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MARKETING YOUR ACTING TALENT ! Actors get overwhelmed with trying to market themselves but really there are just some basic steps you need to do and everything else is gravy! OUR TOP TEN RULES FOR MARKETING YOURSELF AS AN ACTOR: DO THE BASICS FIRST! - MAKE SURE YOU HAVE SOMETHING TO SELL! The first rule is an easy one... Start by getting better at your craft, learn all you can about connecting with an audience, and make yourself indispensable to producers and directors.
- Get a great resume picture. Go to a professional and spend some money... it's the best way. [See our list of Toronto shooters for some people who can help. Come see us and we'll SHOW YOU SOME GREAT SAMPLES]
- Put together a persuasive actor's resume... Your resume needs to reflect you at your current stage of development. Beginners can have resumes too! Maybe you have a special skill like dancing, or speaking an unusual language or some athletic ability that sets you apart from the rest of the beginners. Professionals can make sure that their resume reflects their most "sell-able" side. It's not just a list of credits; it's an important marketing tool. Need help? Drop by and see us during our open studio hours and we will give you some free, no cost or obligation, no risk analysis of your resume or SHOW YOU SOME GREAT SAMPLES. [See that's a bit of marketing on our part!]
- Learn to write a great introduction letter... Haven't got an agent? Want to change agents? Moving to a new market? Want to introduce yourself to a director or producer? We all go agent hunting and we still use snail-mail to send out pictures and resumes and a great letter will help cut through the clutter on that agent's or producer's desk. Start with something amazing that someone ELSE said about you and your skills, looks, experience or talent. Newspaper reviews, acting awards, even a comment from an acting coach may open the mind of the reader. Keep the letter short, simple, friendly but not over-the-top. Be professional but not too cool. This is not a business letter... it's a small commercial about your talent!
- Give them a sample of your work to look at... All agents and casting people want to see a fully professional wonderfully edited demo reel with you in fabulous scenes from your many major films and leads in TV series. YAH SURE! Most of us don't have that in our early careers when we need to market ourselves the most. Make it easy for them to get to know you. Do a great monologue for them in their office if you can. [Come prepare it with us if you choose to... try our Audition Skills Class.] Cut together short scenes from an acting class like our Focus on Film workshop. You may be able to do this yourself with an up-to-date computer , a few hours on your own, and some cheap software. Or go to a professional... ask us we can recommend someone to help you do it. If you have a great or unusual voice do an audio-demo CD. [Take our Voice-Over-Over-View class for hints and skill-building that will help you crack this market.]
- Make sure you are on-line! You MUST join the Casting Workbook either through your agency or on your own. http://www.castingworkbook.com/ If you are a union member you need to keep your union site presence up to date. FACEBOOK, youTube and MySpace are smart networking sites... they are added buzz, not the essential tool for working actors.
THEN ADD SOME EXTRA SIZZLE! - Make your own personal acting website too... Register your named domain site NOW. [Hey like WWW.SEARSANDSWITZER.COM you mean?] It's cheap and keeps your named site ready. To get your name go to any web-service or internet service provider. The cost will vary from almost free to $10.00 to $30 per year depending on who you use. Next step choose a web host.... if you have high-speed you likely have space NOW. Hosting companies can charge anywhere from nearly free with your Internet service to $30 or more a month. Then either get that geek friend of yours to do it OR learn how to build your own website. You can use one of the templates available to you online. Fancy websites seem rarely to pay off very well. They are fun for your friends and family and OK as long as you don't mind the cash out-lay, but don't expect a lot of return from them. Rarely are any other resources other than a great picture, good resume, and decent audio/video reels of any real use.
- MAKE SOME ACTOR'S POSTCARDS... you can use that great resume shot to create terrific small postcards. Your local Kinko or almost any full-service shop can do them cheaply. Come see us and we'll show you some samples.
- GET PROFESSIONAL HELP... eventually you will need professional help. Seriously. There are marketing experts who do PR for performers. If you have an agent they do a lot of direct marketing on your behalf all the time.
- Be creative and do even more! The first actor who makes an impact with an unusual new marketing twist may make some waves that will change a career.
BUT remember it's not really about the marketing... Most casting pro's in our trade are pretty immune to our marketing tricks. We don't think that William Hutt got into his first job at Stratford through his marketing skill. We suspect that Harvey Keitel didn't have all this stuff together when he started. And if you look like Uma Thurman [and have her talent, experience and presence] someone else will be more than pleased to market you! Make sure that you do the basics above, send a few nice notes if you get a call-back and that's about the limit that works. Put your cash into small films, theatre showcases, networking, training and keeping up to date pictures, watching other actors, doing workshops in other cities, and you'll get more out of that than by aiming at great marketing stuff. Have fun... get known... and get better at your craft. [Hint: See you soon in an acting class!] | | |
Sears & Switzer
