Synopses & Reviews
The celebrated survival guide for the working actor - now completely updated and expanded with a foreword by Tony award-winning actor Joe Mantegna!
Renowned for more than two decades as the most comprehensive resource for actors, How to Be a Working Actor is a must-read for achieving success in The Business. Now this "Bible of the Biz" has been completely revised and greatly expanded to address new markets, ever-changing opportunities, andthe many new ways today's actors find work. Talent manager, teacher, and career coach Mari Lyn Henry and acress, author, and spokeswoman Lynne Rogers combine their extensive skills and years of experience to cover all the essentials of how to market yourself, land roles, and manage a successful career. They also include expert advie from scores of other industry experts - well-known actors, agents, managers, casting directors, and teachers.
How to Be a Working Actor is loaded with advice on how to:
- put together a professional wardrobe
- get a head shot that brings out the real you
- create a resume that really works
- find the training to develop your talents
- communicate effectively with agents and managers
- use the internet to promote your business and explore new opportunities
- get the most value ot of union membership
- excel at auditions and screen tests
- discover how to get work in regional markets
- cope with success
How to Be A Working Actor takes a no-nonsense approach to the whole business of being a working actor, with detailed information on how to live on a budget in New York and Los Angeles, what the acting jobs are and what they pay, even how to find a survival strategy that will augument your career. And extensive section on script analysis shows you how to investigate the depth of a character to create a memorable audition for roles in theatre, film, and television.
Synopsis
This comprehensive guide has been revised and expanded to include new information on enhancing your image; finding jobs in emerging markets; updated union rules and payscales; current living expenses; and an entirely new chapter on “Cyberbiz,” exploring the ways that the Internet has opened new doors for actors and enabled entirely new approaches to promotion.
Establishing your acting career entails developing all aspects of your performing skills, but more than that, it means learning how to manage your career as an ongoing business. Plenty of schools and books teach you how to hone specific areas of your talent, but only How to Be a Working Actor shows you the whole picture, from improving your image and your audition abilities to finding an agent and landing the roles; from surviving a screen test to making it through your first day on the set; from making your way around the big city to finding regional work.
Cowritten by a leading casting director/agent and a seasoned actress/author, How to Be a Working Actor is still the bible of The Biz, with an insiders viewpoint on all the essentials: assembling a dynamic resume, taking the perfect headshot, understanding the unions, finding a “day job” to supplement your income, learning how to live on a budget in New York or Los Angeles, networking, and much more. Countless tips on wardrobe, makeup, interview skills, and character analysis demonstrate how you can look and act your best for any audition or acting situation. Dozens of industry professionals offer authoritative advice gleaned from decades of experience. Anyone seeking to becomeor remaina working actor needs a copy of this indispensable book.
About the Author
Mari Lyn Henry is a partner at Henry Downey Talent Management LLC and is nationally known for her workshops on audition techniques, cold reading skills, script analysis, and marketing strategies.
Lynne Rogers' extensive career on stage, in film, and on television includes a leading role on Guiding Light. She has been the voice for many nationally advertised products, and her other books include The Love of Their Lives, a behind-the-scenes look at the soap opera industry.