ACTING IS FULL TIME
WORK!
Whether you currently have a gig or you are between parts, don’t let anyone
tell you that acting is less than full time work. If you total up all the hours
spent each week in pursuit of this career, it far exceeds 40 hours a week. For
example, how many hours each week do you spend
--in acting or voice classes
--preparing and practicing for class
--looking for/bugging an agent
--getting/sending out headshots
--checking hotlines
--reading magazines/newsletters/newspapers for industry tips & info.
--watching actors on TV talk about acting
--looking for audition opportunities on the Internet, in Callboard, etc.
--going to movies to study how other actors portray characters
--grooming (tweezing, shaving, tanning, dieting, exercising, swimming)
--preparing for auditions
--traveling to auditions
--auditioning
--consoling self/evaluating self after audition
--making contact with “friends” who might make a difference
--working on a screenplay
--getting massages, facials, acupuncture, hair cuts, etc.
--preparing monologues
--going to psychotherapy or support groups
--doing vocal warm-ups and exercises
--practicing facial expressions in the mirror
--praying (or your equivalent) for the courage and faith to go on
How will I ever have the time to do a part when I get it!
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Be open to a variety of types of work and the possibilities are there...feature
films, independent films, student films, industrials, commercials, stage plays
and readings, voice-over, moderators, games, CDRom voices, improv, performance
art, cable TV shows, poetry readings, modeling, extras, stunts, stand-ins...
copyright 1995 Pamela Walker