Acting Career FAQ - Your
Most Important Role Is ...
by Bob Fraser
I get hundreds of emails a week ... and most of them are
lovely. Many actors write to say thanks for an article or a tip - and those letters are a joy to receive.
However, I also get letters from some actors who seem to think that I am the answer to all their problems. They
KNOW I can help them achieve a career... if only I would. Here's a typical letter (name & location changed):
Hey Bob,
I can't buy your course right now. Maybe later. So, just tell me about ALL the acting schools. Where are the good
ones? How much do they cost, etc? I live in Iowa and I don't think there are any good acting schools here. If
you could just tell me about a school to learn acting, I might even end up in Hollywood and we'll meet. Ha ha.
Nancy
Here's my answer:
Dear Nancy,
You bring up two important things in your letter that I
feel I must address. First, that 'later' is an actual time - a real place. Second, that I can help you to
achieve your dream of an acting career - by doing your homework for you. It has been my observation that 'later' rarely happens
when it comes to our dreams. Dreams only start coming true when YOU start taking action.
That’s why the title of my course is You Must Act! If I were to add one word to the title, that word would be ..."NOW."
Getting right to the crux of the "help" idea - NO ONE else is going to make your dream a reality FOR you.
The bottom line is (and always will be) this: If YOU are unwilling to take on the role of running your business -it just won’t get done.
If you continue to believe that someone else is going to come along and take the steps needed to get you to the
top - well, you're not in Iowa anymore. You live in a place called, Fantasyland.
Since you are sending me an email, I assume you have a working knowledge of the internet. A quick trip to Google
and a search for "acting school" plus "Iowa," will get you a lot of results.
Whatever you do, Nancy, don’t wait for me ... or ‘later.’
Much Success,
Bob Fraser
* * * *
The main reason I am passing along this letter - and my answer - is because I get a lot of mail with this sort of
request.
Some samples:
"Here's my online proof-sheet. Look at my headshots and pick out the best one. When I win the Oscar, I'll be sure
to mention you."
"Please send me the names of the REAL agents who are willing to make me into a movie star. I'm very talented."
"I have an idea for a show I can star in. If you get it to the right people ... I'll split the profits with you."
"I need a manager to get my career started. Tell me who the good ones are, so I won't get scammed."
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One of the first (and most important) things I talk about in You Must Act! is the necessity of doing the legwork -(homework) - yourself.
As long as you live in a world where someone else is going to do the work it takes to get to the top in the acting
business FOR you - you are not going to move forward. And you will probably get hurt ... financially or otherwise.
It is this belief in a one-step process (or a short-cut, or a secret "back door," or an easier way) that gets most
actors in trouble.
In fact, it is precisely that mindset that scammers are looking for. When a scammer meets an actor who believes
it is possible for someone else to MAKE it happen - he knows he's landed a sucker.
When you think all you have to do is 'convince' an agent to represent you and you'll be on your way - you're just
asking for trouble. Scammers, calling themselves "agents," are ready to pounce on any actor who thinks this way.
Real agents cannot be "convinced." They make all of their decisions based on their assessment of how much money you
can make as an actor. If you aren't making any money - don't expect a legitimate agent to be very interested
until you start to make money.
If you just move to Hollywood or New York (Toronto, London, Sydney, etc.) without a solid plan of action - in the hopes
that you will meet someone who can help you achieve your dream - you are going to end up an unhappy camper. The
scammers are looking for newly arrived, uninformed pigeons all the time.
They will spot you, trap you, and take your money. They're good at it. They've been doing it for years.
The absolute truth is that there are MANY steps (and a lot
of them are difficult) that you MUST TAKE ON YOUR OWN - if you ever expect to make your professional acting career a
reality.
Here are just a few:
You must learn how to get a good picture. This isn't a matter of finding a good photographer - it's a matter of
learning what you must do in front of the camera to make a great picture happen, no matter who the photographer is.
You must learn the 'culture' of show business and work within that reality. Most actors think this will "come
naturally" and find themselves, five years later, still
working at a crummy job and trying to 'make it' in their spare time.
You must take care of yourself - yourself. 90% of actors don't have a sugar daddy or a family who will take care
of them as they pursue their dreams. Somehow, successful actors make it a point to 'take care of business' by
themselves.
If you need a 'keeper' to take care of your career for you - then your prospects are dim.
You must also make a lot of decisions:
You will have to decide the budget for your business.
You will have to decide whether your new 'friends' are for real - or out for your money.
You must decide what niche will make you the happiest.
.. and I'm just skimming the surface.
If you think that you will get where you want to go by
finding other people who will do the hard part for you - well, you will find it difficult (if not impossible) to
move forward in any meaningful way - as long as that's what you think.
This idea, that your first order of business is to find someone else to 'make it happen' for you ... is a major
mistake.
MAJOR MISTAKE.
You should take some time out of your busy schedule to read the biographies of successful actors. Almost every
one has the elements (steps) that lead to a successful career in show business.
You should read David Mamet's book - and K. Callen's books- and Stanislavski - and Michael Shurtleff, Allan Miller,Lee
Strasberg, Judy Kerr, Bonnie Gillespie, Uta Hagen,Mark Brandon, Michael J. Wallach ...Well, it's a very long reading list.
In other words, there's lot of homework for you to do. A dream without work to make it happen, remains a dream.
You can't spend a dime of the money you make in dreams. Is it easy to do it all this work on your own? NO.
Is there a shortcut? NO. Is there another way? NO.
You MUST take on the role yourself - and do "the hard part."
Agents, managers, connections, etc. are people who will come along AFTER you have started succeeding on your own.
There are 3 critical behaviors you MUST make into habits ... in order to start being successful on your own:
You must be willing to learn = INFORMATION
You must be willing to work at it = HARD WORK
You must be willing to stay at it = TENACITY
You don't need an agent, a manager, a teacher, a coach,
a photographer, a friend, a lover, or a sugar daddy to take these first steps on the way to your destination.
In fact, if you wait for somebody else to do the hard part for you, you will be waiting a long time ... like forever.
If you want to be a professional actor - you must get the information, do the hard work and be willing to keep at it- ON YOUR OWN.
In other words ...
YOU ... MUST ... ACT!
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Bob Fraser is an actor, writer, director, producer,
show-runner and author of You Must Act! & Headshot Secrets Revealed - The Acting Career Courses on Your
Computer
http://www.youmustact.com
http://www.headshotsecrets.com
You can also subscribe to Bob's Free Actor's E-zine,
Show Biz How-To by going to the site and signing up.
http://www.showbizhowto.com
Bob's career seminar, Show Biz U, is offered semi- regularly. The next session will be on January 27th... in Burbank, California.
You can learn more by going to: http://www.showbizu.com
"Reprinted from ACTOR'S TOOL KIT, the email course just for
subscribers of Show Biz How-To -- The Free Actor's Monthly.
Get your own free subscription by going to: showbizhowto.com
Copyright © 2006 Bob Fraser Productions All Rights Reserved"