Hi Bonnie,

My name’s Shelby, I’m 13 and currently live in Oahu (but have a house in California, too). I have one manager who wants to sign, and one agent who wants to meet with me (if I’ll be here a while) in LA (they both know I have a house in CA and Oahu). I’m planning on going to LA from August to the early third week of September and then coming back late December.

My mom and I are just worried that if I leave after being in LA for a month and a half, would it ruin my reputation or make the agent or manager hate me or blacklist me? What do you recommend I do in this situation? I just don’t want to cause more harm than good.

xo Shelby

Hi Shelby,

Good for you, investigating the ramifications of where you’re based, BEFORE you sign with anyone. So many actors take a Ready, Fire, Aim approach to their careers. That you — at 13 — are already proactive not only about representation but also the issues of living in another market much of the year is ninja!

The good news is, communication is THE number one most valuable ingredient in your encounters with anyone in this industry (and in life) where issues of expectations are concerned. So, as long as you are totally up-front about how much of the year you will be local to LA — before signing with anyone — there’s no risk of landing on that dreaded blacklist (and even if you were to land there, there are always ways off it).

Should you meet with a manager or agent who wants to sign you for LA-based work and then — when an audition comes up — you’re in Oahu and cannot get to LA in time for the read, as long as you’ve made the team aware (before you ever got signed), how could they possibly be upset? You will have “booked out” before leaving town, so they’ll know the only option for auditions will be of the self-taped variety ’til you’re back in LA.

It’s only if you make folks think you’re local (when you really aren’t, full-time) that you run the risk of damaging your reputation. As long as you disclose your status (BEFORE it’s an issue), you’ve laid the groundwork for a healthy, open, thriving industry relationship. And that’s awesome!

Keep rockin’, Shelby. And congrats on the interest from potential teammates. Be sure to check ’em out and map their reach, then prep yourself for taking those meetings. Have fun!


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/001528.html. Please support the many wonderful resources provided by the Breakdown Services family. This posting is the author’s personal archive.

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