#CareerReboot Challenge Week 3: Branding images

This week let's talk about visual images. Sometimes it's helpful to find something symbolic that represents you, like an animal or a character. All product brands have a visual of some kind; a logo, a mascot, a symbol. Finding something along these lines may be helpful in visualizing your career direction and give you a better grip on your identity.

Let's start with something easy. Take an online quiz. Are you a fan of a particular film or TV series or book? There are literally hundreds of online quizzes to find out what character you are. PS this is helpful in figuring out type! Here are a few of mine:

My Little Pony: Pinkie Pie. (no one is surprised)

Game of Thrones: Cersei (I'm not so sure about this one!)

Harry Potter Hogwarts founder: Gryffindor

Speaking of Harry Potter, according to the Pottermore website, my house is Hufflepuff, my Ilvermory house is Horned Serpent, my wand is maple wood with a unicorn hair core, and my patronus is a dapple grey stallion.

Another symbol that has been appealing to me more and more is that of the butterfly. I'm really interested in the theme of transformation, especially as an actor. Maybe it's my theater background, but the thing I've always loved the most about acting is the opportunity to be a whole other person, and tell a great story.

The important thing about this exercise is to be honest in your answers, and not take it too seriously. This is just to get the wheels turning a bit!

If you want, share your favorites in the comments!

#CareerReboot Challenge Week 2: Role Models

So, last we took a look at the stuff we're good at. This week, let's think about people we admire, and who have the careers we would like to have. This one was pretty involved and took some time. No, I don't think you should model yourself after someone 100%, but if we see someone who reminds us of ourselves a little bit, or has the types of roles we want, we can get clues as to how we can market ourselves a little better.

Do people ever say you look like someone? Have you been told you're a doppleganger for a particular celebrity? This is a good place to start. Celebrities I tend to get:

• Julia Roberts (before I had braces, when she had curly hair)
• Minnie Driver (I don't see it, I think it's just the hair)
• Andie McDowell (see above)
• Zoey Deschanel
• Emily Blunt

I don't know, I don't really see it...

Now think of actors you really admire; who do you look up to? What do you like about them? These can be any gender. Think about what makes them special, and the roles they tend to get. 

Now connect some dots. What do you have in common with these people? To get to this, I made a mind web. I listed my role models, then some of my favorite performances, then came up with adjectives to describe these characters. I tried to avoid the phrase "strong woman" for a lot of them, and instead came up with what the specific qualities of a "strong woman" are. Then I highlighted in red the qualities that I thought I shared naturally. Obviously, I think I can play all of them, but we're trying to be honest with who we are. Plus, vulnerability is something I tend to struggle with in performance.

Anyway, this was time consuming but fun, and I think it will help me analyze performances better in the context of the kinds of roles I would like to play. Oh, and if you'd like to use the same program for your own mind map, I used bubbl.us.

If you're playing along at home...

Who are your role models? What kinds of roles do you want to be playing? Comment, or tag me on twitter or instagram!

See you next time!

#CareerReboot Challenge Week 1: Strengths

It's been a tough couple of years, and I was starting to feel like my career was in a rut, so I decided what I needed was a career bootcamp! But stuff like that is expensive, so I figured I would break it down on my own, and then I realized I should share the experience because A, I'm kind of a masochist that way, and B, ACTORS HELP EACH OTHER! This series is geared toward actors who are already trained, working, and trying to get to the next level, but hopefully it should also be helpful to anyone trying to revitalize any kind of career.

We're starting the challenge these first few weeks, by focusing on branding. This is kind of a loaded word for artists. Do a google search about actor branding and there are two schools of thought. The first is that you need a strong brand for any kind of representation to even look at you; the second is that branding isn't important at all and you need to focus solely on your craft. Guess what: BOTH are true! When it comes to auditions and getting work, branding gets you in the room, craft gets you the job. Don't get me wrong, if you are in a class or training, KEEP GOING. If you haven't had training, or aren't currently in a class, I absolutely recommend that you start. Nothing gets your career moving like focusing on your work. Work hard. Get better. But in the meantime, if you're having trouble getting to where you need to be, read on...

It's a universal truth that the more you focus on your career, the more the universe begins to shift in your favor. We're starting with our strengths, because we want the universe to shift in a positive direction. So, what are you good at? Make a list: career strengths, personal strengths, physical strengths, emotional strengths. All of these things are important to moving forward on your path, and helpful in your career. This is not to say that you shouldn't work on skills that you're weak on, but we're trying to focus on who you are as an actor, which you can leverage into a career. Think about actors you know and like; they all have a brand that plays to their strengths, so they can do projects that are appropriate vehicles for them. Now think about people you like, who were in roles that they just didn't seem right for. See? They weren't playing to their strengths, and the projects, and sometimes their careers, suffered.

So, I've been thinking about it, and here are some of mine:

Shakespeare (and classical theater, but mostly Shakespeare)
Movement (I do yoga and dance)
I'm quippy (in a good way)
Character analysis
Academic inclination
I'm very directable
Nice eyes
Friendly, warm smile
Vivid Imagination
Easy to work with

I know, I know, such a self-centered love-fest! But to paraphrase a great philosopher (RuPaul) if you don't love yourself, how the hell are you gonna convince someone to hire you?

So, if you're playing along at home, make your own list! Post some of it in the comments! Tag me about it on twitter! Instagram and tag me with a photo that represents some of it! Or, let me know of some of the actors you've observed and their brands, and how you think that's worked in their favor (or not!)

I'm also live-streaming about some of this stuff, so follow me on periscope! @noisy_ninja

See you next week!

https://www.periscope.tv/w/aht7ZDFYSmprek9sWE1LTHl8MVlxSkRsZGdPanpKVhJ8hEBask64Y1MoT51Y61j86PWkRLEBmI91BYEJcdOQ

Practice, And All Is Coming

The above title is a quote from yoga master K. Pattabhi Jois, founder of Ashtanga Yoga and all around nice guy. His quote relates specifically to yoga, in that the more you attempt to do the postures and breathing, the more you are able to do them. In my life, I see this concept in work in all aspects.

Specific to acting, I would also like to point out the wonderful book that my best good friend Sam gave me, The War of Art by Steven Pressfield. I have been recommending this book to almost everyone I run into, because of what he says about the power of resistance. He also says, "when we sit down day after day and keep grinding, something mysterious starts to happen. A process is set into motion by which, inevitably and infallibly, heaven comes to our aid. Unseen forces enlist in our cause; serendipity reinforces our purpose." Basically what he is saying here is just what Jois was saying; if you keep plugging away, staying focused, your dreams will find you.

Recently these two concepts have begun to coalesce in my life. I finally subscribed to LACasting, and have been submitting religiously, I started journaling again, and reading and seeing more plays. Now, I'm currently designing costumes (for a stipend!) for a play I LOVE, I was cast in a short film and the producer asked me to work on another project with them, and I did some background on The Newsroom, where I met some lovely people and had a great time (even if my feet still hurt, 2 days later!). This was all in the last few weeks. I've also been going to more auditions than usual, and even got some callbacks! I'm also auditioning for more paying work than student work!

In Pressfield's book, he talks about "the professional." Who they are and what they do. One of the things that has stuck out to me is accountability. The best way I have found to diet successfully is counting calories. When you actually KNOW what you are putting into your body, you are accountable, and you can make better decisions and PUT DOWN THE FORK. I even drink less alcohol when I'm counting calories, because if I have to choose between a piece of chocolate and a glass of wine, I'm going for the chocolate! In that vein, I have started filling out time cards for myself, and project progress reports. Because guess what, I'm an employee of Lauren Billingsley LLC as well as the CEO! It's amazing how empowering doing these things is. I am inviting positive energy into my life as I work harder, and focus more.

Another thing I'm trying to put out into the universe is to be working somewhere other than Banana Republic by the time the holidays come around, so I can visit with family for the first time in four years! Because guess what, I don't want to put all my energy in a job that doesn't fulfill ANY of my needs, including the financial ones. So I'm taking opportunities, not suffering from my own pride, and keeping my nose to the grindstone.

Now, it's true, I'm considering making and selling some jewelry, because I know where to get bulk materials and I can do it in my own time. I'm considering this simply as an extra source of income. I don't think of this as losing focus because I sat and thought really hard about what other job would be flexible enough to let me run around and audition or shoot film or do theater whenever I wanted, and I came up blank.

But let's end this on a positive note. I have more auditions to prepare for, for projects that I'm really interested in, and I'm so excited for what's coming next!

Turn Off Your @^#*)@#%^& Cellphone!!!!!

I have a bit of a pet peeve.

It starts out small. The light in the corner of your eye, just for an instant, you can't even be sure it was there. Then again. Then another one, in a different place. Then the unmistakable tinkling sound, followed by a whispered "shit!" and the sound is suddenly cut off.

Cellphones in the theater.

I feel this way about both the movies and more conventional theaters, where I go to see plays. They aren't always great works, and sometimes not even very good, but dammit, I am there to watch the movie/play and it is SO DISTRACTING.

This was my experience at a play this past September 11.

The show was called 110 Stories, and was basically a bunch of actors with scripts reading the true accounts of people who were at the World Trade Center during the attack on September 11, 2001. For me, this is kind of a tough show to see in the first place. No, I wasn't in New York, I was in Northern Virginia, at school, and my dad was in Crystal City at a hotel for a meeting, pretty much across the street from the Pentagon. Please, no one share their ridiculous conspiracy theories at this point. Yes, THERE WAS A PLANE IN THE BUILDING. It was harrowing, and scary, and most of the day was spent watching the incessant footage on the news and worrying about our parents, many of whom worked in DC or the Pentagon, and who had a really hard time getting home. It felt like 9/11 happened to me.  To my community. I think it felt closer to those of us in Virginia, DC, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and New York, than anywhere else in the country. There were close calls for a lot of my friends' parents, one of whom was supposed to be at the World Trade Center that day, but had finished a day early and come home. I still well up with tears sometimes when I think about it. And there I was, twelve years later, listening to the harrowing experiences of the people in New York.

Or at least, trying to.

Because two seats down, some older gent was on his phone. I guess he was expecting a text or something, because he kept turning on the screen and looking at it, then putting it down. Every five to ten minutes. Finally, some wonderful, blessed soul leaned over and in a voice exactly as annoyed as I felt, asked him to stop. He did, very apologetically.

Then the girl on the other side of me fell asleep. She woke up about two thirds of the way through, and started texting. Seriously. Not even trying to hide it. Eventually she got up and left. Before the show was even over. It had gotten to the denoument, there wasn't that much time left! But I guess she didn't really want to be there. I guess neither she nor that other guy respected the actors or their fellow audience members enough to turn their phones off and disconnect from the outside world for two hours.

That's one of the things I love about going to the theater, to any theater. I can disconnect. Maybe my rage was an overreaction, but I always get distracted by those little screens lighting up in the corner of my eye. Guess what? Unless you're a doctor, it's not that important. If someone is on their deathbed, you should be there, not at a theater. I know there are plenty of people out there who don't see the big deal. "So what?" you may ask, "We live in a social, connected society now, this is the way it is. I want to tweet about how jiggly the camera is!" But what you may not understand, is that some people go to the theater for a cathartic experience. I know the producer had a catharsis during 110 Stories, because he was so full of emotion by the end of the show that he was practically crying on the stage while thanking everyone who made the project possible. I was a little jealous. I kind of wanted that release. Maybe the show didn't do a good enough job of grabbing my focus, but I feel like they didn't even really have a chance, thanks to a couple of inconsiderate patrons.

I know, as an actor, that I want to reach out to my audience, to communicate with them on an intimate level, even if there are thousands of people, to create a shared moment with each of them. If they're all on their phones, I can't do that, whether the performance is live or recorded. You can't reach someone whose attention you don't have. I promise you, cellphone user, you will get all those texts when you turn your phone back on. You can call people back. Tell them you were in a movie/play, they will understand. You can wait until afterwards to IMDB that one actor because you know you know him from something but you can't put your finger on it. You can wait until afterwards to take your turn in Words With Friends. We, as a society, put way too much emphasis on instant response. Just because somebody doesn't answer back in five minutes, doesn't mean they don't love you. It just means they're in the middle of something right now and can't respond. And no, it's not enough to have it on silent or vibrate, because I know that even though it's not ringing, you're going to feel it, or it's going to light up on its own, and you are going to pick it up and look at it. If you're meeting up with someone after, tell them you're in the theater now before the show starts and you'll text or call when you get out.

Just like with texting and driving, IT CAN WAIT.

Unless of course, you're a doctor on call. Then you are excused.

Accents

Recently I've had a few auditions where I've needed to use distinctive accents. I thought it would be good to address some of the tips and tricks that help with accent work.

First of all, it's very important to practice. A good tip I had once was to mimic people's accents when they talk to you. It's surprising how few of them actually notice it. When I was a teenager, my friends and I would put on accents when we walked around DC or went shopping, trying to be as convincing as possible. Be careful though, if you're doing a British accent and meet a British person you may have an uncomfortable conversation on your hands. Don't be afraid to have fun with it either, play around with accents whenever you can! I always get a kick out of doing Yakov Smirnoff impressions, and really getting on my co-workers' nerves.

The first step to mastering a foreign accent is understanding its origins. Accents are always easier if you speak the original language, even a little. Every language has rules of pronunciation, and if you know them, you can apply them to English. French, for example, uses hard R's, and sometimes roll them, depending on the region. It's also spoken at the front of the mouth, like they're constantly kissing as they speak. When you first practice French, puckering your lips like that helps get an idea of where the accent lives. Obviously, once you get the hang of it, you can stop over-exaggerating.

Regional accents and dialects are a bit trickier. It's hard to fool a native speaker, and you definitely don't want to be insulting. Again, it's important to discover where the accent lives in your mouth. It helps to listen to others speak the accent, and then choose a few characteristic sounds that really make it recognizable. It helps to annotate your script incorporating those sounds, so that as you read and memorize it you can trigger the right sounds when you speak. For example, use a symbol that makes sense to you when a word needs a flat "a" sound, or an "ee" sound when you have a short "i" like "it", as many accents use.

The more you practice these elements, the more natural the accent will sound. Try and see if you can (privately) identify a person's origins based on their accent. Identify your own, and try and understand the elements of it. The best way to master an accent, in short, is to break it down to it's smallest parts and understand how they work together.

I found a few things very helpful recently, and I would like to share them! First, the accent database at the International Dialects of English Archive! It's amazing! People from all over the world, of all ages and races, speaking in their own accent, reading a bit of copy and then very naturally talking about their lives and the way they speak! It's amazing. Oh look, here's another one from the good folks at GMU! Another helpful source is this video from a voice actor that really breaks accents down. He has tons of them, and is pretty good at showing you how to pick them apart.

And here's a video of me doing a German accent! This one was really challenging, because many German people try to mask their accent when they speak English, so I had to play a German accent trying not to be German. Very meta. I had a lot of help, but you can judge how successful I was. PS, this was like, 6 years ago or so. I'm a better actor now.

This is My LA!

A project I've been working on is finally up on youtube! Basically, I kept thinking of all these things I wanted to show my family and friends who live far away, but of course it's hard for them to come out here. So I created My LA, a travel show. I also wanted to work on my hosting skills, so it made sense to just get out there with my handicam and do it! I had some help; this first episode features my good friend Cole Matson who was visiting me at the time (and is working on his PhD in Theology and Theater at St. Andrews...he does lectures all the time about CS Lewis, and has an interesting blog.), and I had a ton of audio help in the voice overs from Danny Fasold, who was also generous enough to let me use the music from his band, In Fades. Please give them some love if you like what you hear!

I had to do a lot of chopping for this to look decent, and I've been learning a lot along the way about filming and editing! You heard it here, kids! The best way to learn about filming is to do it! (Yes, I would greatly benefit from producers and directors and editors who actually know what they're doing. This was kind of hard, and needs a lot more work.)

Anyway, here's the finished product!



The hope here is to do weekly episodes. Part 2 should be up this Friday (hopefully) and I'm working on my script and voice over for the next one. Suggestions for places to go are greatly appreciated! I'm planning on doing mostly stuff that is interesting to locals, but include some of the more touristy stuff too.