ARE YOU HEADED FOR A BRILLIANT NEW YEAR?

by Bonnie Katz, MFT Manifesting a Brilliant New Year Each New Year brings an opportunity to make a fresh start and begin again. Actors get busy setting goals, tackling bad habits and figuring out new and improved ways to succeed. Procrastinators are nudged to get fresh headshots, find a new agent, and enroll in a great acting class that will push them out of their comfort zone and into success. It’s also the perfect time to reevaluate strategies and see if your dream is still intact, especially if circumstances may have shifted over the past year. Unforeseen experiences could have swayed you off course a bit and instead of signing up for that great improv class, you paid off your credit card bills. Maybe you feel disappointed that you aren’t where you thought you’d be when you set out on this journey. Obstacles thrown on your path are a normal part of life, they force you to continuously recalculate your route just like a GPS gets you to your destination when you’ve made a wrong turn. When the road is filled with wrong turns, ups and downs and setbacks, remember that all worthwhile destinations come with a cost. View the difficulties as labor pains; a necessary part of the creative process. Your passion and love for your craft can act as your guide no matter where you end up. Is your heart and mind with you as you set out on your career path towards joy and happiness? That was the attitude Glenn Close had when she set out to make the film, “Albert Nobbs.” In Deborah Vankin’s L.A. Times article, about Close’s Obie award winning passion project, Vankin stated: “She co-produced it and co-wrote the screenplay, penned the lyrics of the movie’s theme song (Nominated for a Golden Globe), invested “quite a bit” of her own money in the movie and after tapping every possible financial resource in Hollywood, she took to out-of-the-box fundraising and traveled to Dallas in 2010 and after an evening of Close singing the tunes from Sunset Boulevard and South Pacific, received a million dollars from an investor.“ This woman’s got moxie!! “Even after the money was in place and Rodrigo Garcia was hired to direct, the 34 -day Dublin shoot was riddled with problems. Chief among them: a vicious winter storm that had the actors clutching hot water bottles between takes and which resulted in Close’s getting pneumonia during filming.” ‘It was nerve-racking to the bitter end,’ “Garcia said,” ‘There were many times where we thought, ‘This movie is not gonna get made.’ But I’d jumped on a bandwagon that was already fiercely committed – Glenn’s bandwagon.’ “Garcia said,” ‘ that her focused fervor was contagious and helped the production land actors like Pauline Collins and Jonathan Rhys Meyers for smaller roles. So many people wanted to do it, at any cost, just because it was Glenn’s passionate dream.’” In this case, not only did Close’s passion and devotion help her over the hurdles thrown on her path, but they attracted formidable artists who desired to be a part of her vision. Close’s dedication to “‘Albert Nobbs,’” became the wind beneath her wings, enabling her to weather each storm and create an honorable and touching work of art. Without her relentless determination this project would have never happened. Twyla Tharp’s balanced view of discipline and passion is eloquently stated when she says that: ”Without passion, all the skill in the world won’t lift you above craft. Without skill, all the passion in the world will leave you eager but floundering. Combining the two is the essence of the creative life.” The fuel necessary to sustain your dreams is devotion, discipline, courage, creativity and strength. Along with developing a strategy of success for the New Year, don’t forget to nurture these elements also. They are needed to help you stay focused, especially when the going gets tough. They are just as important to your success as a great agent and talented acting teacher. Here are some thoughts on how to make this happen.

Comments

[Jack Cook]

My flight instructor once asked me: "What makes an airplane fly?"
Being the good student, I began to explain to him all the wonderful principles of physics I had learned concerning how aerodynamics and power created lift using the motive force of moving air.
He stopped me half way through my explanation, and said, "Money."
"Money?" I said.
"Yes, money. You can have every aspect of flight mechanically perfected, and gain every skill necessary to sustain your license. But, without money, your airplane will simply sit on the ground gathering dust."
And, such is the business of art. Without financing of some type, a project will never get off the ground. As with flight, a huge percentage of energy expended in the entertainment industry is wrapped up in how to fund the project.