The Professional Actor’s Secret Career Building Weapon?

What we’re talking about today has the potential to move your career forward like nothing else.

There are several reasons for it and I’m honestly not quite sure which reasons are more powerful than the others...

And that’s a good thing!

However, most actors never understand just how powerful it is and they often treat it just like any other role. Sometimes, they even look down on it.

In fact, I’ve come to know two actors over the years that are about as polar opposite as you can get.

One of them looked down on what we’re talking about today. They went on to have a career that didn’t quite live up to the goals they set for themselves.

The other actor really embraced this and understood just how powerful it could be.

They went on to build an incredibly successful career, with this as the launching point that changed everything.

Most actors would think that the latter simply got lucky. That wasn’t the case at all. They realized just how impactful this could be and they built a career that pursued it fully.

See, if you want to be a professional actor, this just might be a shortcut...

Enough of the suspense, what we’re talking about today is being a part of an ensemble cast. I know “every cast is an ensemble...”

You’ve probably heard that dozens of times but it’s that dismissive kind of thinking that keeps so many actors from realizing the full potential of an ensemble opportunity.

In fact, I would go as far as saying that many actors that have been lucky enough to stumble into a career changing ensemble opportunity have squandered it by trying to break away from the ensemble.

You know I’m not one to name names but you can probably think of more than a few, just off the top of your head.

Being a part of an ensemble cast can be incredibly powerful for so many reasons.

One of them is that you get to benefit from the collective efforts of your costars. That amplifies things exponentially and it happens very quickly.

Also, a rising tide will lift all boats and when you’re a part of an ensemble cast that can happen two ways.

The “tide” can rise if there’s a breakout star in the cast. They will bring a disproportionate amount of attention to the project and that will lift up the rest of the cast.

It can also happen through the entire cast. Even if there is not a single breakout star in the group, the collective can all rise together.

I can think of a particular series from very recently that had a run of over 100 episodes, because the focus groups showed that people were tuning in to see the actors “act” together.

They weren’t really invested in what were ultimately mediocre storylines and characters. They just loved seeing the energy that the actors had around each other.

Again, you can probably think of some iconic characters that were played by actors who were such a great fit with everyone that they just came back over and over again.

As powerful and exciting as being a part of an ensemble cast can be, most actors drop the ball on this.

They try to be the breakout star and they want to be “the best actor” in the ensemble when they should be focusing on being a natural fit with everyone else.

It also happens during the audition process and this kind of energy repels Casting Directors! Thus, the ensemble audition is very different.

CDs have a different goal in mind. They aren’t specifically looking at what you’re bringing to the character.

Instead, they are trying to determine how you will fit with everyone else they are considering.

Ultimately, you can have a bad read on a character and CDs may still overlook it, if you seem to be a good fit with the rest of the cast.

You’ve probably met a few people that you got along with just fine but that you didn’t exactly click with. Those types of working relationships can be tolerable and they may produce projects that are ok.

However, they don’t lead to a decade-long series or blockbuster films.

When it comes to building an ensemble cast, it’s often more like playing matchmaker because of what casting directors are looking for when they bring you in to read with an ensemble.

Of course, that only matters if they even bring in to read.

If you are currently in a place in your acting career where you don’t have many opportunities to audition, you should increase your visibility in places where CDs and industry decision makers are already looking for talent.

If they don’t know you they can’t hire you.

That’s true whether they are building an ensemble cast or whether they are booking roles that stand on their own.

Either way, Casting Directors tend to do some research and look into you before deciding to move forward with you. Be sure that what they find about you is up to their standards.

Particularly when you are auditioning for an ensemble, they want to be sure that you will be a fit within the ensemble cast and not be the odd one out.

That’s why, if you want to be a professional actor, your industry reputation must always match your goals. Here’s how I can help with that...

It is a factor that can make you stand out from the rest of your potential cast mates, but not in the way you want it to.

I know we went over a lot today, some of which may seem contradictory to what you’ve been told by acting teachers, industry friends, and maybe even your agent.

The truth is that building your acting career is arguably one of the hardest things you will ever do, so remember I’m always only a comment or an email away.

Feel free to get in touch, even if you just want to bounce ideas. I’ll always help however I can because I truly want to...

See you at the top,
Scott

Why A Listers Are Great Actors and How You Can Be One Too

The industry has its own way of operating that is unlike anything else in the world. If you really start to think about the way the industry works, you will find all kinds of things that just don’t seem to make sense.

For example, why is it that so many talented actors are passed on when other, let’s call them “less experienced actors” are cast consistently.

That’s something that most actors never really figure out, so they spend a long, long time thinking that if they could just audition for the right person things would change and they would finally get their big break.

That kind of thinking is partially true but only half of it is under your control. See, much like in professional sports, talent cannot be denied.

That’s why A listers are all incredibly talented actors. Talent makes the difference between getting a few credits and building a long lasting career as a professional actor.

The part of this that is nonsensical is that there are many levels you have to work through to make it to the top tier of the industry.

A listers build their career differently. They don’t hope to be discovered and hope to get lucky. They build their careers on purpose and put a lot of effort into refining their skillset.

If you want to be a professional actor, that’s something you have to master too. Here’s where to start...

First, let’s talk about something most actors completely ignore because it’s one of the main factors that world class actors use to bring their characters to life.

It’s something called microexpressions. The reason they focus on this is that they add an incredible amount of depth to your character.

See, you can’t fake the emotions and microexpressions are a layer of subconscious communication that audiences pick up on.

When done correctly, they’re instrumental in bringing your character to life. Try this with me now...

Look in the mirror or open the selfie camera on your phone and make an angry face. I know it will feel kind of silly but bear with me.

The reason I want you to do it this way, instead of giving you a backstory and setting up a scene, is that this is what most actors do.

If a scene calls for them to be angry, they try to show their anger but it typically comes across as inauthentic.

What did you notice about your expression just now?

You probably scrunched your eyebrows close together and tensed your lips. While that’s a good start, what really takes things to another level is drilling down to the microexpression.

When portraying anger, your eyebrows scrunch close together like I just mentioned. How close they come, is going to depend on how angry your character is. The more angry they are, the closer together the eyebrows come.

Scrunching your eyebrows is an evolutionary way of protecting your eyesight. Many animals have a variety of ways to protect their eyes when coming into conflict with one another or when being attacked.

For humans, part of that protection system is the eyebrow. However, it’s kind of a weak system on its own, so it is typically paired with a head that tilts forward slightly.

Simply frowning without the head tilt, is one those things that makes the anger seem inauthentic. The angle, just like everything else, will depend on your character’s level of anger.

The angrier they are, the more their head will tilt.

Being angry with a significant other that forgets your anniversary might yield a 5 degree head tilt.

Being angry at an invading alien species that is determined to take over your planet, calls for about a 15 to 20 degree head tilt. That’s about as far as you want to go with it.

Along with the head tilt, your lips tense up and your jaw may even protrude further than it normally does. This really only applies when your character is hopping mad and ready for battle kind of angry, like in the alien scenario.

When combined, they form a macro expression and all of the factors work together to increase the audience’s believability.

I know it sounds kind of complicated and that’s why most actors never bother to even try it. The truth is that it’s actually quite simple...

See, the other end of the spectrum is basically the exact opposite of what went over.

Do the same exercise as you did a minute ago. Look in the mirror or open the selfie camera on your phone and make a happy face.

When your character is experiencing joy, instead scrunching the eyebrows together, you would raise them. This naturally pulls up the eyelids too, which opens your eyes further so you can take in every detail of whatever is bringing you joy.

Instead of tensing your lips, you would be smiling. As with everything we’ve talked about, the more joy you are experiencing, the bigger your smile would be.

Typically, genuine joy would expose your teeth and raise your cheeks. A “fake” smile wouldn’t. I wanted to bring that up to show you that there are some variations to this along with any other expression your character will show.

There are many nuances and we could talk about them for days on end, but what we went over today is plenty to get you started because it gives you both extremes of human emotions.

Just about everything else will be somewhere in the middle.

When you start preparing for scenes using what we talked about you will be absolutely amazed at the difference it makes in your performance.

When you do it this way your characters can develop on an entirely different level. Don’t take my word for it. Try it yourself...

The reason it works so well is that research has shown that when you show an emotion with your facial expression, you start to feel and experience that emotion.

That’s why world class actors seem so genuine on screen. On some level, they’re actually experiencing the emotions that their characters are experiencing.

You don’t have to wait until you are on set to do this. Use it to prepare for auditions and you just might catch the casting director’s attention and stand out from everyone else.

You want them to compare how they felt witnessing your anger, instead of comparing your attempt at showing anger to everyone else’s attempt to do the same.

However, if you don’t have anything to prepare for, I created something that will help you be more visible to casting directors and industry decision makers where they are already looking for talent.

Remember how I mentioned that the way the industry works is unlike anything else?

Casting is a big part of that. I’m sure you can think of some incredibly talented actors that have never gotten the opportunities they deserved.

You might even include yourself on that list.

See, the reason for it is that you have to build up your industry credibility and become known as an actor who can deliver great performances on set.

So many actors never reach their full potential because they never build that kind of a relationship with CDs.

We’ll talk more about how to do that next time.

For now, here’s something you can do to show Casting Directors and industry decision makers that you are a true professional.

Like I said a moment ago, we could literally talk about this for days and go over all of the nuances but that would be incredibly overwhelming.

Start with this and feel free to get in touch if you have any questions, or even if you just want to bounce ideas about something.

Leave a comment below or shoot me and email. I’m happy to help however I can because I truly want to...

See you at the top,
Scott

How To Book Great Characters On Demand

How would your career change if you knew you could book a project with a great character, practically anytime you wanted to?

I know, that sounds far fetched right now and most actors think this is something they can only accomplish, once they have become an A lister.

The truth is that there are many actors doing this, most of whom you might recognize just because of the amount of work they take on, but you probably don’t even know them by name.

They’re actors that have built a career that allows them to work consistently and on projects that most actors would love to be a part of, even though they’re not A listers yet.

Everyone wants to jump from where they are now, to playing a lead in a blockbuster feature.

While being able to do that is absolutely possible, it’s not the way you should plan on building your acting career.

Professional actors build their careers one step at a time, because it allows them to build a career where they’re never really worried about where their next acting job will come from or when it will come.

If you want to build an acting career like this, here’s where to start...

The first thing you should know is that your ideal next step isn’t always what you might want it to be.

Like I said a moment ago, most actors daydream of being plucked from obscurity and thrust into the spotlight as a leading actor in a big feature.

They go about trying to build an acting career that accomplishes that and in doing so, they step over a ton of what would otherwise be great opportunities.

Professional actors are able to do both because they focus on the long game while also taking advantage of immediate opportunities to advance their career.

So, even if a project might not be the right fit for your long term goals, consider whether it might be a good fit for now.

That’s not to say that you take anything and everything that comes your way, because you also don’t want to get stuck in a career that has no forward momentum.

Consider your next steps with that in mind.

Building your acting career in this way allows you to work continuously, while also building relationships that can help your career over the long term.

Look at it this way...

Most actors believe that if they could just audition for the “right” person, or sign with the “right” agent that can get them in the “right” room, then their career will automatically go to the next level.

That’s not exactly the case.

Even if you discovered James Cameron was your long lost uncle and you had the opportunity to read for him, what would change, if you didn’t have the building blocks of your career in place?

That’s why you have to build your career on a solid foundation, and then focus on going from one level to the next.

This gives you a lot more control over your career since you're not beholden to luck, nor are you depending on it to be cast.

So, take an honest look at your career and determine where you’re at.

If you’re in a place where the only projects you can reliably book are regional commercials, then the next level for you might be getting to where you can reliably book national commercials.

That becomes your short term, immediate goal to focus on. It doesn't replace your long term goal, whatever it may be.

If you’re in a place where you can reliably book one or two liners in a feature that gets wide distribution, your short term, immediate goal would be to move your career to where you can reliably book supporting roles.

If you ultimately want to book starring roles, that still remains as your long term goal and you would still work on it simultaneously.

However, the difference is that you would build relationships that can lead to something down the road instead of trying to read for something right now. That’s what working towards your long term goal is.

Building the career that most actors have in mind when they decide to join the industry is highly dependent on things most of them never focus on.

They’re mostly just coasting from one job to the next, hoping to get their big break someday.

However, building their ideal career depends on cultivating trusting relationships with casting directors and decision makers and that’s a long term game.

I know it’s counterintuitive to think of your career this way and that’s one of the reasons it works.

If you do what everyone else does, you’re likely to end up where everyone else does. If you do something different, then you’re likely going to get different results.

Whichever way you plan on building your acting career, there are a few things you need to have in place to start getting some momentum.

Everything else builds from that foundation.

Everytime you are looking to go from one career stage to the next, you need to make sure your building blocks for your current stage are in place.

Your industry reputation is one of the career building blocks, so make sure it’s always in top shape.

It’s something that you will need to have in place, regardless of what career stage you are currently in or which one you are working towards.

Your reputation, along with your level of visibility to the industry is something that needs constant attention as you are building your acting career.

If the industry doesn’t know you, they can’t hire you so use this to increase your visibility to casting directors and industry decision makers.

These two are probably the most impactful building blocks.

If you’re ever struggling to take your career to the next level, it’s likely that at least one of them isn’t where it should be.

That’s why I created Boost My Star, to help you make sure your industry reputation is always in top shape, and help you be visible where the industry is already looking for talent.

Like everything else we talked about today, I urge you to not take my word for it. Try it out for yourself and see the difference it makes in your career.

I know that what we went over is highly dependent on where you are in your career at the moment and the goals you have set for yourself, so if you have any questions remember I’m always only a comment or an email away.

Get in touch, even if you just want to bounce ideas. I’m happy to help however I can because I truly want to...

See you at the top,
Scott

4 Things You Can Do This Week To Take Your Career To The Next Level

With June now over, we are officially in the 2nd half of the year. Before you know if, we'll be ringing in 2023 and most actors will look back over the year and realize that they didn't accomplish anywhere near what they wanted to accomplish.

In other words, most actors will realize that they didn't do much other than pass the time, waiting for their "big break" to fall into their lap.

Unfortunately, the industry just doesn't work that way anymore.
It rewards actors that take responsibility for their success and actively work towards it.

That's not to say most actors don't think they are working towards success. It's just that most of them are using outdated methods and strategies to build their acting careers.

In doing so, they end up spinning their wheels and never really make any meaningful progress.

Successful actors figure out how to breakthrough to the next level, by focusing on what's working right now to make it in the industry.

If you want to build a career as a successful actor, here are 4 things you can do this week to take your acting career to the next level...

Most actors go wrong by trying to do a million different things they think will work to move their career forward.

That usually only leads to doing them ineffectively or it leads to getting tired and burning yourself out.

Instead of doing that, focus on just these 4 things. It's really only 3, because I can take one off your plate completely. More on that in a bit...

The point is to take a few minutes everyday and work on them consistently.

That will help you avoid burning out and you will benefit from doing them over and over again, since some of them have a snowball effect.

Whenever you do something and don't see results immediately, it's always demoralizing if you have your entire efforts focused on just that one thing.

However, if you have multiple things you are working on it's easier to stick with those things that have delayed results, because you will have momentum from the others to keep you motivated.

One of those things that has a snowball effect with delayed results, is industry outreach.

Start an outreach campaign to connect with industry decision makers. This isn't typical "networking."

You don't want to reach out to just anyone.

The goal is to connect with people that can help move your career forward. That could be agents, managers, producers, directors, CDs, screenwriters, etc.

Who you reach out to will depend on where you are in your career, so it's helpful to come up with your career roadmap.

That's item two.

Sit down and think about where you want to go with your career. Consider what types of projects you enjoy working on the most, and also think of the jobs you took just because it meant another credit on your resume.

This will help you get clear on the career you want to build. It also helps you determine whether or not it's time to make some changes.

If you decide you want to be an action hero but your headshot is that of a goofy nextdoor type of person, it's probably time to redo your headshot.

The same goes for your agent. If you're trying to get to the next level in your career, but you're signed with someone whose talent roster is only getting as far as booking regional commercials, it might be time to start looking for new representation too.

If that were the case, then your industry outreach would be focused on agents.

However, if you are already clear on your career goals and you just need to generate more opportunities, then reaching out to casting directors would be more helpful.

This is also something you should revisit often, to make sure you're on track and continuously moving towards accomplishing your goals.

The third item is something most actors spend a lot of time on, but very few see any results from those efforts.

I'm talking about social media.

There is a big difference between effective social media that helps your acting career and social media that just ends up being a waste of time.

Using social media to advance your acting career starts with knowing how to create effective content.

If your feed is filled with what you had for lunch and pictures of pretty sunsets, that's not going to do much to help you build your acting career.

Instead, showcase your talent and document the journey you're on.

Show people that visit your profile, that you are working towards becoming a professional actor and that you take it seriously.

Be genuine. If you have a bad audition, share it! When you book something, your followers will be as excited as you are, because you are taking them along and sharing the highs and the lows with them as well.

That's how you can grow your following quickly and build an audience of people that want to see you succeed.

When you do it successfully, you start to unlock opportunities and open doors that were previously closed to you.

This happens because casting directors and studios love to work with actors that can promote their projects to their own fanbase.

What we've covered so far has been about improving your visibility to the industry. Professional actors are very good at doing that because if the industry doesn't know you they can't hire you.

Most actors think this is done through social media and while that is a powerful tool, for the reasons we talked about a moment ago, there is something else that is even more effective because it makes you highly visible where CDs and industry decision makers are already looking for talent.

Just being visible isn't enough either. At the same time, you want to show casting directors and industry decision makers that you are serious about your acting.

That's why it's important to make sure your industry reputation matches your goals.

You can do everything else right, but if you’re not visible to CDs then booking is always going to be difficult.

Also, if you are highly visible to the industry but your industry reputation isnâ€TMt what it should be, then moving your career forward is going to be just as difficult.

That's why I created this. It helps you be highly visible to CDs and industry decision makers, while also making sure that your industry reputation is always in top shape.

So, those are a few things you can do this week to start moving your career forward and taking things to the next level.

As you start planning, feel free to get in touch if you have any questions about what we went over.

Even if you just want to bounce ideas, shoot me an email or leave a comment below. I'm always happy to help however I can, because I truly want to...

See you at the top,
Scott

Why You’re Acting Career Is On The Wrong Track

What you’ve been told about building your career, is likely the reason you aren’t making the kind of progress you should be making.

At some point, someone in the industry has probably told you to “go out for anything and everything that you are a fit for.”

This is almost always bad advice and it probably came from someone you respected quite a bit...

It’s advice like this that keeps so many talented actors stuck in their careers. If you’ve been around Boost My Star for any length of time, you know that doing the opposite of what everyone else tells you to do is typically a better way to go.

Here’s why...

Let’s say that instead of pursuing anything and everything you were to focus on a particular genre and seek to dominate it. What would happen?

The more face time you get with fans of that genre, and the industry professionals that work in that genre, the easier it becomes to book things over time.

I know it sounds like a longshot and most actors think that this is only something that can happen when you’re already a marquee actor but that’s not the case.

The truth is that, with so much content being produced, there are dozens of genres and subgenres that you can dominate this way, even if you’re new to the industry.

Here’s where to start...

Before you go down this road, you have to decide whether you want to be a struggling actor or a professional actor.

Those are two very different career tracks. The truth is that every actor says they want to be a professional, but they stay perpetually stuck in the “struggling actor” phase because that’s the career track they inadvertently choose for themselves.

That’s a huge mistake that most actors make and few are able to correct it and get on the right track, even though it’s actually quite simple.

If you do the things that everyone else does, you will likely end up in the same place everyone else does. Considering very few actors end up accomplishing their goals in the industry, that’s something you want to avoid.

If you do the exact opposite, when it comes to the big picture strategy of how to build your career, you will be much better off.

Here’s what I mean...

You will still need a great headshot, and you will still need to audition for projects. Refusing to audition and not having a headshot won’t get you anywhere but your overall strategy should be opposite of what everyone else does.

For example, everyone else will submit for anything and everything and wait for the industry to come knocking.

Instead, you can actively build your career by being highly selective with the projects you pursue.

I know, it sounds counter intuitive and everybody else will tell you that you need to get as much screen time as you can, if you want to build your career.

That’s true to a point.

Everyone needs to get their first few credits out of the way to get the ball rolling, but at some point it comes time to choose the direction you want to take your career in.

At that point, taking anything and everything that comes your way becomes counterproductive.

Most actors kind of know this on some level, because A listers don’t just jump at every project that comes their way.

When they do, it ends up having a negative effect on their career, regardless of how successful they may have been before that.

You know I’m not one to single out actors by name but I have a certain prolific actor in mind, with several awards to his name including an Oscar for best actor, along with a SAG award, and a Golden Globe that has taken his career in the wrong direction doing this.

Even though he is incredibly talented, his influence in the industry has greatly diminished over the last several years.

See, when the projects you work on are scattered, so is everything else.

Here’s what I mean...

Successful people in the industry all have their particular strengths. Can dramatic actors do comedy?

Of course they can, but their delivery will be remarkably different from an actor that does comedy exclusively.

The same is true for writers, directors, producers, and even casting directors.

So when you work on projects that are all in different genres, you don’t get the chance to work with the same people over and over again.

It’s difficult to build relationships that way in the industry.

However, when you focus on working on a particular kind of project, it gets much easier to build those relationships. Casting directors that are skilled at building casts for dramatic projects will be called upon to do it over and over again.

When they start building a cast, they don’t start from scratch. They first dig through their database and look for actors that might be a good fit based on what they’ve seen from them before.

Those actors are the ones that are invited to audition. For some roles, they may only invite a handful of actors to read, knowing that one of them will be an ideal candidate to move forward with.

Stop and think for a moment...

How many times have you read for the same CD, for different projects. Many actors go their entire career without ever reading for the same casting director, more than once.

That’s why most actors never even get the opportunity to read for the best roles.

If you never get the opportunity to do that, how are you going to take your career to the next level?

The way to do it is by going against the conventional wisdom and being selective about the types of projects you pursue, so that you can build relationships with CDs and industry decision makers.

The goal is to get them to invite you to read and skip the submission process altogether. We’ll talk more about that another time.

For now, start thinking about the direction you want to take your career in. It doesn’t mean you will be stuck on the same track forever.

At some point, it is possible and advantageous to crossover into a new genre. I want to be clear on one more thing...

What we went over today is career specific so you will have to determine whether your career is at a stage where going in this direction makes sense.

Like I said, if you’re trying to get your first few credits it’s something that will come down the line for you.

However, this strategy can work wonders for you if you are at a place where you are looking to take your career to the next level. I built this help with that.

The two work really great together because they are both dedicated to increasing your visibility with casting directors and industry decision makers.

Like I’ve always said, if they don’t know you they can’t hire you.

The strategy we talked about today, pursuing projects that allow you the opportunity to work with the same group of people over and over again, works so well because it increases your familiarity with people that can provide opportunities to move your career forward.

The tool I created for you ensures that your industry reputation matches your goals.

It lets CDs and industry decision makers know that you are a professional actor and not a hobbyist, so they are more inclined to take you seriously even if the two of you have never met.

I know that this goes against what you’ve been told is the “right way” to build your career so if you have any questions about it, or even if you just want to bounce ideas I’m always only a comment or an email away.

I’ll always respond and help however I can because I truly want to...

See you at the top,
Scott

How To Avoid The #1 Acting Career Killing Mistake

If you have been around Boost My Star for any length of time, you know that keeping up with projects that are under development is crucial.

The industry has to match the audience’s preferences when it comes to the type of content they produce and audience’s tastes change over time.

The early 2000s were the age of slasher-horror movies. That time then subsided and ushered in the age of romantic comedies, which ultimately led to studio slates filled with action comedies.

Everything is cyclical and the industry is on the cusp of moving into a cycle with a lot of period pieces under development.

Most people use that term differently than I do, referring to period pieces as projects that take place in the past, usually long ago.

However, I consider anything that takes place in any time other than present day to be a period piece, with exception to a few years in either direction.

This is because culture and mannerisms change constantly and those changes become very evident about every 2 to 3 years.

Most actors make a critical mistake that immediately throws up a red flag to casting directors. They audition for everything as if it were taking place in the present time.

Professional actors don’t.

They are keenly aware of how things change over time and they bring those subtleties to their characters.

That’s a sign of a seasoned actor and casting directors love it! So, if you want to become a professional actor, this is something you have to master. Here’s where to start...

The first thing to do is identify what time the project takes place in and then immerse yourself in high quality material from that time and notice the subtleties in physical mannerisms, style, and manner of speaking.

If you can accurately embody those 3 things, your audition will make CDs want to see more of you because it will just feel right.

While you may not want to show up to an audition, or do a self taped one, in full colonial costume if you’re auditioning for something from that time period, you also wouldn’t want to dress too modern.

That would detract from your character.

However, if you were auditioning for an 80s project, high waisted stone washed denim with slick back hair or tight curls is a pretty safe bet.

As for physical mannerisms, look for things that are common across different projects of that time period.

For example, we’ve talked about a very peculiar trait that Jeremy Irons added to one of his characters.

In the movie Margin Call, he plays a Wall Street executive. The movie is set during the 2008 real estate crash.

If you were preparing to audition for this character, you would build his backstory to determine how he achieved his position as one of the most powerful CEOs of one of the largest investment banks in the world.

In doing so, you would discover that he would have entered the workforce in the mid 80s when cocaine use was rampant on Wall Street.

A little research would reveal just how prevalent it was. Top performing brokers who didn’t use it were the exception and there were few.

Having climbed the corporate ranks, he would have been a top performer and you can reasonably draw the conclusion that he was a user.

So how does this translate on screen?

Throughout the film you notice that Jeremy Irons continually wipes his nose, not as if he’s sick but more like a “tick.”

That mannerism would be a remnant from his drug fueled days on the trading floor in the 80s and early 90s.

That’s why I put projects that take place in any time period, other than the present, in the period piece category.

Doing so, forces you to build your character in a way that other actors simply won’t. Things like the mannerism we just talked about immediately set you apart from every other actor.

Now that we have covered style and physical mannerisms, let’s talk about vocal mannerisms. Just like everything else they change over time.

In the late 80s California was on everyone’s mind and the laid back SoCal culture permeated the entire country.

The 90s were marked by the dot com boom and with it came a more east coast manner of speaking.

That lasted until the early 2000s when the reality show era came around. Many of them were based in California, so West Coast verbiage and vocal mannerisms once again took hold.

I could literally write a book on this topic alone but let’s go over the most important pieces because they will get you eighty percent of the way there.

Depending on when the project you are auditioning for takes place your character might have vocal mannerisms that are a little bit different than today, or they might have ones that are a lot different than today.

John F Kennedy’s famous speech about going to the moon is a terrific, bite sized example of how speech can change quickly. When you listen to it, you can hear him pronouncing many of the tell tale signs of the Transatlantic accent.

This was a way of speaking that was taught to the American upper class, to distinguish them from everyone else.

Because it was seen as the way “proper people” spoke, everyone else tried to emulate it, until it fell out of favor in the late 60s and early 70s, as society gave way to the peace and love crowd.

So, if you are auditioning for something that takes place in the 50s and you don’t have at least some traces of “Transatlantic” in the way you speak, you will blend in with everyone else.

Because this manner of speaking is still based on what we would consider a contemporary, American manner of speaking, it’s not difficult to pull it off.

If all you did was mimic Kennedy’s pronunciation, you would be 80 percent of the way there.

For example, the Transatlantic accent emphasizes the R sound. You can hear it distinctly when he says “we choose to do these things, not because they are easy but because they are hard.”

Today, we would put a regular amount of emphasis on the R sound, pronouncing the words as “a-rr” and “hard” whereas he pronounced them as “ahhr” and “hah-rd.”

Some would describe this way of speaking as a mix of Christopher Walken with a member of the English aristocracy.

The A sound remains distinctly americanized.

This is evident in the way Kennedy pronounced “decade.” Today, we would pronounce the word, just as it is spelled, but he pronounced it as “de-cay-d” more in line with the way we pronounce the word “decayed.”

This was because the Transatlantic accent also called for impeccable and punctuated pronunciation, whereas contemporary American English is littered with “lazy” pronunciation.

For example, today, unless you have some context on the subject it is almost impossible to distinguish between the words “there” and “their” when people are talking.

It wasn’t so, when speaking in the Transatlantic accent.

Kennedy’s way of pronouncing the word “there” is more like “thaire.” This was done to punctuate the different syllables and it also had the added benefit of being distinctly different from the word “their.”

It had a softer sound, as if there was an added H like “the-hr.”

If you have experience with British accents, you are familiar with making that sound. If you’re not, then simply removing emphasis from the R sound by extending the tongue rather than pulling it back and towards the roof of your mouth, gets you close enough.

Practice by saying the words “mother” and “other.”
Try it out for yourself and you’ll quickly see that it’s not incredibly difficult.

Most changes in vocal mannerisms over time are more subtle than this but they are still very obvious to an observant casting director.

What we went over today is how successful actors are able to stand out, and build successful careers.

Of course, this only matters if you have auditions to prepare for and characters to build.

If you don’t have enough auditions right now, start with this.

You need to have enough opportunities to showcase your talent.

If the industry doesn’t know you they can’t hire you. That’s why I created this, to increase your visibility where casting directors and industry executives are already looking for talent.

When you have enough opportunities to get in front of CDs and you can stand out, using what we talked about today, your chance of getting callbacks and bookings could increase dramatically.

Even if you are able to “wow” them with your talent and the complexities of the characters you build, CDs will still typically do some research on you before deciding to move forward so make sure that your industry reputation always matches your goals. Here’s how I can help...

As you’re putting this into practice, remember I’m always only a comment or an email away. I’m always happy to help so feel free to get in touch and let me know if you have any questions.

I’ll lend a hand however I can because I truly want...

See you at the top,
Scott

The Only Reason Actors Get Booked

Yes, there really is only one, single reason that actors are ever booked.

If you’ve been around Boost My Star for any length of time, you already know that most actors overcomplicate things by a long shot.

While there are many moving pieces that go into building your acting career, there is only one reason you will ever be booked.

It’s not just you...
The same holds true for every single actor, including world class, marquee actors.

While they can have their pick of virtually any project they want, there is still only one reason they are ever offered those opportunities.

So, if you want to build a career as a professional actor, this one factor alone could be the difference between success and disappointment.

Here’s what I mean...

Put yourself in a casting director's shoes for a minute.

You’re watching actors read, one after the other, mostly reading in a similar way and likely even dressed similarly.

Auditions are a very monotonous process for CDs and something different will always make them perk up, pay attention, and want to see more.

That’s what you have to bring to the table, if you want to get booked.
You have to stand out and differentiate yourself from everyone else reading for the same role.

Think about it from the casting director’s perspective. If you are seeing 100 actors, most of which are talented enough to pull off the role, but they all sort of blend together, how would you even start to determine who to move forward with?

You have to make things easy on them, if you want to have a real shot at getting booked.

While we’re talking about it in industry-specific terms, the same is true in anything you do. Humans are wired to look for the differences in situations.

It’s an evolutionary leftover that we haven’t overcome yet. Things that are different could pose a threat to our survival so our ancestors honed the ability to immediately spot differences.

A slightly different looking shadow, could be a bear waiting to strike.

Things aren’t typically that much of a life or death situation in our modern, day to day lives but that deeply rooted human nature remains.

That’s what most actors don’t understand.

Instead of focusing on developing something unique they can bring to the table in an audition, they go around doing a hundred different things hoping that one of them will work out.

That scatterbrained approach is a recipe for career disaster. We’ll come back to that in a bit...

The fact of the matter is that, everyone else is also doing a hundred different things in the hopes that something works or catches a CD’s attention in some way.

And, I want to be clear on something...

I’m not saying that some of those hundred things don’t work. In fact, I share the most impactful ones with you on a regular basis.

However, none of it works if you don’t have something unique to leverage and it has to be something that stops a CD in their tracks and makes them take a closer look.

So what are some unique things you can leverage in an audition situation that would make a CD want to see more of you.

There are several.

Some are more difficult to accomplish than others and unfortunately, most actors focus on the most difficult one of all...
Talent!

You can be so incredibly talented that you knock a Casting Director’s socks off and they immediately get on the phone and notify the studio they filled the role, before you even leave the room.

That’s Meryll Streep level talent.

I’m not saying you’re not at that level, but think of it this way. How are you going to adequately show that over the course of a couple minutes?

You can’t and that’s what makes talent the most difficult unique factor to leverage. There are just too many uncertainties.

You might have a phenomenal audition, based on the scene and the sides you were given, but your read on the character might be different than what production has in mind.

You can’t control that. It will happen, it has probably already happened to you, and it will happen again. That’s just the nature of the industry.

Another unique factor you can leverage is attention. This one is extremely powerful and while it’s easier to accomplish, it takes a lot of work and it’s not something you can start doing today and see big results immediately.

The way casting looks at is, if you are talented enough to pull off the role, and you also have the attention of a large following there’s no reason not to book you.

Building up that following to a point where it becomes a factor you can leverage will take time and a lot of work.

But, there is another factor you can leverage in the meantime.

I created it in such a way that it gives you results incredibly fast so you can catch the attention of Casting Directors in a place where they are already looking for talent.

If you build a large following of let’s say 1 million engaged, active followers, and you have refineed your talent to a professional level there’s not a casting director that wouldn’t want to see you.

Above all else, the studio wants to sell tickets or get people to tune in to whatever project they’re working on. A large following has the potential to mean a lot of ticket sales or a lot of people tuning in.
An IMDb that is well ranked accomplishes a very similar thing to a large following, because an actor that ranks well on IMDb, is an actor that people want to see more of. Here’s how I can help you with that.

So, step back into a Casting Director’s shoes for a moment...

If you were to see an actor that had a terrific audition, and based on their STARmeter, you determine they’re someone people want to see more of, would you move forward with them?

Think of it the other way around.

Why wouldn’t you move forward with that actor? That’s why I built this...

Are there other ways to build your career? Of course, but I’m dedicated to bringing you only the most powerful strategies that are working right now.

I know we went over some stuff today that goes against what most actors have been told, so if you have any trouble sorting it out or even if you just want bounce ideas, shoot me an email or leave a comment below.

I’ll always read and respond and I’m happy to help however I can because I truly want to...

See you at the top,
Scott

Dominate Auditions by Creating Complex Characters Quickly

Last week we talked about how to create a complex character by starting with your body language. This works exceptionally well because your body language will dictate how you speak.

This week we are going to talk about how to do it quickly in an audition setting.

Professional actors are very good at building complex characters that prove to CDs how well they will be able to perform the character on set.

Most actors make a critical mistake and it causes CDs to pass on them, before they really get a chance to showcase their talent.

They try to play the character with the limited information they’re given for the audition. This leads them to play it the same way the same way everyone else does.

Professional actors don’t do that and it’s why they book much more often.

If you want to increase how many times you get booked, here’s what to do instead...

Creating characters during an audition is very different from doing it once you’ve already been booked and you’re preparing to get on set.

The biggest difference is that, once you’re booked, you have a full script and you know the character’s entire storyline.

During an audition, you’re typically limited to a single scene and you have to make a lot of inferences about why the character feels a certain way about something.

So, what typically happens is that an actor will identify the points where they should be sad, angry, or happy and then they will try to play those emotions.

That immediately shows CDs just how green you are.

See, when you’re auditioning for something Casting Directors don’t expect you to have a full grasp on the character. It’s now what they’re looking for.

That means you can make character choices that may not be “correct” and still impress CDs and get a call back.

The key is to make character choices that add layers and complexity. Don’t just pull something out of thin air to be different.

Here’s what I mean...

Let’s say you are reading for a character that is written as a powerful executive with a troubled home life.

Pulling something out of thin air would be playing the character as an amputee, just because it’s different.

On the contrary, a character choice that adds a layer of complexity would be to play the executive as a shell shocked war veteran.

To build this character quickly you would first build the executive character. Then, you would layer the nuances of a shell shocked war veteran on top.

For example, a powerful executive is going to be very confident by default. No one climbs the corporate ladder without being extremely confident.

To layer that confidence, you then think about where the confidence comes from.

The type of confidence someone develops from being in a warzone, being in your enemies cross hairs daily, and surviving constant attempts on your life is a very different type of confidence than what someone develops in a boardroom.

An executive that developed their confidence in the boardroom would negotiate from a position of trying to outsmart the competition and they would do so confidently, knowing they had done it successfully before.

On the other hand, your character, the shell shocked war veteran, would negotiate very differently, knowing that the outcome isn’t a life or death scenario.

The traditional executive would lead with their ego, and that’s how most actors would play it.

Your character would lead with a more nonchalant attitude, having come face to face with their own mortality and realizing that not much else is all that serious.

You then take this further by adding in the character traits that match the broader choice you’ve made.

How would a shell shocked war veteran behave themselves compared to an egotistical person?

For one, after years in the military they might stand “at attention” whenever someone enters the room. That’s a habit that many people carry with them back to civilian life.

They might also be a little bit hard of hearing, given that they’re shell shocked, and lean in towards anyone that is speaking to them.

Chances are they would lean in, while favoring either their left ear or their right ear to better be able to hear the person speaking.

They would then return their head to a neutral position when responding.

These are the subtle nuances that you can layer on top, that will catch a CDs attention and make them want to see more of you.

Think of what other traits you can layer. How would your character stand?

Do they have a particular manner of speaking? For example, career military people often have a certain cadence to their voice that they carry back to civilian life with them.

What about being shell shocked? How would you layer that in?

This one might be a bit tricky to do during an audition. There would have to be some action that triggers the shell shock.

It could be something as simple as clapping or it could be more nuanced such as the way your character hangs up the phone.

The ego driven executive would have no problem slamming the phone back on the receiver to prove a point.

Your character wouldn’t risk it, as it could trigger their shock.

Remember, the point isn’t to get everything right about the character. It’s to add complexity in a way that makes sense and play the character in a way no one else will.

That’s what will make CDs want to see more.

During a call back, you will get more information about the character and you will be able to refine the choices you made.

You might find that being a shell shocked veteran doesn’t exactly work. You might end up taking the character in an entirely different direction and that’s ok.

Chances are, you will get some direction from the CD about this anyway.

Take that direction and the new information you have about the character and run it through the same process we talked about today to build a complex character.

You will be amazed at the difference this makes.

Try it out for yourself by doing a mock audition with a friend. Have them pick out a scene for you and build a character the same way we went over.

Don’t fill them in on what you are doing.

Then, have them give you direction on how they originally thought you would play the character. This will simulate the callback.

Take that direction and build your character again, with that in mind, just like you would for a callback audition.

Practicing like this from time to time will help you be ready when a real audition comes along.

If you don’t have any auditions to prepare for right now, click here It’s a great way to increase your visibility in the place where CDs and industry decision makers are already looking for talent.

If you’ve been around Boost My Star for any length of time, you know that what professional actors focus on first, is creating an increased industry visibility.

It doesn't matter how great you become at building complex characters, if you never have an opportunity to do it.

That’s why I created this. It helps you be more visible to casting directors, even if you don’t have a lot of credits yet.

If you’re reading this, I know you have big goals for yourself and you’re actively working towards them.

That kind of passion is contagious and people want to help people who are passionate about their goals. Unfortunately it’s difficult to show that to the industry. The next best thing is to make sure that your industry reputation matches your goals. Here’s how I can help.

What went over can be a bit overwhelming but don’t let things get out of control. Keep it simple and don’t go off on tangents that have little to do with your character.

Just use whatever information you have available and go from there. If you ever get lost in the process or even if you just want to bounce ideas about any of it, shoot me an email or leave a comment below.

I’m always happy to help however I can because I truly want to...

See you at the top,
Scott