Weekends are my days to be able to catch up on all the stuff that I cannot complete during the week. Working 12 hour days on my other jobs can mean that the weekends end up having some pretty long to-do lists in addition to all the other regular domestic responsibilities that go along with, you know, life.
That being said, I actually need to get on this to-do list.
One of the steps on that list is in regard to an acting intensive that I’ll be doing at the end of the month at the Actors In Action studio in the Alberta Arts District of Portland. This class will be four packed hours of character and script study. Since I’m doing this through my PNW agency enrollment is open to other talent in the agency first, then we’ll open up registration to the public. Naturally I’ll mention that here and on the YouTube channel.
Now that I’m done shamelessly self-promoting it’s time to go back to work.
The days are going by so quickly! I’m already one work week in and I feel like I just started this project yesterday. Tonight I go read with the Portland V.O. actors and that should be a lot of fun. Like I mentioned before, I’m not sure what happens to these recordings, but if they become available for public consumption I’ll share the way that you can do that.
I’ve been thinking about the video element of this project and I’ve come to this decision:
I will do videos as often as there is something to add to the conversation outside of these blogs and my own journaling. I don’t know that creating a video of me reading or coding at the computer would be all that entertaining and, even though I do want to document my progress, the work and the end result of that work are te most important things so if shooting a video would get in the way of that I will skip it in favor of the bigger goal.
I probably won’t do a lot of videos on Fridays and weekends. Friday, Saturday and Sunday are the days that have the lowest views for me. There doesn’t seem to be much point in posting on those days.
If I do shoot something over the weekend, you’ll see it during the week, probably Monday.
I’m sure that I’ll break these guidelines in the future at some point.
Now I still have some audition prep and some prep for tonight. Gotta’ go!
It is days like today that make the daily-ness of this feel a little repetitive and risk the chance of this whole experiment becoming dull to the public who are choosing to come along on this ride. There is only so much progress a person can achieve in a 24 hour window and when 12 of those hours are committed to other jobs and eventually you want to sleep (at least a little bit) that leaves a very limited window to complete your tasks. This is the cold, unfeeling reality of time. It goes forward whether you are finishing things or not.
In a job interview, if I were to be completely honest, when asked what I felt my worst attribute is I would normally say time management. However, I no longer think that is true. If I actually look at how I spend my time, what goals are accomplished and how all of these things track together I actually think my biggest flaw is enthusiasm management. When I get started on something, like Operation 2.0, I’m usually pretty excited about it, I like the challenge it brings, and I’m looking forward to the results. I want to do it and so I find the ways that will make it work. I can work in batches, manage my time, make the time when it can’t be managed. I make it work. It’s when I lose steam that things start to go awry. If I lose the excitement I also stop being as dedicated to the process of making things happen (which is totally the case with my relationship to the gym right now #CurtisIsBloated).
So, with that in mind, I actually failed to achieve the progress I had set for myself yesterday. This now needs to be completed today:
Finish preparing my sides for the audition.
Review the VO scripts for Friday (oh lord, that’s tomorrow!)
Read my stinking book!
Staying rested is key. A tired brain is a sloppy brain.
Today started off strong! I went in and confirmed that my headshots were finally uploaded into my PNW casting account (that’s a long, dumb story not worth repeating) and got an audition from my L.A. agent for a really cool recurring role on a prominent genre series – THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT I’VE WANTED EVER SINCE I STARTED O:TVCA THE FIRST TIME AROUND!!
So, I have preparations to do (maybe get a little coaching too) so that I can put my best performance forward on this.
It’s worth mentioning that typical advice given to the actor is to “book the room, not the job.” This is solid, sage advice that is often repeated and not as often heeded. It’s really easy to fall into the trap of wanting the job (or in some cases financially needing the job) but unfortunately your desire for a job has no bearing on whether or not you get the job. Your amount of control in an audition situation ends the second your performance ends. so it is your duty as an actor, as someone who wants to work, to do the best job you can each and every time so that casting has a reason to call you back even if you aren’t right for the role you are auditioning for that day.
I will be hanging on to this advice between now and when I submit my tape.
Something I keep forgetting to talk about is that I’ll be doing some classes up here in the PNW through my new agency Actors In Action. They have a studio in the arts district and it seems a crime not to use it. I’m doing a one-day intensive at the end of April and will mention that more as we get closer to the date. #ShamelessSelfPromotionIsComing
Today has been pretty simple. Between jobs I did an update on the blog coding and updated my AdSense information since I’m seeing a sudden spike in traffic (Thanks for that everyone!). I also continue to read my book. These are the little steps, the “warts and all” steps that need to be taken to get where I want to go. This is not the glamorous part – in fact, like most things, there’s not a lot of glamor until the very end when you hit the goal – but it is a very necessary part.
That being said, I do have a gig this Friday!
Being a performer (in my particular case an actor) means that you are required to put (at least some) of your career in other people’s hands. For the most part, especially when you want people to book you for the better paying jobs, you need someone to book you for work. To get those people to book you they need to know what you can do. In order for them to know what you can do you need to put yourself out there. Often this happens with things like acting reels and going to auditions, but sometimes it is just dropping your name in a hat.
Last week I dropped my name in a hat for voice actors in Portland. They were looking for people to participate in script reading at a local radio station. Surprisingly I got cast in this week’s group! I don’t think this is broadcast, but if it is I’ll share a link. I just got the scripts today and it looks like a lot of comedy, so it should be a lot of fun. This is a bonus “achievement” (I should work out the vocabulary I’m going to use for this) that was unintended, but following the advice of my friend Amy (subscribe to her channel) I’m taking the time to appreciate each victory.
Today represents the first day of a new personal initiative. Back in 2015 when I started Operation: Television’s Curtis Andersen I had the goal of just getting back on TV in some way shape or form. After 400 days and lots of little victories in between (including movie roles and getting back into voice-over and doing a few shorts), I was cast in FEUD!: Bette & Joan. Success!
Then Frankie had his first tachycardia event.
This was a major turning point for Rene and I and it’s only with hindsight that I can really see just how profound that evening in March was. On March 28th Frankie passed away, surrounded by Rene and I, some of the best veterinary doctors we’ve ever known, and our friend Caroline (mom to his doggy friend Stella). It was a soul crushing day and Rene and I are still pretty devastated. We had completely turned our lives toward his care and we both feel a little lost now without having Frankie to be dedicated to.
But losing Frankie also kicked in a particular type of motivation, mostly a desire to keep my brain too busy to be sad all the time. It wasn’t all that effective (although things are getting better) but none the less that motivation is here and I feel like I need to use it on things that are constructive. The most constructive thing I can think to do with this energy is reaffirm what I feel like I’ve spent the last three years reaffirming but not necessarily working toward enough – reviving and then maintaining my entertainment career.
I know how this sounds given that I seem to do this re-start or make this declaration on an almost annual basis but this tells me two things:
I cannot get away from this calling. I may have times when making money in reliable ways takes priority, but in my heart and in my soul I am a performer and I am not truly happy unless I am performing or involved in the industry in some way.
I have not done enough to maintain my career. I seem to allow myself to get back to square one too often when I need to be taking more advantage of the opportunities that are presented to me.
I seemed to do my best when I was doing the first round of Operation: Television’s Curtis Andersen so it sounded like a good idea to me to try it again, with a different focus. Now instead of the single laser focused goal of just booking a show I am making the broader statement that I will work only in the entertainment industry again.
If you know about goal setting and making plans you know that this is not a good goal – it’s too broad. So instead of just having this overarching goal, I’ll be setting smaller, better goals each step of the way. Things that are achievable so I can get where I want to be.
Goal 1: Finish Born For This by Chris Guillebeau before the end of April.
It’s not a long book, but I am still working twelve hour days and it’s hard to read when you’re exhausted. Once I finish the book then I will set a new goal and we will continue on from there. I’ll also be making videos again, like the one below, as often as possible (but I honestly don’t know how often that will be).
