Beckinfield: A New Online Web-Series Any Actor Can Participate In

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 14:57 — 10.3MB)

Imagine creating your own original character and inserting it into a video game.

Now, imagine that that character is actually you.

Using your webcam, cell phone or video camera, you upload whatever you want your ‘character’ to do into the game.

Sounds pretty cool, right?

Beckinfield, is a a sci-fi web series that is brand new and for a limited time, completely free to join and play.

I talked with the creators of the site (actors themselves) recently and they’ve even told me that some of their current members have booked jobs from the site.

So, check it out here! And, if you’d like to take a listen to our conversation, click onto the above link.

Also, if you happen to be at SXSW this year, they are going to host the first ever actor meet-up. Click here to RSVP! Keep checking back on the link also because they are planning to host actor meet-ups in various parts of the country.

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How To Feel Confident And Give Great Auditions

HOW TO GIVE GREAT AUDITIONS BY CHANGING YOUR FOCUS!

Hello fellow actors!

I’m thrilled to be able to share my years of experience as an on-set and stage actor and over 15 years of teaching and coaching actors. Some of the topics I’d like to cover include; how to have sexual chemistry at auditions and on set, the secret to playing bad guys, cops, lawyers, FBI, judges and prostitutes; how to break down audition scripts; how to get more depth and vulnerability as an actor and much, much more!

For my first column I’d like to address:

How to feel confident and have a great time at your auditions.
The incredible technique I’m going to share with you is based on the work of Jerry  and Esther Hicks, who introduced the secrets of the law of attraction years before the huge success of the video and book, The Secret.

According to Esther and Jerry Hicks we are always either focusing on what we want or what we don’t want. When you’re unhappy, nervous, angry, etc it’s usually because you are focusing on what you don’t want. “I don’t want to be lonely, I don’t want to have so few auditions, I don’t want to be poor”, etc. The secret to shifting your mood in general and specifically when you audition is to focus on what you do want and how you DO want to FEEL at your auditions and on set.

So here’s a simple process for preparing for an audition:

First, imagine yourself on the way to an audition for a part you really want. try to focus on how you are feeling.

FOCUS ON HOW YOU ARE FEELING
Usually if you’re honest, you’ll say, for example…I feel nervous, I feel excited. I feel anxious. I feel like I’m not even right for this role. I feel unprepared, etc.

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Actors Roundtable: Comedic Actresses

Sophia Vergara, Jane Lynch, Courteney Cox, Felicity Huffman, Wanda Sykes and Patricia Heaton talk about who’s the funniest female comic, do you have to have confidence when you’re doing comedy and more.

My favorite was video 3 where Jane Lynch talks about trying to memorize lines.

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Three Tips To Finding An Agent

Three Agent Tips

by Dallas Travers, CEC

One of the most common complaints I hear from actors involves finding the right representation. Snagging a solid agent or manager can be tricky, time consuming, and expensive. A lot of actors experience the old catch-22: “I need an agent to get work and I need work to land an agent”. What’s an actor to do?

Whether you feel like you don’t have enough time or money to grab the attention of an agent, or you question whether or not you’re ready for representation, you can begin planting seeds with prospective agents easily and inexpensively. All you need to do is commit to these small steps.

Apply a Laser Beam Focus

I’m a big believer in “doing less more often”, so narrow your agent list to a manageable target group of about 10 agencies. Ask for recommendations from fellow actors and any industry connections, such as casting directors, producers, acting coaches, etc. Do you have a peer with representation whose career you admire? Research their agency. The Hollywood Creative Directory, available as a reference book in many libraries, and IMDB Pro are good resources to help locate names and contact information for anyone in the industry. Don’t forget to plug in to online forums such as the Hollywood Happy Hour Yahoo Group. You will be amazed by how easily you can access up to date information about any agent you may be researching.

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Actors: Don’t Re-Invent The Wheel

I meet many, many people through my journeys as an actor and a coach, and a lot of those conversations revolve around business, marketing and motivation (I guess I’m a magnet for that kind of talk!) I have seen people at all levels of success and achievement, and everyone’s story varies – where they grew up, how much support they had from their families, whether or not they went to theater school, what city they chose to ply their wares, etc, etc… Along with all of these differences, there’s one element that was evident in nearly every successful person I’ve met:

The willingness to ask for help.

When I was growing up, my parents didn’t have money to spend on dance classes or drama camp- the training I received was through the public school arts programs. After choir concerts or school plays, people often asked me where I had gotten my training, and they seemed shocked and enthralled when my parents said, “Nowhere- this is just her natural talent.” I began feeling like my natural talent made me something special, in a way that training since the age of 5 could not. “After all,” I thought to myself, “ANYONE can train, but not everyone can have natural talent.”

But once I got to college, things got turned around a bit. All of the sudden, I was surrounded by people who had the same talent as me, and even (gasp!) MORE. Raw talent was no longer something that was unique- it was a given. People were now giving reverence to those who had solid training and industry references. So I, like every other good little college student, trained and studied and worked and walked away from school with a degree AND raw talent. And armed with my shiny diploma, I stopped asking for help. After all, I Had Made It.

Why do we stop asking for help once our formal training is done? Is there a rule that says we must figure everything else out by ourselves?

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A Conversation With Acting Coach, Larry Moss

Larry Moss is probably one of the most famous acting coaches around right now. He’s worked with actors Hillary Swank, Helen Hunt, Leonardo Dicaprio, Michael Clarke Duncan, Hank Azaria, Jim Carrey, Tobey Maguire, Jennifer Garner and David Duchovny. Pretty good client list, right?

Here’s what Leonardo DiCaprio has to say about him:

“Larry’s unwavering commitment to his craft, his encyclopedic knowledge of the arts, and his sincere enthusiasm for the art of acting itself make his process exciting, inspiring and truly transformational as an actor. I would recommend his technique and process not only to first timers, but also seasoned veterans of the craft.”

Check out this interview. It’s a little under an hour long but it’s really great stuff!

How the ‘Lost’ actors got their roles

This weeks Entertainment Weekly has a ton of Lost coverage in preparation of the upcoming series finale.

In the mag, there are some great stories how some of the cast members got their roles. And guess what? I have them right here!

Particularly interesting are the stories of Josh Holloway and Matthew Fox.

If you’re a fan of the show, you should definitely pick it up.

From Entertainment Weekly, May 14, 2010 issue:

With pilot season well underway, ABC needed a finished show in about 12 weeks. JJ Abrams agreed to direct the pilot, and they began furiously writing placeholder audition scenes, just so the actors would have something to read.

Bryan Burk (Exec Producer) The casting process was crazy. It was falling in love with people who were not at all what we had in mind for each role.

Jorge Garcia was invited to come in after Abrams saw him on Curb Your Enthusiasm, and he would up with the tailor-made role of comical lottery winner Hurley. Aging rocker/addict Charlie was made younger after the producers were charmed by The Lord Of The Rings‘ Dominic Monaghan.

Abrams dialed Alias‘ Terry O’Quinn and offered him the role of enigmatic man of faith John Locke.

Terry O’Quinn (Locke) It was a very tumultuous time in my life. I wasn’t making a lot of money. JJ said, “There’s not going to a lot in the pilot. But we’re hoping to develop the role.” The fact that I didn’t have to do an audition, I had a role? It was a godsend.

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CAZT’s suggestion for a Mother’s Day gift

You’ve heard of CAZT, right?

Its a place in Hollywood where you audition for various casting directors then later when you get home, you can log onto their website to view the audition and see comments from the casting director.

All for $10 a month!

I love it when people figure out more ways to take money from actors.

Anyway, I got this email from them this morning announcing that I can now share my auditions with my mom for Mother’s Day!

Hey Lance, If your mother is like ours, she’s supported you in a million ways since you moved to LA. For Mother’s Day, show her what you’ve been up to out here. Announcing CAZT’s new sharing system: CAZT Members can show their auditions videos to anyone. To share your auditions with your mother (or anyone else): Enjoy! The CAZT Team

“Hey Mom, I didn’t get you flowers for Mother’s Day but I did get you this – you can log onto this website and watch some auditions I did! How great is that?? By the way, can I borrow  $10?”

Fred Savage talks about his first job and the challenges of being a young performer

Submitting For An Audition? Some Basic Do’s and Absolute Don’ts

Erin Cronican is the founder of The Actors’ Enterprise (TAE), a fun and inspiring one-on-one coaching service that provides incredibly affordable business training to actors who want to feel more fulfilled and in control of their careers. With an approach that is hands-on and customized for each person, we help actors set goals, organize their business, and create a plan of action with easy tools that can take them to the next level, no matter where they are starting from. Our focus includes coaching on marketing/career development, business skills, and audition techniques that help actors work SMARTER, not HARDER. Erin is a professional actor (SAG/AFTRA/AEA) and continues to work steadily in film, TV and theater. Coaching packages start at only $40 per hour (wow!)- Learn more at www.theactorsenterprise.org or www.erincronican.com.

Market Your Acting Career: Some basic casting advice

I have done a fair bit of casting in my day, and actors always seem surprised when I mention how frustrating it can be when an actor doesn’t follow instructions when doing their submissions. I am surprised at my frustration too- I mean, I am also an actor and I pride myself on creatively marketing myself. But there is a point where trying to be cute or trying to get an edge just comes across as… well, disrespectful.

The reason I am sharing this with you today is that I just read another blog where an actor was in a casting position, and she experienced the same frustration! And because of this, I felt it was worth mentioning to all of you in an effort to help you make effective marketing decisions for your acting business.

I was casting a leading male role in an indie short film- the actor had to be blond, Caucasian, in his 20s, and non-union (they had already spent their budget on several other union actors.) To promote the role, I used Breakdown Services (which gives me the option of posting to agent breakdowns only, or also to Actors Access), Now Casting, Casting NY, Craigslist and a few other small casting websites. Between all of these sites, I probably saw over 300 submissions, which was quite a number to go through for one role.

Each casting site has its own way for casting directors (CDs) to organize the information that comes in. Some of them allow you to delete the messages from those who are not right for the role, but often times the website keeps all submissions in your inbox. This means that, right or not for the role, the CD is going to have to scan over that submission every time they are on that website. Now, imagine if you were a CD casting one role for a 20-something Caucasian, non-union male (which was explicitly stated in the breakdown) and you started to receive submissions from the following types: Children. Women. Non-Caucasian Men. Grandfathers. Dozens upon dozens of them. In the case above, more than half of the actors who submitted did not fit the description of the character in the breakdown.

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