Category Archives: Secrets to Success

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 Personality Characteristics That Make Great Actors

Posted on June 22, 2016 by AMP Talent Group

What personal characteristics help make GREAT ACTORS? This is probably a question that will intrigue a lot of people. What is it about certain people who make them great performers? Or at least have the potential to be a great performer. I know this question intrigues many of you, so I did some reading to […]

What personal characteristics help make GREAT ACTORS?

This is probably a question that will intrigue a lot of people. What is it about certain people who make them great performers? Or at least have the potential to be a great performer. I know this question intrigues many of you, so I did some reading to investigate what qualities/personality types really translate into great performers.

Charisma: This is one of those real surface qualities that you would expect. Obviously a performer is going to be charming, expressive, and charismatic, right? They’re those real life-of-the-party type personalities that you aren’t surprised to hear they’re actors as well. This is because performing on stage, or on camera, requires a certain amount of expressive energy, so those individuals with high-octanes of energy and the ability to translate that energy on-screen should go without saying. While not every actor is going to be the most charismatic personality type in their actual life, having a natural charisma to you will always benefit and help you with your performing endeavours.

Hard Work & Commitment: This is another trait that should go without saying. Lazy people usually don’t make great actors — unless they’re so naturally talented and it comes easy to them. This is the case because acting is such a self-starter business and is going to require so much self-motivation, as well as endless amounts of your personal time in order to be successful. Also, with every job you get, you’re going to have to generously research for your role/character, as well as put in hours and hours of rehearsal time. Then once you start working on the job, the days are long and you’ll be drained at the end of them. If you don’t have the type of personality that is ready to grind and endure hard work, you will go nowhere. Commitment is also a huge one. You will have to commit your life to developing your craft, as well as bringing 100% percent of yourself to each role you play. Acting requires you to be present in the moment at every turn, which can be mentally, physically, and emotionally exhausting. People that can whole-heatedly commit themselves to something, even going overboard and becoming obsessive with their commitment, are the ones who will be successful as actors. (Just look at some of the greatest method actors in the business, as well as the great extremes that the best actors will go to in order to prepare for roles: weight loss, muscle-building, extensive research and character development, real-life situational training).

Confidence: This personality trait is another common one. It will help in a lot of areas in your performance career, particularly in the early stages of auditioning, as well as warding off criticism and rejection when times get tough. Understanding who you are as a person and being confident in who that is will serve you well in the business. You will be required to expose many facets of yourself (emotional, mental, and even sometimes physical) in front of people, so being confident in yourself and being able to surge into those vulnerable places without shriveling into a ball of anxiety is a huge component of an actor’s makeup. Thankfully confidence is something that can be improved on. The better you get at your craft, the more confident you’re going to get in your abilities and the less self-conscious you will be. They famously say, “tension is blocked talent”, and often anxiety and nerves will come from a lack of self-confidence and dread that you’re going to be horrible. Those nerves will lessen with practice and working on your craft, eventually leading to performances that come across brilliantly, with absolute ease. So finding a way to be confident in your self, as well as your skills as an actor is absolutely paramount.

Intelligence: If you listen to actors in interviews, you’re often blow away by how articulate and well spoken they are. They are smart and educated most of the time. But a good majority of actors out there are college drop-outs, that never even went to college, and a chunk of them never even finished high school. How come they seem so smart then? Well it’s for a couple of reasons. Firstly, their job requires them to do a ridiculous amount of reading and research on a wide-variety of topics that become school projects in their own way. So they’re well read and well schooled on important issues happening in the world because it often relates to the work they’re doing. Secondly, they’re actually really smart people. You have to be very smart to be a good actor. But often it’s the type of smart that doesn’t excel within confined institutions like high school and university or college. It’s the type of intelligence that you could define as emotional intelligence, self-awareness, or a real adept understanding and insight into human behaviour and what drives people. That’s because actors are constantly asking themselves these questions: what drives this character? What are their needs? What are their desires? Why do they act this way? It’s a constant evaluating and breaking down of the human psyche, which requires a large degree of intelligence. It’s just a very real-life understanding of human behaviour. So if you don’t find people fascinating, to the point that people watching is one of your favourite past-times and you’re feverously curious about all types of people, then the acting process may not be for you.

Highly Imaginative: This is obviously one of the biggest and most important traits that make great actors. Sure there is a large component of acting that will require you to take emotion and realities from your own life into your acting world, but you won’t always have those resources at your disposal. Sometimes you have to completely plant yourself in alternate realities that encompass absolutely nothing from the world you know. This is where your imagination will take over. Most actors have wild and vivid imaginations, and have a real fostered connection with their imaginations. We basically are trained to grow out of our imaginations as we grow up, which is why most actors are adult-children — never really leaving the psyche of that 10-year-old boy inside of them who would dress up as superheroes and saw the world as full of infinite possibilities. It’s crucial that actors are constantly finding ways to improve and get more in touch with their imaginations, as it’s a huge tool in your career. From the early stages of developing your character, as well as planting yourself in an authentic reality when you have several cameras, crew, and a very artificial world surrounding you on set. Harness the connection to your imagination and work on improving it whenever possible. It’s one of the useful tools for great performances.

Understanding of Human Behaviour: This section relates directly with intelligence, as this is where the actor’s intelligence will shine. The best actors have an exceptional understanding of human behaviour – what people want and need, universally, on the deepest level. This is what every single role they tackle will require from them — the ability to dig deep into the psyche behind their character and figure out their motives, which will determine their behaviour. They have the ability to read between the lines of scripts and offer their own insight into the world of their character and bring assets to the script that weren’t there before. This understanding of human behaviour, I believe, is something that the best actors will have naturally, but it’s also something they strengthen by continuous exercise. Every actor should have a completely engrossed interest in people and the way the act. The job of an actor is to emulate people who aren’t themselves, so it should go without saying that they love to observe people and watch what they do, and then try to figure out why they do the things they do.

Energy, Energy, Energy: When you take an acting class, the beginning of the class is often dedicated to exercising the body — both physically with movement and vocally through voice exercises. These exercises are designed to center the energy in your body and for you to be fully aware of where all the energy in your body is being stored. Yes, actors are required to exert a lot of energy, thus it’s beneficial if they’re naturally energetic people. But that energy will be chaotic and counter-productive for a good performance if it’s not used in the correct way. The best actors are exceptional at dispensing and controlling their energy. They know when to release bursts of energy, as well as when to bottle the energy up because their character is holding something back on the surface, but on the inside they’re exploding. So it’s so important that actors know how to move the energy in their body around to help guide and emphasis their performance. Also, it’s important to note that not all energy is going to be emotionally expressive. They’re forms of energy that are not emotional, and it’s important that actors have a handle on all energy types.

Introspective & Constantly Learning: One of the most important relationships an actor will ever have is the one they have with their self. It’s essential that actors are constantly learning about themselves and trying to understand more about who they are as a person. They will also go to great lengths to improve who they are as a person and get more in touch with their authentic self. This is necessary, as acting requires bringing a large amount of yourself to every character you play. You will to make the emotion in your performances feel authentic. If you don’t actually feel all the emotions and sensations that your character is going through, the camera or audience will pick up on it and it won’t be believable. The great actors are able to dig deep into themselves and pull out the good, bad, and ugly of who they are and put it on show for everyone to see. If you aren’t willing to live with that type of revelation and truth in front of audiences, then acting will be a tough job for you. You can’t be afraid, or unwilling to go to the dark and emotional places of yourself and become a great actor. Actors have to constantly be assessing themselves as people, trying to improve, as well as get closer to who they really are. Another way to get closer to this truth is by constant exercise through meditation, mentors, relaxation, visualization, and classes.

Eager to Explore: Most actors life out of a suitcase and are constantly on the road. A lot of them are feel best in the characters they portray. They’re whimsical spirits, with a yearning for a gypsy life. This obviously relates to the lifestyle of an actor — constantly going from project to project, place to place, changing where they’re working and whom they’re working with all the time. There’s absolutely no structure (unless you’re a regular on a show) and you’re constantly exploring, both a physical world and the emotional world you’re living in. It’s definitely important that an actor has a natural tendency to be drawn to this type of life, as opposed to a very structured and matter-of-fact world where most people live that work the 9-to-5 routine. Going deeper into it, acting is a constant exploration and is going to require a real commitment to a journey by the actor. You have to be prepared to take scenes in directions you weren’t expecting, or let things they’re feeling come across at unexpected moments. A lot of actors live within a very small bandwidth, but the best ones are completely free. They trust their instincts and enjoy the work the most when it turns out different from first expected. So the exploring nature of an actor is going to be both, tangible and intangible. This is must in the makeup of an actor!

Interest in Psychology and Humanity: This is not to say that a psychologist would make a great actor, or that an actor would make a great psychologist. But having an interest in the subject will go a long way in improving your performance. Again, understanding the psychology of humans and what drives people is essential in the acting discovery. So those people who are very intuitive and able to quickly conceptualize other’s behaviour and why they do certain things, is a natural skill that very good actors should possess. This also could be why you see so many actor humanitarians (also because they have so much money) but they have such a vested interest in humanity that they’re passionate about world issues, and really empathize with human suffering.

It’s not that you have to possess every single one of these qualities to be a good actor, but it just seems that in the makeup of actors, often you’ll see, at least some, of these qualities, interests, and personality types. While a lot of these qualities are essential to great performing, they can be improved. Great acting happens when both the inner and outer self are portrayed at the same time (sometimes conflicting one another). So get in touch with yourself, reach deep into your emotions, and continue to discover more about yourself and more about your character in the process.

5 Steps To Fulfilling Your Dreams

Posted on January 29, 2015 by AMP Talent Group

January Means it’s Time to Get a Head Start on What You Want for 2015! I presume for a lot you reading this, acting is your dream. It’s the thing that stirs your soul and makes you feel alive. It’s your passion and what you’re hoping will one day be your full time job and […]

January Means it’s Time to Get a Head Start on What You Want for 2015!

I presume for a lot you reading this, acting is your dream. It’s the thing that stirs your soul and makes you feel alive. It’s your passion and what you’re hoping will one day be your full time job and lead to a very exciting and fulfilling career. Firstly, I commend you for being courageous and deciding to walk the path of your dream. For a lot of people, their dreams remain ideas, things they talk about but never really take action towards; they remain as pictures they drew in elementary school of what they wanted to do when they grew up, but fear got the best of them and they took the safe route. But if you’re reading this article, you’ve probably already done the hardest part — commit yourself to walking the path of your dream, no matter where it may lead you.

Dreams are big and scary, and sometimes hard to imagine that they could possibly come true, so how do you deal with their sheer vastness in a way that makes them seem more manageable?

Identify What You Want Your Legacy To Be.

This is a very important question to ask yourself before you walk fearlessly in the direction of a large goal or dream. What do you want to be remembered for? This really breaks down and clarifies why you want to achieve this dream. You will know that your dream is in line with your truest self if your big goal is in perfect alignment with what you want to be remembered for as a person, what you want people to think or say when your name comes up. You should write your legacy down on paper, so the driving force behind the pursuit of this dream will become permanently etched into your mind and what fuels your motivation. So do you want to be remembered for making people laugh? For making great movies? For being one of the best dramatic actors to ever live? It’s important that you nail this down so this dream of yours can have some context and purpose towards what you desire in your life.

Set Goals and Visualize.

“Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve.” — Napoleon Hill

I believe this is absolutely the most important grass roots step in the pursuit of a big goal or dream. A dream becomes a goal when it’s put down on paper, but it’s just some fantasy or fairy tale when it’s kept in all wishy washy in your mind. You have to put a VERY SPECIFIC goal down on paper and then break down the necessary steps to arriving at that specific goal. You will have to break the path to your goal down into specific parts, by creating short-term and long-term goals. Your short-term goals will definitely change as you complete them, or other things come up, but your long-term goal will be the guiding force in your life. The most successful 1% of the population sets goals and the most successful 0.1% of that 1% reads and updates their goals regularly (Source: Brian Tracy). So by making an active choice to set goals, read them every day, and update them once a month, you’re already setting yourself up for massive success. To add to your goal setting regiment, you need to spend some time visualizing your goals coming to fruition. Visualize your world after you achieve your biggest goal — picture how you’re feeling, the excitement and contentment that you feel inside, how happy and inspired others around you are, and generally, just how fulfilled you feel. Goal setting and regular visualization are going to be the seeds that not only help your dreams grow, but help to make you believe that you can actually accomplish them.

Surround Yourself With People On A Similar Path.

Find people that support you. You may have people that you’ve been friends with for a long time, but you reach a point where it becomes perfectly clear that you’re headed down completely different paths. They begin to take you away from your goals by not supporting you, or believing that you can actually accomplish the things you’re setting out to do. You don’t need to completely remove these people from your life (you have all the history with them) but you do need to manage how much of an influence they will have on you. You won’t be able to see them every single weekend, as you will continuously get discouraged because they keep badgering you, “When are you going to get a real job? Are you still trying to pursue the acting thing?” Trying to become an actor, or artist and someone who’s successful in the entertainment industry is a very long and exhausting road — something that someone who doesn’t work in the industry won’t understand (particularly if they work in the corporate world or a standard 9-5 job). This is why it’s very important that you create a circle of actor friends, or friends that work in the industry that you’re pursing a career in. This way you will have people to bounce ideas off, as well as people that just generally support you and believe that you can accomplish your dream. They will be able to spot the talent in you, the drive, and all the potential you have to do everything you’re trying to do. These are the people that you will probably connect with the most and be the most like-minded with, but mostly, they will help bring you closer to your goals. They will probably know people and be able to put you in touch with people who will help you to get ahead in your career. If you don’t have any friends that have the same dream as you, or work in the industry you’re trying to get into, then you really need to make some changes to who you are hanging out with if you’re serious about accomplishing your dream.

Welcome failure into your life.

This is the hardest one to accept, but it’s one of the most important. One of the greatest pre-requisites for success is failure. This is definitely true for entrepreneurs, as well as artists. The only way you’re going to get better, improve your technique and strategy, is by failing thousands of times. Success comes with a price, through a series of failures that you live through and overcome to create something better. You just have to have the endurance, patience, and persistence to understand that with every failure you go through, you’re getting closer to your big break, or opportunity for everything to turn around in your favour. Failure also makes success feels warranted, making you feel like you’ve earned everything that’s come your way. You don’t want to become hugely successful without feeling like you’ve gone through the gauntlet of struggle. The feeling of triumph will be completely squashed by the fact you feel like someone that just got lucky, instead of having earned every inch that came your way. So welcome failure into your life. You’re the one who decided to chase a dream, which means you chose to walk a path of criticism and skepticism from others, as well as path that will force you to walk into the fear of the unknown being judged every step of the way by people who want to bring you down. Failure is your friend, welcome it, and learn from it.

Follow the stories of the key players in your industry.

Your dream is to become an actor, so my first piece of advice is to read every single biography of every actor that inspires you. If they have a biography book, go buy their book and take every word to heart. I would suggest that you watch shows such as Inside the Actor’s Studio and note the stories of how the actors got to be at the level they are at now, as well as their words of wisdom for beginning actors starting out in the industry. I would also suggest that you watch as many interviews as you can from actors who you respect and look up to for how they get into character for each role they play, and what they’ve learned from peers in their industry whom they respect. Just as a writer should study the work of the writers they most admire, you have to study the bodies of work of the best actors in the game. That way you can find certain things about their preparation methods, or course they took to success that you can try and mirror in your own career. For these are the actors and people who you aspire to be like, as well as hope to have a career that will be even just a slight semblance of.

I know from my own experiences that choosing to chase a dream is a tough thing to fully commit to, but once you do, you’re on your way. You are finally on the path that you’re intended to be on. However long it took you to get here, it doesn’t matter, because you’ve arrived and are now ready to make any sacrifice necessary to make things happen for yourself. That’s a huge turning point and something that you should feel good about. Just be prepared that along the way there will be endless obstacles, but if you make a conscious choice to overcome absolutely everything that comes in front of you and your dream, your success will happen, it’s just a matter of when.

In order to achieve a dream, you first have to completely surrender to it; you have to tell yourself that you’re at mercy to this path, wherever it may lead you. That’s because you love it, how it makes you feel inside, it’s something you can’t describe or properly put into words, you’re guided by a purpose, something greater than yourself.

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.

5 Reasons Why You Should Never Pursue Acting To Be Famous

Posted on August 26, 2014 by AMP Talent Group

“I want to be an actor!” Even just admitting those words is a huge step in the direction of your dreams. For a lot of people it’s a scary step because it finally becomes real when you say it out loud. All your fears, doubts, insecurities, and disapproving opinions of others come rushing to […]

“I want to be an actor!” Even just admitting those words is a huge step in the direction of your dreams. For a lot of people it’s a scary step because it finally becomes real when you say it out loud. All your fears, doubts, insecurities, and disapproving opinions of others come rushing to the forefront. But it’s that all too important first step. Just before you go any further, you have to ask yourself this very important question:

“Why do I want to become an actor?”

If your answer is that you want to be in magazines, date supermodels, own an island in the Caribbean, and walk red carpets, then you probably need to think again before you walk down the acting path. The biggest mistake you can make is get into the business because you want to be famous or you want to be a celebrity. You have to be in this business for the love of the craft. For the love of taking on new roles and characters, for the pure joy that you get from telling stories and helping play a small part in telling some important ones. You goal has to be in service of the craft and the art form you’re cultivating. Ultimately, your drive in this business has to stem from a place of pure passion.

So what are some of the dangers of pursuing an acting career when you’re chasing fame?

Reaching the level of A-list Hollywood movie star is rare: The harsh reality is that very few actors will ever reach that A-list Hollywood movie star level. The term “starving artist” has to be a label that you aren’t afraid of, because for a period of time you will struggle to make a living as an actor. There are very few actors out there who were lucky enough to drop right into it and be successful immediately. I’m sure you’ll hear stories of guys like Johnny Depp, Leo Dicaprio, and James Franco who killed it from the start, but they’re rare cases. You need to dream big, so there’s no problem with wanting to be an A-list Hollywood movie star because you’ll know you achieved great success in the business if you get there. But you have to love it enough that you’d be willing to put in a lot of work and push through the years of being a struggling actor, or a middle class actor and not get depressed and discouraged. If you want to be famous, you will give up or get angry when things don’t work out the way you fantasized them in your head.

Your role selection might lead you down a bad path: Let’s just say, if you’re in it for the money and fame, you might take some roles that are “artistic suicide’. Yes you need to pay the bills, so of course you will take whatever role you can get in the beginning, but once you start to see some success, you can go after those roles that really challenge you as an artist. If you’re in the business for the wrong reasons, you might take the more commercial role that pays you more money and gets more attention, but doesn’t really challenge you or interest you as a performer. So if your intentions aren’t coming from an authentic place, you might end up with a career that isn’t all that respectable. When you see a lot of big name actors taking time away from film careers to do a play, or taking a smaller and grittier role in an indie film, you know they’re really in the business for the love of the game.

The business is a grind: There’s no way to sugarcoat it, the film industry is amazing, but it’s cutthroat and it’s a grind. Being an actor isn’t all about having assistants and people doting on you all the time. Days on set are long and they can be exhausting. If you don’t love it, it might be a nightmare for you when your call time on set is 6am. You have to love the process of what it takes to create something, whether it’s a film, a show, or a commercial. Acting is all about the process and being a vessel to help execute a creative vision. It will be easy to lose sight of these things, or not even be aware of them, if you’re only concerned with being “the next big thing”.

You won’t put in the time: They say that it takes 10 years to really create a body of work as an actor. That’s an entire decade if you weren’t aware. For somebody who’s just starting out in the business, that number can look more daunting than Everest during a windstorm. So it doesn’t seem normal for somebody who doesn’t love it to invest that amount of time for a superficial outcome. Also, you need to train and put in a lot of your own time to build your skills as a performer. Someone who is chasing fame probably won’t go that extra mile to improve the same way somebody who truly loved it would. For this reason, they probably won’t ever be as good and book as many roles. So make sure you love it and are prepared to dedicate yourself to it.

Understandably, an actor needs to crave the spotlight and love the attention to a certain extent. That will require a certain amount of the ego to be involved. There has to be that element in someone who is pursuing this as their career. If there isn’t, you probably won’t be able to rise to the occasion and separate yourself from the competition. And, underneath that dream of seeing your name in lights has to be a completely head over heels love affair for the craft of acting and art of storytelling.

How To Handle Rejection

Posted on July 25, 2014 by AMP Talent Group

“As actors, we have to deal with rejection so much more than any other business. So I don’t care how much of a genius you are, if you don’t have the propensity to be able to get back up every time you get knocked down, then you’re not going to survive.” — Ryan Kwanten […]

If you looked in the manual for “How to Become an Actor”, being able to handle rejection would probably be somewhere on the first page. Being an actor, or trying to become an actor is going to require you to face rejection dead in the face on a regular basis. Rejection just comes with the territory of wanting to be an actor. The only thing you can control is how you handle it, how you move on from it and take it with a grain of salt, without a damaged psyche and dwindling self-confidence.

So what are some of the steps in ensuing damaged control and making sure rejection doesn’t break you? We’ve listed some of the ways to go about it below.

Try not to take it personal: One of the biggest things in the film industry is that there are so many people vying for the same roles and the same opportunities. The industry is a competitive beast. So when you’re going out for a part, there are most likely 1,000 others who look like you and have the same level of talent. Actor, Sylvester Stallone (Rambo) says “I take rejection as someone blowing a bugle in my ear to wake me up and get me going, rather than retreat.“ You can’t take it personally when you aren’t selected for the part, or didn’t get a callback. The casting director’s job is to find the right person for the role; it’s not to make sure nobody’s feelings get hurt. It doesn’t mean they didn’t like you, in fact they may have loved you, but you just didn’t fit the exact criteria for what they were looking for in that role. Its up to you to deliver your best performance and leave the audition at the door.

Listen to what they’re saying: The most honest things are often the hardest for us to take. So when an acting coach, or somebody that sees our work gives us some unpleasant feedback, we really need to do our best to listen to what they’re saying. Bare in mind, there’s a difference between constructive criticism and somebody who’s just trying to break you apart. It’s important that you listen to their feedback and distinguish between the two yourself. If it’s from a trusted source, or somebody you respect, it’s definitely going to be worthwhile to listen to what they said and see what you can apply for the next time to make it better. This is easier said than done, but do your best to not get super emotional and sensitive when somebody rejects you or turns you away. Find out what they think you need to work on, so you can get better.

Get Better: Drake has a famous line from one of his songs, “don’t get bitter, just get better”. This definitely applies to actors as well. When you get rejected, instead of responding with anger and resentment that does nothing but boil your own blood, you need to work on your stuff and become better. Use it as fuel to your fire in improving your craft and becoming a better actor. You need to say to yourself, “Okay, what can I do to get better?” If you can walk away from rejection with that sort of positivity and action, you will eventually start to succeed in a very big way. At the very least, you won’t sit in a pity stooper when you get rejected, but instead, keep your head up and make the best of the situation.

Stay Persistent: Every successful person will tell you that they had to handle rejection on countless occasions. They had to deal with doors being slammed in their face, people telling them they weren’t talented, or were crazy, or people who didn’t believe in them. If you don’t have the ability to bounce back from rejection with unwavering enthusiasm, then you will have a tough time succeeding in an industry as tough as the film industry. Talent Agent, Anne Marie Perrault says, “Prepare yourself that the rejection will come, but be sure that you love what you’re doing and you’re going to continue to work at it and get better until those “No’s” starting turning into Yes’s”. If you commit yourself to it, work hard through training and stay persistent, your success will only be a matter of time.”

Sure rejection sucks and forces us to retreat back into our shells for a while, but it’s all about the bounce back. It’s all about working at it, getting the right mind set, working on your skills, and making sure you have the right attitude so that bounce back time is faster every time. Pretty soon you will develop the thick skin that is required of an actor, and rejection will be nothing more than an opportunity for you to go through another door with someone else who sees the potential in you.

It’s up to you and how you let it affect you. Rejection will only break you if you let it.

8 Ways To Boost Your Acting Career

Posted on July 18, 2014 by AMP Talent Group

So summer is officially here, and what better time to boost your career, brush up on your skills, and make sure you’re taking advantage of these months, instead of chomping down on high-calorie picnic food and developing a beer gut that would only make you marketable if Mall Cop 2 was ever made. Acting […]

So summer is officially here, and what better time to boost your career, brush up on your skills, and make sure you’re taking advantage of these months, instead of chomping down on high-calorie picnic food and developing a beer gut that would only make you marketable if Mall Cop 2 was ever made.

Acting is all about the continuous strive to learn, to grow and to become better. If you’re not constantly evolving, then you’re remaining stagnant with your feet in the mud. So with that in mind, it’s of utmost importance that every actor constantly finds ways to boost their skills, and thus, their career. There a whole host of ways that you can boost your career this summer, anywhere from taking classes, to finding new performing methods to try, networking at summer barbeques, as well as just making sure all your marketing materials are up to date and ready to go when called upon. So what are some of the best ways to boost your career now that summer is here? We’ve outlined some of the most important.

Get In Shape: It’s the summer, so there is absolutely no excuse! The only thing you can blame your frumpy, dumpling shaped body on is the fact that you have chosen to undo your belt and let yourself go. Instead, use the summer as a time to get yourself in your best shape yet! The weather is fantastic — it’s a great time to start running, to partake in one of many boot camps that will be happening all over your city, or get the most bang for your buck out of that gym membership that is sitting on your desk accumulating dust. Acting is just as much about your look as it is your actual skills and talent. If you don’t look the part, you won’t book the part. So unless you’re dead set on becoming the next best character actor, or beefy best friend, then it’s in your best interest to grocery shop at Whole Foods and become a summer fitness fanatic. Being in a shape with a slim figure will do nothing but increase your value and marketability, as well as help you to look fantastic on camera.

Work when other actors aren’t working: By placing your acting career as a top priority this summer, you’re already a cut above the rest. A lot of actors will use the summer as their downtime — they won’t invest their money in acting classes, or any form of training, instead opting for binge cottage weekends and the perfect time to laze away on those long summer evenings. So it’s a great time to get ahead of the program by putting in a lot of hard work. Basically, just continue to work on your skills in whatever form that may be. It could be a summer intensive that you enroll in for two weeks during the heat of the summer, or it could be an ongoing weekly class that you sign up for to make sure you’re fine-tuning your craft on a weekly basis. Just work as much as you can, in whatever form it may be. By making that simple decision, you’re already ahead of lot of people in your industry.

Make sure all your marketing materials are in place: While you’re waiting around for the call and your next audition, you should always make sure that your marketing materials are in tiptop shape. This obviously begins with your headshots. Summer is a great time to get new photos done if your old ones are outdated. You can also build your website, or brush up and spend time cultivating your online presence. Obviously the thought of logging countless hours on your computer this summer is mildly depressing, but find ways to treat yourself with more sunny activities if you get the work done. You can create your own little rewards system, which will probably be the only way you’ll actually get anything accomplished. You can also spend some time and design your own business cards that will promote you as an actor, or whatever skills you may have. Summer is a great time for meeting people and making connections, so it’s also a smart idea to have all your marketing ducks in place including business cards, because you never know who you are going to meet or be introduced to.

Keep a Journal: Even if you’re going to be spending half of your summer travelling around Europe, you can still make some strides in your career, at least from a creativity standpoint. In a recent study conducted at Harvard business school, it became apparent that those who journaled at the end of the day had a 22.8% increase in performance in comparison to those who didn’t. It has also been discovered that journals will improve your creativity and help you make better decisions. This is because writing your experiences and emotions down on paper, help you to articulate and pinpoint the key lessons that you learn in life. This directly relates to acting, as so much of acting is drawing from your own experiences and applying them to the circumstances that your character is facing. So by devoting your summer to keeping a journal every day, you’re going to come into your fall auditions with a much greater understanding of yourself and your own experiences, that will help make you a better, and more emotive actor.

Do Extra Work: Perhaps you’re looking for another job this summer, or another revenue stream. Instead of going out and applying for some other dead-end bar job, you should sign up with an extras agency. Even if you consider yourself “above” extra work, it’s a great way to stay in the game through the summer. There should be tons of big productions coming through your city, so there will be countless opportunities to be on set. This is just another way to get yourself closer to what it is you really want to be doing. Also, this relates to networking, but the opportunity to meet other like-minded industry people will be there every single day that you’re on a set. Don’t count it out, but rather look at all the benefits it will bring you, as there are many!

Network. Network. Network: Summer is a great time to be social. There are parties, barbeques, small film festivals, and industry functions happening on a regular basis. That’s why it’s essential that all your marketing materials are updated, so that you can feel confident going out there and promoting yourself. I would suggest taking a look online and seeing what is happening in your industry, in your city for the summer, that way you can schedule out some of the most important events that you may want to attend. You should find another actor friend or two that is interested and can make a point that you’re going to attend the events together, which is a great way to have someone to lean on for social support when you’re at a party where you potentially don’t know anyone. Just by being social this summer, meeting and talking to as many people as possible, you’re surely going to make some headway in your career.

Take an Improv Class: It’s understandable that enlisting in a demanding scene study class that will require you to memorize pages of dialogue on a weekly basis might be a little too much to ask out of you this summer. So another alternative that would require much less out-of-class practice is to sign up for an improv class. This way all you’ll really have to do is show up for the classes when they’re scheduled and be present in the moment. That’s a much more realistic expectation of yourself when the weather is hot, and the outdoors are so darn inviting. Plus improv training is essential in helping you improve as an actor in ways such as, helping you with the audition process, helping to diminish your fear of failure, as well as helping you learn to relax, listen, and be present in the moment of your scene.

Shoot your own passion project: A lot of filmmakers, writers, and actors will be looking for stuff to work on this summer. So finally taking the initiative and putting your own project in action is a great thing to do. The days are long, the weather is great, it’s the best time of year to get out there and shoot stuff of your own. There’s no excuse for not getting some of your film friends together and creating a short film, or starting to shoot your own web series. Dedicate your summer to making things happen, particularly those projects that you’d previously thrown way back on the back burner.

Summer 2014 is here and before you know it, it will be gone. Do you want to create the best Facebook photo album ever from that wild trip you and your friends took? Or would you rather do the work that most people aren’t willing to put in and get yourself closer to your dreams so you’re in a better place come the fall? While the first option might seem like the golden goose right now when you see beautiful people scantily dressed everywhere, but you don’t want to look back on your summer and be overcome with regret. Plus, regret doesn’t feel very good with a sunburn.

Carpe Diem!

How Actors Can Build A Brand Online

Posted on July 16, 2014 by AMP Talent Group

It is no secret that we’re in a digital revolution. Everybody is engaging online so frequently, that it’s becoming one of the most dominating forms of communication. For this reason it’s absolutely essential that actors are building and maintaining their brand online. Just simply going to your auditions is not enough anymore. You have to […]

It is no secret that we’re in a digital revolution. Everybody is engaging online so frequently, that it’s becoming one of the most dominating forms of communication. For this reason it’s absolutely essential that actors are building and maintaining their brand online. Just simply going to your auditions is not enough anymore. You have to be online, engaging in some way of self-promotion and making sure that you’re pushing your work as much as you can. Talent Agents, Managers, and Casting Directors are now going online to find that new secret talent that will take their business to the next level. Just look at how many new musicians and pop stars are being discovered on YouTube. The same goes for actors and models. You could be the next big thing that is waiting to be discovered. But this can only happen if you have a platform that showcases all your work and talents.

So why exactly should every actor be creating an online brand? Is it really that important?

That’s definitely a fair question, as a lot of people will feel it’s too much work for not enough reward, or that it’s going to feel awkward, narcissistic, and a little self-indulgent to create an online presence that is ALL ABOUT them. But you have to think of it that you are the product, you’re the vehicle that is going to make or break your career. When you’re an actor, it’s you as a person that is going to be the moneymaker, so you need to make sure you push that product as much as you can. Do not be afraid to stand out. Because only those who are willing to be vulnerable and put themselves out there have the opportunity to achieve big success.

Creating your online brand is another important tool available to you. Trying to make it as an actor is hard enough, so you need to give yourself whatever edge you can. By focusing on building and creating your online brand, you’re going to begin to separate yourself from other actors who can’t be bothered with the time and energy needed to build their platform. You have to become an entrepreneur of the craft, and your own hard-driving sales person. It’s essential for success.

Times are different now; producers want to know how much publicity you can get them for a TV series or movie. If you have a large following online, a producer will see you as a very valuable asset to them. It might help you in separating yourself from other competing actors in the casting process. Also, a lot of the top US and Canadian talent agencies such as CAA, ICM, AMP and WME have at least one staff member constantly scrolling the Internet, scouting for the next big star their agency can sign. Gaining an online presence has become huge for comedians in getting discovered as well, by posting gag videos, parodies, and creations that help get them potential viral exposure. You could even potentially book roles from your online brand. If you have enough videos, pictures, and quality work online, you might discover you have some important industry people sending you messages and emails saying they want to meet you, or even cast you in their next project.

Basically, why wouldn’t you start investing in your online Social Media brand? Social media is available to us everywhere and anytime. It also allows people to figure out who you are and what potential roles you would be good at playing, so you can choose to brand yourself in whatever way you want to get known for. Talk to your agent or manger and figure out your strengths and maximize on them by creating a presence online that will help give you that extra boost needed to stand out from the crowd.

Now that you’re aware and understand the importance of your online brand, what are some online tools available to actors and ones they should be engaging with on a regular basis? Listed below are some of the most important:

Build A Website: This is one of the most common and standard tools that most actors have now. Build a Basic Website that has your headshots, resume, and a show reel (when you have one). This is definitely the most important first ingredient when it comes to creating an online portfolio that will promote you as an artist. Standard actor’s websites will have a catalog style showing of their headshots that allow potential casting directors to see exactly what they look like. Provide reviews from directors or producers you have worked for on your page. Also keeping an updated resume is essential, as well as a demo showreel of your most recent work. A website concentrates all your information in one place, so it makes it very easy for someone to look you up and see exactly what you’re talents are.

YouTube Videos: A prime example of somebody who has promoted their wide-array of talents through viral YouTube videos is Taryn Southern. A very talented comedian, writer, actor, host, and singer, she’s managed to become quite the webutante, which has helped her to book many mainstream acting roles. She’s appeared on various TV shows such as New Girl and Rules of Engagement. While you don’t need to become the next viral sensation to be successful as an actor, she’s just an example of somebody who created a personal brand online and her career flourished because of it. If you’re more of an established actor, you can use YouTube to post trailers to new movies you’re appearing in, or links to notable scenes that you have done. You can have a link from your website to your YouTube videos, and vice versa.

Facebook, Twitter, & Instagram: It’s important that everyone who’s trying to build a career is using social media to some extent. If you’re a more established actor, then a Facebook fan page is a great way to build an audience and keep your fans up to date with new projects you’re working on, as well as push through all your professional marketing and press materials. Tons of comedy writers are being discovered through Twitter, which is essential for actors as well. Even if you don’t think you’re funny, or don’t like confessing all your personal feelings to the world, Twitter is a great way to get in touch with other performers, talent agents, casting directors, and managers. You can also follow accounts that are related to the film and entertainment industry, which can keep you informed with everything that’s happening. Tweeting is something that most people are doing and it’s another avenue for you to help get your words, face, and name out there. Creating an Instagram account is another great way to build followers and create an online presence. Tons of models and actors are creating accounts and posting behind the scenes pictures from various photo shoots and film sets they’re working on. Just make sure you have permission from someone on set before you snap photos. You can also go one step further and post inspiring quotes and information related to the industry. This is a great way to build a voice, a brand, and become known in the industry, which may also help to boost your career. Keep in mind that it is important not to tweet or talk about jobs that you are doing unless you have permission from the producer or your agent. You can say you have a audition or callback, but do not mention the client or job name.

Show Reel / Demo Reel: This is another one of the standard tools for actors. As soon as you have enough experience under your belt, you should be creating a reel that highlights some of your best work. This is a quick 2-3 minute video that your Talent Agent sends to a casting director or producer so they can see your work. While it’s not completely commonplace, some actors have been chosen for roles based entirely off their reel. This is why it’s essential that you have one (once you have enough experience) on your website, and upload to YouTube as well, which will actually show people that you have talent and should be taken seriously as an actor. Besides, having a demo reel helps to market you and your seen as a professional.

IMDB: It’s a very important branding tool that every talent should have. Casting directors, talent agents, and managers, may look you up on IMDB and see what your working on or your credits are like before they cast you. If you have a good chunk of credits, you will come across as established and professional. If you can’t be found online, most people will assume that you’re green and not established as a performer. Make sure that you create an IMDB account and work towards stacking those credits up!

Creating a strong online brand is a no-brainer. You can start off small (a Twitter account, LinkedIn, build a free website and or get help to edit together a solid showreel) and work towards creating more significant platforms once you’re more established. By investing in the online marketing presence early in your career, you will start to tell your peers and important people in the industry that you’re serious about your acting career.

Figure out what your brand is, create it online, and connect with like-minded people. The Internet and social media gives everyone an opportunity to build a voice and to connect. Start by building your online brand today!

Top 10 Secrets To Success

Posted on July 15, 2014 by AMP Talent Group

So you want to succeed in the entertainment business? Here are 10 of the most important tips you’ll need to live by in order to find the success you’re looking for: 1. Love What You Do. The most important thing with any artistic pursuit is that you absolutely love it. It’s a hard road being […]

So you want to succeed in the entertainment business? Here are 10 of the most important tips you’ll need to live by in order to find the success you’re looking for:

1. Love What You Do.

The most important thing with any artistic pursuit is that you absolutely love it. It’s a hard road being an artist or a creator, but it’s also a very rewarding one if you’re in it for the right reasons. It’s important to ask yourself the question, “Is this something that I can live without?” If your answer is “no” then you know that you have to do it.

2. Be All In (Complete Commitment).

The people that choose to be actors, models or artists, have to be completely and utterly committed to it. The people that call themselves “part-time actors” are never going to be successful because they aren’t completely committed to it. Whether it’s fear of failure, or even a fear of admitting that they want to do this, holding yourself back and not putting it as the most important goal in your life is setting yourself up for failure. When you make the decision that you want to be an actor, that goal has to be the driving force in your life. If it isn’t, and it’s just slotted in as a “hobby”, then you don’t stand a chance of succeeding.

3. Always Be Working And Studying.

The simple truth is that those who are practicing are those who are working. The only time that you shouldn’t be studying and practicing is when you don’t have enough time because you’re working so much. No matter how talented, or experienced you are, there is always something for you to learn. The most successful actors understand the value of always staying a student. They understand that there will always be someone smarter than them, or more talented than them that they can learn from. A List, award winning actors such as Meryl Streep, Russell Crowe, Christian Bale, and Anne Hathaway and countless others continue to study with coaches and master the craft of acting, even to this day. Remaining humble and working hard at learning the craft and studying is a key force in driving home your success.

4. Patience And Persistence

Being an actor requires an enormous amount of patience. Whether it’s waiting for the next audition, or waiting for the cameras to start rolling, actors are always waiting. It’s the name of the game and has to be something that they can handle. At the opposite end is persistence. So many careers are sprouted from stories of perseverance and sticking it out when the rough times came. It’s essential that you’re in for your career for the long haul and won’t jump ship when you can’t afford to pay your hydro bill or your sleeping on a friends couch, as well as have the endurance to continue to pound away on your craft even when the breaks aren’t coming your way.

5. Create Your Own Opportunities.

In order to get lucky, you have to work extremely hard and show initiative by creating your own opportunities. So in other words, don’t be lazy. Be proactive and create your own projects. This keeps your skills in top shape, as well as creates products that could be launching platforms for your talents. This also helps your Talent Agent to better market you for even bigger opportunities. Whether it’s to market yourself as an actor, writer, or filmmaker, creating your own projects sows initiative, and is how a lot of people get discovered. Remember Goodwill Hunting? Matt Damon started writing that script in a playwriting class at Harvard in his fifth year. Then with the blessing of his teacher, Damon dropped out of school and moved to LA to finish the script with his good buddy Ben Affleck. That movie launched both those actor’s careers into the stratosphere. If it wasn’t for them taking it upon themselves to create their own movie (vehicle) to market their acting talents, then the names Matt Damon and Ben Affleck might mean absolutely nothing to us now. Or how about Garden State? Zach Braff wrote and directed that little movie, which turned him into a household name overnight. The best example is probably HBO “Girls” creator, Lena Dunham, who quickly became the “talent of the moment” by continuously creating her own projects that showcased her writing, directing, and acting talents. She even created the show Girls, based loosely off her own life in New York. This just shows how important it is to create your own things. You can’t catch your breaks and get lucky without working hard and going after what you want with passion, initiative and good work ethic.

6. Find A Mentor.

A lot of very successful people (in and out of the entertainment industry) will tell you that it’s impossible to be successful without a mentor. That’s because a mentor helps you to steer the ship. They help to cut years off your road to success by making sure you’re doing the necessary things in the present to help you get to your end goal. Talent Agent, Anne Marie Perrault says “Finding a mentor is absolutely essential and can be a major a factor in ones career success. It is important to seek out professionals in the field as they are a wonderful source of career advice. The best ways to find one would be to find someone in the industry that you admire, whether it’s someone you meet on set, or a teacher who you really respect, in some cases it can even be your Agent or Manager”. Don’t be shy to ask someone if they’d be interested in mentoring you as well. They will take it as a compliment. You can meet regularly to talk about your career, or you can even just keep in touch through email or on Skype to ask questions, and check-in every now and again. Your mentor will be essential in helping you to answer those difficult questions, help lift you up when times are tough, and ultimately, help you strive to becoming a better performer and person.

7. Take Full Responsibility For Everything That Happens To Tou.

The first step to happiness and success is taking full responsibility for where you are in your life. The moment you stop pointing the blame on other people, or things, is the moment that you finally point yourself in the direction of success. So you didn’t get that audition? The director did not think you where right for it or had someone else in mind. You didn’t book the role? It’s nobody’s fault but your own for not delivering the way you needed to or maybe you just are not ready, or are having a bad day. Leave it at the door. Don’t beat yourself up for it. Use any shortcomings and failures as an opportunity to look at yourself in the mirror and figure out how you can be better. Learn from each experience. Your career and your life is completely up to you, you’re the one in control of your fate, so make sure you step up to the plate. The happiest and most successful people in life are those who feel they have complete control over their lives. This starts with accepting complete responsibility for where you are and understanding that you’re the one in control of your success or failure.

8. Set Goals

So you want to be the next big leading man or woman, do you? Yes that’s a lofty goal, but can you do it? You better believe you can! It’s definitely a big dream, so how do you make it seem more manageable, or achievable? You break your dream down into something smaller; you break it down into parts called goals. Then you break down the steps that you will need to complete (accomplish) in order to reach those specific individual goals. Once you do this, your wildest dreams will seem a little more in reach. You have to have a plan; you have to create a vision for your career. You do this by creating goals on paper, then continuously visualizing yourself successfully moving towards those goals. When Jim Carrey was a broke, struggling comic, he would drive up to Mulholland Drive a few nights a week and visualize himself making it big in Hollywood. He even wrote a check to himself for 10 million dollars and filled it out as “acting services rendered”. It was only a number of years later when he became one of the biggest stars on the planet; booking roles for the exact amount of money he said he would, 10 million dollars. Believe you can, believe you will, create a vision, put it down on paper!

9. Take Risks

Those that take risks get noticed. Most people will say that choosing to become an actor is a big risk in the first place. They may be right. Actors have to take risks on a regular basis. It’s part of what being an artist and a performer is all about! When you choose to pursue your passion as a profession, you have to face fear and walk down a road that offers very little security. This is the all-important first risk that you’re going to have to take. You then have to continue walking down that road fearlessly. You have to believe in the process, believe that the journey you are on will take you to where you want to go. You will also have to task risks regularly with new roles and parts that come your way. You’re going to need to venture out of your comfort zone and try new things, do roles that scare you and really go for it with complete disregard for failure. They say that success is a sum of thousands of failures, and they’re right. Failure is success’ most important pre-requisite, which is even truer when it comes to the performing arts. Take risks, overcome fear, and you will grow closer to success!

10. Be Confident And Believe In Yourself.

On your “Road to Success” you’re going to have to make a lot of big decisions. In order to do this, you’re going to have to be strong and be true to yourself. If you continue to do that, you will make decisions that are the most agreeable to who you are as a person and you will stay on the right path. You have to be confident in yourself and make sure you treat yourself the right way. On your path to success, a lot of people will tell you that you’re crazy and you won’t ever reach the big dreams you’ve set for yourself. You have to silence those voices, look inside and believe in that vision you have for yourself. Not everybody is going to see what you see, so you have to understand that and not dwell on the opinions and perceptions of others. Confidence and success is made by marching toward your goals and dreams with massive action, even in the face of adversity and fear of failure. This is an absolute must in achieving big success!

It’s a comforting feeling knowing that your success is completely up to you. You’re the one in control of the universe you create for yourself. Understanding and believing in this is definitely the starting point for every big dream or goal. Start living by this philosophy and your success will start to grow exponentially.

Now go out there and build the life you’ve always dreamed of!