First Blood

After being in LA for almost seven weeks, I have my first paying job....actually my first two paying jobs. Since I am not yet a member of SAG or AFTRA, both are of course, non union. One is a commercial for an electronic scooter, in which I play an oil company CEO talking about how much oil we use in this country, and about how we need to drill for even more. This is cleverly superimposed (I have seen a prototype of the commercial) over the information about the scooter, which uses no oil. I shoot the commercial tonight.

I also have been cast in a small role in a film as a priest who is caught in a compromising position. It's a scene played for laughs, and should be fun to do. Shooting starts tomorrow for several weeks, and I have not as of yet received my call times. I did receive a call from the wardrobe mistress of the film yesterday, asking about my sizes, and an email this morning saying that my call times would be coming shortly.

I by no means will be getting rich off either part, but it's paid work and it's a start.

My last acting lesson with my acting coach earlier this week, was a real eye opener for me, and I need to practice and use the things he pointed out to me in that lesson. Here's a solid fact for all of us already in the Hollywood area, and for any of you who are thinking about making the move. What was good enough to get you here, is not necessarily good enough to keep you here. By that I mean you must elevate your game, so to speak, to the next level, or perhaps even the next two levels to be competitive in this area. This is certainly true for major studio film and television work, and is even true to a lessor degree for non union work. The television commercial I am shooting tonight received over fifty submissions for the part in which I was cast, within twenty four hours after it was posted. I heard that straight from the producer, and that is a relatively low number, as it is not at all uncommon for a single role to receive hundreds of submission from agents and actors. Every role in LA, Union and non union, is highly competitive. So whatever was good enough to get you work in Seattle, Phoenix, San Antonio, or Little Rock needs to be taken up a notch or two once you get to LA, and that is exactly what I'm working on with my acting coach. I'm still very much a work in progress, with progress being the key word. Yes, he and I can see that progress in each lesson, but more is needed if I am to be really successful in the LA acting market. Time will tell.

Until next time.........