"Acting Up"; Getting Work

Ok, last one. :-)

The last forum was called "Getting Work" and the panelists were casting director Faith Martin, agent Mark Morrissey, Tony Chu from the Network Action for Filmmakers and Actors, and Mark Kilmurry from the Ensemble Theatre - and hosted by Antonette Collins from ABC radio.

Pretty much all the discussion was the same-old same-old that everyone should know... make sure you know what you're doing (ie be trained), make sure you love what you're doing, and if you're not finding much work, create some.

I must admit that by this stage of the day I had a splitting headache so didn't concentrate overly much on the finer points of the discussion. However, I was very inspired by Mark Morrissey. He struck me as someone who dearly loves the entertainment industry and all of it's people and just wants to be a part of creating some good stuff. He said that when he meets with a potential client - what he's looking for is someone who walks in the door and inspires him. He comes across as genuinely proud of his clients and the work he does for them.

Umm... Faith Martin also had some really good stuff to say about auditions and castings, but damnit, I can't remember much. She was very encouraging, though, and her points impressed me with a reminder that even the *scary* casting people, aggents, directors, producers - all those people who we can be terrified of because "they have the power" - are just as stressed and hardworking and concerned about getting it right as we are.


So, in all, I came away from the day feeling pretty inspired and confident. I believe I'm good enough to succeed at this acting thing and I'm motivated enough to do the hard work it'll take. Now, someone, just send a bunch of good luck my way to go along with it...