Category Archives: Branding

5 Insider Tips for a Successful Career in the Entertainment Industry

Posted on March 19, 2023 by AMP Talent Group

Introduction: Breaking into the entertainment industry can be an exciting yet challenging journey. At AMP Talent Group, we understand the complexities and hurdles aspiring artists face. In this blog post, we share five insider tips to help you navigate the world of showbiz and elevate your career as an actor, model, or other creative talent. […]

Introduction:
Breaking into the entertainment industry can be an exciting yet challenging journey. At AMP Talent Group, we understand the complexities and hurdles aspiring artists face. In this blog post, we share five insider tips to help you navigate the world of showbiz and elevate your career as an actor, model, or other creative talent.

1. Invest in Your Craft
To stand out in this highly competitive industry, dedicating time and effort to hone your skills is essential. Attend acting workshops, take singing lessons, or practice your craft in any other way that helps you improve. Continuously working on your talents will not only increase your confidence but also showcase your commitment to success.

2. Network, Network, Network!
Building connections within the industry is crucial for staying informed about upcoming opportunities and amplifying your presence. Attend industry events, workshops, and social gatherings to expand your professional network. Engage with fellow artists, casting directors, producers, and other industry professionals to create lasting relationships that can make a significant difference in your career.

3. Be Persistent and Resilient
In the entertainment industry, you’re likely to face numerous rejections and setbacks throughout your journey. Maintaining a positive attitude and persistently chasing after your goals is essential to overcome these challenges. Stay motivated, learn from your experiences, and never give up on your aspirations.

4. Create a Strong Personal Brand
Developing a distinctive personal brand will help you stand out in the crowd and capture the attention of industry decision-makers. Invest in high-quality headshots, a well-crafted portfolio, and create a consistent online presence across various platforms, showcasing your unique style, personality, and talent.

5. Work with a Trusted Talent Agency
Partnering with a reputable talent agency like AMP Talent Group can significantly impact your career growth. A good talent agent will provide expert guidance, access to insider opportunities, and support at every stage of your journey.

Conclusion:
Pursuing a career in the entertainment industry is undoubtedly challenging, but with dedication, hard work, and the right support system, success is attainable. These five insider tips will help you stay focused and forge a rewarding career in showbiz. At AMP Talent Group, we’re committed to guiding and championing the careers of our talented clients as they navigate this dynamic and ever-evolving industry.

7 Ways To Market Yourself As An Actor

Posted on January 17, 2017 by AMP Talent Group

Marketing and promotion are important for actors at every stage and something that should not be overlooked. Here we look at ways YOU can build a smart marketing strategy and start to create a professional presence online through your website and social media marketing. Of course, you definitely need to be talented and good at your […]

Marketing and promotion are important for actors at every stage and something that should not be overlooked. Here we look at ways YOU can build a smart marketing strategy and start to create a professional presence online through your website and social media marketing.

Of course, you definitely need to be talented and good at your craft and if you want to build a name for yourself and your brand, you must find creative ways to market yourself. The game in the industry has changed and the standard route isn’t the only method to get your acting career lifted off anymore. For this reason, you can’t rely solely on the auditions that your agent sets you up for to be your only source of opportunity to get acting work. The good news is that there are a lot more tools at your disposal to promote yourself to a larger audience of people, which also means there is a lot more competition out there doing the exact same things you are. Actors are known to network and work on passion projects. As well, people are getting famous on YouTube, creating their own projects that launch them to stardom, people are getting famous for their wacky personas on reality shows, and overall, people are finding some very inventive ways to become noticed!

So as someone who wants to succeed in the film industry, how do you properly market yourself in ways that sets you apart from the rest of the actors looking to do the same?

Lets start with the key marketing tactics and tools for you to think about incorporating into your marketing arsenal:

1. First off, have something to sell: If you want to be the second coming of “The Situation” and launch yourself to fame on a reality show, then you won’t have to worry too much about this. These reality stars hit it big for a couple of years, then they end up fading quickly into the long forgotten atmosphere of Hollywood and go end up working normal jobs and living normal lives. They peak early and make the most money of their life in a 2-4 year span, but they don’t have any real quality talent to fall back on when their hit reality show fades from the spotlight. So if you want to become a real actor and launch a career that is going to have longevity and avoid being just a thing-of-the-moment, then you need to first make sure that you have a product to promote. This means that you have talent and are working hard to develop that talent. Make sure you’re confident in your abilities and at a point where you feel confident pushing yourself in front of people to try to sell yourself. If you’re a little insecure and unsure of your acting chops at this juncture, you might be best to get some training and work on your core skills before even thinking about marketing yourself.

2. Marketing materials are ready to go: We reiterate your headshots, resume, and demo-reel a lot throughout these posts, but that’s because they’re that important. They’re your first impression on every director and casting director when you’re submitted for auditions. You can’t even begin to try to market yourself if you don’t have quality up-to-date materials that can present you in the best way possible. So talk to your agent, manager, or an industry professional about your resume, demo or show reel and photos to make sure that they’re going to market and promote you in your best light possible.

3. Comp Cards/Business Cards: A great tool for actors to use is a business card that has their headshot printed on it. These are much easier and more effective to hand out when you meet people at networking events, or other important industry people than handing out your full-sized headshot or resume. Plus this card can have all your social media links, contact information and professional representation, Talent Agent, and any links to your website, or other information related to your acting online. Carry these cards with you when you attend parties and events and for various film festivals.

4. Make sure you’re online: You can refer to our past article How Actors Can Build A Brand Online for detailed information how an actor should be managing their brand on the web, as well as the most effective platforms for marketing themselves. But making sure you have some sort of online presence is key in helping to market yourself and show people who you’re an actor to be taken seriously. Creating a website is the most common platform for actors to promote themselves and list all their credits, as well as some of the most common social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Also be sure you’re on sites such as IMDB and Casting Workbook (which you should be if you have an agent).

5. Think outside the box and become a creator: The example I’ll use is a guy named Jimmy Tatro. He said he had always wanted to be on TV and become an actor, but never really wanted to go through the whole gauntlet and hassle of auditioning and trying to beat out thousands of other actors just like him. So what he did when he was attending the University of Arizona was start his very own YouTube channel called ‘Life According To Jimmy’. His channel was all catered around college life, partying, girls, and frat boy life. Well, he started putting out one video a week and his channel exploded and went completely viral. He built up a huge fan base and started to get a lot of exposure, not to mention promote himself as an actor who was exceptional at playing the “frat boy” character. Not only did he get to make his videos every week, entertain thousands, even millions of people, but also he also recently crossed over to do his first few film roles. Adam Sandler saw him in one of his videos and cast him in a small role in Grown Ups 2, then he was also recently in 22 Jump Street. Both movies saw him playing his signature “frat boy” character, but by creating his own stuff on the web he managed to separate himself from everybody else doing the audition grind, prove that he could act and had presence on-screen, as well as completely bypass all the years of grinding it out to get that one break. Sure he spent years building up his channel but he was doing exactly what he wanted to do.

Now there is a prime example of taking matters into your own hands, creating your own things and not sitting around waiting for your lucky break. Go out there and make big things happen and understand that nobody is going to give you a handout.

6. Marketing & Mentorship: In the early stages of your career, it will be completely up to you to hit the street and do your own marketing and promotion, but as your career expands you will have the opportunity for more and more people to help you carry out your marketing activities. You can also seek the guidance from someone you know who works in marketing, or are experienced with various marketing methods and can help you out with your career.

7. Actors Workshops & Theatre: In order to market your talents properly, you will have to find as many outlets where you can perform and get seen in front of large audiences of people. Acting workshops will be important for you to perform in front of key industry people, while theatre will help you to sharpen up on your live performance skills, which are at the core of most great film actors. Make sure you’re auditioning and getting out there as much as possible for these other avenues outside of your typical audition circuit to maximize your opportunity and exposure.

Whether you like it or not, you’re going to have to get out there and market yourself and network. It’s a huge component of the industry now and making it as an actor. Sure you may be a good actor, but if nobody ever sees you, or hears about you, then how are you ever going to show them what you can do. Simply waiting around for auditions is not enough; you need go the extra mile and really focus on yourself as a brand and making sure you’re marketing yourself as often, and as effectively as possible. The difference between someone who makes it and someone who doesn’t may actually come down to who’s the better marketer and promoter.

10 Ways To Build A Loyal Social Media Following

Posted on September 27, 2016 by AMP Talent Group

In a previous blog post, we talked about the importance of building your online brand, and the most important platforms to help carve out your online presence. Just how do YOU build a loyal following online? Where can you find a community of people who will care about what you post and be interested in what you […]

In a previous blog post, we talked about the importance of building your online brand, and the most important platforms to help carve out your online presence.

Just how do YOU build a loyal following online? Where can you find a community of people who will care about what you post and be interested in what you have to say? Here are 10 Tips on How to Build a Loyal Social Media Following!

1. Create value for your followers (Content is King): It’s one thing if you’re just on social media for fun, with the intention of following your friends and sharing funny memories or pictures from your vacations, staying in touch with family members, or to show everybody you went to high school with that you’re successful and happy in your adult life. But it’s a whole other deal when you’re trying to brand yourself and present yourself as a thought leader, or as somebody who’s successful in their particular field. Before you decide to become active on Twitter, and create a fan page, or create an Instagram account, you have to ask yourself, “Why would somebody want to follow me?” The only logical reason why people would want to follow you is because they enjoy your content (unless you’re famous and no matter what you post they will like it). You have to see the value you’re providing to your followers. Determine why you’re providing them something different from everyone else online. You have to believe that if you post great content, then people will be attracted to your account and want to follow you. Also, if your intention is just to flaunt your success, or to prove to people who you’re successful, then you’re not engaging social media for the right reasons. You are there because you want to engage with like-minded people, elevate your industry and help people who’re pursuing similar things. As well, to connect with an audience and work towards building a following of loyal followers and like you, and find a connection in your thoughts and opinions on relevant subjects. In order to set yourself apart, you have to always strive towards providing value, something that’s unique, relevant and different.

2. Create a community: The word community can be defined as, a group or network of persons who are connected (objectively) to each other by relatively durable social relations that extend beyond immediate genealogical ties, and who mutually define that relationship (subjectively) as important to their social identity and social practice (Source: Wikipedia). The whole essence of community drives around connection, and to connect with a group of like-minded individuals. This means that your engagement and interaction in your growth towards building a community must be a two-way relationship. Simply creating one-dimensional posts without ever engaging with your followers is not going to help build you a group of devoted followers. You have to follow your followers back, retweet and favourite posts of theirs that interest you, as well as make comments on their posts, and respond to all their comments on your content. You also need to make sure that you target the right audience. Be specific about who you follow, and the information you put out to make sure there is symmetry between your content and your followship. Fewer followers that are more active in your industry is better than having more followers that have absolutely no relevance to your industry.

3. Speak with your followers, not at them: This again correlates to building your online community and having ongoing dialogue with your followers as opposed to just posting things about your life that your followers won’t be able to relate to. Ask your followers questions and get their feedback as often as possible, whether it’s a topical issue you’re addressing, or just your opinion on something that you want other people to weigh in on. It’s important that you always connect with your followers on a human level, which will make people want to follow you. You have to speak with your followers as equals and individuals, as opposed to “fans” who are there to worship every move you make.

4. Build Relationships: Relationship building is going to be one of the biggest keys to growing your social media following. A great way to do this is to target industry leaders and professionals in your industry who are active on social media. Follow, and read what they’re talking about regularly, and find a way to engage with them. You can also begin the early foundation stages of building relationships by simply following those who follow you back. If you immediately follow them back, they may take notice of you, and possibly be interested to build a rapport with you. This is a great way to open doors to building virtual relationships. You can also like other performer’s pages that are similar to your own, and interact with them through private message telling them that you like the work they’re doing. Just be sure to be authentic in these connections and make sure you’re building relationships with like-minded people. Helping other people to promote their work and spread their content is also a great way to develop mutually beneficial relationships online, as they will be much more inclined to help you spread your work if you’ve taken initiative in becoming one of their key followers.

5. Stay on brand: As an individual artist, it is important that you’re consistent with your brand from the start. Even individual people have to be cognitive of their personal brand (at least if they want to develop a real strong online following). If you’re an actor, then be sure that you’re focusing on what’s happening in the entertainment or music industry and don’t stray too far away from that. Be consistent with the direction you’re taking your brand from the start, so that way, your followers know what they can expect from you and won’t be completely thrown off when you post something completely different to what you were previously doing.

6. Stay relevant: Reading regularly is going to be just as important as posting regularly and updating your platforms. You have to always be on top of what’s happening in the film industry and be paying attention to important trends. When you post on your pages, cover important subjects that are topical and being talked a lot about by people in your industry. If you’re creating blog posts, this is also another way to improve your SEO, as well as increase the chance of people landing on your website or blog from Google landing pages. Stay in the know, and study the industry, paying attention to what the key players are talking about, then finding your own unique angle to cover/provide commentary on that subject for your followers to get value from.

7. Be patient: You aren’t going to go viral and become the next online sensation overnight. Well, unless you’re creating impeccably irresistible videos that go viral. But for most, it takes a year and more to build a solid and devoted online following. In doing so requires you to be consistent and active, day-in-and-day-out. Social media is a great tool for you to promote your brand, but you have to be in it for the long haul. You can’t expect immediate results. Be patient, and trust that if you’re posting great content that is extremely relatable, entertaining, and useful to a specific audience (that you’re actively seeking out and targeting), and you’re consistent with your activity, that in time the followers will come streaming in and you will create a loyal fan base.

8. Be unique: One of the big problems with social media is that you see so many people talking about the exact same thing. Many are just creating the same information, in the exact same way. They aren’t offering a unique perspective, or anything different from what everyone else is saying. It’s very important that you don’t fall into this trap if you want to build a real, credible following of people who will look up to you as a leader. The best case scenario is that you create all your own original and organic content that you come up with, whether it be articles that you write, or quotes that you brainstorm and brand yourself. Obviously coming up with all your own content takes a lot of time and effort; so curating information (aligning your brand) is going to be an effective time-saver for you to associate yourself with a particular community. Just be sure that you wager your own opinions and tell stories in a perspective that is original to your voice, to who you are, and your talent.

9. Be consistent: Apart from creating great original content, this is probably the most important thing. You can’t expect to build followers if you’re constantly forgetting to post anything for days on end, especially once you’ve built a following. You have to set up a system for yourself that is manageable. Check out social media-planning tools like Hootsuite or BufferApp to keep yourself organized and schedule your tweets ahead of time on all platforms. If you have a blog, create an editorial calendar so that you can plan your posts in advance and make sure that you aren’t scrambling last-minute to get the content out, which will inevitably sacrifice the quality of the content. Content is king, but consistency is the fuel that is necessary to keep the social media train running.

10. Humanize yourself and your brand: This is a big reason why so many celebrities are so active on Twitter, it’s because it gives them an opportunity to present themselves as real people. It’s like engaging in personal PR that will allow these celebrities to control their brand directly. Twitter creates a platform to offer fans an inside look into their personal lives, keeping fans up to date with their projects that are coming out, as well as connect with others. If you using Social Media, it’s important that you make sure you brand yourself at a very human level. Make sure that you show pictures of your natural self and create posts that are self-deprecating in a way that makes you likeable so that your followers will be able to relate to you and want to connect with you. Being able to connect with followers on a real human level is going to be one of your keys to success on social media, as well as building authentic and beneficial relationships.

Social media is a very valuable tool, and not just for businesses and celebrities. It’s essential for anyone trying to promote themselves and their skills, in whatever area that may be. You have to believe that you have the personal power to become an influencer online and connect with people in a way that will enrich their lives and get them excited to follow you. You just have to make sure that you’re doing the correct things, and not spinning your wheels online by engaging in strategy that requires a lot of work for no reward.

The three most important things to take away are: interact with your followers and people in your industry whenever possible, post great content, and be consistent with posting your content.

Personal Branding For Actors

Posted on March 3, 2016 by AMP Talent Group

So what’s a personal brand? “Your personal brand is the powerful, clear, positive idea that comes to mind whenever other people think of you. It’s what you stand for — the values, abilities, and actions that others associate with you. It’s a professional alter ego designed for the purpose of influencing how others perceive […]

So what’s a personal brand?

“Your personal brand is the powerful, clear, positive idea that comes to mind whenever other people think of you. It’s what you stand for — the values, abilities, and actions that others associate with you. It’s a professional alter ego designed for the purpose of influencing how others perceive you, and turning that perception into opportunity.”

So you can see that personal branding is everywhere. We all have developed a personal brand over the years (most of us without even realizing it) that other people use to associate us with certain things. So like the quote stipulated, personal branding is all about recognizing what your brand is and using its strengths to your advantage. As an actor, it’s going to be essential that you realize your brand and make sure you cultivate it yourself, instead of letting it be the one to define you.

What’s the purpose of a personal brand?

Obviously, first and foremost the purpose of developing a strong personal brand is to get more work, to improve your career, and to become more successful at whatever it is you do. A personal brand is all about leveraging yourself so you can influence the particular target market that you’re trying to reach. Your goal is to become a leader in your industry by clearly communicating your brand to your audience and what it is you have to offer. You’re building a promise with your audience about what you can provide them. The strongest brands have perfect alignment between what they promise to offer customers or fans and what they end up delivering. By executing a strong personal brand you will show your followers why you’re different and have something to offer that no one else does, that you’re exceptional at something in particular and always put forth great work. You will also show that your brand is a real person and accurately depicts who you are, what you represent, and that you’re passionate about what you do.

Is your personal brand the same thing as your personal image?

No, your personal brand and personal image are different. Your personal image is the set of qualities that your friends would say to describe you, such as your physical characteristics, style, personality, likes and dislikes, and so on. While your personal brand is how others will perceive you, particularly in a work setting. Your personal image is something that people will formulate, who know you and have been friends with you before, but a personal brand is more how the public will perceive you and the work that you do. They say that in the best circumstances, your personal image will be a direct reflection of your personal brand. But it doesn’t have to — people do go out and create personas that are slight or extreme exaggerations of who they are as a person all the time.

Why is personal branding so important for actors and entertainers?

Personal branding is especially key for performers because you are your product — your look, talents, and physical body is your selling tool for landing jobs. This is why being cognitive of your brand and creating something that’s authentic to you and your skill set is going to be a big difference maker in the success of your career. Also, there is simply too much competition and too many people in your same talent and look bracket that you have to find a way to create an advantage for yourself. You do this by creating a strong personal brand that sets you apart, highlighting what makes you uniquely you.

What are some key platforms that actors should use to execute their personal brand effectively?

We touched on this in a previous article about actors being active in the online space in order to help market themselves, but here are a few of the key platforms:

Website & Social Media: In order to effectively build and maintain a personal brand, you will have to be active in the online space. That’s where you’ll be able to build communities of fans and followers, as well as get the most traction with the least amount of work. If you’re serious about developing a strong brand for yourself, then you need to create a network hub online where you’re active in conversations and people can have access to your work and contact information.

YouTube (web series/comedy channel): Again, we’ve touched on this before but creating your own projects on YouTube is the most common theme nowadays for performers and comedians. It’s a way to potentially avoid the long and tedious audition process and build an audience for your work, which can bridge you into more traditional film opportunities if you get enough attention with your channel or web series. A prime example is Workaholics, which started as a series of videos on YouTube and is now going into its fifth season on the Comedy Central network.

Blogging: While creating an actual written blog will take a lot more time and effort, it’s definitely a great way to actively build your personal brand. By building a voice through your writing, you will be able to reach your desired market and connect with other actors who’re going through similar experiences as you. Considering how tough the business is, finding other like-minded people is going to help you to build confidence and gain some different insights and perspectives into the industry.

So now that you have a little more insight into where you should be going to build your personal brand, what are some of the golden rules to make sure you do things right?

Your goal with personal branding is to communicate 3 things:

Who you are
What you do
What makes you different, or how you create value for your target market

There are too many bloggers, brands, and companies online that give off muffled messages to their followers. You have to be so clear to your audience about who you are and what you do. It’s important to have a niche and a very focused area that you excel in and provide value to your customers. You know what they say, “why do a few things good, when you could do one thing great.” You’re a performer so your message should be very clear to your audience about what you do.

Here are some important rules and guidelines to follow by in order to execute a strong personal brand:

Be authentic and inject your personality into your brand: As an actor, your brand is YOU and what can bring to the different characters you play. Just like you would in the audition room, you want to show off your personality and give everybody a taste of the type of person you are. You need to show people that you would be a pleasure to work with and are a quality person on top of your acting skill. You can do this by talking very openly and candidly to your followers online and creating a real person who others can relate to. Most importantly, just be yourself and leave your ego out of it. There are enough people who achieve a little bit of “social media fame” and think they’re King of the Net. Also, if you want to gain an advantage over others and give people something unique, then just be yourself, as nobody will see things exactly the same way you do.

You must have passion for what you’re doing: Obviously your brand will suffer if you don’t love what you’re doing. Treat your own brand as a labour of love and a unique voice that others can connect with. If you don’t love what you do and force your way through it, people will be able to tell and you will lose motivation over time to continue building your brand.

Simplify your message: The best brands communicate a lot of information with very little. That’s because a strong brand is simple but it ignites a very specific emotional response. For you, it will come down to communicating very simply what you do and what you can offer your followers. Perhaps it’s just a fan page where people can follow you and ‘like’ you if they know your work, but if you want to create a stronger brand then you will need to provide value to your followers and communicate what that value is. Is it acting tips? Funny quotes? Hilarious articles that you find, or write? Find out what your message is and make it simple.

Engage your followers: This is one of the least interesting social media tidbits, but it’s always important to mention because people often forget about it or get too lazy and don’t do it. Always make sure you’re engaging with your followers as often as possible to create that two-way dialogue.

Be relevant: Particularly if you’re a blogger, it’s key that you keep up with current trends and themes so that you’re topical and people see a reason to read your stuff. Always make sure you read about what’s going on in the industry just as often as you’re writing about it.

Working on carving out your personal brand is going to take a lot of work, there’s no denying that. But will it be worth it? What will be the end result?

Well…there are a lot of positive outcomes that will arise from working hard and being consistent with your personal brand. For starters, you will start to gain attention from some key influencers in your industry if you’re active enough in the conversations in your industry. Important people will take notice and begin to follow you and start connecting with you. Secondly, you will start to create a community of like-minded followers who will boost your credibility in your industry. For example: if you go to an audition and the casting director looks you up online and sees that you have your own website and blog that’s professionally done, samples of your work on YouTube, as well as have a Facebook page and Twitter with thousands of followers, how much more likely will he be to cast you? Definitely more so than if you had absolutely no information about you online. Thirdly, not only will more opportunities come to you, but also more of the right opportunities will come to you. That’s because you have created a very strong personal brand that is directly in line with who you are as a person and what you can offer as a performer. Lastly, you will become a leader in your industry and will be perceived of someone who is an expert. That’s exactly what personal branding is all about, figuring out what you love to do and what you’re good at, and then strategically carving out a space for yourself that is in line with your goals and aspirations.

We’ve all been creating a personal brand in our lives, but most of us have been doing it passively. It’s now time that you take control and start to take the active steps to understand what yours is and make sure you’re communicating it to the world in the right way. So do so by creating something that is authentically you and something you can be excited about growing into the future.

The Importance Of Being Yourself In This Business

Posted on September 9, 2014 by AMP Talent Group

While you’re going to take on a host of characters and personalities throughout your career, it still remains a fact that in order to succeed you’re going to have to be yourself in this business. And I’m not going to blabber and drill you with that hollow old adage, “just be yourself and everything will work out amazing” because as we all know too well, that isn’t always the case. But finding success in the acting world, as well as in entertainment, is completely about carving out your niche as a performer and tapping into what makes you unique and sets you apart from others in your bracket. As well as finding and unlocking the reserves of confidence that you YOURSELF are going to have to hold onto when times get tough and the rejection splashes over you like a powerful rogue wave.

So in this business of being yourself: What are some of the important things to remember?

You’re the product: George Clooney said it best during an old Inside the Actor’s Studio interview when he said this:

“The product you’re selling is you, we’re all salesmen as actors, but the product you’re selling is extremely and completely personal.”

What George Clooney was referring to is that your typical salesmen will always have different products, or different versions of the same product to sell. But when you’re in the business of selling yourself, you only have one you. If you get turned down at an audition, or fired from a job, it’s going to be impossible not to take it personal because that person, or director, didn’t want you. This is what makes acting such an intimate and intense experience that is often fueled by gut-wrenching rejection. What you can take comfort in is that not everybody is going to want you, but if you stick to your guns as a person and a performer you will work yourself into those areas that are right for you. The rejection is going to hurt, you can’t avoid that, but you just have to learn to deal with it and carry on.

Confidence in You

Having confidence, or learning to develop confidence is one of the most powerful selling skills, as well as coping skills for actors. Most actors have built up a strong level of self-confidence by battling off criticism and rejection. When you walk into an audition, immediately the director and casting directors are going to be able to tell if you’re confident or nervous. They will be reluctant to hire you if you don’t come across as confident, which shows them that they can have faith in you to play the part. Also, your road to success is going to be filled with potholes trying to slowly scrape away at your confidence and self-esteem. Having faith in yourself and your abilities is going to be the big pulling factor that keeps urging you to move forward and take the next step.

The craft of acting is all about being human

Acting is all about bringing real human experience and emotion to the camera. So in order to do this authentically, you’re going to have to draw from your own life experiences and emotions. This is how you’re going to make your performance believable in front of an audience. You could say that being an actor is just like being in a continual state of self-discovery and self-sacrifice. You constantly have to search deep into the archives of past experiences, moments, and thoughts, to find bits of yourself you can bring to new characters you play and sacrificing yourself as a vessel to convey these experiences to your audience. By deciding to be an actor, you’re committing yourself to connecting with humans and people at an ultra-personal level. You have to commit yourself to breaking down the walls and offering every bit of who you are to your audience. The only way you can do this is finding your truth and living with it cohesively, as well as finding the truth of the characters you play.

Being yourself in this business is absolutely everything. It’s the gold mine that you have to draw from with every new job that you take on. It’s why acting classes can often feel like emotional torture and therapy at the same time — we’re having to search deep within ourselves, sometimes into deep places that we want to avoid in order to open up what it is we need to bring to the material. So don’t be afraid to go there, to continually discover, learn, and show exactly who you are. That’s where the good stuff is.