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My personal experience as a new actor in the Los Angeles area, trying to break in to show business is similar to many I’ve heard from other actors.  I came here on a shoestring, was willing to work hard, attend class, get into plays, sing in nightclubs, and get “seen” in every appropriate way I could.  I realized my weak points…my experience was mostly theater, so I needed to get into a film school right away.

I met many other actors just starting out and found a way to survive.  I sewed for voice lessons, catered a party to have my headshots taken, painted the inside of an apartment in trade for repairs on my beat up old car.  I waited tables, ran camera and sound for acting classes, did secretarial work, temp work, and eventually got a job in a casting office to learn about things behind the scenes. Read the rest of this entry »

My personal experience as a new actor in the Los Angeles area, trying to break in to show business is a typical story at first.  Joel Brooks and I teach lots of young actors just starting out, and I can’t stress enough the idea that every situation is different, and there is no right way to get your chance in Los Angeles.

I moved to Los Angeles during college to “try it out a bit” as a member of a four week summer workshop for pop singers on Catalina Island.  After my workshop was over, I just stayed.   I got a job as a waitress, found a cheap, shabby apartment, and signed up for film school.  It began an association that lasted for nearly 25 years, and from which most of my film craft was learned.  I eventually became a teacher there, then a vice president.  I got my SAG card doing a commercial for people from that school, and met so many friends who were also aspiring actors and built a support system that sustained me in free meals and friendship for years to come. Read the rest of this entry »