Читать книгу The Reality Of Hollywood - Benjamin Schnau - Страница 8

OK, here we are. Let me tell you from my own experience the way how to live in Los Angeles, calculating the cost but also making you feel comfortable in your environment can take a while, but is doable. Trust me, when I came to Los Angeles I felt like I went two or three steps down the career ladder as I needed to make some compromises and sacrifices you might face as well. But let’s go into it.

Where to live in L.A.?

I probably won’t tell you anything new by saying how crazy expensive Los Angeles is, especially as someone like yourself who wants a breakthrough in the industry as an actor. If you weren’t born into a wealthy family who would support you financially, it can be very hard and mind-blowing to find an apartment for an affordable price if that’s what you had back home. So the magic word that most of us use is ‘Room-sharing’. Probably nothing new to you, but there are different scenarios of it you should be aware of. Let’s take my situation for example. I wasn’t born into a wealthy household and pretty much always took care of myself financially. When I came to Los Angeles I needed to be very detailed about how much I need to live at the moment and how much money I would/could spend on that. To me it was very simple, my dream was and is to be in this city, connect myself with the right people, work on great projects, and then hopefully hit it big. I, therefore, said to myself, what you need is a bed, a shower, and a fridge, haha. I know sounds funny, but that’s how I thought.

I looked around and realized that for my budget which was around US$ 600-700 a month I wouldn’t even get a private room to myself in an area that is not too far off the main spot, Hollywood. That doesn’t mean you need to live in West Hollywood or Hollywood to be close to everything. Affordable areas are still North Hollywood (art district), Korea-town, and even parts of Downtown L.A. if you find the right spot. I realized that I was pretty much looking for a room that I could share with someone so I could hit my budget and had enough left for food and everything else I needed. Please keep in mind, that I pretty much mastered living with very little, meaning that I might not be the best example of what is good or comfortable for yourself. It is something you need to test out. I finally ended up in an apartment in Downtown L.A. where I share a room with someone for US$ 650 a month with utilities included. For me, Downtown L.A. is quite convenient as I was and I guess always will be a user of public transportation. Therefore Downtown L.A. is super connected and gets you pretty much everywhere in a short amount of time. So the bottom line is, the best thing to do is to go online and check out different Facebook groups for room-sharing or even websites that just focus on that. You’ll see some places at the beginning that might look great on paper with a great prize but probably turn out to be disgusting or with hidden additional costs once you saw it. Another idea is also to ask around online if someone is looking for a roommate soon as you might get along best with the people of people you already know.

What to spend money on and what not?

One of the things that people in L.A. or people who moved here will tell you immediately is that you would need a car. I personally never understood that, so also never got one. Of course, this city wasn’t built for public transportation but guess what they do have it and also develop it even further as I’m writing this. I was always a person who likes to discover new places where I move, I want to get to know the people and the streets, pretty much just the vibe of the city. I, therefore, started to use public transportation from day one. Especially the metro train gets you around quite nicely to main areas you want to get to. On top of that, there are many bus lines you can use for US$ 1.75 a ride which sometimes could even mean that this one bus takes you from Downtown L.A. to Santa Monica. And if there is no other way of getting to your destination then you can still use a lift or even walk. You wouldn’t believe how much I even walked in this town to get around. It’s a great experience as you see and learn a lot about the city, plus don’t underestimate what scenarios and people you will experience, how they speak, behave and move, all things that will help you as an actor to learn and grow from that can also help you minimize your accent if you have one.

Of course, you might ask yourself, but what if I need to get to an audition. Believe me, I did and still do it without a car. The answer is time management. You need to plan out your day of the audition and get an exact idea of how long it will take to get you there. As the streets are crowded with cars and almost heavy traffic every minute of the day you are often even faster with public transportation plus you do not have the hustle of finding the right parking spot without getting a ticket of US$ 70 as soon as you head back to your car. Trust me, I’ve seen it many times with people I know, they run late cause they got stuck in traffic, then they parked somewhere and rushed into the audition. And then surprise, they come back to their car and had a fat ticket attached to their window. If for some reason you still need to drive you can always order a lift for the last couple of miles. Another option I would recommend is getting a bicycle as this city with its flat landscape is perfect for it plus you can take it with you anywhere you go. Comparing that with buying a car, paying for insurance, gas, and parking, etc. was a no-brainer to me. At the end of the day, you should be asking yourself what do I need to live at the moment and be comfortable with as this is critical to not get into this spinning wheel every month by having running costs you get nervous about how you are going to pay them. Also don’t forget the costs that will come up for necessary tools like headshots, casting websites, etc. (We talk about that in a later chapter). If you are someone who spent a lot of money on things that I call ‘luxury goods’ and still need the same in L.A. then, by all means, go for it but be aware that pretty much everything here is more expensive starting from rent, food, clothing, you name it. If you are still in your hometown while you are reading this or the place you want to move from, then I would tell you, do whatever you can in saving up money before coming here and still combine it with the things I mentioned above. You will have it so much easier without the financial pressure and can focus on what you came for – going out for auditions, booking jobs, and do what you love. Again, this guide is not about how to live a life as a celebrity or someone who has already made it. This guide talks about my way and how I was able to start in L.A. and establish myself over time. That doesn’t mean it should be everyone’s way but I need to make everyone understand that you need to organize yourself mentally and financially to get there.

How to make side money while establishing yourself as an actor?

One of the most asked questions is how you survive or make money in L.A. if you haven’t had your big break yet? Well, the answer is easy, you better come with saved money or you have to earn it by working as something you might not like or never imagined doing. The most typical was the one as a waiter or dishwasher which is something you find plenty of in L.A. If you are open to that, then I recommend you go out with a couple of different catering or staffing companies as they give you the most freedom and flexibility working for them. Most of the events you will hear about in advance and can decide if you want to work that day or not. On top of that most of them are in the evening where most actors have some more free time from auditioning or film shoots. Another great experience is that you even meet like-minded people under the staff or even under the guests who could be great connections for the industry you want to break into. Don’t forget we are in L.A. where you have plenty of people at events who are somehow working in the industry. Therefore be always open-minded, start talking to people as much as you can to make that one connection that could be the one that gives you your big shot later on. It’s L.A. and pretty much everything is possible in this town. I always saw and still see it as creating your own opportunities cause trust me you don’t want to be that person who missed out on an opportunity to meet certain people you normally wouldn’t have the chance to meet just because you didn’t feel like working or talking to anybody that night. I never took on a part-time or even full-time job as I made the experience that even if you think you will make it work, trust me you won’t. The industry is so fast-paced, invitations to auditions can happen every minute and they want to see you at their location or have you sent in a self-tape as soon as possible. People (and I did too) these days still believe about self-tapes auditions that if casting directors give you a certain deadline that it’s OK to even send it in the last 10 minutes before the deadline is up. I mean they will still get your tape and probably watch it, but believe me when I say that they will watch as the tapes come in and have probably seen already hundreds of tapes and have certain people set as their priority. Therefore being ready to go whenever requested is critical. And by the way, another great way to make some good money is obviously by booking some commercials. I know many actors who got in some commercials and therefore could pay the bills and keep focusing on theatrical roles in film and TV.