The following article is free, ongoing advice for actors,
models, and bands on how to do the right things in Hollywood,
that are rarely taught in school and rarely told to models and
talent by anyone in the industry.
HAVE GOOD ETIQUETTE:
Be a professional. Don’t talk to your agent, manager, or
other professionals in the industry necessarily how you would to
your friends. Be a pro. Actors, models, and bands, unless you are
making your representation big money, don’t be too casual.
Don’t for example, call your agent or manager dude, girl,
chick, man, woman, or the like. Call them by their first or last
name, whatever they prefer.
HOW TO USE YOUR CELL PHONE:
Keep your cell phone charged. There is nothing much more
irritating than being mid conversation with a client and then
ones cell phone dies and they can’t be reached. Keep the
T.V. turned down and cease any other noise when you are talking.
Don’t talk with other people other than the party you are
on the phone to when you are on the phone. Don’t take down
someone’s number over the phone by punching it in to your
cell phone. No one wants to hear beeping in their ears. Write it
down, and punch it in later when the call has ended. Think before
you act.
KEEP YOUR PHONE SECURE:
Don’t lose your phone. There are more models and actors I
know that have lost their cell phones, or dropped them in
toilets, than there are pot holes on Wilshire Boulevard. When
someone tells me they lost their phone, it indicates to me that
they are careless, unreliable, and not in control, and generally,
they end up flaking and they end up losing not just their phone
on a regular basis, but their representation. Be alert of
yourself, your possessions, and your surroundings.
ANSWER YOUR PHONE:
The biggest reason things don’t happen for someone in the
entertainment industry is because they don’t answer their
phone. Don’t fail to answer your phone, and then complain
that you would have called back if a message was left and you
knew how important it was. Most agents and managers do not have
time for phone tag or leaving lengthy messages. Simply answer
your phone, so you won’t have to try making a lame excuse,
and you won’t miss opportunities. When a model, actor, or
musician makes excuses for not answering, they usually go to the
bottom of the call list. If they continue to not answer and make
excuses, they usually end up complaining that their
representation does nothing for them. Eventually they are
dropped.
Don’t ask your representation if they will communicate with
you more when you don’t even answer your phone every time
they call. Don’t complain that your representation never
answers their phone, and don’t complain if they complain
when you don’t answer. Don’t make excuses for not
answering. You are on call, not your representation. Your
representation may have a dozen, twenty, or fifty other models,
actors, or bands to deal with in addition to you- you
don’t.
DROPPED CALLS:
If you are talking with someone and the call drops, and you call
them back right away and do not get through, or get their voice
mail, do not keep calling again and again. Chances are, they are
trying to call you. Relax, and wait a few minutes for your phone
to ring. Give it a few minutes before you try again, and
regardless, don’t call any one over and over in a row, they
may be on another call, and you don’t want to upset them or
be a pest.
HOLD ON A MINUTE:
Never say those words to someone in a position of power that you
want something from. If you do, when you actually come back to
the phone and give them the attention you should have to begin
with, don’t be surprised if your line is dead. Don’t
even get on a phone call until you are ready to speak, but if you
do need someone to wait a minute, you need to ask them please to
hold, not order them to. People in greater positions of power
than you are not going to take orders from you, unless they just
test you to see how rude you may be.
DO IT NOW:
If you have an agent or manager on the phone, or casting, and
they want to give you information, don’t ask them to e-mail
you the information when they have you on the phone and want to
give you the information immediately. Never complain that you
would rather them e-mail it and why can’t they do this or
that. Be respectful of other’s time and let them control
how they are going to help you. Don’t expect someone to
look for work for you for free, on commission, and then complain
to them about how they provide you the job information.
BE PATIENT WITH OTHERS:
Do not expect to get signed, and have anything happen for your
career as a model before you have professional zed cards, and a
portfolio that your agent or manager accepts. If you are an
actor, don’t expect anything until you have great headshots
and a reel they accept, with a great resume on the back, and
training, meaning, you actually know how to act. Being in a
school play in 1st grade does not count as training. You need
training now, as an adult that is ongoing for years with the best
in the field.
Do not expect many things to happen as a singer or musician until
you have a complete press kit your agent or manager accepts, have
at least ten thousand friends on MySpace, and are gigging at
least once a month. It is your responsibility to get yourself a
band together if you do not have one and get gigs, not your
representation, unless one is your booking agent who has agreed
to do so. If you are a singer, you need to constantly have vocal
training and practice vocal exercises daily.
TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR YOUR OWN
CAREER
I have encountered many model, actors, and bands that are so
impatient, that they blow up and get angry because their career
is not going where they want it to. That is the wrong thing to
do. First of all, you need to look at yourself and see if you did
or are doing all that your representation asked of you. Did you
sign the contract they wanted you to, or is it still sitting
there in your inbox? Did you complain about it and demand they
change some lines, and they did, but they are not comfortable
with the changes and so you are not getting the most out of them
that you could? Did you get the materials they asked you to get a
half a year or more ago? Did you get more training, or do you
think you were too good to do so? No one is too good for more
training. Even the biggest stars in the world get more training
for specific movies before they do certain scenes. Did you ask
your representation what you can do to make yourself more
marketable or to get work? Or do you have a bad attitude and act
like everything is their fault every time you talk with them? Did
you ask them what the problem is with you as they see it? Finger
pointing and blaming your agent or manager without looking at
what you can do is the wrong thing to do. Think about it, suppose
you had a friend who asked you to help them get work, and did
nothing you asked, and then started getting mad at you, blaming
you for not helping them be a star. Agents and managers go
through this on a regular basis.
Are you going to be more inclined to help someone who is nice to
you, or mean to you? Are you going to be more willing to do a
favor for someone who is sweet, polite, and professional, or
rude, arrogant, and complaining about you and to you? If
you are not getting what you want out of some one, being upset
with them is certainly not going to make it better or make you
get what you want any more. It will make it worse. They may be as
upset with you as you are them for some reason, but not tell you,
because they want to be civilized. It may make you feel
momentarily better for a minute by going off, thinking to
yourself, “Well, I sure told them off!” But really,
did it benefit you in the long run? Could you have gotten more of
what you wanted, or at least a chance at it, with a different
attitude? Yes you can. Be patient with others.
Continued on next
page.
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