Here’s a short preview of one of my sketches for The Sketchbook Project 2011.  My sketchbook theme is “The View from Up Here.”  The title of this piece is “What Every Frog Aspires to Be.”  I plan to create a video for each and every sketch to document my progress.  This will probably be the only video for a while because I’m busy sketching and doing a bunch of other stuff, too.  Not enough time in the day.   Once I have the whole sketchbook done, I’ll release more videos.  I want to add music to future videos but finding catchy royalty-free music is a challenge.  Using copyrighted songs gets your videos yanked from YouTube.  So, if there’s anyone out there who has some music they’d like to donate to my videos, contact  me.  Otherwise, you’ll all just have to deal with hearing the sound of pen strokes.  If you’d like to learn more about The Sketchbook Project 2011 and participate, go here.  You have until Oct. 31st, 2010 to sign up.  Anyone can do it.

You’ll notice in the video I’m not actually drawing in/on the sketchbook because the pages in the sketchbook are very thin and bleed through with most media.  I’m actually using Strathmore Smooth Bristol cut down to fit in the sketchbook and plan to paste it onto one of the pages.  I’m going to do this with most of my pieces.  Some of my earlier black and white pen drawings are directly on the sketchbook pages but they bled through a little.  As soon as I started using Prismacolor art markers (color), I knew I’d have to start pasting thicker paper stock into the sketchbook.  Art markers bleed through a lot.  Keep this in mind if you decide to do the project especially if you use inks, paint, various washes, etc.  Here’s the video, enjoy.  Comments are welcome.

Related Posts:

• Getting Back to My Roots
• Reboot

I entered the latest National Geographic Traveler World in Focus Photography Contest. My entry is of a mama panda bear eating some greens for lunch. Pandas are one of my favorite animals. I have no idea why but I think it’s because when I was a baby, my parents bought me a stuffed toy panda bear. Besides the regular contest which is judged by the magazine’s editors, there is also the People’s Choice Award judged by you, the readers, site visitors, and photo enthusiasts. Here’s where you, my blog readers come in. Please vote for my photo entry at this link: http://tinyurl.com/mamapanda. More importantly, after voting, please spread the URL to your friends, families, enemies, and frenemies and please ask them all to vote. The People’s Choice is a separate category altogether so the main contest will not be affected by your votes. It’s a nice little bonus category.

As always, thanks for your support!

Vote here – http://tinyurl.com/mamapanda

Related Posts:

• Getting Back to My Roots

I got called in for a go-see which is basically a model’s equivalent to an actor’s audition. You usually show up with your book if the client is there and/or a zed card. If you’re an actor who occasionally does some modeling, sometimes a headshot will suffice. Because I’m not a fashion model, I go out for what is called commercial print modeling which casts models with a look that leans more toward the real people category. Commercial print or real people typically don’t have set height/weight requirements. This go-see was for a major credit card company.

I’ve only done a few print jobs, and of the ones I’ve done, it’s been inexplicably difficult obtaining copies of the photos. Therefore, I didn’t have a book. Also, I was out of zed cards. Yes, shame on me for not being prepared. Wait, not so fast. I was prepared. Sort of. The go-see was for the very next day, so I didn’t have time to send photos to a duplication lab that could print out several hundred zed cards for me. So, I did the next best thing. I made my own. Using photo-editing software, I quickly threw together several color photos of myself that were taken by a professional photographer.  I had some fun action and business poses to choose from. I made sure to choose shots that were conversation starters or eye-catchers. One of them was a shot of me in a business suit holding a briefcase in one hand and flexing the bicep of my opposite arm. Because I was in a hurry, I used a very basic design with four smaller photos. I typed up my name, measurements, and agency information in a simple sans-serif font on a solid blue background.

Using my own photo printer and store-bought photo paper, I printed up a couple copies of my homemade zed card. I used a paper cutter and sliced it to size (5.5” x 8.5”). Now, I was ready.

This go-see had a huge turnout. Men and women of every shape, size, and color showed up for this. Many of them were people I knew from other acting jobs, auditions, and go-sees. Things were running a little over schedule so people were getting antsy. They were checking the time and worried about feeding parking meters.

Usually, the go-sees I’ve been to have been very fast. You go in, hand in your zed card, the casting assistant takes a snapshot of you with a digital point-and-shoot camera, and you turn around and leave. In and out in five minutes. The client is rarely there.

This time, the client was there. And I knew that gave everyone, including me, a better chance to chat and charm the client with some personality. In my experience, it’s usually a plus to have the client there. I’m able to connect with them directly and possibly make them laugh with some light humor rather than solely depend on my photos to wow them.

The photographer who was going to shoot the job was there doing most of the talking. He asked me what I did besides modeling and acting. At the time, I was doing a little bit of photography of my own. A few headshot sessions here and there, and a few weddings. So, I figured I’d tell him that I do photography to connect with him. He instantly made a joke saying, “Well, then that means you spend most of your time unemployed!” And we both had a nice laugh. Instant connection.  He also looked at my makeshift zed card and instantly called attention to that bicep-flexing shot. He asked excitedly, “What’s this?! Show me your guns!”  I flexed right there and laughed. It was a good, fun go-see. The artistic director who was also in the room joked, “Are you willing to shave your head for this job?” Again, more light-hearted fun.

They booked me for the job. It was a fun, relaxed shoot. The credit card company ended up increasing the usage of the photos taken that day and wound up sending me a residual check which was an added bonus.

1) Don’t let yourself run out of your industry marketing tools.
In this case, I ran out of zed cards a long time ago and never bothered to replenish my supply. Same goes for headshots – don’t run out. Don’t do what I did. Stay on top of it. When you get low and still like the photos you have, simply re-order copies of your existing tools. If you are in need of updated tools, time it so that you still have a small stack of headshots or zed cards and can still fit in a new photoshoot. Give yourself some lead time because from photoshoot to finished prints, it can take several weeks. Maybe a month or more.  (*Update: Many casting directors are going the digital route. There is less of a need for hardcopy zeds and headshots now that the internet let’s everyone see photos instantly.  It’s probably still a good idea to have some hardcopies but you can likely get away with much smaller quantities than before. Check with casting directors and your agent to be sure.)

2) Get creative.
If you do run out of your industry marketing tools, that’s no excuse to forfeit an audition or go-see. Be the artistic personality type that you are and GET CREATIVE.  Because my agent does her job so very well, I knew this go-see was for a major company. In other words, it would be a huge opportunity for me, as well as for my agency. Also, I knew that the company requested that talent bring zed cards. So instead of being too embarrassed or too worried about what the potential client would think of my homemade, quick-and-dirty zed card, I just went with it. Better to have something than nothing. It would’ve been worse to walk in there without a zed card with the flimsy excuse “I ran out of zed cards.” I might as well have stayed home. But now that consumer electronics have come very far, in particular, computers, graphics software, and photo printers, there was no excuse to not try. At the time, I used my Epson Stylus PHOTO 900 (outdated as of this writing but still a fantastic photo printer) and Epson Premium Glossy Photo Paper to print out a one-sided zed card. Zed’s are usually double-sided, but like I said, I was doing this quick and dirty. I sliced and diced it to size using a papercutter that you can buy at any office supply store. Worked like a charm.

Related Posts:

• Is There Something in My Teeth?
• Making and Starring in a Short Film – Is it Worth It?
• Monkey Business
• Just Bury Me Already
• The Reader from Hell

A well-known company that specializes in toothpaste came out with a new teeth-whitening mouthwash. They were seeking actors of all shapes, sizes, and ethnicities for a national ad campaign. Yes, national as in lots of big fat residual checks from multiple airings of the commercial.

This was one of those auditions where everything was just falling into place in the most perfect way. I grew up brushing my teeth with this company’s toothpaste. I went in dressed sporty-casual wearing a shirt in the color of the toothpaste itself – pale blue. I even whitened my teeth the night before using a home whitening kit.

For commercials like this they like high energy, an upbeat attitude, and smiles. Definitely smiles. I went in there and gave a great, smiley and sincere slate and read for the casting director. In and out, 5 minutes tops. I believe it was the next day or so when I got a call from my agent. “They loved you! I’m excited to say that you have a callback next week.” Rock on. That’s music to any actor’s ears. So, I looked over the script some more and set aside the same outfit I wore to the very first audition, and mentally prepared for another go at it for the next week.

At the callback, I met with someone I presume was either the producer or director and another individual who was operating the camera and other technology. Not only that, there were other stakeholders viewing me in real-time over a computer web cam. I don’t know who they were or what they looked like, but they could see me in living color. Once again, I gave a great read and connected really well with the people present in the room. Not sure how the people viewing me from the web cam were responding to me but the audition felt good. Later that week, I got another call from my agent. “They liked you, you are on check avail. We’ll know for sure on Monday. I’m keeping my fingers crossed.”  A check avail is another good sign. It means check availability. And for a nice paying job such as this one, being as available as possible is a good idea. So when my agent threw some dates out at me, I said, “Sure, all those days are open.”

I was really cookin’ now. I could almost taste the minty teeth-whitening mouthwash at this point. All weekend I was thinking, I booked this national commercial and I am getting paid. I mean paid. Finally, Monday rolls around and I get the call from my agent. “I have some bad news. Unfortunately, they released you from check avail. They decided to go in another direction.” My heart sank. So close, yet so far. How did this happen? Why? In what direction did they decide to go? I don’t know. I never really got any answers. But when I finally saw the commercials that aired, they only featured women. I don’t know for sure whether they decided to go all-female with the actors, but it’s a possibility. All I know was that I wasn’t booked and wasn’t going to get all those minty residual checks in the mail.

1) Don’t count your chickens until they’ve hatched.
We’ve all heard this one before. And nowhere else in the world does it apply as much as it does in the acting profession. There are no guarantees until you’re physically on the set saying your lines, and even then things can change. You can get fired on the set and replaced. I’ve even booked a job and then had the client back out due to cheaper rates through another supplier. I usually make it a point to only tell people I’ve done a project when the project is completely wrapped and when there’s some kind of evidence indicating that I made it into the final cut. This keeps me from looking like a liar and a fool.

2) Never think you’re alone.
A friend of mine who regularly books a lot of acting jobs told me he had three callbacks in the span of about a week or two and none of them became bookings. Sometimes it feels like you’re going up against a wall of rejection all the time. But this kind of work is feast or famine, on a hot roll or a cold downward spiral, up and down like the stock market.  It’s the nature of the beast. And all actors go through these kinds of experiences.  If you’re on a roll right now, sock that money away for a rainy day.

Related Posts:

• Monkey Business
• Just Charge It
• Making and Starring in a Short Film – Is it Worth It?
• Just Bury Me Already
• The Reader from Hell

I used to draw.

A lot.

It was my favorite activity in Kindergarten.  We all got to draw as kids but man I was serious. I’d work those crayons down to crumbly wax stubs during art time.  I would draw pictures for myself, for friends, for family members, for almost anyone. I’d draw with pencil (my fave back then) and pen, too.  As a kid I would make up G.I. Joe characters that didn’t exist.  Ones I wish they’d base new action figures on.  I’d draw army men, battles, robots, cars, spacemen, all kinds of crap.

It didn’t stop there.  I drew big ass banners for my high school’s Commercial Art class.  These were banners that were actually used to promote various high school activities, services, and local events.  I was in the Journalism class and drew political cartoons and other filler.

I won a couple of awards of merit from the California State Fair for drawing portraits of Brandon Lee as The Crow and actress Joan Chen.

In college I minored in Art Studio where one of my classes was a charcoal drawing course that had us drawing for 4 to 5 hours per lab, two or three times a week.  Part of our assignment was to draw a self-portrait every week.  I took painting, lithography, and intaglio, too.  Just a crazy variety of different forms of art.

For a time, I wanted to be a comic book artist.

Then suddenly…

THUD.

A lot of other people’s (dis)beliefs fell on me.

OK, maybe not so suddenly.  But more like a steady flow of other people’s doubts buzzing around in the back of my mind.

“You’ll be a starving artist.”

“You need a backup plan.”

“Artists don’t make much money.”

I’m not here to cast judgment or chastise anyone.  It’s over and done with, and I’m over it.  But here’s where I’m going with this…

I haven’t drawn, and I mean freehand with no computers, for a very long time.  In fact, it’s been so long, I probably suck at it now.  But I’m fired up again because of a project I heard about through someone’s Facebook post.  I signed up to do The Sketchbook Project 2011.  And my sketchbook just arrived in the mail today.  My theme: The View from Up Here. Now, I don’t have to draw; I can use other media if I like.  I might do that.  But I really miss drawing.  Just picking up that pencil and seeing what flows.  I’ve always had a strange fascination with blank paper.  To me, it represents endless possibilities, stories untold, new beginnings.

It’s never too late to do something you love.  I’m going to draw again, because I love it.  If only for this one project.

By the way, if you’re having trouble with those same beliefs I mentioned earlier, know this: Art feeds the soul.  So fear not, there is no such thing as a starving artist.

To be continued…

Related Posts:

• Preview: One of my sketches for The Sketchbook Project 2011
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I wrote, directed, produced, and starred in “Bite Me,” a 12 minute comedy about speed-dating with a little twist. It co-stars a bunch of my friends, was filmed in HD, and was done with a very small, next-to-zero budget. It was great fun making this film and I’m really excited that it got into a few film festivals.

So, What Exactly is a Short Film?
A short film is exactly what it sounds like – it’s a film that has a short runtime, shorter than a feature length film, and can clock in at 1 minute or be 45 minutes long. It can pretty much be in any genre such as drama, sci-fi, and in my case, comedy, and others. Typically, short films are independently produced by individual enthusiasts or small production companies.

Why Would Anyone Want to Create a Short Film?
I guess the main reason anyone would put together a short film is because they have a story to tell. And the short film format is in most cases easier and less expensive to produce than a feature length film. Sometimes, making a short film is a stepping stone for a new filmmaker toward making a feature length film. Another reason is to gain exposure, to get a completed project, and one’s name, in front of official judges, peers, and future fans. For small production companies that mainly produce commercials for businesses, making a short film can act as a way of advertising their services and promoting the quality of their work. And it gives them a chance to create something they don’t normally do on a daily basis.

Why I Made a Short Film
• To make a statement
• To tell a funny story
• To actually star in something as the lead instead of having my role decided by someone else
• To play a type of character I’ve always wanted to play
• To create acting work for myself and my friends
• To make an ensemble piece so that every actor could get a nice piece of footage for their demo reels
• Overall, to advance my acting career and the careers of my friends

What’s in It for You, the Actor?
I heard about an acting coach who doesn’t think highly of the idea of appearing in no-name short films. This coach thinks no one (read: no one famous and influential) will care about it nor will ever see it, therefore there’s no value in appearing in one. I have to disagree here, especially if an actor is just starting out. Are there some caveats about appearing in independent short films that actors should be aware of? Of course. But I think you’ll find there are a lot of benefits, too. Let’s look at the pros and cons of getting involved in a short film.

The Pros
• Get a chance to practice auditioning, and assuming you get cast…
• Gain experience in front of a camera
• Learn how to take direction
• Learn how to hit your mark
• Gain experience breaking down and memorizing a script
• Chance to play a lead role or a meatier role than usual
• Working with like-minded people
• Experience being a part of something a little bigger than yourself
• Help another artist tell his/her story
• Network (even if the people you network with aren’t “big names,” it doesn’t hurt to make new friends in the business. You never know who might take off one day.)
• Since it’s a short film, it’s a short time commitment
• Another film credit on your resume
• If the film gets legitimate exposure such as distribution or into certain festivals, you can get that film credit on your www.IMDB.com profile
• You might get paid
• You might get a copy of the finished film
• You might get fed on set
• It’s fun!

The Cons
• There’s usually no pay
• You might be promised a copy of the finished film and never get one (be insistent about getting a copy for your demo reel)
• You might not be fed on set (If a certain friend of mine is reading this, I know man, sorry I forgot you’re vegetarian!)
• The script might not be high quality
• Working conditions might be unsuitable
• You might have inexperienced people working on the project
• Sometimes everything and everyone is disorganized
• The final film’s technical quality might be sorely lacking due to budget constraints, inexperience, lack of vision, or all of the above
• You probably won’t get rich nor famous from it

So, Should You Still Consider Trying out for a Role in a Short Film?
It’s your choice, but I would say, absolutely! Just be sure to do your due diligence by finding out all you can about an opportunity. Make sure it resonates with you on all levels. Do you like the script? Is there a substantial role available for you? Can you live with what they’re offering as compensation, which is usually in the form of copy, credit, and meals? Do you like the other people working on the film, or can you at least peacefully work with them? There are a lot of things to consider but overall I think the pros outweigh the cons. Give short films a chance, build up your experience, and add more credits to your resume. Most of all, have fun. You never know where the experience will lead.

Related Posts:

• Giving Me the Evil Eye
• Tired and Starving in the Stands
• Just Charge It
• Is There Something in My Teeth?
• Monkey Business

I was called in to audition for a commercial for one of those business schools, you know, the kind of school that promises they’ll teach you everything you need to know in order to get a career in the exciting field of whatever’s been hot in the past few years.

You can always tell when they want to shoot something really soon. They have no callbacks and the client or the director is sitting in the room. Mine was an afternoon appointment and as soon as I walked into the room I could tell it had been a long day for everyone. They probably saw droves of people and still hadn’t found anyone for the role of “man in gorilla suit.”

I was told to play a guy who has a job as a sign-twirler and is dressed in a gorilla suit. You know what a sign-twirler is, they stand on the corner holding a huge sign that reads “Blowout Sale” or something like that and they dance around and twirl the sign. They try to get the attention of passersby and drivers.

So, I’m not supposed to like my job, the gorilla suit is hot and itchy, and I’m sitting there on my lunch break eating. The gorilla suit is still on from the neck down but the head or mask is completely off. They wanted me to improvise and mime this on camera. So, I did the first thing that popped into my head – I mimed peeling and eating a banana. I looked a little stressed and every now and then I would pick and scratch at my imaginary gorilla costume.

In my wacky world, my sense of humor dictates that a man dressed as a gorilla eating a banana on his lunch break constitutes funny. I played it straight, which is to say, I didn’t smile and laugh while eating the banana. Instead, I was serious and completely in character as I ate the banana.

As soon as he saw me doing this, the director jumped out of his chair with laughter. He loved it. He said that all day no one ever thought to pretend eating a banana for the scene. Everyone else mimed eating a sandwich.

He said, “That’s it. You got it. Good job.” It was one out of only a very few times I booked a job right on the spot.

In the actual commercial, they had me eating a sandwich. I thought it would’ve been funnier if we had gone with my idea. But it might have distracted viewers from what was really being sold, and in this case, that was the school.

Go for humor when it’s appropriate.
Be aware of the kind of role for which you’re reading. When I saw that the original casting notice called for a “guy in gorilla suit,” I figured it had to be something with a funny angle. Now, I’m no comedian but I have my moments. If you can come up with something humorous that stays with the spirit of the project, run with it. Take the chance.  People love a good laugh especially when they see actor after actor walk through the door doing the same damn thing over and over again.  Stand out and be memorable.

Related Posts:

• Is There Something in My Teeth?
• Just Charge It
• Making and Starring in a Short Film – Is it Worth It?
• Just Bury Me Already
• The Reader from Hell

This goes down as one of the strangest and most embarrassing auditions I’ve ever had. It was for an anti-smoking public service announcement where the main character strikes a match and discovers he’s been buried alive in a coffin.

In the audition room, they had me lie across a couple of chairs while the camera was pointed down at me to capture my facial expressions. They said “action!” and I proceeded to scream and holler in fear, “Somebody help me!” There weren’t any lines, I was just going with it.

Well, I was going and going and going for what felt like an eternity. Mind you, I was lying down and couldn’t see the people in the room who were observing me. For all I knew, they had gone to lunch or fallen asleep. Or they were pointing at me and giggling to each other. So, I did a huge no-no after minutes of ranting, raving, and pretending to claw at the sides of this imaginary coffin – I sat upright and said, “Scene.’

Um, nice move, dork.

What the hell was I thinking? I’ll tell you. I was thinking, this has gone on long enough. What the hell were they looking for in my performance and how many more ways can I show that I’m terrified of being trapped in a coffin? They really tried to hide their discomfort (or was it disgust?) with the best poker faces I’ve ever seen. Of course, I didn’t book the role.

1) Let the people auditioning you tell you when to end your scene.
This isn’t a hard and fast rule. If you come to the end of a scene’s lines, then the scene naturally winds down. (You should of course hold for a few beats while still in character.) Don’t end your own improv scene unless a natural closing moment presents itself, and certainly do not say the actual word “scene” to end it. Jeez.

2) Fully commit to the role.
Now, had I really fully committed to the scenario of being trapped alive in a coffin, I would’ve been able to go on for days screaming and freaking out and looking terrified. You could’ve walked out to get lunch for an hour, taken your dog for a walk, gone sight-seeing, and returned before closing time and I still would’ve been on those chairs trying to figure out how I got stuck in a coffin. Instead, I got stuck inside my head thinking about how long I was going on and on and on…and on. Live in the moment and commit.

Related Posts:

• The Reader from Hell
• Giving Me the Evil Eye
• Tired and Starving in the Stands

In case you’re brand spankin’ new to auditions, the person on the other side of the camera who reads the other character’s lines is called a reader. They read the lines, or the characters, opposite you. Generally, they do a good enough job. And rumor has it they’re not supposed to do a stellar acting performance because 1) they might outshine you and 2) it’s kind of a test to see how good you’ll do without too much to work with. Well, they’re still supposed to at least sound like a warm, breathing, human body. There’s probably at least a hundred audition stories I could tell here, but the one that sticks out to me is brief and wins the best of the best award.

I went in for an independent action film. The character opposite mine in the script was a woman with whom my character had had an intimate past. Wouldn’t you know it, the reader at the audition was a teenage boy. Or at least he looked like a teenager. He was definitely male. Whether or not he was breathing is another story.

The reader droned on in a partially comatose monotone giving me absolutely nothing. Then I did some of my lines showing some subtle attraction to this reader. Our characters have a past, afterall. Then, he busts out with an uncomfortable giggle while I’m delivering my lines.

At this point in my career, it didn’t faze me. I still gave a great read. But it sure as hell annoyed me. It’s one thing to not read with any feeling, it’s another to start snickering because you feel uncomfortable reading the lines. I mean, it’s not like he’d never read the part before. He was a reader for cryin’ out loud. He must’ve read the same sides over and over for other actors prior to my arrival.

1) Act as if the other person is giving you everything you need for your scene.
The magical “as if” comes in really handy in many situations. Usually it’s when you’re breaking down a script and developing your character when the magical “as if” comes to your aid. For example, you might act as if you had intimate relations with someone in the past even though it never happened in real life. During an audition or filming, if the reader or other actor(s) aren’t giving you what you need, you must act as if they are giving you plenty. Try not to let a bad performance on someone else’s part drag your own performance down. It’s tough but that’s acting.

2) Be prepared to read a romantic scene with a same-gender reader (even when the scene involves a straight pairing).
This is pretty common. Sometimes you’ll be reading a scene from a straight romantic drama or comedy, or in my case an action film where the characters once had some kind of romantic past. If you’re homophobic, get over it. We’re all just people here, and by here I mean Earth. Just read your sides the way you prepared them when you practiced at home, in your acting class, or with your private acting coach – like you’re reading it with the opposite sex. Everything must be there, the feeling, the emotion, the intent. Fully commit and you won’t have any trouble imagining/believing that the reader is that hottie or hunk you envisioned during practice.

Related Posts:

• Just Bury Me Already
• Giving Me the Evil Eye
• Just Charge It
• Is There Something in My Teeth?
• Making and Starring in a Short Film – Is it Worth It?

(Names have been changed because, well, frankly it was so long ago I don’t remember them.)

Early in my career I auditioned for an independent film being thrown together by some college students from my alma mater. It was a last-minute casting call and they wanted to hear a monologue and have me cold read from the script. I didn’t have a monologue memorized so I quickly memorized lyrics to the Broadway showtune “If You Could See Her” from Cabaret since the words could pass for a monologue.

I arrived and there were the two students seated behind a table, a young male, Joe, and a young female, Becky. I barely got out a “hello” when I noticed Becky glaring at me with disgust. Something must’ve crawled up her major orifice on that lovely afternoon. I don’t know if I reminded her of an ex-boyfriend, but she had straight-up hatred in her eyes. Her arms were folded the whole time and her mouth was barely cracked open as she forced the word “hi” from behind her clenched teeth.

Well, I tried to ignore her. But as I launched into my monologue, I tripped up; my memory failed me. I managed to get it all out but it was too late, it sucked and I knew it. So, it was on to the cold reading. Already nervous from stumbling through my monologue, I dropped a few words and oh crap, accidentally, yes, read some stage directions. Ugh. Needless to say, I didn’t book a role. As I politely thanked them and said goodbye, Becky still looked like she was seething. Arms still folded, jaw still clenched, she blurted out “bye” with force. I was relieved the audition was over and happy to leave the room.

A few weeks passed, and I found out a friend of mine, Sara, was cast in the project. She told me that she had overheard Becky talking about various actors who auditioned, including me. Becky was going on about how weird I was and how she didn’t really believe all the credits on my resume. And she mentioned how I had spoken a song for my monologue. She was laughing and going on loudly on set within earshot of all the other actors who had been cast. In fact, according to Sara, Becky was cracking jokes behind the back of one of the actors who was in the cast.

Wow. I don’t know what I did to create that kind of ire during my audition. I mean, yea, I can be a little weird at times, who isn’t? But I was hardly weird during the audition other than fumbling because I was getting the evil eye from Becky. To this day, I don’t know why Becky was so harsh during and after the audition. All I know is, I’m glad I didn’t get cast in the project because I wouldn’t want to work with someone like that.

1) Always prepare the material requested of you.
Even though I hate doing monologues, I should’ve had one prepared. It’s what they wanted, asked for, and expected. Instead, I did a half-ass job by using song lyrics. By the way, the reason I hate monologues is because real people don’t do monologues unless they’re giving a speech in front of an audience. In real life, no one drones on forever and ever in the presence of other people. Real life people converse, they take turns. It’s called dialogue, interaction. While monologues have their place in theater and sometimes in an agent’s office, it really isn’t acting to me. It’s giving a speech. And if I wanted to give speeches, I would’ve joined Toastmasters.

2) Concentrate on the job at hand; avoid getting distracted.
I never should’ve let Becky’s negative vibes throw off my game. Her piercing eyes and tension got to me. It was as though the Pulp Fiction version of Samuel L. Jackson was standing their with his huge, juicy afro, black suit, and gun screaming, “I’m sorry, did I break your concentration?” only Becky never said, “I’m sorry” and she wasn’t half as juicy. Big deal, get over it, but get over it during the audition.

3) Watch what you say about other people.
OK, this is actually a lesson inspired by, and for, Becky. The acting community is a very small one no matter where you are. During your adventures, you’re going to meet and work with a lot of other actors, crew, directors, producers, casting directors, agents, managers, etc. They’ve all worked with several others and eventually you’ll bump into so-and-so who worked with such-and-such who’s good friends with what’s-her-face who was in the same show or film with another so-and-so. You’ve heard about it before, six degrees of separation. Everyone’s connected to everyone else within six people. Be nice to people and watch what you say even when they’re not around to hear it. It can and will get back to them. If you’re not careful, you can ruin your reputation. Yea, I’m talking to you, Becky.

4) Sometimes, not getting the part is the best thing that can ever happen to you.
Now imagine if I had booked this part. That means I would’ve had to work with this acidic Becky for God knows how long. Most likely, I would’ve had to take orders from her which would’ve been unbearable. And in this case, without pay! You couldn’t pay me to work with someone who already has it in for me for no apparent reason at all. After this experience, there have been a number of other times when I didn’t get a role and heard through the grapevine what a nightmare the project and/or people were. So just remember that everything happens for a reason. Hey, you might get good material like I did so you can write your own article. You never know.

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