The Successful Talent: Tips for the Actor & Model

YOUR HEALTH AND CAREER

When you think of the modeling industry, the thoughts that may come to mind is how stressful and competitive it may be. Your perspective would be on target, but Marcia of modelingjobshq.com shares her perspective on what to expect vs. what is marketed to us in a model's lifestyle.

Mental Requirements of Becoming a Model

Fashion models and aspiring fashion models don’t have to take written tests to work. The work can be very testing however. Models who work in television often have to pass speaking tests if they have “lines” to say in a commercial.

Understanding the goals of the people who hire models is essential to the success of any prospective model.

Why?  Team players get ahead. Prima donnas get work – for a while. Keep in mind that for every successful model there are literally thousands waiting for a turn. You can’t afford to be a prima donna unless and until you deserve it. Given equal physical attributes and knowledge, clients will choose those who are pleasant to work with versus those with an unjustified attitude.

Until you have been in front of the camera you cannot judge what work goes into the photographs or what the model has endured to get that great shot. Models must be strong enough to endure tough conditions, repulsive environments and less than dignified surroundings at times in their careers. Just ask a swimsuit model how many times those beach shots were taken in bitter cold temperatures!  A model must know and understand that being a model is very hard work! And a model must understand that there are many types of modeling besides fashion modeling.

Health Requirements of Becoming a Model  A model only looks good when they are in good health and take care of their bodies. This means always getting a good night’s sleep before a shoot. No one looks good with bags under their eyes (no matter how good the make-up is), and no one looks good suffering from a hangover either.  Drugs are a definite no no as well. The stories of wild parties and high drug use in the modeling industry are usually just rumors. No successful model would jeopardize a career just to get high. No one can look healthy when they are addicted or are a heavy user of any illegal drug.

How do you maintain your health to stay focused on set?

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THREE OF THE BEST TIPS

 

Amy Jo Berman, a successful Casting Director for 18 years in Los Angeles shares these three acting tips using the great actress Lena Dunham as her muse and inspiration.

1. Be Yourself. I know you’ve heard that a million times. But truth, isn’t Lena just the embodiment of that? She doesn’t have the traditional size 0 body that most female leading women have in Hollywood. (By the way, when did 0 actually become a real size? That just seems wrong.) In fact, she regularly parades around naked on “Girls” despite the fact that she’s not “perfect”. And yet, she doesn’t seem to have a care in the world about it. And it certainly has not limited her success in any way.

She doesn’t think, act, look, or talk the way our common perception of a leading lady in Hollywood “should." And yet, there she is. So how is it that she is such a success? This leads us to…

2. Follow Your Passion. Lena did not sit idly by and complain about her crappy agent and wonder why she was NOT a success. What she did do was CREATE. She wrote and created shorts and did creative projects. This led her to create her indie film “Tiny Furniture” which she wrote, directed, and starred in. That film led her to her deal at HBO, which led to “Girls” and here we are.

What is YOUR lesson in this? Do what you’re passionate about while being yourself. Maybe that’s filmmaking. Maybe it’s writing. Maybe it’s totally outside of entertainment. Maybe you like baking pies. Whatever it is, do it passionately and with joyful enthusiasm while being you.

As a casting director, what I noticed from meeting thousands of actors over the years, was that many of the ones that were the most successful always had something else fulfilling and creative in their lives. I’ve talked to actors who had antique businesses, who are passionate about doll-making, skydiving, owned and rented out villas in the Italian Riviera, record MP3 meditation CDs, etc. The list goes on and on.

So, do those passions guarantee a successful career as an actor? No. There are no guarantees in show business. The only thing they guarantee is that you will be way more interesting, more passionate, and more creative and connect with way more passionate, interesting, and creative people in your life AND career.

Do you think that that passion and flowing creativity might give you an edge in your next audition or meeting over the other actors out there who aren’t?

My experience says a resounding YOU BETCHA!

3. Make Authentic Connections When Meeting “Players." When I was working on the L.A. casting of the pilot for "Girls," there was one thing that certain actors did that lit Lena up like a Christmas tree. If you do this regularly, you will give yourself a great advantage in this business.

Find out a little about the people in the room BEFORE you get in there. Sure, it's easy to know about the Aaron Sorkins and JJ Abrams of the world and all their projects.

But many times, when you audition for a pilot, the Creators are NOT that well known, like Lena Dunham when we did the “Girls” pilot. For goodness sakes, GOOGLE THEM! IMDB THEM! Find out what you can.  

Will it get you the part? Probably not. But will it make the beginnings of a CONNECTION with a mover/shaker in this industry? Abso-freakin-lutely!

Lena lit up like a Christmas tree when someone came in to our producer sessions to audition and genuinely told her what a fan they were of "Tiny Furniture."

Genuinely.

Be genuine.

Be authentic.

Don't kiss up.

Just do your homework and find a bridge to make a connection or just make someone's day.

Keep planting seeds like that and watch the amazing harvest you will have in your career.

These three simple ideas can change your perspective; can change how you are received and viewed; and can change the direction of your career to a smoother and more fulfillling road!  Which idea might be the most difficult for you to implement?

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HOW TO LOOK YOUR BEST FOR THE STILL CAMERA

Bryce Buell, a international professional model gives tips from his experience on the best way men can prep for a photoshoot. Not all of these tips are just for the guys, though.  Listen up ladies and heed some good advice!

As a full time fashion model throughout the 1990’s, fitness took a vital role in my career. While I was a fashion model and not a “fitness model” per se, my ability to maintain a lean, fit body led to many opportunities that my thin but unfit counterparts could not partake in such as underwear ads, Men’s Fitness articles, swimwear, romance novel covers, etc.
The secret was to maintain a body that looked very muscular in underwear or swimwear, but still allowed you to wear standard catalog industry suit sizes (40R – 42L) nicely and other clothing for my more mainstream work in catalogs. The secret to achieving this balance was simple: definition.

Definition is achieved through maintaining a very low body fat percentage. A high degree of definition makes you appear very muscular when in fact you may not carry a lot of actual muscle mass on your frame.

Once you achieve a low body fat percentage through proper diet and exercise, your biggest enemy to looking as defined as possible is water retention. Water retention makes one look “soft” and less defined. Fortunately there is an easy, natural solution. If I knew I had a body shoot coming up, my trick was to drink at least a gallon of water a day for at least four days before the shoot, five days is even better.

Drink more water so your body looks less bloated? That doesn’t make any sense… or does it?

The reason may seem counter-intuitive at first -- but the science behind it and the real-world results are sound –- the more water you drink, the less water your body will retain. Why? Because unless you are already drinking at least a gallon of water a day, your body is in a state of dehydration. Anytime you are thirsty, your body is heavily dehydrated and desperately needs water – hence it signals you, “Hey, I am thirsty!” As a result, any water your body receives it will hold on to, often under the skin, making you look smooth.

When you drink at least a gallon of water a day, after a few days your body realizes it is getting enough water and therefore it no longer feels the need to retain as much as it can and it dumps it. The end result is your musculature will look sharper, feel tighter and will photograph much better. When you drink that much water your urine should be very clear – so clear that as my dear friend and model colleague Jonah Taylor used to say “you could re-bottle and sell it.”

Working the still camera as a talent is imperative!  There are many reasons as models cross into on camera work and actors continue to do still shots to learn the other side of your industry as a talent.  What other tricks have you found that make you look your best before a shoot?

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USING TECHNOLOGY TO YOUR ADVANTAGE

As you prepare updating your audtion tapes, Youtube videos and ect., here's an option you may want to consider. The following advice comes to us from Sean Kane, who gives us some insight into perfecting a taped audition by boosting the quality of your technology.

Cell phone cameras are getting better every year, and while they still pale in comparison to purpose-built cameras, you can shoot decent video using an iPhone. However, most iPhone footage you'll find online is shaky, underexposed and too blurry to watch. But with a few simple steps, you'll be able to shoot passable footage with any modern smartphone. The iPhone 5's camera can record high definition video in 1080p and also has built in image stabilization, so it's certainly capable of recording high-quality footage. But unlike an actual camera, shooting on a smartphone grants you a lot less control and stability when shooting, so you'll need to figure out a way to keep your phone steady in order to capture as much light as possible from the iPhone's small sensor. First, since your "camera" is so small and light, you'll want something to secure it in place while you're shooting. If your hands are steady, you could probably keep the phone stable for decent shooting. But for the best results, you'll want some sort of tripod. With a little creativity, you can make your own tripod to hold your phone with some combination of household objects and rubber bands. You can also buy a cheap mount system that will attach a smartphone to any tripod for about $15, or for the fancier, the iStabilizer Dolly is a great option. Downloading an iPhone video app will also improve your footage. The Camera app that comes with iPhones is very basic, and specially made video apps, like FiLMic Pro, give you a lot more control over how you're capturing images. For $3.99, FiLMic pro offers three different modes for focus and exposure, allows you to shoot with different frame rates, use different aspect ratios (4:3, 19:9, 2:35.1) and even features an audio meter so you can see how loud your footage is while you shoot. Before you shoot, make sure to back up your existing photos and videos on your phone somewhere. You'll need the extra storage space in the phone so you'll be able to shoot for as long as possible. Finally, always shoot horizontally. Shooting vertically will give you tall, skinny footage that won't fit nicely on any screen (and give away the fact that you're shooting on your phone).

Successful talent in the southeastern markets are highly mobile, moving from market to market as the work dictates -- sometimes on short notice!  Travel-friendly technology is one way to be sure you don't miss any great opportunities and traveling light is always preferable.  Unfortunately, talent are not always up on the latest gadgets or technology, and it reflects in their auditions.  Which tip helps you perfect your taped auditions most?

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OUTSIDE OF ACTING

You mean to tell me there are other jobs in entertainment besides being an actor or model?  Yes, Virginia, this industry is not run by Santa Claus!  You may realize there are people working with and for your benefit as the talent, but are you aware of what their daily grind is like?  Most likely, you have misconceptions without knowing it.

What does that CD who always seems so stressed out (or nonchalant) deal with every day?  Find out from our fellow industry professional Scott Powers!

It is vital that performers know not only how to act and market themselves, but how the business works from all sides.
 
One of the approaches that we have recommended with great results to abolish this situation is - ready? - go for an internship or be a reader.  Internships are basically unpaid or low-paid or transportation/meal stipend paid positions.  They can be a few hours a week, on a daily basis or for a specified period of time.  Interns open the morning mail and email, field phone calls, file headshots, watch the actors/models coming in and out of the office, interface with the industry, discover what problems the business has to grapple with day in and day out, maybe even sit in on the decision making process.  You will have a great first-hand to generally/specifically observe how the industry - the "other side" - REALLY works.  What a great opportunity you created for yourself!  And if you know THAT, your pursuits and career will absolutely benefit.
 
Being a reader for auditions at a casting company gives an actor first-hand experience on how the casting process works.  What works and what doesn't.  Talk about an eye-opening experience!
 
Are interns all really young?  No.  If you're, say, over 30++, don't worry about it.  You bring to the position certain life experiences and approaches that someone younger hasn't had yet.
 
Be pro-active.  You contact them.  Most offices have a continuous need for interns.  You can approach a company in general or target a specific person.  Want to get in good with an agent?  Offer to intern for them.  Want to get in good with a casting director?  Offer to intern; be a reader for them.  Send them your headshot via email or snail mail and on the outside, mark "INTERN APPLICATION" or "READER APPLICATION" (or on the Subject line if email) and inside have a BRIEF cover note. Tell them what qualities you can bring [to the potential partnership].  Tell them what times/days of the week you are available and how long you can be available.
 
[An experience like this can] change your outlook forever.  Not only will you have a much better understanding of the business, but you will have a much better appreciation of it as well (and there would be a lot less moaning and groaning out there!)
 
Of course, if we could only get the agents and casting directors out on a few auditions and go-sees to see what the actor/model goes through, we might have a nearly perfect world....

And that reminds me of a bet I lost once with an actor.  My pay up was to take Caroline Locorriere's scene study workshop for a month.  It was mostly fun, but also great insight into what our actors grapple with every day.  Learning can go both ways, but you can only choose to learn for yourself!  Internships aren't limited, so think outside the box and find something that interests you as well.  It may be photographry, television, publicity, management, etc.  Your options are only as limited as your imagination!

Where could you intern and how could having done so help you in the casting room or on set?

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AND THE WINNERS ARE?

With only a couple of days away from the 85th Academy Awards, the intensity is at a high. As showtime is quickly approaching and viewers plan for Oscar parties, the Red Carpet, and performances, nothing can compare to the moment the winners are announced. The question is, who amongst the nominees has what it takes to take home the gold?

Here is a list of the Nominees:

Actor in a Leading Role

• Bradley Cooper in "Silver Linings Playbook"
• Daniel Day-Lewis in "Lincoln"
• Hugh Jackman in "Les Misérables"
• Joaquin Phoenix in "The Master"
• Denzel Washington in "Flight"

Actor in a Supporting Role

• Alan Arkin in "Argo"
• Robert De Niro in "Silver Linings Playbook"
• Philip Seymour Hoffman in "The Master"
• Tommy Lee Jones in "Lincoln"
• Christoph Waltz in "Django Unchained"

Actress in a Leading Role

• Jessica Chastain in "Zero Dark Thirty"
• Jennifer Lawrence in "Silver Linings Playbook"
• Emmanuelle Riva in "Amour"
• Quvenzhané Wallis in "Beasts of the Southern Wild"
• Naomi Watts in "The Impossible"

Actress in a Supporting Role

• Amy Adams in "The Master"
• Sally Field in "Lincoln"
• Anne Hathaway in "Les Misérables"
• Helen Hunt in "The Sessions"
• Jacki Weaver in "Silver Linings Playbook"

Animated Feature Film

• "Brave" Mark Andrews and Brenda Chapman
• "Frankenweenie" Tim Burton
• "ParaNorman" Sam Fell and Chris Butler
• "The Pirates! Band of Misfits" Peter Lord
• "Wreck-It Ralph" Rich Moore

Cinematography

• "Anna Karenina" Seamus McGarvey
• "Django Unchained" Robert Richardson
• "Life of Pi" Claudio Miranda
• "Lincoln" Janusz Kaminski
• "Skyfall" Roger Deakins

Costume Design

• "Anna Karenina" Jacqueline Durran
• "Les Misérables" Paco Delgado
• "Lincoln" Joanna Johnston
• "Mirror Mirror" Eiko Ishioka
• "Snow White and the Huntsman" Colleen Atwood

Directing

• "Amour" Michael Haneke
• "Beasts of the Southern Wild" Benh Zeitlin
• "Life of Pi" Ang Lee
• "Lincoln" Steven Spielberg
• "Silver Linings Playbook" David O. Russell

Documentary Feature

• "5 Broken Cameras"
  Emad Burnat and Guy Davidi
• "The Gatekeepers"
  Dror Moreh, Philippa Kowarsky and Estelle Fialon
• "How to Survive a Plague"
  David France and Howard Gertler
• "The Invisible War"
  Kirby Dick and Amy Ziering
• "Searching for Sugar Man"
  Malik Bendjelloul and Simon Chinn

Documentary Short Subject

• "Inocente"
  Sean Fine and Andrea Nix Fine
• "Kings Point"
  Sari Gilman and Jedd Wider
• "Mondays at Racine"
  Cynthia Wade and Robin Honan
• "Open Heart"
  Kief Davidson and Cori Shepherd Stern
• "Redemption"
  Jon Alpert and Matthew O'Neill

Film Editing

• "Argo" William Goldenberg
• "Life of Pi" Tim Squyres
• "Lincoln" Michael Kahn
• "Silver Linings Playbook" Jay Cassidy and Crispin Struthers
• "Zero Dark Thirty" Dylan Tichenor and William Goldenberg

Foreign Language Film

• "Amour" Austria
• "Kon-Tiki" Norway
• "No" Chile
• "A Royal Affair" Denmark
• "War Witch" Canada

Makeup and Hairstyling

• "Hitchcock"
  Howard Berger, Peter Montagna and Martin Samuel
• "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey"
  Peter Swords King, Rick Findlater and Tami Lane
• "Les Misérables"
  Lisa Westcott and Julie Dartnell

Music (Original Score)

• "Anna Karenina" Dario Marianelli
• "Argo" Alexandre Desplat
• "Life of Pi" Mychael Danna
• "Lincoln" John Williams
• "Skyfall" Thomas Newman

Music (Original Song)

• "Before My Time" from "Chasing Ice"
  Music and Lyric by J. Ralph
• "Everybody Needs A Best Friend" from "Ted"
  Music by Walter Murphy; Lyric by Seth MacFarlane
• "Pi's Lullaby" from "Life of Pi"
  Music by Mychael Danna; Lyric by Bombay Jayashri
• "Skyfall" from "Skyfall"
  Music and Lyric by Adele Adkins and Paul Epworth
• "Suddenly" from "Les Misérables"
  Music by Claude-Michel Schönberg; Lyric by Herbert Kretzmer and Alain Boublil

Best Picture

• "Amour" Margaret Menegoz, Stefan Arndt, Veit Heiduschka and Michael Katz, Producers
• "Argo" Grant Heslov, Ben Affleck and George Clooney, Producers
• "Beasts of the Southern Wild" Dan Janvey, Josh Penn and Michael Gottwald, Producers
• "Django Unchained" Stacey Sher, Reginald Hudlin and Pilar Savone, Producers
• "Les Misérables" Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Debra Hayward and Cameron Mackintosh, Producers
• "Life of Pi" Gil Netter, Ang Lee and David Womark, Producers
• "Lincoln" Steven Spielberg and Kathleen Kennedy, Producers
• "Silver Linings Playbook" Donna Gigliotti, Bruce Cohen and Jonathan Gordon, Producers
• "Zero Dark Thirty" Mark Boal, Kathryn Bigelow and Megan Ellison, Producers

Production Design

• "Anna Karenina"
  Production Design: Sarah Greenwood; Set Decoration: Katie Spencer
• "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey"
  Production Design: Dan Hennah; Set Decoration: Ra Vincent and Simon Bright
• "Les Misérables"
  Production Design: Eve Stewart; Set Decoration: Anna Lynch-Robinson
• "Life of Pi"
  Production Design: David Gropman; Set Decoration: Anna Pinnock
• "Lincoln"
  Production Design: Rick Carter; Set Decoration: Jim Erickson

Short Film (Animated)

• "Adam and Dog" Minkyu Lee
• "Fresh Guacamole" PES
• "Head over Heels" Timothy Reckart and Fodhla Cronin O'Reilly
• "Maggie Simpson in "The Longest Daycare"" David Silverman
• "Paperman" John Kahrs

Short Film (Live Action)

• "Asad" Bryan Buckley and Mino Jarjoura
• "Buzkashi Boys" Sam French and Ariel Nasr
• "Curfew" Shawn Christensen
• "Death of a Shadow (Dood van een Schaduw)" Tom Van Avermaet and Ellen De Waele
• "Henry" Yan England

Sound Editing

• "Argo" Erik Aadahl and Ethan Van der Ryn
• "Django Unchained" Wylie Stateman
• "Life of Pi" Eugene Gearty and Philip Stockton
• "Skyfall" Per Hallberg and Karen Baker Landers
• "Zero Dark Thirty" Paul N.J. Ottosson

Sound Mixing

• "Argo"
  John Reitz, Gregg Rudloff and Jose Antonio Garcia
• "Les Misérables"
  Andy Nelson, Mark Paterson and Simon Hayes
• "Life of Pi"
  Ron Bartlett, D.M. Hemphill and Drew Kunin
• "Lincoln"
  Andy Nelson, Gary Rydstrom and Ronald Judkins
• "Skyfall"
  Scott Millan, Greg P. Russell and Stuart Wilson

Visual Effects

• "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey"
  Joe Letteri, Eric Saindon, David Clayton and R. Christopher White
• "Life of Pi"
  Bill Westenhofer, Guillaume Rocheron, Erik-Jan De Boer and Donald R. Elliott
• "Marvel's The Avengers"
  Janek Sirrs, Jeff White, Guy Williams and Dan Sudick
• "Prometheus"
  Richard Stammers, Trevor Wood, Charley Henley and Martin Hill
• "Snow White and the Huntsman"
  Cedric Nicolas-Troyan, Philip Brennan, Neil Corbould and Michael Dawson

Writing (Adapted Screenplay)

• "Argo" Screenplay by Chris Terrio
• "Beasts of the Southern Wild" Screenplay by Lucy Alibar & Benh Zeitlin
• "Life of Pi" Screenplay by David Magee
• "Lincoln" Screenplay by Tony Kushner
• "Silver Linings Playbook" Screenplay by David O. Russell

Writing (Original Screenplay)

• "Amour" Written by Michael Haneke
• "Django Unchained" Written by Quentin Tarantino
• "Flight" Written by John Gatins
• "Moonrise Kingdom" Written by Wes Anderson & Roman Coppola
• "Zero Dark Thirty" Written by Mark Boal

All nominations are selected by a panel of the Academy. This year that panel ensured a diverse showing under each category.

Do you think there is a nominee missing from any of these categories?

 

ARGO AND THE OSCARS

 

Argo which is based around the Iran hostage crisis of 1980, is the true story of six Americans who barely escape the United States embassy after being overrun by an army Iranian rioters.

After escaping, the Americans take refuge inside Canadian Ambassador Ken Taylor’s (Victor Garber) house. They remain stuck there for two years before CIA operative Tony Mendez (Ben Affleck) developes a plan to get them out as a American film crew scouting for shooting locations.  [Read the full review on Shorthorn.com.]

Critics have said that Argo is probably one of the best drama films of the year. The movie will keep you on the edge of your seat with its suspense, drama and humor.  Considering its success, Argo is nominated for seven Oscars for the 85th Academcy Awards show. It's comes as no surprise that Argo has its number of nominations, however; I question whether or not they will win all seven. To find out if they do, tune into the ABC Channel on Sunday February 24th, 2013 at 7:00 p.m. Eastern.

Is Argo going to win all seven nominations?  If not, which nominations should Argo win?

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WILL YOU BE MY VALENTINE?

The hallmark holiday of love is heated topic in entertainment.  As consumers, we tend to either make it a grandiose holiday or ignore it altogether.  Rather than doing either extreme, have you thought about how passionate you are towards your career?  Or maybe what emotions the valentine's holiday conjures up for you?  These are great questions to take stock of now for future characters, story lines, or shoots!  Or could you just use the holiday to get a whole lot of hits on YouTube and become an overnight sensation?

 

So this is the industry asking politely . . . will you be it's Valentine?

WHO IS THAT GUY?

It is The Avenue's own Isaiah Stratton in AT&T's latest commercial campaign.  Click below to see!

Isaiah is currently working as a principal character in a new movie shooting in North Carolina, so keep a sharp eye out for more on.

 

 

TED TALK WITH SUPERMODEL CAMERON RUSSELL

In this TED talk by Supermodel Cameron Russell, we get to live from the model's point of view the true power of beauty and the entertainment industry.  Her disarming appeal and approach will win you over!   Think that modeling is the career path for you? 

 

Supermodel Cameron Russell has graced the cover of Vogue and launched the Victoria's Secret runway during her career, but those are just some of her accomplishments.  Russell began modeling at 16 years of age under the eye of Ford Models.  She is currently housed with Elite.  Her most notable credits include runway fashion shows for designers including Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Prada, Dolce & Gabbana, Marc Jacobs, Versace, Vivienne Westwood, Ralph Lauren, Victoria's Secret, and Diane von Fürstenberg.

She majored in economics and political science at Columbia University.  She is involved in charitable organizations and gives her time as a model to give back to her community.

 

 

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