Pilot season is usually dead for Struggling Actresses, and I know this, so in December I said to myself, "What can I do to not feel like I'm out of the loop?"
Welp, I did a few things.
I got really tired of only going out for non-union commercials. The pay isn't all that great, there's no residuals, and to drive from the Valley to Santa Monica at 3pm (I swear all my audition times were then!) took me on average, an hour to get there, an hour and a 15 of waiting time, and then an hour and 45 minutes to get home. I said, you know, I really don't want to be doing this anymore.
So I joined Sag. Now if I have to wait over an hour to audition, I get paid! Now if I have to drive all the way to Santa Monica and spend that much time in my car, the potential job will pay me a lot more money.
And even though I didn't have the money to pay for dues, the Aftra/Sag Credit Union is offering loans for Sag dues with easy monthly payment plans. You don't even have to be a member of the bank. I got approved, turned in my paperwork, and in a few weeks got my new shiny card.
Since I had been going out before (and quite often) for non-union commercials, my agent warned me that my audition ratio would drop, but I found this quite palatable after all the money I was spending on gas, and all the time I was spending in my car on auditions and callbacks for things that don't pay very well.
And being Sag now means that my agent can ONLY send me out for Sag gigs. HOORAY!
I also said, you know what? I should have a voice over reel. So I took a class and am putting on the finishing touches for my demo. I think it's pretty good. It should be all finished and done by Friday, and my manager will then go shop it around to agencies. One more hat in the ring.
I went to New Jersey and Pennsylvania to visit my husband's family over the holidays. It was unseasonably warm and we enjoyed ourselves very much. We babysat our 10 month old niece for a few days and it's remarkable how fast babies learn: because her parents always take her bib off when she's done eating, she's learned that if she rips it off herself, it signals to us that she's finished. If you try to get her to eat one more bite, she'll put it in her mouth, look at you, then spit it out. "Duh! I took my BIB off, ya'll! I'm DONE."
We came back and I went about the process of changing my maiden name.
A day later, a friend of ours asked us if we were doing anything on the night of the 30th. He wanted to drive up to Cambria, and elope with his fiancee on the beach after midnight so that they'd be married on New Year's Eve. Would I marry them?
Of course! So off we went up the coast to one of the most romantic spots, and I married two wonderful people to each other.
Then we celebrated the New Year. I'm always hopeful in January. This is going to be a good year.
I found an old photo of myself wearing a straight haired red wig and contemplated a huge change.
Then a friend passed along some info about narrating audio books. So I took my microphone and created a demo for that and sent it in.
I had two commercial auditions last week and one callback, where the director said my first take was "too sexy," something I never ever thought I would hear, and tickled me to no end.
My photographer friend Tanya (check the sidebar for a referral discount! --->)
just moved to a new studio space and asked if I would be her lighting test model. Of course!
I'm hopeful, and I'm adding more eggs to my little acting nest. I might have to sit on them for a while to hatch, but that's okay.
2012 is going to be better than 2011. I can feel it.
I hope you can too.
