7 Things I Wish I Had Known When I Started My Acting Career

1. Keep your job, because you’ll need operating cash. 

Some people proudly say that they’re “all in” and have quit their jobs and only want to survive on money made from acting. This is a terrible idea. You can easily become desperate as you run out of money, and desperate is a terrible place to be. You won’t be able to say “no” to anything and you’ll want the job for all the wrong reasons. You need a solid, stable job so that you can pay your rent, buy your food, pay for your acting classes and headshots, and record your self tapes. It’s okay to have a job that you don’t love while you’re in pursuit of your dream.

2. It’s okay to say “No.”

Sometimes your agent’s going to call you with a project or you’re going to answer an ad on Actors Access or Backstage for a project that turns out you don’t want to be a part of. It’s all right to say no. It’s better to be respectful and say no; that’s much better than lying and saying for instance, “Oh sure, I’ll do nudity.” And then when they offer you the job, say you’ve changed your mind. Say no as early in the process as you can if you know that that job’s not for you.

3. Don’t be afraid to make mistakes.

We all make mistakes. I’m telling you, trust me. Sometimes your biggest mistakes are your biggest wins. And sometimes when you let go in a scene or in an audition and it’s not perfect, it really is; it’s exactly what we need for the character and what they’re going through. And at our studio, class is exactly the place to make mistakes. If you’re not making mistakes in class, you aren’t risking. Our studio is not a performance space — it's class; it’s for exploration, so feel free to make mistakes. 

4. Casting directors are your champions. 

Casting directors believe in actors and they want to hire you so don’t worry if they want to pre-read you or you haven’t been able to get in front of them before. If they’re bringing you in, they want you to succeed, and they want to have many wonderful choices. Remember they’re your friends, and almost everybody in production wants you to succeed.

5.  Don’t do what you think the casting director wants you to do. 

I see so many actors who second-guess themselves instead of following their own instinct. They try to do what they think other people want in the audition.  You Don’t Know What They Want., Let me repeat that, you don’t know what they want! I promise you! Hopefully you know what you want, and you can bring that into the room; if they want something different AND you’re right for the role, they will give you direction. If you’re not right for the role, they probably won’t even bother to redirect. Let that first take be yours! They don’t want AI – and you aren’t AI – so bring your truthful and unique take on the audition. Let It Be Your Creative Vision. 

6. Be careful who you give your money to.

It seems like everybody wants an actor’s money. You’ve got to pay for your acting classes, your headshots, reels, voice lessons, casting sites, trade publications, etc. Don’t give money to managers or agents. They get paid when you get paid. Don’t give money to audition; that’s not allowed. If anybody asks you for money, be careful – don’t listen if they tell you that you have to go to a certain service, to a certain class, or to a certain headshot photographer. Do what you’re comfortable with and don’t give money if your gut says “no.”

7. You have to network!

Networking – who likes to network?! Nobody does! Okay, maybe there’s one or two weird people who do and yay for them, and you know that their career is going to succeed partly because they are willing to network. You’re gonna make friends in this industry. And I hope you’re gonna have people who become your fans. Stay in touch with those people and  those casting directors who routinely will call you in. How about that director who hired you? Keep in touch with them as they might have another project. But out of sight is out of mind, so stay connected. Connect with people in class, connect with writers and directors. You can have a really wonderful group of friends and supporters, but you’ve got to put a little effort into it.

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