Ya know, I've been in Los Angeles for almost 8 years and I have yet to have a single audition for a daytime soap. Not even once and I've tried. I was in New York for 4 years and only had one soap audition in all of that time.
Another market I've tried to crack at various times with absolutely no success is the SAG background work market. I did a lot of it in New York and would've done the same here except for two reasons.
One: I was a little confused by the having to register with a "background agency". What? I don't remember ever doing that in New York.
Two: I literally started auditioning for principal roles in commercials the first day I landed in Los Angeles. I had 3 auditions and 3 callbacks the first week I was in town, thanks to my wonderful agents @ KSA.
The last thing I wanted to do was have background work conflict with principal auditions that my agents were working so hard to get for me. So I didn't pursue it.
A couple of years later after leaving my job @ The Hollywood Standard I decided to try to open up more revenue streams in "the biz". So I submitted to 3 or 4 commercial background agencies to attempt to get in their files. I mailed and I mailed and I mailed some more and nobody would ever call me to get in their books so I could actually be submitted for work.
I never got upset or frustrated. Actually, I thought it was kind of funny. Here I was able to book a series of commercials that ended up being 4 days of work in Los Angeles and later 5 more in Japan and a role in "The Terminal" with Tom Hanks directed by Steven Spielberg all from dropping off my own photo. Yes, a drop-off BUT I couldn't get a call from a commercial background agency to save my life!
So, needless to say, I was shocked when Alice Ellis Casting called to see if I was available to work on a "Volkswagen" commercial on Saturday night. Sure, I have nothing going on Saturday night that's going to earn me a check (Although, I wished it was any other carmaker than Volkswagen.....long story).
It's great timing because I didn't have one single audition this week, which is kinda rare for me.
4 comments:
sag commercial on a saturday - rock the 583.60/8hrs! :-) I cant believe that the background commercial weekend rate is almost day player scale...
~J
Damn! That's a good rate! Where can I sign up? :)
I know all about working blackground.... I'm tryin to get to that audition/booking level like you!
Yeah, anonymous I got a nice surprise on set.
Lydia, you're doing your thing. Keep it up!
GC Girl, I love that "Blackground". Sometimes, I'm not even sure what level I'm at, but I keep trying to make it better.
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