Here’s another round of feedback on last month’s Issues of Race piece. Thank you, everyone, for writing in!!
First email:
I have only been in LA for four and a half months and I have received all three of my SAG vouchers and am joining the union tomorrow. I got a reputable manager and an agent the third day I was here. And I was cast in High School Musical sponsored by Disney and performed for SCC Theatre. I even made the cut to perform at Fullerton in September!
So, I don’t really see color as a block for my success. I only see talent and personality, drive, motivation…. I just don’t want other African-American females thinking it’s always hard to work in LA.
Thank you,
Cornelia Brown
Second email:
My favorite part of your column on race was this statement: “to expect an on-screen world that mirrors our lives is to devalue the very function of escapism at its core.”
I’m a middle-aged character-looking white guy (I know, that makes me one lucky SOB) but I find that I consistently go up for the same roles as middle-aged character-looking black guys too. Especially commercially, because we’re the same type, of the same essence, there’s one actor in particular I see at just about every audition.
If they want to go younger, heavier, or white, I get cast. If they want to go older, more in-shape, or black, the other guy gets cast. So far the score is…
It’s less about race and more about type 90% in this business.
Third email:
Okay, now for my two cents, starting out in this business “les-C,” about one-hundred and fifty years ago. I’ve seen a lot of changes — some good, some bad — but personally speaking, you have to make your own actor’s heaven here on Earth. We can go on and on and on and on with what is not right with this industry. In the time you take complaining you could be setting this industry on its ear.
I started at a time where they were using the same black actors over and over and over again. So for me, I immersed myself in theatre. That gave me a lot of fodder to use later in my career. I was one of those actors that complained constantly until one day I saw that I was going around and around but going nowhere. I gathered a lot of mentors along the way, especially people that believed in me — and even those who didn’t showed me how special I was. This is not coming from a swelled head, just a knowledge base I can pull from whenever I need to. Those that I had as my mentors made me listen, showed me the ropes, and then pushed me out there.
Yes, yes, yes, oh people yes, I made some STUPID mistakes, but I learned from them and didn’t repeat them. Most of my great mentors have gone on to “Actor’s Heaven,” but I will never forget what they taught me.
Thanks to all my mentors past and present — no, I am NOT a household name, and it didn’t happen for me overnight — but as soon as I pulled my head out of my gigantic butt, I started working almost constantly. Rest assured it is not always about talent or who you know (hmm, I may be wrong about that one) but it’s your attitude toward what you want out of this industry, your life, and your heart. Do the math people.
Love,
Baadja Ouba
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/000763.html. Please support the many wonderful resources provided by the Breakdown Services family. This posting is the author’s personal archive.