Getting Jobs in Entertainment question 997: How do I create a "Brand" for my acting career?

This was asked by an actress but works for any classification. I get asked about branding a lot. After interviewing Diane Farr for myMentor/Elite Program, she made a great point about finding your voice before branding yourself. Your "voice" becomes your brand. Diane 'looks like Barbie but talks like Ken.' That's quite a specific and visual brand, and it is clearly her voice in everything she's done, past and present; a host on Love Line, a series regular on many television shows as a beautiful and tough talking FBI Agent, Firefighter, & Cop, author of The Girl Code, article contributer to countless magazines & newspapers, and blogger.

Diane's voice is clear in everything she does, that's how she branded herself. Now, she has the talent and connections to play other roles, and write heart wrenching stories about drunk driving, but even then, there's always a little Diane in it, which is what makes her unique and in turn, fascinating to watch and read.

So if you want to brand yourself successfully, start by modeling people who have done it well.

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Getting Jobs in Entertainment question 996:Is it appropriate to send home-baked goods as holiday gifts?

It depends on how well you know the people you're sending the home made baked goods to. If I were to get cookies from someone I barely know, I have to admit I wouldn't eat them. If my close friend or client gave me cookies (and they were gluten & sugar free) I would eat them.

So........ the thought is good, but I hope you have less cynical people to send them to than me.

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Getting Jobs in Entertainment question 995: Is it safe to take time off from now until Jan 2nd?

Is it safe? It depends on what you'll be doing; skydiving, race car driving, traveling to a dangerous country?

Or do you mean, might you miss a work call? You may, you may not. Is this the way you want to live your life? How would you feel if you didn't do what you wanted for the next six weeks and no call for work came in? On the other hand, if you miss a work call while taking time off, will you beat yourself up forever?

I can't answer this question for you. Only you can decide.

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Getting Jobs in Entertainment question 994: Should I be building my reel in film school or taking business classes?

It depends on the business classes your film school offers. You should absolutely be focused on the business side of the industry while in film school, however if the marketing, sales, and business classes are not directly related to the entertainment industry, you will have to get really clear on how what they're teaching, applies to you.

Film school IS for building your reel, perfecting your craft, building relationships, obtaining mentors, and preparing for entering the industry armed with an understanding of the business.

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Getting Jobs in Entertainment question 993: How often should I send out my headshot to the same casting director? How many should I start off with?

So this is two questions. The answer to the first is, (and this is based on the majority of CDs who have answered this question) you send a head shot once. They want you to save your money and the majority of them want to save trees. That's why so many cast through online service, so they don't have to send hundreds of headshots to the recycle bin each day.

Once a Casting Director has your headshot, unless you're submitting it for a certain role, you wouldn't send a headshot as follow up. Instead, you send a postcard or a note. Remember, there should be a purpose to your follow up; something special, unique, or a question. Just sending postcards every week to say "Hi" isn't as productive as creating a memorable campaign.

Question two, is regarding how many Casting Directors to send to. You want to target the shows you're right for. And when I say "right," I know many actors go into 'chameleon mode' where they can play any role, but if you're 35 and not a character actress, targeting a Disney show isn't as productive as targeting a show that features people your age, weekly.

Because I work with my clients to build strong relationships with people before asking for work, I suggest you start with 20 offices to get well acquainted with and then expand from there.

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Getting Jobs in Entertainment question 992:If one hasn’t made a magnificent relationship with an up-and-coming talent at AFI, what is the next move?

This was submitted by an AFI student. First, you don't want to wait until the end of film school to discover that you haven't found that "one" superstar to hitch your wagon to. The great thing about being in film school is the opportunity to reach out to working professionals in the industry to get them to mentor you (a business advice and guidance mentorship). When possible, reach out to your film school alumnus. These professionals can tell you what great things came out of film school, and the missed opportunities that they recognize now, that you can capitalize on while you're still there.

It's important while in film school to think about a bigger picture. Where you want to be in 20 years and work backwards. Who are the people out in the industry doing what you want to be doing? Get advice from them so that you can maximize every possibility while in school, and leave with a minimum of 200 relationships by the time you graduate.

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Getting Jobs in Entertainment question 991:How do you transition into higher positions from working as a PA for a couple years?

The way to transition is to be creating relationships with people along the way, so when you decide the area in which you'd like to move up, you have people who want to work with you and will be willing to move you up.

Make a Contact List: a list of everyone you know in the industry broken down by people's classifications and do an analysis.

How many people do you know in each department? Do you know enough to move up? Do you know people who can introduce you to the people in the department you want to transition to?

Whenever it comes to moving up it always comes back to the quality and quantity of your relationships. So start with the evaluation and then send me any questions that your analysis may bring up.

And good luck!

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Getting Jobs in Entertainment question 990: Should I be sending out headshots or postcards to follow up a meeting with an agent or casting director?

Neither. If you had a meeting, I'm assuming that you already gave them a headshot. Your first follow-up should be a personalized thank you note. You are not asking for work, you are simply thanking the person for the meeting. Be sure to mention something that was said that had an impact on you, and any personal things you connected on. If the card reflects something you spoke about, even better.

I don't suggest putting your picture in the card, just write your name clearly. the reason for this is that you want it to be a genuine thank you. If the person forgot who you are but is touched by your words, he/she will look you up on IMDB (so make sure your pictures are up there and your credits are updated.)

Then you can follow up again a week or two later with a postcard, with a "marketing reason" for sending it.

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Getting Jobs in Entertainment question 989: unsolicited scripts are not read, but is it true that a producer with a pitch can get the meet?

I'm not 100% sure I get your question. I think what you're asking is if there's a difference between trying to send an unsolicited script and making an unsolicited pitch. And the answer is no, it is not true. Anyone can say they're a producer with a pitch. When I worked in development, if a writer or a director didn't come to us through an agent/manager/entertainment lawyer, they had to sign a release form. By doing this, the production company is protecting themselves in case your idea is similar to something they already have or something else they may do in the future.

It is the same with an unsolicited script. If for some reason a company is intrigued by your idea and someone wants to read your script, they will ask you to sign a release first.

So, yes, as a producer you can get a pitch meeting and get a script read, but you will have to sign a release. Before signing it, you should have it looked over by a lawyer.

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Getting Jobs in Entertainment question 988: Do you answer questions on your birthday?

Nope :-)

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Getting Jobs in Entertainment question 987: How do you find more information about IATSE in different markets?

Go to the IATSE International webpage http://www.iatse-intl.org/home.html and then click on local union directory and then "search local unions."

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