Оглавление
Larry Garrison. Breaking into Acting For Dummies
Breaking into Acting For Dummies® To view this book's Cheat Sheet, simply go to www.dummies.com and search for “Breaking into Acting For Dummies Cheat Sheet” in the Search box. Table of Contents
List of Tables
List of Illustrations
Guide
Pages
Introduction
About This Book
Foolish Assumptions
Icons Used in This Book
Where to Go from Here
Figuring Out the Business of Acting
Staying on Top of the Changes in Show Business
Understanding the World of Acting
What You Need to Succeed
An attention-grabbing head shot
A five-star acting resume
Polished talent
Taking Your First Steps in Show Business
Marketing yourself
Finding your first ally: An agent
Showcasing your talent: Auditioning
Discovering the Many Ways to Make Money as an Actor
Managing Money (A Little or a Lot)
Knowing What to Expect from an Acting Career
Discovering How Show Business Has Changed and Adapted
Understanding the Business of Show Business
Taking It “from the Top” — It All Begins with an Idea
Selling an Idea
Producing a Script
STRETCHIN’ THAT PRODUCTION DOLLAR
Going into Production
Action: It’s Showtime!
THE COLLABORATIVE NATURE OF SHOW BUSINESS
Cleaning Up in Post-Production
Distributing the Product
THE MAGIC OF RESIDUALS
THE REAL SECRET OF SHOW BUSINESS
From Agents, Managers, and Unions: Introducing the Movers and Shakers
Producers: The Champions of Every Project
Directors: The Bosses on the Set
Writers: The Idea Makers
The Studios: The Ones That Make Everything Possible
Financing a project
Marketing and distributing a project
Casting Directors: The Gatekeepers
Agents: Your Door to Show Business
Personal and Business Managers: The Guiding Forces Behind the Scenes
Actors: The Talent in Front of the Spotlight
Unions: An Actor’s Best Friend
The Screen Actors Guild (SAG-AFTRA)
Actors’ Equity Association
THE DE HAVILLAND DECISION
Packaging and Marketing Yourself
Making a Great First Impression with a Head Shot and Samples of Your Work
Introducing the Head Shot: An Actor’s Calling Card
Examining Variations on the Standard
The commercial head shot
The theatrical shot
Creating the Perfect Head Shot
Hiring a professional photographer
Picking the right look
Making the most of your photo session
Getting Your Head Shot Ready
Publicizing Your Head Shot with a Twist
Avoiding Problems with Head Shots
Is that really you?
Technical problems: You look great but your head shot still stinks
Using Film to Represent Your Work
Creating a Five-Star Acting Resume
Tackling the Basics of Creating a Resume
Creating an Online Resume
Identifying the Info to Include
Your name, union membership, and contact information
Your physical characteristics
Your acting experience and education
Your knowledge of special skills
Avoiding Resume No-Nos
Examining Sample Resumes
The beginner’s resume
The intermediate actor’s resume
The veteran’s resume
Training to Improve Your Acting Skills
Mastering the Art of Auditioning: Taking Classes
Benefiting from an auditioning class
Advancing your auditioning skills
Succeeding at cold reading at a casting director’s office versus a home audition
Improving your on-camera techniques
Studying scenes
Maximizing your monologue
Memorizing made easier
Improving Your Performing Skills
HOW TO FIND AN ACTING CLASS, WORKSHOP, OR COACH
Stand-up comedy workshops
Improvisation classes
Speech and accent coaching
Singing and dancing lessons
Developing Physical Fitness Skills
Improving Your Unique Skills
Taking Your First Steps into Show Business
Representing Yourself, Networking, and Promoting Yourself on Websites
Looking for Your Own Work
Relying on the actors’ unions
Staying in touch
Reading trade publications
Using casting websites and social media
Facebook
LinkedIn
Instagram
Contact casting directors on your own
FINDING THE PROVERBIAL DAY JOB
Advertising Yourself
Showcasing Yourself
Seeking Representation: An Agent, Manager, and/or an Entertainment Attorney
Differentiating between Agents, Managers, and Entertainment Attorneys
Getting the Ball Rolling to Find Representation
Discovering potential representation
Contacting potential representation
Calling for an appointment
WHY REPRESENTATION MAY TURN YOU DOWN
Staying determined and be positive
Interviewing with Prospective Representation
Preparing for your interview
Arriving for your interview
Conducting yourself during your interview
Starting off on the right foot
Turning the tables: Interview the agent
Ending the interview
WHAT AGENTS DON’T WANT IN AN ACTOR
Signing On with an Agent
WORKING WITH MULTIPLE AGENTS
Working with Your Agent
Staying in touch
Following your agent’s advice
Sharing auditioning information with your agent
Releasing Your Agent
Letting your agent go: Why you’d want to
Leaving your agent: The how-to
Auditioning: The Art of What You Need to Know
Looking at the Types of Auditions
Going to open casting calls (cattle calls)
Attending casting auditions
Auditioning from Home
Preparing for an Audition
Planning ahead of time
Deciding what to wear
Grooming
Arriving at the Audition or Callback
Impressing a Casting Director
Auditioning: What to Expect
Speaking your lines
Making your exit
Preparing for the Next Audition
Evaluating yourself
Getting on with your life
Hoping for the Best That Can Happen: The Callback
Dealing with Rejection
Saying Thank You
Understanding Diversity Challenges in Show Business
Defining Who You Are in the World of Diversity
Finding Representation
Seeking Diversity in Casting
THE STORY OF THE PEANUT BUTTER FALCON
Acknowledging Diversity in the Academy and Emmy Awards
REELABILITIES HIGHLIGHTS FILMS CREATED BY THE DISABLED
Adapting to Difficult Personalities
Dealing with Professionals
Treating the casting director with respect
STORIES OF DIRECTORS ON THE SET
Showing respect to the director on set
MAKING SURE YOU RESPECT WHO’S IN CHARGE
Considering other professionals
Respecting Your Fellow Actor
Respecting Everyone on the Set
Scoping Out the Markets
Acting in Film and Television
Landing a Job
Filming from Different Locations Using Your Computer and Phone
Acting in Front of the Camera Versus Acting on the Stage
Fine-Tuning Your Performance on Film
Playing to the camera
THE MAGIC OF TEST AUDIENCES
Acting consistently with different takes
CONTINUITY MIX-UPS
Successfully acting scenes out of order
Hitting your mark
Recognizing different shots
Dealing with close-ups
Performing on a Set
A typical day on the set
Arriving on the set
At long last: Filming a scene
What to do when your scene’s done
Participating in Post-Production: Looping
Gaining Experience and Exposure by Working in Different Markets
CREATE YOUR OWN YOUTUBE CHANNEL
Acting in Commercials
Understanding How a Commercial Gets Made
Preparing for a Career in Commercials
Taking a class or workshop
Studying working actors
Hiring a commercial agent or manager
Auditioning for a Commercial Role
Fitting the part
Preparing your part
MAY THE ACTOR BEWARE
Handling yourself during the audition
HOW ACTORS EAT FOOD OVER AND OVER AGAIN WHILE FILMING A COMMERCIAL
Understanding the Market for Commercials
CELEBRITIES IN COMMERCIALS
The Wonderful New World of Commercials
Acting in Theater
Mastering Your Skills Onstage
Gearing Up for a Theatrical Career
Taking the academic route
Recognizing the pros to studying theater
Considering where you study
Pounding the pavement
Seeking more training
Getting real-world experience
READ TO SUCCEED
Auditioning for Theater
Finding auditions
Being prepared
Preparing a monologue
Having a song or two ready
AUDITIONING WITH A MONOLOGUE
Familiarizing Yourself with Stage Types
Proscenium stages
WORKING AS AN UNDERSTUDY
Thrust stages
Arena stages
FRIENDS IN HIGH PLACES
Rehearsing for a Play
Read-through
THE SHOW MUST GO ON!
Blocking with stage directions
Scene work
Work-throughs
Run-throughs
Technical rehearsals
Dress rehearsals
BREAK A LEG (AND OTHER SUPERSTITIONS)
Working in Different Markets
Performing without Being Seen: Voice-Over Acting
What You Need to Succeed in Voice-Over Acting
What’s that you say? Speaking clearly
TAKING CARE OF YOUR VOICE
Voice versatility
Testing … testing: Playing to the microphone
Training for a Voice-Over Career
Finding Voice-Over Work
Preparing Your Demo
Including all the right stuff
Laying down the tracks
Recording subsequent demo
Getting an Agent or Manager
Auditioning for Voice-Over Work
Getting Paid as a Voice-Over Actor
FAMOUS ACTORS WHO HAVE DONE VOICE-OVER ANIMATION
Working As an Extra
Delving into the Glamorous World of an Extra
AN ICEBERG BY ANY OTHER NAME …
Recognizing types of extras
Getting work as an extra
RISKING YOUR LIFE FOR ANONYMITY: THE LIFE OF A STUNTPERSON
Examining a day in the life of an extra
Appreciating the Advantages of Being an Extra
STAND-INS: THE EXTRAS NOBODY KNOWS ABOUT
Investigating the technical business of show business
Studying the acting side of filmmaking
Networking with fellow actors
Making a little (emphasis on “little”) money
Advancing Your Career Beyond an Extra
Getting Your Kid into Show Biz
Considering the Commitment
Does your kid really want to do this?
Do you really want to do this?
BEWARE OF THE STEREOTYPICAL STAGE MOTHER (OR FATHER)
Setting goals for you and your child
IF YOU THINK THAT SHOW BUSINESS IS COMPETITIVE …
Exploring the Acting Options
Modeling
TV commercials
Film and TV shows
TWINS: YOUR FAST TRACK TO SHOW BUSINESS
Theater
Investigating the Biz of Child Acting
Starting as a proud parent of a child actor
Procuring the paperwork
Watching out for your child’s welfare
Restricting time on the set
Educating on the set
Managing all that money
THE ORIGIN OF COOGAN’S LAW
Helping Your Child Deal with the Ups and Downs of Show Business
Managing Your Money as an Actor
Don’t Get Ripped Off! Avoiding Con Games, Scams, and Self-Destruction
Identifying the Elements of a Con Game
The hook — Baiting the suckers
The line — Exploiting your trust
The sinker — Taking your money
Exposing Common Show Business Con Games
Fake screen tests
Phony agents
Enticing Internet ads
Cold calls
Up-front fees
Promises of additional exposure
Shoddy photographers
Worthless acting schools
Sleazy casting directors
Meaningless beauty pageants
Shady get-rich-quick schemes
Dealing with Dishonesty
Potential problems with non-union productions
Unscrupulous business managers
Casting and networking parties
Missing residuals
Protect Yourself: Beating the Con at His Own Game
BE AWARE OF JOINING RELIGIONS OR CULTS TO ADVANCE YOUR CAREER
Being Your Own Worst Enemy
Dealing with drug abuse
Separating sex from show business
BEING NUDE OR HAVING INTIMATE SCENES ON SET
Dealing with alcohol and drug addiction
Curbing excessive spending
Avoiding criminal activities
Handling emotional and psychological problems
Working to Pay Your Bills until You Hit It Big
MAKING THE MOVE TO THE BIG CITY
Considering What Kind of Employment You Want
Getting temporary work
CONSIDERING THE BENEFITS OF APARTMENT MANAGEMENT
Getting full or part-time work
Considering supplemental work
Working for Yourself
Getting a Job That Pays You to Be Entertaining
Teaching traffic school
Performing on the street
Amusing patrons at an amusement park
Entertaining the kiddies
Catering to the public or the acting crowd
Working in a film or television studio
Reading scripts for payment
Winning big on a game show
Doing a song and dance in a casino
Performing on a cruise ship
Acting in an interactive play
Reading for actors during auditions
Getting “extra” time in the studio
Managing Your Finances
Handling Your Money
Saving it!
Dealing with income taxes
Digging yourself out of debt
THE QUESTION OF BANKRUPTCY
INVESTING IN YOURSELF
Investing your earnings
INVEST YOUR SAVINGS
Living Well Without Going Broke
Dealing with housing expenses
Eating cheaply
Buying clothes
Deciding When to Quit Your Day Job
The Part of Tens
Ten Myths Debunked about Show Business
Myth #1: Show Business Is Closed to Outsiders
Myth #2: It’s Who You Know, Not What You Know
Myth #3: Only the Young and the Beautiful Get Work
Myth #4: You Have to Move to L.A., Vancouver, or New York to Succeed
Myth #5: Plastic Surgery and Body Implants Get You Work
Myth #6: You Have to Sacrifice Your Principles
Myth #7: You Can Break into Show Business by Taking Off Your Clothes
The myth of posing nude
The myth of sleeping with someone famous or powerful
The myth of appearing in adult movies
Myth #8: You Can Be Discovered and Made into a Star
Myth #9: The Right Agent, Manager, Coach Can Get You Work
Myth #10: Show Business Will Destroy You
Ten Traits of Successful Actors
Respecting Other People’s Time
Planning Ahead
Being Flexible and Adaptable
Being Professional
How a professional actor behaves
Acting professionally with your agent
Acting professionally with casting directors
Acting professionally on the set
Being Yourself
Being Well-Groomed
Being Persistent
Avoiding Mind-Altering Substances
Being Willing to Improve Yourself
Believing in Yourself
Ten Tips for Improving As an Actor
Mastering the Art of Auditioning
Knowing How to Audition and Act for the Camera
Auditioning for the camera
Acting for the camera
Expecting the Unexpected: Improvising
Developing a Sense of Humor
Overcoming Stage Fright
Understanding Human Psychology
Developing Your Voice and Improving Your Body
Your voice
Your body
Maintaining a Reliable Source of Income
Avoiding Guaranteed Failure
Staying Sharp
Ten Ways to Act Just for the Fun of It
Join a Community Theater Group
Become a Storyteller
Join an Improvisational Group
Volunteer at Your Local School Drama Department
Put on a Play for a Charity
Appear in a Student Film
Work as an Extra
Volunteer at Your Local Museum
Appear on Public Access TV
Produce Your Own YouTube Show
Index. A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
V
W
Y
Z
About the Authors
Dedication
Authors’ Acknowledgments
WILEY END USER LICENSE AGREEMENT
