You make me want to la la

*Originally written on Oct. 25th!*

That title has no significance to anything, I just listened to the song earlier today and now I can't get it out of my head.

Ok, I'm going to try to remember the past two weeks...but we'll see if I can remember everything. Last Friday I worked my first day as an extra on Samantha Who. I'll let y'all know when that episode airs, because I think I'm going to be seen pretty well in one scene. It was at CBS Radford - very cool to see real lots!! It's like a small village at studios...they even had their own Starbucks. I saw the three leads (yes, Christina Applegate was obviously one of them). The day was very long...at the end of the day I had worked 12 hours (but by the time I went to bed I had been awake for a solid 22 hours). But I got a great paycheck - over time, double time, and a meal bump! I met some fun people too, and heard from three different people about Cut Above Casting. Which is the top calling service. I will return to this topic.

I got work for Monday working on Dirty Sexy Money. It was on location in downtown at the city hall - beautiful architecture! But I was so dead that day, that I was happy when they let us go early. Again, met some cool people and the food was really good!

Ok, back to the calling service. Basically, Central Casting is the top extra casting company...but it's so crazy hard to get work because they're SO big. A calling service does the work for you (for a monthly fee). And Cut Above is one of the best because they're very selective about who they accept (they review your picture beforehand), so they're client ratio works to the actors benefit. At the orientation they told us that they turn about 40% away, so I was happy to be accepted. They are also very well known for getting everyone their vouchers in the shortest amount of time. Holla! I joined on Wednesday and I immediately got booked to work on Greek (yay, I'm going to love working on my favorite shows) on yesterday!

We ended up filming on location in Pasadena (which scared me at first, but super easy to get too and so beautiful!) at Cal Tech. OMG, the campus is amazing. So many trees, beautiful buildings, tons of fountains, and little park areas and areas that look like little forest trails.

And now I will leave you with my reel! I also have a new unedited clip from the pilot I did in Maine. I'll post it once I upload it onto YouTube.

You say goodbye and I say hello

Ok, I'm going to TRY to remember everything that has happened, but for some reason I can't seem to remember even a few days ago!

Monday of last week I went to a open call for a body parts modeling agency. It was busted. I won't go into detail, but I would not want to be associated with them.

Wednesday of last week I had an audition for a commercial in Venice (I saw the beach)!! It was all improv and a lot of fun.

Thursday of last week I believe I worked on The Doctors.

Monday I worked on Trivial Pursuit, that turned into a 10-hour work...well, more like 14-hour when you include wake up and driving time. But hey, I got overtime and paid in cash. It was also Brady week, so I saw all but one of the Brady Bunch "kids." It was funny to see them interact with each other.

Yesterday I had two auditions (almost three, but I just couldn't fit it in). I also picked up my newly reproduced headshots, which came out very niiiice. The first audition was to be a Whoville character for Universal Studios holiday show. My second audition was for a childrens entertainment group that tours small shows to schools, birthday parties, libraries, etc. He pretty much hired me on the spot...so, yay? There are five rehearsal (unpaid), but then it's pretty much only on the weekends and each show is only a 3-4 hour commitment (including driving time). And he says the rate breaks down to about $25-$60 an hour depending on the venue. Not bad.

Bee working on my website and demo reel in my spare time. Sadly, I don't think I'm going to get those two DVD's I'm waiting for for a looong time. So I'm just trying to use some stuff I recorded myself (a lot of times casting directors ask for submission videos on LA Casting) for auditions, in combination with my actual work. I think it's turning out pretty well!

Now I'm trying to get extra work for tomorrow...not going so well. But I've started trying to look at everything in a positive manner and things happen for a reason. Yay positive vibes!

So at last we begin, 'cause we fall hard, we fall fast

OKAY! Let's see if I can remember everything that's happened since my last post. Tomorrow will mark exactly three weeks since I arrived...kind of crazy that it will be a month soon! I've been contacted by three agents on LA Casting. One was a theatrical agent without a good track record, so clearly I didn't respond. One was a commercial agent that I auditioned for last Saturday.

It didn't go as well as I would have liked, but I later found out they're also not very good. Another was yet another commercial agent, but considering I couldn't find anything on them, I took that as a bad sign. From what I've heard you do NOT want to get stuck with a D-list agent. Because you'll be locked into a contract, yet feel as though you haven't signed with an agent at all!

But the big and wonderful news is my interview/audition with the talent manager last Monday went really well. So well that they want to sign me. It's a very big, very global management company that works with all the top A-list agents. They're not going to sign me until I get my reel done, because they wouldn't be able to start working for me without it. Because they only submit to the really BIG projects, which I would not be a candidate for at this point. The first thing they'll do is get me signed with an agency (who will submit me for my level of projects). I met with the New Face Division Director (they only have about 5% new faces, everyone else are top names). He said he wants it so agents are fighting over me and I get to choose the best one. So exciting! BUT I need to still get two DVD's before I can complete my reel...aka, I have to HOUND the people to get them to me. Which hasn't been going well so far.

I finally signed up at Central Casting, but have yet to be able to get extra work. Hopefully I'll be able to Wednesday-Friday. Monday I'm going to a print agency open call in Beverly Hills. I'm hoping they'll sign me since that work pays...a lot.

Today I got new headshots taken with a really great photographer whose price was super cheap!! He's a working actor that knows what casting directors are looking for. Check out his website here. I get to pick up the CD tomorrow - I hope there are some great shots! Such a cute little gay Asian, who happens to be really good friends with James Kyson Lee from Heroes!

I was also invited to a blues event a few nights ago. I had submitted myself to a entertainment/casting group that was running it, and they invited me so I could learn more about their company. Sadly, I coudln't go. Hopefully I'll be able to attend a future event and network it up!

Anyway, I guess that's all for this time. I'll hopefully be posting my new photos tomorrow night!

Sometimes I can't think of a good title

It's almost the end of week two and more exciting things are on the horizon. As I stated before I started sending my headshot and resume out before I even moved, and that seems to have worked to my advantage. I was contact earlier from a manager I had submitted to, he asked additional questions and asked to see more photos. And now I have an interview with him on Monday.

Also, one of the reasons I joined LA Casting was because a good percentage of people who join obtain their agents, as they can search your profile. I had two agents contact me this week. One is a commercial agent with a very good track record, and I have an audition tomorrow. The other is a theatrical agent with a not so good track record, and thus I will not be going ahead with them. I'm incredibly hopeful I'll sign with the commercial agent!

I also decided against auditioning for the two theatre companies, because I need to stay incredibly focused on my goals right now. And sadly, the theatres would have taken up too much time and not provided enough income. I hope to do some theatre down the road, since I miss it, but right now I'll have to put it on the back burner.

Now that I finally have my new phone/number, I can sign up for extra work next week and start making more money. As well as hopefully getting some SAG vouchers. I did some more audience work, this time around on the Family Feud. Very entertaining to watch John O'Hurley (Elaine's boss on Seinfeld, voice of Neptune on Spongebob Squarepants), not to mention he allows you to ask questions during break. I found out he was born in Kittery, ME! He also talked about his voice-over work as well. Just shows you you can use every opportunity to learn something and possibly apply it to your own career.

Speaking of voice-over work, I made the "short list" for a gig I auditioned for. A short list means that they reviewed everyone and then narrowed it down to the actual contenders for the job. They'll be making their final decision in about a week - I'm hopeful I'll book this job!

I think that's all I have to update. The days are starting to blur together, and I can't seem to decide if the weeks are going by slow or fast! Till next time...

Bodies rest in motion, fighting night and day

Tomorrow will mark my first week in LA. It feels much longer than that! I think that’s both good and bad. I think I settled in pretty quick, which makes me believe I made the right choice moving here. But dealing with jetlag and the time difference is still wearing on me. And the driving…oh, the driving!! I’m pretty sure it’s just the nature of the beast of driving in a new city and not knowing where you’re going. But I find it utterly nerve wracking and I get anxious whenever I think about it. That being said, the parking is worse. Everything is street parking, but it’s limited and uber strict. I already received my first parking violation, sadly. Let me warn those who are new or will be new: a “red zone” is a $75 ticket, and there’s a curb that’s painted red and your car is just a little bit over the line…you’re going to get that ticket. Lesson learned. That being said, as I start recognizing streets it is getting easier. And gorgeous weather everyday certainly makes up for a lot.

Work wise, things are going exceptionally well considering I’ve only been here for a week! Through LA Casting I booked two days of work as an audience studio member (yes, you can get paid dong that) on The Doctors. Certainly it’s not the most money you can make, but there are a lot of worse things I can think of doing for money than watching a TV show being filmed every day. Also, both days we had meal penalties and the first day we went into overtime. So that means I will be making more money! It was also awesome to see Paramount studios (where it was filmed), and it happens to be very close to where I live so it’s also convenient.

Auditions wise things are also going great. I have two theatre company member auditions and a modeling audition coming up during the next three weeks. Also, because I started submitting materials before I left I have corresponding with an agency about a possible meeting. I was asked for additional info and photos, so hopefully I will hear back on Monday on whether or not they’re interested. I still have yet to sign up for Central Casting because I’m still waiting to change my phone number. Hopefully sometime next week I will get that worked out and go and sign up. Because, of course, more cash monies is essential. Not to mention the possibility of SAG vouchers! I think that’s all for now. All in all I think it was a pretty productive week. Hopefully more exciting things to come next week!

Hello, World.

I've decided to keep this as my public blog while I'm trying to live the dream. When I was deciding what to do during the summer (right after graduating with a theatre degree), I was constantly looking for stories from actors who made the somewhat scary move to Los Angeles. This blog is how did it, but that doesn't mean anything I state is right for you. Everyone is different and you should go about deciding and relocating on your own terms. Since it's a BFM ("Big F'ing Move"). However, if you're looking for a variety of ideas to make that decision, hopefully I can help a little. This blog might also serve a purpose for myself as an actor's log and a way to keep track of auditions.

So, here's how I relocated (or relocating...I arrive tomorrow!). I set up a long term sublet through Craigslist. It was a very long process of phone calls, emails, exchanging Facebook pages, etc. Because, obviously, on both ends we wanted to make sure neither of us was a psycho. I chose what worked for me...I didn't want to deal with furnishing right away. So an entire apartment (with a roommate) completely furnished was ideal for me. I also needed certain amenities like cable and internet (maybe I'm spoiled?). I also needed to live in a safe area, but also a central location (LA traffic is notoriously horrific, you need to at least give yourself some sort of head start). So I researched a lot, and Google Maps is amazing for that since you can explore the area with street view. And it just so happens that area turned out to be the Hollyhood (luckily near where all the rich people like to hang out, so I'm not actually in the hood).

I decided to fly instead of take a road trip. Trust me when I say I would much rather take a road trip across the country (I'm coming from the East Coast), because I think that would be an amazing and life changing experience. But as a young woman traveling alone (which I would have had to do), I so didn't feel comfortable doing that. Flying alone is going to be hard enough! When my sublet is up and I move into my own unfurnished apartment, I do plan to take a road trip with family and move the rest of my belongings though. And I can't wait for that adventure!

I'm taking what I need for a few days on the plane, and then having about six boxes of what I need (mainly just clothes and shoes...and yes, that does take six boxes for me) shipped over the next couple of weeks. Luckily I have a wonderful mother who is paying for those boxes. But I'm paying for the big expense, which was to get my car shipped. BUT in the long run it's cheaper than buying or leasing a car, also cheaper than the gas and hotels of driving across the country. My car will also last many years (only about 50,000 miles on it!) and has great gas mileage. So while I cringed at the cost at first, the overall savings (not to mention CONVENIENCE) won. ...Okay, I still can't help but cringe.

I do have bills (how do you think I shipped the car? Hello, credit card) and I do have money saved. I have about three months of rent and living expenses saved up. Not a very big nest, but it's enough that I can spend one month getting settled and just focus on acting. If I have to, by the second month I will begin looking for a part time job. Basically, I have just enough of a cushion, but not so much that I spent years at home saving the "perfect" amount (nothing wrong with that, but I was too anxious to wait).

The biggest advice I can give to anyone is RESEARCH and PLAN. Not to the extent that you psych yourself out and never go. But enough that you know what you're getting into, you know the area, you know what's around you, and you have some sort of game plan when you arrive. For me that was the summer...yes, I'm pretty impatient. But after I got my degree, what else was keeping me here? Two books that inspired me and are full of wonderful resources, and I highly recommend: How to Make a Living as a Working Actor in LA and Acting is Everything: An Actor's Guidebook for a Successful Career in Los Angeles. I found the first book to be an amazing quick read, and it definitely inspired me and gave me the courage to just do it (move to LA). The latter book is a bit harder to read, as it is SO information filled. Reminded me of one of my dreaded college textbooks. But it literally contains EVERYTHING you need - definitely a great resource book.

Sites that I can recommend: Backstage.com, Actorsaccess.com, Lacasting.com. These three sites (for a nominal yearly fee) can potentially get you a lot of work. The internet has made it so much easier for our generation to get work for ourselves, even for us unrepresented non-union talent. Yes, you have to pay a yearly fee for these, but they are very affordable. And you have access to so many audition notices that you can submit yourself for. So worth it.

I think that's all I have to write about now. I will try to write again soon, perhaps tomorrow when I arrive in sunny California after my 8-hour flight. ...Or maybe after I've passed out from the time change and jetlag. Ta!

Alas, you have my heart

I couldn't stay away from LiveJournal Land, so it's a new journal once again:

http://www.explorerforward.livejournal.com