The Successful Talent: Tips for the Actor & Model

GOING, GOING...SOLD!

A big part of this business is about selling yourself.  You need to sell yourself to agents, casting directors, producers, other talent, etc.  It’s imperative that you make these people realize that you are the right person for the role.  Acting coach Elisa Eliot gives advice on how best to sell yourself during auditions:

1. Know Your Material
If you are given the sides in advance – prepare them! Use the methods you have studied in your acting classes to analyze the script.  If the audition is a cold reading, take the time you need to make sure you have the scene(s) down. Don’t go in until you are ready.  Either way you should be extremely familiar with your lines and situations so your head isn’t buried in the script.

2. Know WHO You Are Auditioning For
When you get an audition one of the very first things you should do is some research! Look up who the major players (the director, casting director, writer and producers) are. See what else they have done - you are likely to get a better feel for the project and what they might be looking for.

3. Know WHAT You Are Auditioning For
Or, in other words, know the genre. Each genre requires a different style of acting, and knowing whether you are auditioning for a sitcom, a single camera comedy, a drama, etc can help immensely.

4. Professionalism
The “industry” is a business and you should treat it that way! Always be on time. Be respectful to your auditioners and your fellow actors. Dress appropriately . . . even if you are dressing the part. Have a crisp clean copy of your headshot and resume; not a wrinkly unstapled one. Nothing says “Beware - Don’t hire me!” more than a rude, sloppy actor.

5. Nail your Slate
Finally, first impressions are so important. And your first on-camera impression is the slate. Don’t fidget or look at your script or play with your hair or pick your nose (trust me I have seen all of these and worse!). Make sure to portray confidence, affability, professional and personality! And SMILE!

What can you take to your next audition from this list that you might have been overlooking?

READY, SET, LISTEN!

How often do you get advice that you just don’t want to hear?  Whether solicited or not, people want to give their opinions on just about everything.  So how do you determine who to listen to and what advice to take? It’s hard to know when there are so many diverse and subjective opinions around us.  The blog team at IZON Agency shares this advice:

For a model or actor, the influential people in your inner circle are your agents, managers, coaches and, to an extent, family members. Yes, this is a business. Yes, agents and managers are in this business to make money. But, if you are smart and have surrounded yourself with people who are truly working with your best interest at heart, then what they have to say is not something that should be taken lightly. LISTEN!

We often seek counsel in many outside our inner circle, searching for the answer we so desire. Advice has been given. Direction has been given. An answer has been given. But, it is not the answer we want. So we keep searching. It is then that we often find ourselves in trouble, trusting the wrong people and heading down the wrong path. LISTEN!

Trust your inner circle of advisors. If you’ve got a good agent/manager, be careful not to jeopardize that relationship by undermining their expertise and knowledge. They know what their clients want and they know their business. There is nothing that will upset an agent more than if you go the opposite direction of the advice given because a friend, hairdresser, boyfriend, or whomever told you otherwise. Don’t wait until it’s too late and have to scramble to repair the damage done. It could be more than just your relationship with your agent or manager that is marred. It could be your career or your one chance that falls victim.  In this business, the lifespan of the average actor or model is very short. Very, very short. Windows and doors typically only open once. Be smart. Be diligent. Be ready. But most of all, be LISTENING!

So next time you ask for advice, or someone just chooses to give it to you, think about whom you are talking to.  If the source is someone you have partnered with in the industry, listen to and then act on what they’re saying.  What has been the most difficult advise from someone on your team that you followed through on? 

STUCK IN THE MIDDLE

Ask yourself this question: are you a risk taker?  Do you stay in your comfort zone when you go to auditions?  Acting coach Mark Westbrook says that if you want to succeed in this industry, you need to leave your comfort zone and take major risks in your auditions.

The fear of over-acting and under acting is present in every actor I have ever worked with. From school kids to professionals.

They don’t trust themselves to play, to risk and release and let the director [or in the case of an audition, the casting director] rein them in if necessary.

Actors must play, must take risks, or everything ends up a very beige kind of Middle Ground.

You must trust your director, your teacher or your coach to help you and not hold back.

Don’t be afraid. No one wants to embarrass themselves, but you must be beyond embarrassment, willing to make a fool of yourself, and give it another go.

It won’t hurt you.

What can you do to break out of your comfort zone and take a risk in your next audition?

BE THE BEST

We all want to be the best we can be when it comes to our craft.  Acting coach Mark Westbrook gives some insight about the qualities his best students have that help them be successful on camera:

Arrogance / Confidence

Yes, believe it or not, my best students have a little arrogance. Not aggressive, nor does it present itself negatively towards others. They simply have the arrogance of self belief that they work hard, achieve results and that there is a place in this profession for them

Attendance

The best have always had the best attendance rates. They don’t have excuses, they are simply present in our classes all the time. Many of the best do more than they are asked, turning up for extra rehearsal. For instance, the successful have often rehearsed for scene study for 4-6 hours per week when their requirement has only been 2. The rest made very earnest noises about not having time and leading busy lives, having responsibilities outside of class. But while I deeply respect their reasons, it is those doing more than is required who tend to make the most progress.

Patience

At the same time as those who are willing to do more than required, the best show marvelous patience. They do not rush ahead of themselves, desperate to show off, but understand that developing craft involves time served. This cannot be rushed -- apprenticeship requires time to learn and acting is no different.

Energy and Enthusiasm

Simple enough, but the best infect others with their enthusiasm for acting, for scene work and particularly for getting better. They want to see everyone develop and learn and they bring their energy to their encounters with others.

Knowledge

The best are restless to learn, always wanting another opportunity to grow in knowledge and skill. They turn up at masterclasses; they widely read plays, scripts, books on Shakespeare, acting, film making, voice, theatre, history, etc.

Take a look at Mark’s advice, and ask yourself which of these qualities you need to work on in order to achieve greatness.  Attendance, knowledge, and patience may be generally accepted, but how can you bring more energy, enthusiasm, or confidence to your craft?

EVERYTHING THAT HOLDS YOU BACK

When was the last time you blamed yourself for something?  It’s easy to blame everything around us for what we don’t have and what happens to us, rather than taking responsibility for the things that happen to you.  The bright side of taking the blame on yourself is that you have the power to change it.  Mark Westbrook, acting coach, gives us some advice.

Most people that want to be actors, or want to be more successful actors, will never actually achieve their goal.

They will blame the industry, the directors who will only work with the same people, the lack of opportunities for <insert excuse here>; they will blame the lack of opportunities in <insert city/town/state/country here>; they will blame the lack of roles for their type; they will blame the fact they never got into the fancy school, they will blame the fact that the industry around them is elitist, closed, cliquey, and excludes people like them.

They will blame the talented, because they were given their gift innately and didn’t have to graft or work hard for it.

They will blame the lucky, because they were given THEIR opportunity by coincidence.

They will blame anything and everyone.  [Being] this kind of person [makes] you your own worst enemy.

They blame everyone but will fail to come to the conclusion that the only person to blame if you don’t have the career that you want is YOU.

I’m sorry, it’s not a nice realization. But you’re in luck this time. Because if you can give up blame and take action, be unafraid of graft, give up on instant gratification, and focus your attention on the goal and the steps required to get there, you will have ONLY ONE PERSON to [thank] for YOUR SUCCESS. You!

Next time something happens and you go to blame someone or something else for it, stop and think about Mark’s advice.  When you reach your success, it will be all the more satisfying to know that you did it purely based on taking responsibility for yourself and your career.  Who are you blaming?

 

THE TIME HAS COME

A recent about the SAG-AFTRA “It's About Time” campaign to create fair working conditions and practices for talent. It is time to celebrate because a deal has been reached! According to the Hollywood Reporter, this is the first-ever industry-wide agreement covering dancers in music videos. Here are some key terms of the agreement:

• A minimum daily rate for dancers (the union did not indicate the rate)

• Reuse fees (the formula was not described)

• A 12.5-percent contribution to AFTRA health and retirement for all covered performers

• Guaranteed production conditions, including water, toilets, chairs and shelters

• Improved audition conditions, including notification to performers (or their representatives) of start times; individual audition times no longer than four hours; suitable shelter provided during auditions; and fees for scale and reuse.

• 12-hour rest periods between call times, including rehearsals, makeup and wardrobe

• Safety protections and additional compensation for hazardous performances

• Wardrobe allowance

• Union access to auditions, rehearsals and productions

• A binding grievance and arbitration process

• A joint labor-management committee to resolve issues as they arise and to assess employment patterns and other matters over the term of the contract Union members reached out and started a campaign that made their voices heard.

The union responded to negotiate these terms. Does the final agreement between production companies and SAG-AFTRA make union members happy?

 

HUDSON HILL: MORE THAN A TALENTED KID!

Meet Avenue Talent Hudson Hill.  Alex Ramirez from The Network writes:

A twelve-year-old boy who loves community service, surfing, modeling, and acting. This well-rounded boy is the son that every mom wishes for. Hudson’s natural beauty makes him look angelic with his long smooth hair, light skin, and piercing blue eyes. There is no doubt that Hudson will be fighting the ladies off when he is old enough to date. Hudson is not only a beautiful face, but he has a heart as big as the ocean. All he wants to do in life is help others and make sure that he is doing all he can to spread awareness through out the world. His interview is by fair the most interesting one yet. His intellectual responses make him sound so much more mature than a normal twelve-year-old boy.

Check out Hudson's interview!

 

CMT AWARDS 2012

Now that Nashville has finally died down a little from the craziness of the CMT Awards and CMA Fest, let's take some time to congratulate all of the winners and nominees from the Awards show.

 

Video of the Year

Carrie Underwood—Good Girl

Jason Aldean—Dirt Road Anthem

Kenny Chesney feat. Grace Potter—You & Tequila

Toby Keith—Red Solo Cup

Lady Antebellum—We Owned The Night

Miranda Lambert—Over You

Brad Paisley feat. Carrie Underwood—Remind Me

Blake Shelton—God Gave Me You

Taylor Swift feat. The Civil Wars—Safe & Sound

 

Male Video of the Year

Luke Bryan—I Don’t Want This Night To End

Jason Aldean—Dirt Road Anthem

Eric Church—Drink In My Hand

Toby Keith—Red Solo Cup

Blake Shelton—God Gave Me You

Keith Urban—Long Hot Summer

 

Female Video of the Year

Miranda Lambert—Over You

Sara Evans—My Heart Can’t Tell You No

Martina McBride—I’m Gonna Love You Through It

Kellie Pickler—Tough

Taylor Swift—Ours

Carrie Underwood—Good Girl

 

Group Video of the Year

Lady Antebellum—We Owned The Night

The Band Perry—All Your Life

Eli Young Band—Crazy Girl

Pistol Annies—Hell on Heels

Rascal Flatts—Banjo

Zac Brown Band—Keep Me In Mind

 

Duo Video of the Year

Thompson Square—I Got You

The Civil Wars—Poison and Wine

Love and Theft—Angel Eyes

Montgomery Gentry—Where I Come From

Sugarland—Tonight

Thompson Square—Glass

 

USA Weekend Breakthrough Video of the Year

Scotty McCreery—The Trouble With Girls

Lauren Alaina—Georgia Peaches

Brantley Gilbert—Country Must Be Country Wide

Hunter Hayes—Storm Warning

Pistol Annies—Hell on Heels

Thompson Square—I Got You

 

Collaborative Video of theYear

Brad Paisley feat. Carrie Underwood—Remind Me

Kenny Chesney feat. Grace Potter—You & Tequila

Rascal Flatts feat. Natasha Bedingfield--Easy

Lionel Ritchie feat. Shania Twain—Endless Love

Taylor Swift feat. The Civil Wars—Safe & Sound

Zac Brown Band feat. Jimmy Buffett—Knee Deep

 

CMT Performance of the Year

Jason Aldean—Tattoos On This Town

Lady Antebellum—Dancin’ Away With My Heart

Little Big Town—Fix You

Blake Shelton—Footloose

Sting & Vince Gill—If I Ever Lose My Faith In You

Steven Tyler & Carrie Underwood—Just A Dream/Dream On

 

Stars in the country music industry have provided great opportunities for Avenue Talent to star in their videos.  Check out Taylor Swift’s Ours video below, starring our very own talent!

 

 

CARDIO IN MINUTES

Well, recent research has shown that you can get the same benefits of those long hours on the treadmill in just minutes with interval training.  April Long, writer for Elle, investigated some of this research and found information that will really help your workout routine:

In a study conducted at Ontario’s McMaster University in 2006, one group of healthy male college students rode stationary bicycles for one and a half to two hours, while another group interspersed four to six 30-second sets of maximum-intensity cycling with four minutes of rest.  After doing this activity three days a week for two weeks, the groups showed identical endurance-related molecular changes in their muscle tissue, even though one had exercised only about a total of 15 minutes and the other about 10.5 hours.

Further studies performed by the same group of researchers, and reported on by The New York Times’ Gretchen Reynolds this February, showed that even a slightly less grueling approach—one minute of strenuous exercise at 90 percent of a person’s maximum heart rate (which most of us can estimate, roughly, by subtracting our age from 220), followed by one minute of recovery, repeated 10 times—resulted in improvements in insulin sensitivity and blood sugar regulation in healthy adults, as well as significant cardiovascular improvements in the hearts of cardiac patients.  “After interval training of relatively small volume, the blood vessels get more elastic, similar to what we see with a larger amount of traditional cardio training,” says kinesiology professor Martin Gibala, PhD, who conducted the studies.

You may not have 5 hours a week to hit the gym, but interval training takes minutes and gives us a lot of the same benefits of traditional cardio.  How can you squeeze 30 seconds of intense stairs or other quick workouts into your daily routine?

ROCKING YOUR AUDITION

How do casting directors know who to choose for certain roles? What sorts of preparation can you do in order to make sure you are in contention for the roles you want?  Rock of Ages Casting Director Seth Yanklewitz explains what he looked for when he held auditions for this flick.

One of the biggest questions surrounding the star-studded cast of the upcoming movie musical "Rock of Ages," based on Broadway's jukebox hit of the same name, is "Can they sing?" Tom Cruise, Paul Giamatti, Bryan Cranston, Malin Akerman, and Will Forte are not exactly known for their musical prowess, but they'll be belting out '80s hits such as "Paradise City" and "Pour Some Sugar on Me" on big screens this summer.

Casting director Seth Yanklewitz, who worked with longtime casting partner Juel Bestrop and director Adam Shankman to cast the film, says, "Nobody wanted to make a fool of themselves." So although some of the biggest names in the cast never stepped into the audition room, it was because he already knew they could sing. Alec Baldwin's theater background, Catherine Zeta-Jones' Oscar-winning performance in "Chicago," and Mary J. Blige being, well, Mary J. Blige were proof enough for Yanklewitz.

On the other hand, "if you couldn't sing, there was no point in seeing you act," Yanklewitz says of the casting process. "So it kind of doubled the length of the process, because we had singing auditions, then acting auditions."

Akerman and leading lady Julianne Hough were among the actors who had to prove their singing ability in their auditions. "The second she did the first scene, you knew she was the girl," Yanklewitz says of Hough. "Full-body chills, the sky goes clear, and you just say, 'We're done!' "

So did Tom Cruise have to audition to prove he could hit the high notes?

"Noooooo," Yanklewitz breathes. "No. No. I mean, no. No."

He also acknowledges that the idea of using the original Broadway cast for the film version was heavily debated, but in the end the producers made the difficult decision to start over. "They wanted to age it down, which basically aged all those people out of it," Yanklewitz says.

To fill the leading role of Drew Boley, originated by Constantine Maroulis in the Off-Broadway and Broadway productions, Yanklewitz and Bestrop widened their search with a nationwide call for online video auditions. They found Mexican pop star Diego Boneta, a relative unknown who had appeared in episodes of "Pretty Little Liars" and "90210" in the U.S. "I didn't know who he was," Yanklewitz says, "and many people didn't know who he was. I guess you could say I gave him his break, but I didn't discover him."

A year before the months-long online search that produced Boneta, Yanklewitz and Bestrop had also combed through thousands of online video submissions for "Project X," the recent "found footage" film from producer Todd Phillips ("The Hangover," "Old School").

Jonathan Daniel Brown was one of the actors cast after he submitted his audition online. "Granted, he then went through 11 rounds of auditions in person," Yanklewitz says. And Bestrop had noticed Dax Flame in YouTube videos a couple years earlier, so she brought him in for a small part in "Project X."

Each year Yanklewitz attends college graduation showcases in L.A. and meets with students from schools such as Yale, Juilliard, USC, and NYU to evaluate talent and offer advice. "I always tell young actors to get demos and put material of themselves online," he says. "If they're comedy people and they're just starting out, produce a sketch, or do a bit. Just get it up online. Because now more than ever, obviously, the Internet is a way in."

Watch the "Rock of Ages" trailer below:

 

What will you do to stand out and book that big role?