I was looking through my emails to find a good topic for Your Turn this week and noticed two with a similar “feel” to them. I’m going to share both with you because I think the answer is generally the same for each issue.
From the first email:
I just read your column, “Meeting with a Potential Agent” and I have a question. Unfortunately, I was dropped from my agency last week because I was one of those “non-earners.” Sigh. I am looking at this as a motivator to seek new representation and honestly, my situation really isn’t that different now because they weren’t sending me out anyway.
So, my question is this: When I get a meeting and they ask about my previous representation (which I find they always do), should I be honest and say I was dropped? Should I be vague and just say we parted ways? Will they read through that? Should I lie and say I left them?
From the second email:
I was recently cast in a national tour and after a few days of rehearsal, I was informed that I was not right for the role. Tough break, huh? Well, there was a severance clause in the contract, so I will be somewhat compensated. That really isn’t the confusing part, though. What I’m wondering is how to tell agents I freelance with (and casting directors, etc.) that I’m no longer going out of town to be a part of this wonderful production without sounding like I am an untalented loser.
I had previously informed them that I would be out of town and unavailable to them for a set period of time. Since that has now changed, I need to tell them I’m still in town. Should I call them or should I send out another postcard that says, “Well, the tour was a bust, they didn’t like me, so PLEASE send me on other auditions and help me book a job ASAP”? I’m exaggerating, of course, but honestly, what does one put on a postcard? Do I even need to explain why I am no longer going on tour? I think this applies to other situations as well (for example, if someone expects to be a series regular and suddenly their character is no longer in the script). What do actors tell people when something like this happens, especially after contracts were signed and it seems like it was a 100% sure thing? Would you, as a casting director, think that this person just doesn’t perform well after booking a job?
With both issues, the question really is, “How much do I share with others in the industry about why I’m no longer of the status I once was?” In one situation, you’re about to engage in a series of interviews with potential agents, each of whom has an interest in why you find yourself in front of them without an agent presently. In the other, your ability to continue to work and earn money as a performer requires you to inform your team of a change in status. The reason it feels like a failure is the same reason it sucks to hear, “Oh NO! What happened? You were such a great couple!” after you’ve been dumped by a significant other. So, let’s move away from how cruddy it feels to have to deal with this sort of thing and focus on the business facts involved.
You are in a business where actors are cut from series regular roles after shooting the pilot episode. Every day in the trades, there are stories about name actors leaving one top agency for another. And people lose their jobs after having created the empire over which the person firing them now rules. It’s all just part of the biz and it’s something to get “okay” with early on. Just know that you will get dropped from agency contracts, you will get recast, and you will still have to show up and be the confident, brilliant actor who GETS signed and GETS cast in the first place. That will take away a lot of the anxiety right there. I can guarantee you this much: No one who hears that you got dropped will be hearing of such an occurrence for the first time ever in his or her career (nor will that be the last time he or she hears such a thing).
I’m a big fan of honesty, but I also understand that there is an honest depiction of facts that best serves the perception of you in the industry. And truly, if you were to lie, you can bet that someday the truth (and the fact that you lied) will get back to someone who cares and it will end up biting you in the butt. This town is just too small for that not to be the case. No agent who wants to sign you is going to NOT sign you because you were dropped by another agency. No casting director who wants to bring you in is going to NOT do so because you were recast in a previous project. Unless your situation involved major diva attitude, drug addiction, self-destructive behavior, or simply irredeemable toxic personality issues, you’re going to be given another shot (heck, and sometimes even if ALL of that drama is true, you’re given another shot).
Remember that when you DON’T get cast or DON’T get signed by an agent, it’s never about YOU. It’s because of a zillion factors that you should never take personally, right? Okay, so what you need to understand now is that getting UN-CAST is a lot like not getting the part in the first place. It’s not personal. And nobody cares. Getting dropped by an agent is a lot like not having an agent in the first place. It’s not a measure of your talent. And nobody cares. So just keep doing what you do, pursue the work, rock every audition and meeting you have, and let it all go.
Bonnie Gillespie is living her dreams by helping others figure out how to live theirs. Wanna work with Bon? Start here. Thanks!
Originally published by Actors Access at http://more.showfax.com/columns/avoice/archives/000453.html. Please support the many wonderful resources provided by the Breakdown Services family. This posting is the author’s personal archive.