I’m not sure why I remain unwaveringly optimistic about my chosen profession. Maybe it’s the contrast to the endless shit summer jobs I had growing up. One year I worked for the city rec department for minimum wage, painting bleachers and lining fields for guido softball players who wore their pants too high and were lucky I didn’t take a fungo bat to their greaseball heads when they got mouthy.I digress.
So I’m one of the truly happy actors. But I hang out with many who are frustrated, and it’s kind of understandable. No other career requires you to experience the full gamut of emotions and then let them go in an instant. And few require job interviews on a daily basis.
The long stretches of utter disappointment or utter nothing make my friends constantly appear as if they’ve just visited the prison dentist.
By the way, the above pic is of the University of Alabama’s visiting locker room. Blatant, Tide.
Actors: you choose this profession knowing full well you’ll have thousands of competitors, limited opportunities and lots of factors out of your control. You choose this over the safe professional bet, so you really have no grounds to bitch.
And if you’re getting auditions but not booking roles, don’t take it personally. Chances are the decision makers don’t even know you, so they can’t possibly be rejecting you on a personal level. Your performances are judged subjectively by people who have unique preferences, not by the supreme judges of your worth. So don’t base your value on the number of roles you don’t book.
Just keep showing up and eventually you’ll work. Every actor who wants it bad enough makes it. Let’s have fun. It’s showbiz – there ain’t a lot of heavy lifting involved.
