s coming for the industry and what it all means for their acting career in 2020.
It’s not really a surprise, since useful, actionable information about this is hard to come by.
Being in touch with actors that are going it through it first hand, along with being in touch with the production and business side of the industry gives me a unique vantage point from which I bring you only what is working and getting results for actors right now.
We’ll get to that in a moment.
When it comes to what’s going on with actors, I can tell you there are two distinct groups of actors. Some are just waiting for things to get back to “normal.”
Others have realized that “normal” probably won’t exist for quite some time and have continued to move forward. Those are the actors that are literally getting booked right this moment.
Order comes from chaos and success often comes from a world thrown into chaos as well.
We are going through the perfect storm of opportunity in so many ways, and it is likely (and hopefully) going to be a once in a lifetime event.
Entire industries, ours included, have been forced to adapt decades of change in weeks just to survive.
So, if you want to thrive on the other side of this event and make more progress in your acting career than you ever thought possible, here’s what you need to do now...
Let me first be clear on a particularly important point. I respect the current state of affairs and I do not intend to downplay it in any way. Quite the opposite actually!
However, Boost My Star exists for one reason: to help you achieve the goals you have for your acting career.
So, rather than preaching about social distancing and hand washing (which of course are great things to do) I want to focus on the health of your career and that starts with adapting to the changing audition environment.
We’re not going to go back to having 70 actors sitting shoulder to shoulder for hours waiting to read. Mark my words, that will forever be a thing of past, and rightfully so for multiple reasons.
I’ve been sounding the alarm about self taping and how it is shaping the industry and would eventually replace the traditional audition.
That’s where we are today.
All over town, Casting Directors, are going about their work. Projects still need to be produced and that involves casting of course.
This is typically when the other group of actors I mentioned a moment ago typically chimes in with something along the lines of “but productions are being delayed indefinitely!”
True, and while that could be worrisome if you isolated that piece of information, you have to look at the big picture.
Remember, the media is sensationalized on purpose. It has to be, in order to compete for attention.
The other side of the story shows that slates are actually expanding amidst all this. Along every category, you are seeing an increase in the number of projects moving into preproduction.
Streaming networks are experiencing an unprecedented and unplanned consumption rate of content. That needs to be replaced, in order to keep subscribers.
Financiers are also sitting on literal piles of cash they need to deploy, or they risk losing access to it, or being taxed on it. That means they are putting money into projects they may have sidelined or passed on before.
Even the indie market is being flooded with access to funds like they have never seen.
A close friend of mine who has completed about a dozen independent projects ranging from $250,000 to $500,000 budgets received 3 calls from financiers this week, asking what he has in the works.
That alone would be an indication of what’s to come, but what’s even more surprising is that they were now looking to fund a project of his in the range of $5,000,000...10X more than anything he’s ever done.
He’s not the only one getting calls like this, and it’s not limited to producers. It’s the entire industry!
Granted, with the current state of affairs, things look more than a bit uncertain for this year. However, 2021, 2022, and even 2023 are shaping up to be banner years for the industry.
Actors are being booked that far in advance right now.
If you haven’t received a request for a self taped audition recently, take an honest look at the status of your career and which group of actors you identify with at this point.
Are you part of the group that is making things happen and adapting to the way the industry is going, or are you with the group that is waiting for things to go back to “normal?”
If you are reading this, you probably identify with the first group, but you are not getting the opportunities you should be getting.
This comes down to having the drive and the wherewithal to know that you need to do something different, but not having the right “things” to do.
The great part about that is, it’s a simple fix.
If you have a passion for the industry and if you have a burning desire to build a career that exceeds your wildest expectations, then you only need to make sure you have the right mechanics in place.
Here’s what I mean.
We know that the industry is just as much if not more about exposure than talent. This means that you need to make yourself highly visible to the industry. I built this to help you with that.
Simply being talented doesn’t cut it anymore. There is too much competition for you to get by on talent alone. I don’t fully agree with the way the industry works in that respect, but I do understand why it is the way it is.
Rather than trying to beat the system or change the entire industry, use your knowledge of the current system to advance within it and then work to change things from the inside.
Personally, I think it would be a great thing to have SAG mandate that big productions see actors that don’t have mainline credits. They should be guaranteed an opportunity to read for 2nd and 3rd leads in mainstream productions.
While I think we will get some form of that in the future, it’s not something you should be waiting on.
The current system is going to be around for a longs time, even though the industry has undergone a decade’s worth of changes in just weeks.
However, that doesn’t mean we’re starting from scratch.
Artificial Intelligence hasn’t replaced Casting Directors and CGI hasn’t replaced live actors. We can indulge my predictions on that another time.
For now, what’s important is to realize what’s happening right now. While the overwhelming majority of actors have hunkered down and pulled back on building their careers, the industry is very much leaving them behind.
Opportunity finds those that make themselves available to it. So, in this time of uncertainty, look for the positives, and focus on what you can control.
Instead of binging on Netflix, your time would be better spent by putting forth an effort to expand your presence on social media, since it’s a great way to make yourself even more visible to the industry.
With so many people looking for distractions, it’s also a great time to get around to starting or growing a YouTube channel, which I can help with as well.
Whatever you do, should be centered on improving your reputation in the industry, because that’s what will help you build a long and prosperous career more than anything else.
Remember, it’s the top level CDs and industry decision makers that are still at it, so if you work on your career now too, you will build a reputation that is second to none. Here’s how I can help you make it official so I can....
See you at the top,
Scott