As I get older, my need to perform has not gone away, but my frustration with producers wasting other people’s time because they haven’t made up their own minds has expanded greatly.

I had a callback for a film piece that claimed they were looking all across the country for the “right actor” but when I spoke with the producers, it was obvious they had not budgeted to bring in anyone from outside their own market. Spent two hours making a perfect self tape, and the callback was an hour behind schedule just to find out there was never any chance.

Then, I recently drove 5 hours and stayed over night for a theatre general. When I signed up they did NOT ask me if I had some kind of housing arrangement in their city via email. When I got in the room, it was the very first question out of their mouth! I was really surprised they called me back after that, so I made the drive AGAIN in Emergency Alert weather. Read with another actor who was so insultingly unprepared! No idea what they were saying, buried in the page, kept losing their place. First thing the monitor asks me when I finish the scene is “do you have housing down here?” The answer has not changed in two weeks!! And if you’re not willing to provide it, why did you ask me to come all the way down here???

I will never take it personally if a production is keeping a tight budget and needs to remain local. But don’t get these delusions of grandeur, thinking you’re going to find money that doesn’t exist to bring in “perfect actor” when, let’s be honest, very few actors are actually worth raising more money for. Don’t take up hours or days of someone’s time when you KNOW that you need to pick someone from around the way.

Rant over. Fuck.

As I wrote this, it turned into a bit of a rant. Don't really have anyone to talk to about this, so I guess writing this all out helped my mental a bit.

Last year, while slow, I found the most success in my career so far. I have been a pro actor since mid 2022, and only last year did I begin to book consistently. I am still non-union, but with the rise of verticals, I booked so much work. Almost twice a month would I get cast for a lead in a vertical paying anywhere from 400-800 PER DAY. It was going so well i quit my day job to pursue this full time. It was so much fun, and given the fact that I am professionally trained, I felt like I was far exceeding expectations on these sets for my acting. My last booking was right before Christmas.

Fast forward to today, I have had 0 booking in 2025. I have no idea where the momentum went. I am still giving the same effort, if not more, to my auditions. I get a single callback here and there but it is radio silent after that. I just had one where a CD personally asked for me to audition. He later told me the director was absolutely in love with my performance. At the callback, I give the same effort and they tell me they will stay in touch. Radio silent from there.

I feel like I am starting to lose my mind and noticed I have been falling into a depression because I gave up my day job for this as I don't think they would like it if I am having to call off every few weeks. So I am basically out of money at this point but the thought of going back to serving makes me nauseous. Especially when there is work in the acting industry.

I just don't understand what changed from December to now. It seems like the vertical industry is getting even more popular as I am seeing auditions paying over $1000/day of work. I am attractive enough to be the lead for these (I know they can be discriminatory), AND I have the acting chops (at least enough to be in a damn vertical, I mean if you see some of these, the quality of actors they bring on is very very low). Its really making me question whether I have the goods.

Through the verticals, I have made a lot of friends. And those friends (who acted with me on the verticals) are ALL getting consistent work still. I haven't cried in years, but damn this is really making me want to sit in bed all day crying my little heart out.

So rant over. If you got this far, I appreciate you listening. Life is hard. Acting is hard, but its the one thing in this life I will never get bored of.

Has anyone seen student filmmakers getting more and more bold with what they are asking actors to do for their projects?

I have an audition this week for a student film where I was asked to prepare 4 different sides of varying length (one of them is 4 pages) most are a couple pages. But they said they will only have me read 2-3 of them at the audition. Why have someone prepare all 4 then for a student film?

Granted the script does sound interesting and it pays more than any student film I've seen (that's also because they are asking for nudity, head shave, and weight loss). I have seen their work and it was solid but am I crazy in saying who do some of these students think they are with these asks?

Probably writing this just to rant as I memorize another scene for this audition but wasn't sure if people had been seeing this as well and if I should instead just show up with 2 of the scenes

I know that I should be doing this, but I’m a college student and I can’t afford to paying $50-100 an hour to get coached EVERY time I get an audition 😭. But I’ve been thinking about starting to get coached only once every few auditions, but like only for like bigger ones. Maybe my booking/callback rate would be higher.

So the new Beatles movie, set to release sometime next year, has finally revealed its casting. This got me thinking are we really moving away from the old school magic of discovering raw, undiscovered talent?

Back in the day, casting was as much about that serendipitous moment finding someone with untapped potential as it was about fitting a particular look. The Beatles themselves were once that fresh face discovery, a raw group that transformed music history. Now, with high profile projects like this new Beatles movie, it seems like there’s an increasing reliance on already known or meticulously curated talent.

Is this shift just a natural evolution, a response to a fast paced, digital era industry that favors immediate recognition and social media clout? Or does it signal that the art of spotting those hidden gems is indeed fading into obscurity?

I’m curious to hear your thoughts do you think we’re losing something valuable in the casting process, or is this simply a new chapter in how talent is discovered today

Hey everyone,

I am teaching an acting class and we are going into our physical comedy unit. Do you have fun/funny scenes of slapstick fights? Fainting, getting knocked out, eyes crossing, etc. Looking for more recent examples. I have plenty from the Three Stooges, Jerry Lewis, etc.

Thanks for your help!

So I’m an actress based in both Toronto and LA. I love doing music videos but the only ones I’ve done have been because the artist/CD reached out to my agent or manager with a direct offer. I’ve had this 4 times and every-time I absolutely loved it!!

I want to do more but I’m not sure how to find them? I’m wondering if they mostly go through modelling agency’s or something?

Also just in case I’m right about the modelling thing does anyone know standards around adding a modelling agent when you already have a principle agent + manager? I’ll ask them about it of course just curious!

i auditioned to AMDA and should be hearing back from them really soon, i really want to go there but its a little expensive. i considered going to Hunter or Brooklyn college since they are cheaper but they would all end up costing the same (30k a year hunter college for four years and AMDA 60k a year for two years) any advice?

Anytime I see a post from someone asking about moving to a place for acting opportunities the answer is, “We’re struggling right now…” which I believe but is there anywhere currently that at least has some opportunities?

I apologize if this has been asked before but I’ve just seen posts from the last year where every place, Austin - Albuquerque - Austin - L.A. everywhere is struggling.

This year I auditioned for DGSD at Yale (Formerly Yale School of Drama) and Juilliard's MFA for Acting. I didn't get into either.

I was 1 of 50 people invited to callback weekend at Juilliard and 1 of 36 invited to Yale. I was also 1 of only 6 people invited to both this year. Quick background, this is my second year applying for my MFA in Acting. Last year I didn't get a single callback for Yale and got to the final 50 at Juilliard and actually ended up getting waitlisted.

Out of those 6 people I was the only one not to get into either and I feel extremely hurt, confused, and lost. It's hard for me to eat or get up in the morning. There's a couple reasons that I'll go into and any advice would really help.

Before I talk about it I want to say that I know it's an honor and achievement to get to this point, and I'm not ungrateful for that. I've had a wonderful experience and it has been a dream for the past 8 years to see myself there. I could write a whole other post about how amazing these callback weekends were. I don't mean to sound ungrateful or brush off the successes I had, I just wish to express how and why I feel this way in hopes to find something that helps me.

The reasons I feel so hurt:

1. My waitlist last year. Last year I was waitlisted at Juilliard, it was a wild ride. While it obviously sucked to not get in it was exciting that I got waitlisted. In fact, one of the staff called me to tell me how it was an honor and that it means I was "good enough for the school, they just didn't have enough space for me." They reiterated that in my email I got saying I was waitlisted. There is a limit of times you can apply and waitlist doesn't count against that--that's how much they emphasized I was admissible. On top of that, 3 waitlisted students I auditioned with last year got in and I've heard of plenty more getting in before that. I felt a drive and force to continue, get better, and reaudition knowing that they think I'm good enough and I just need to cross that finish line. This year, I didn't even get wailtisted. I got denied. I only felt like I did stronger work and was more myself in the room. I went in just trying to do what I did before and what worked but stronger. I didn't go in trying to impress or perform but ask genuine questions, be curious, and live in the moment of those classes. And somehow I did worse and it broke me because I don't know what I did.
2. The reaction from Juilliard faculty. I texted my girlfriend at the end of my last day at Juilliard weekend saying I didn't get in, before it even finished. I knew this was true just by how the faculty treated me compared to last time. I'm not sure if this was purposeful, but last year in saying goodbye they were lively and talked with me. This year, the only way I can describe it was like talking to someone you know you know hates you but you have to be nice. Like shaking the hand of someone you really angered and you see the disgust in your eyes as you talk to them. It's an extreme description (and my overthinking brain and anxiety probably exagerate the feeling slightly) but I just knew in that moment I did something wrong--and it hurts because I'll never know what it is. I knew in that moment I wasn't getting in, I knew I wasn't getting waitlisted, and I knew somewhere along that callback weekend I lost my chances at going to my dream school. And I was right.
3. I ruined my Yale interview. This year at Yale was a completely different experience. I actually thought I got in. At one point, I made the faculty laugh so much I had to pause my pieces to let them laugh it out like I was on SNL waiting for the audience because they were so loud. It was amazing! Unfortunately, they have an end of weekend interview and I bombed it. It was awkard, forced, and embarassing in my part. I know I messed up. I often struggle with interviews because I get in my head about what I should say that I don't say what I feel. I didn't get a waitlist here either. This hurts because I really felt like I got in, I was gitty getting home with excitement and didn't even get waitlisted and it hurt. This hurts slightly less because I know students who got denied at callback weekend and in later (don't know anyone denied at callback weekend in Juilliard that got in later, only waitlisted students) and I know that interview ruined it (or at least I think that was it). I had such a fun time there and it made it my top pick this year by the experience alone and that was just sad. Also you can only audition 3 times and considering I was waitlisted this would be 2 of 3. Sucks knowing I only have one more shot.
4. Last reason is knowing I won't be going to school. I know you can be an actor without a top acting school, but I have worked so hard to be great and all my idols have gone to these schools. It was my dream for so long. I know I'm good enough in my art to get in considering how far I got and it sucks knowing I didn't for reasons that I'll never know and that are probably outside just how good of am actor I am, yet it brings my self-worth down so much. I know the path for this art will be exponentially harder for me as the resources these schools give you are enormous advantages in this field. Just thinking that I was so close to making the future of my life and career infinitely easier just haunts me. I feel like if I was more of a people person (I'm not always great talking to people) like so many of the people who got in are maybe I could've gotten in. But it also hurts because it could've been they didn't think I was a good actor, or maybe I did do something to piss them off, or maybe I was just unlikeable, either way I'll never know what I did, only that they didn't think I was good enough. I know it's a tough field filled with rejection. I know you'll almost never know why you were rejected, but my future was at the tip of my fingers and I failed yet again at my dream since high school-and it hurts so much.

So i've had my current agent for 2 years. They only rep me in the midwest and southeast (although i never get auditions for the midwest..like ever). I've been slightly dissatisfied with my current agent but I really want to make it work.

For starters when i first signed i felt like i was getting pretty moderate theaterical auditions. I also, got positive feedback from my agent that first couple months and thought it would be a good fit especially once the market picked up. It all went down when I decided to get updated headshots (the same photographer who took my original ones I got signed with that my agent claimed she LOVED). She basically said she hated them but I could still update them on my AA profile. After that I got less and less auditions and it seemed like I was only being submitted for commercials. so after another few months (recently) i got some new headshots thinking these would be better, well my agent barely liked them (might i add this is the same photographer most of their roster gets their headshots done at). So at this point im thinking it's a me problem. I'm lucky if i get an audition every 3 months and normally it's a non-union commercial...

So I recently did Talent Link but only for the LA market and have been getting replies almost everyday (i'm shocked) because being with my current agent made me feel like there was no market for me and that my headshots sucked and that nobody liked my look. I currently have an agent who is interested in repping me for all US markets and even Canada. Meaning instead of being repped only for the southeast market, i could have an opportunity to have more auditions for all markets which has always been a goal of mine.

So i really need advice should i drop my current one and go with the agent that is offering full representation in all markets ? Would that be looked at as rude ? I'm just a little scared that it may run my current agent the wrong way but at the same time the agent that is interested in me won't rep me while i'm signed to another agent but expressed if anything changes to reach out to them.

I know the time will come when i black out and forget a line while rolling. Whats the best thing to do? Call for line? Make up a line that’s similar? What’s the worst thing to do?

Hello everyone! Thanks for taking time in advance i have short arthouse movie to shoot this week. Kind of excited and its my first main role ever on screen. I did the one i posted before and some tv advertisements. Im mostly stage trained actor myself. In this new project they want much more subtle calm restrained and stoic character compared to my previous short. Which was passing in more abstract world and director always pushed me to show more and exaggerate. I really want to go for subtle acting this time (imagine european indie)

Even though acting style will be different would you take your time to rate my performance? Sorry for foreign language but subtitles are there! Thanks in advance:)

Hey everyone So I am new to acting. Well actually in highschool I took drama but over a decade has passed and I'm getting back into it now. I am currently taking an improv class. I was paired up with another girl and we're working on memorizing lines and scenes. Basically my partner and I are clashing. We don't have the same vision for our scene and I'm having a hard time understanding her view of how things should be delivered and she's not understanding me and my ideas. Also, when we performed our scene for the class, she wasn't even reading her lines. She was just going off the top of her head and she missed so much that it messed me up and I didn't know how to improvise or recover. My question to you guys is, is this normal? Having to work with difficult people in the acting world? How do I handle this? How can I communicate better? Any advice, tips, relatable experiences & how you guys handled it is much appreciated. Thanks!

i recently signed with an agent in november and in march a manager wanted to sign with me. when i told my agent about this, they really didn't like the idea of adding a manager but my acting coach recommended it and so i went through with it anyways. my agent thought i was too new and a manager wouldn't add anything. now (april) i sent agent updated contact info for the manager and they dropped me. thoughts?

Hi, I was curious to know when it comes to the UK which agents/managers are well respected or should apply for?

Best,

I’ve literally just heard about this for the first time a few days ago and obviously when I saw the casting posted on AA I submitted, but what exactly is this? What kind of actors do they look for? Actors with experience in TV already or newcomers with no major credits, or both? What becomes of it usually? I saw their alumni list but is this a shoo-in to the industry?

He's made some very interesting points regarding the image Hollywood like to portray. It's always Darkskin black men in leading roles. I rarely see Lightskin/Biracial men or even Latino, Indian, Middle Eastern ect. in the forefront of film and television.

What are some of your thoughts on this? Do you feel like it's fair?

So this is gonna be short and sweet I recently got cast as Mendel in a production of Falsettos at a small local theatre I have been in bigger productions and things that have gotten me more recognition but this is one my single proudest castings partly because my area needs a show like this it is a rural area right smack dab in the middle of the Bible Belt and I think this is something that is definitely needed for this area and I am more than proud to be a part of it.

Hello,

I'm filing my taxes this year and I see my residuals are being taxed both in NY and CA. I am a California resident, but was local hire for a NY show a few years ago. I do not live in NY and have not worked there since.

How should I be filing my CA and NY taxes on these residuals? I am currently having taxes withheld by both states. Is that correct?

Thanks!

Hi all :)

I am currently signed on to do an unpaid project that was initially an eight page script. Last week, they sent us a revised copy that was 20 extra pages, and in it my character was given a scene where she is essentially about to be SA but then escapes.

I have done projects in the past where there's been content warnings--but ones that were given before applying and accepting the position. Before the script was changed, the subject matter was not brought up to me and I was not asked if this would be something I would be okay with.

Full disclosure this is something very triggering for me, and had I known beforehand I wouldn't have applied for this role.

I guess I'm just asking if this is normal? Is this something where I can tell them no? I just don't want to be difficult, but the fact that they didn't even ask me makes me feel a type of way and I'm honestly uneasy about this--but I don't know if that's just me being difficult.

I also feel bad because I told them that I was fine (albeit being like you should have asked me) when we had rehearsal last week bevause I was caught off guard, but this and the fact I signed on for a short 8 page script that got tripled in length without warning or consideration for our schedules has made me want ask if we can cut the SA scene.

I just really don't want to be difficult or "like a diva", because i know scripts change and timelines shift around and I am so fine with that but I'm having trouble learning where the line is. And I want to learn because I want to ensure that I'm easy to work with, but without compromising my own boundaries.

Please any advice would be helpful. I thank you in advance and have a great weekend.

UPDATE: I called them, and mentioned I was not comfortable with the scene and they told me that made sense (?) and they'd workshop it.

Thank you so much to everyone who took the time to reply 💗

I'm not sure I would be comfortable doing that with a stranger for my upcoming read.