Your YouTube Your Turn is such a relevant topic to today’s trends in the industry. Several months ago, my friend Shawn Ryan turned me on to the idea of practicing filming myself reading sides. A few months later, I bought a MacBook complete with a built-in camera and DVD burner, and now I can’t live or act without it. Hands down, it’s one of my top ten best acting investments.

So far, I’ve taped myself for a project that was casting in Michigan, and now I offer to put myself on tape for sessions I’m not available to make in LA. I have a YouTube account dedicated to posting my reads, and it offers a bit of insight to see how often the tapes were viewed.

In addition to taping auditions, I began shooting parodies on current pop events. My videos take about an hour to write, rehearse, shoot, edit, and produce. I now control of how often I work and even have earned a modest fanbase! In an industry where the norm has been to develop an audience within the business, hoping to one day reach the outside world, the formula is now backwards — for the better.

Because of my success with the parodies, Shawn enlisted me to teach a YouTubing class at his Young Actors Theatre Camp. I taught campers 8 to 20 years old — it’s accessible enough for anyone.

Currently, I’m producing a webseries with three webisodes already in the can, and am expecting a summer release date. I’ll keep you posted. In addition to that plan and timeline, I had an unusual day yesterday and, feeling powerfully inspired, I self-produced an entire new webseries in four hours, at zero cost.

Thank you SO much for your helpful tips and hints on networking without hating it. I just booked a role in an indie short without having to audition, just because the producer knows me from my theatre company!

So thanks again for the countless words of wisdom.

I just read your article on Endurance and thought it was terrific! It’s both true and encouraging. I’m an actor who, after graduating from Harvard in 2005, spent a year in NYC and arrived in LA a year and a half ago. It certainly wasn’t smooth sailing once I got here, but I believe in the endurance factor that you wrote about in your article.

Anyway, I just wanted to thank you for writing such a great article. It’s really nice to read words of encouragement from people who know their stuff!

I got home from my acting class to sit down and read the article Being Open and it was JUST what we had been talking about in class! One guy specifically said, “I wish that casting directors could see what we really need to do to ourselves to be as great as they want us to be,” and I sat there and thought in my head, “Bonnie does.

I DID say, “I think a lot of casting directors do, but I wish they were all former actors who had been there.” I should have said, “Bonnie does,” out loud. But I did forward the article on to everyone in class once I got home and made sure they know how much I love reading your Monday articles. You truly do “get it.” The last thing I want is to be in class with bitter actors.

Of course, it’s hard to be a very open person in this business when we need to be and be closed enough to not be crushed every time we don’t get something. “Rhino skin,” “cool head, warm heart,” whatever you want to call it.

It’s happened a number of times where I’ve auditioned for something and the director has called to tell me he thought I was the best, but he felt pressured by producers to pick someone else. Argh! I appreciated the phone calls each time, let me tell you, but it still stung when I knew I had done such a fantastic read and had worked so hard. That’s where it’s the hardest for me to always be open and positive when “the suits” are calling the shots. Ah well, we can’t all be artists… I’m afraid not much would get done! 🙂

I guess when you’re rich and have two Oscar noms, some people think they’ve got a little wiggle room to slack off. I figure, if you have to take a big acting job in a major movie — even if it is a silly movie — do good work and enjoy yourself. I’d love to have that obligation.

I read your latest column and have been clicking around the archived columns daily for the last few weeks because I find your advice motivating. Extremely motivating! I just read “Don’t Drop the Ball” today and picked up the phone right away to call three people who I had been meaning to speak to. I made an effort to not only express how much I was looking forward to speaking with them, but also how glad I was to have them in my world. Networking for my acting career has truly become a huge part of my actor’s toolbox, and perhaps a lesson learned a little bit late.

I got a chance to see you speak at an all-day Q&A on behalf of the Life Through Art Foundation back in September. Jeffery Brooks is my acting coach, and I’ve had a chance to “meet” a lot of people through him. Today your column reminded me to value each introduction, and also keep up with the peers I have now. Who knows where we’ll all be in five years? I felt that I owed you a personal thank you for being there for your readers. Please keep it up!

Just wanted to say thanks for your column Being Open. It happened to be one of those moments where the universe aligned itself. I came from my class with Janet Alhanti today and we were doing repetition exercises. I spent most of that class looking for the best ways for me to bring my open self up on stage for those exercises. I came home and jumped on the computer and found myself on the Writer’s Guild website and ended up linking to “Why We Write.” I proceeded to share that website through email with anyone in my life that I thought it could touch or inspire.

So as I just read your column, I realized how much I was on the same page today. Synchronicity at play. And as I read the suggestions on ways to remain open on the business side, I appreciated the reminder. I am definitely guilty of that mindset regarding student films and footage!

I also wanted to take a moment to thank you for your column in general. I read you and Mark every week and even met with Mark when he offered generals.

Warm wishes,
Maria DiJiosia

Great article [on Validation]. There’s so much truth to this one and a lot that I can relate to. We as humans need to learn to not depend on other’s validations to keep us moving forward. Yes, we are in a business where people judge us all the time, but that doesn’t validate who we are and what we do.

As far as the actor who submitted for thousands of auditions and has not gotten one call, then I feel he/she might wanna look into another factor that might be holding them back (i.e.: their headshot, resumé, demo reel, etc.). Take a look at other actors’ pages to see what’s working for them, and how you can make it work for you — at least that’s what I do. Also they might want to think about what type of roles they’re submitting for. Some actors think they are one type when they are actually another.

And remember that the energy that is put into the universe (i.e.: “I’m not getting any auditions”) is the energy that you will get back. My validation for me is when I run out of headshots used from drop-offs, submissions, and auditions. It reminds me that I’m hustling and working and constantly putting myself out there. Thanks for all of your insight. Keep writing and I’ll keep reading ’em.

I’m very flattered that you quoted me in [the Validation] article. It was another great article and secures my feelings of high and excitement every time I get an audition. In fact I just got a call for an audition today for a CBS pilot and I’m just so excited to get to audition for the part tomorrow… I can’t wait. It got me out of bed and working on the sides right away.