What Have I Been Up To In the World of Acting?

Well, not a whole lot, but that is about to change! I've been wanting to write this entry for a long time now, but I just hadn't got the nerve to do it, until now. Basically, I was a bit foolish this year and pretty much wasted the year of 2008, and I'm going to tell you why.


It all started in November of 2007. Does everyone remember the Writer's Strike in Hollywood? Well, I was pretty involved in it. It is a long story as to why, but it really isn't important. The point is, is that I was on the picket lines at Disney Studios in Burbank to help support the writers. The writers of a particular top 10 show on CBS. I was basically the liaison between the writers and the large number of worldwide fans from a popular internet blog. The fans are very loyal to this show and wanted to show their support. It was great for me because I got to meet these writers and producers personally. They are a great group of people and I felt very privileged. I was determined NOT to be "that actor" that bugged these people to get me on the show. I was not ever going to bring it up. Of course I wanted to, but it wasn't the time, nor the place. It didn't matter, because after spending a few days with them, they started throwing around the idea of getting me some lines on the show. That is like more than music to an actor's ears. I mean, this is what people dream of! Just one line on a show is a big thing for us. To make a long story short........the strike ended in early February, I believe, and they said that they would try to get me on the show the next season, as in this season. I was elated!


Now, being the moron that I am, I pretty much stopped everything I was doing in terms of acting. Stupid, I know. I thought I was going to get my break through them, then that would lead to something else, then I would be on my way. Not so much. I am not mad at the writers/producers. It takes a lot of effort to get an actor on a show and it has to be ok'd by many people. I am more mad at myself. Even if it was a guaranteed 100% surefire thing that I was going to be on the show, I shouldn't have halted all my other efforts. It would have only been a 1 time thing anyways. Not to mention, I have been approached by 3 other people (completely unrelated to this show) who have said to me that they were working on projects that they would put me in. Did I ever hear from them? Even after THEY gave me their business cards, e-mails, telephone numbers? NO!! I guess that is the nature of this business, and after all of the exhaustive research that I did BEFORE I moved to Los Angeles, I just didn't think about all of the broken promises that this town has to offer. I guess it wouldn't be natural to think of something like that when you are so excited about something.


All in all, it was a learning experience for me. I certainly see why people here get into porn, prostitution, etc. They are naive (and broke) and most likely promised a dream by someone. Thank God I got a good education before coming out here and thank God I never got mixed up in drugs or anything like that that might impair my ability to think right.

Anyway, I've got a new energy, a new outlook on the biz and a new and re-organized plan for 2009, and I'm going to tell you what it is in my next post. I must say, all of the friendly comments I get on the blog and the nice e-mails really do help. I may have been down in 2008 but I am not out!

I have 2 positive quotes for this blog. This first one was my original one:

"I believe, therefore I am" (I don't know who originally said this)

Then, at work tonight, I happened to come across this similar one in a newspaper:

"If you can believe in your power to do great things, you will" --Michael Berg

I don't know who the hell Michael Berg is, but this quote fits this blog entry.

Ciao!

I Actually Have Something To Write About

My new task is to find some interesting things to write about since I can no longer write about all of the interesting sets that I've been on. I haven't found interesting things yet, but I think I can muster up a few things. For starters, I think working at the gym is going to provide me with enough "crazies" to write about, so that shouldn't be a problem, haha. For instance, last week the manager at one of our other gyms called me and asked me if I could work the overnight shift for a few days because the regular person got the pink slip and she needed a temporary fill in until she trained her new person. I reluctantly agreed. I needed the money, but I wasn't too thrilled about working from 10pm-6am, being the only person working and basically being bored out of my mind! For anyone who doesn't know me, I have a very short attention span. (My biggest fear before moving to LA had nothing to do with money. I was afraid of being bored to death since I didn't know anyone). Anyways, I worked 3 overnight shifts last week, and I loved it! It surprised the hell out of me. I liked it for a few reasons. First, there isn't much to do, but enough that I wasn't bored all night. Second, this is LA, so people come in all through the night and they talk to me and stuff. Third, since I'm the only one working, I can eat whenever I want and do whatever I want. Not to mention, on the first night, some young guy high on some kind of drug was starting fights in the basketball court and he got punched in the face and I had to call security and the police and he was escorted out. So, I was certainly entertained all through the night!

I'm also looking for another job because obviously the gym isn't going to cut it here in LA. It's really hard to find a good paying job as an actor. You need your days free (or a job that will let you out for auditions), you need flexibility and you need more than minimum wage. I've filled out so many applications that I don't ever want to see another one again. I haven't really found anything worthwhile until I saw a posting on the internet for a really good paying job that actually said "actors and artists welcome". That's pretty much unheard of. Most jobs other than restaurants (which I'm so desperately trying NOT to work at) don't like hiring actors because of auditions and stuff. So, I submitted for this job, but I knew that a thousand other people probably did too. Here's a sample of the message I got today:

Kris,

Your name has helped you with this interview. I have received an overwhelming response and would not have opened your email, had it not been for your name. I like your name.

LOLOL. Isn't that cool? I never would have expected a message like that. I guess I have to thank my parents for that one, huh? Thanks Mom and Dad. Now, this is just for the interview. I haven't gotten the job yet, but we'll see. Funny how things happen though.

Lastly, I have to mention a thing or two about the power of the mind. I'm sure everyone has heard about "The Secret". The thought that if you think positive things, good things will happen to you? I haven't read that book, but I have read 2 that are similar. Some of my positive quotes come from them. One is called The Dynamic Laws of Prosperity and the other is Think and Grow Rich. I'm mentioning these because they all talk about the Law of Attraction. I believe it and I have proven. If you think positive, then you will attract positive people and positive things (although I still attract the crazies, but that's how it's always going to be. I'm not complaining...I need to laugh). I moved here in July, and basically from July to December, NOTHING happened for me. As you can see from my very first blog entry in 2007, I wrote about how I was only going to think positive, use what I learned in 2006 and go from there. In January I was contacted by 5 talent agencies and I signed with one. In February I was booked in my first 2 film roles. In March I became SAG eligible. Today is April 1st and I just got an e-mail that I am being called back for another independent film (wish me luck and think positive for me!). I did have a bad week last week in terms of being a bit down, but today I got 2 e-mails: 1 about the job, the other about the call back. Is that not proof??? How could I not believe? I believe in pre-destiny, but I think it has to start with the mind. It's more powerful than we think. And if something is working for you, I think you should share it with others, so I'm sharing. That's just my two sense (or is it cents? hell, I don't know, you get what I'm saying).

Positive quote of the day:

"Have patience with all things, but chiefly have patience with yourself. Do not lose courage in considering your own imperfections, but instantly set about remedying them – every day begin the task anew."

~Saint Frances De Sales

I Didn't Expect This

Here is a picture of my 3rd and final SAG voucher that allowed me to obtain my union eligibility, all thanks to my new blogger friend Jill. For anyone not familiar with what SAG vouchers are and why everyone wants them, I explained a little bit about them in an earlier post. Click here to read about it. With that being said, it is a relief to know that I can cut back on doing background a little bit. Hey, it can get grueling. I only did it full time to maximize my chances of getting the vouchers. I got myself 2, and Jill actually got me 2 as well. When I was on Criminal Minds this past Thursday, they weren't finished shooting some of the scenes, and we got recalled the next day to finish up, which meant another SAG voucher for me. You're probably thinking that I'm going to run to the SAG office and join now. Not so fast. I only wanted my eligibility. I never intended to join right away. I'm not going to get into the details of why I'm not joining right away because it's confusing and not really that important anyway. All that matters is that I am eligible and I can join anytime that I CHOOSE.

It's fitting to say here that ever since Jill mentioned me on her blog, I've been getting a lot of responses from people all over the United States, Canada and Europe, and i just got a hit from South America. The power of the internet is incredible. People have contacted me on my blog, through e-mail and through myspace. I think it's great. It is really cool to know that people have an interest in what I'm doing. All the positive comments and energy is such a good thing. It proves that there are great people still out there. Sometimes you start to wonder what the world is coming to and if any good people still exist, haha. I just wanted to say I appreciate all the comments and I do respond to everyone. It is really weird because when I moved to Los Angeles from Ohio, I created this blog for my family and friends to keep up with what I was doing so I wouldn't have to constantly tell the same stories over and over again. I only e-mailed this link to a few select people because I thought to myself, "I don't want everyone all up in my business". Everyone meaning former friends. I had no idea my blog was available to the public, however. Thank God it was. I've been able to come into contact with a lot of cool people and even meet one of them! This is a picture of me smiling because I'm happy. All of my friends have seen this picture, but it is one that I actually LIKE. That's rare!

Positive quote of the day:

I know life can be so tough
And you feel like giving up
But you must be strong
Baby just hold on
You'll never find the answers
if you throw your life away
I used to feel the way you do
Still I have to keep on going
Never knowing if I could take it
If I would make it through the night
I held on to my faith
I struggled and I prayed
And now I've finally found my way

~Mariah Carey, Make It Happen, Mariah Carey, 1990

I'll be the first to say that song lyrics sound cheesy unless they are sung, but it's the message we're after. I know I can relate to the first part of the verse. As for the last sentence, I don't think I'm there yet, but I'm on my way!

I Am Officially NOT A Crazy!

You all know how I am only trying to stay in a positive frame of my mind, hence my positive quotes at the end of my posts. I believe that positive energy breeds more positive energy, and the same goes for negativity. I didn't even realize, but a friend of mine brought this to my attention the other day. On January 2nd, I did my first post on positivity and demanded that I only think positive thoughts. I don't think that it is a coincidence that in the month of January alone, I was contacted by 4 talent agencies, I signed with one of them, I booked a role on a student film, and I booked a role on an independent short film! More happened in the month of January for me than in the entire first 6 months that I was here! If that isn't full on proof that the mind is a powerful thing and can attract what it puts out, then I don't know what is. It's very hard to stay positive in such a negative world, but you have to force yourself.

So, what's the point of this post? Well, a random person found my blog and thought it was interesting. This person is getting started with an acting career in LA and they contacted me for some advice, particularly for getting into background work. I wrote back with my honest advice, because lets face it, Hollywood is a confusing place and with all the scame artists and creepy people around, it's hard to know who to trust. This is part of the message this person wrote back to me:

"First of all, congratulations on getting an agent and taking the next step! Thanks a million for writing back and giving me a heads up on the agencies -- some good advice from a sane person helps a LOT. I've got to say I admire your drive and ambition, I think you're going to be famous in about 10 minutes".

How nice is that? See, little things like that give me another surge of motivation to last me another few months. So, I had to share. Oh, and notice she said it was nice to hear from a "sane" person. That most likely means she has run into some crazies of her own and I'm NOT one of them!! haha SCORE!!!

The Dawn of The New Year.......

Marks my six month anniversary moving to the City of Angels! Wow. All I can say is that time FLIES. I mean, it seems like just last week I was driving across the country to get here. I remember it in detail. Saying my goodbyes, writing my first blog, leaving the only home I've ever known! It's been the most exciting, happiest, scariest, saddest, incredible experience all at the same time. Now, I've been on a rollercoaster ride of emotions since I arrived here. Those emotions include, happiness, sadness, fright, depression, frustration, among many others. People close to me tell me I need to calm down and stop freaking out so soon. After all, it's only been 6 months. But, if you were $80,000 in debt and had to make another life altering decision (whether to move back to Ohio or not in June), wouldn't you feel a little on edge as well?? This is not easy! Obviously my biggest fear is failure out here, but at the same time, I know I am destined for greatness. I can honestly say, that to this day, I have never failed at anything! Everything I have attempted, I have been able to achieve thus far (med school being the most challenging by far). Why should this be any different? Why the hell is it so hard then??

So, here is my strategy for 2007. I plan to look at the latter half of 2006 as a learning experience. I have worked on every major studio lot in Hollywood. I know how a real working set operates, I know the terminology, and most of all, I know how badly so many other people want this just as I do. So, now in 2007, it's time to take things to the next level. Strive for the next step. No matter what obstacles get in the way. I've never quit anything (I don't think). Not only that, I left my life in Ohio because I had certain life golas I wanted to achieve, one of those being travel. At the age of 24, the only other country I have been to is Jamaica, because that is where my dad is from (Niagara Falls doesn't count!). I've never crossed an ocean, I've never been to another continent. We took a family vacation once to Phoenix when I was in 11th grade, but other than that, I had never even been west of the Mississippi. If my dad's family didn't live in New York City, I probably never would have been there either. When I wanted to apply to out of state colleges, I was told that that wasn't really necessary. When I wanted to apply to out of state medical schools, I was politely encouraged not to (although, in all fairness, money played a part in this too). While I know my parents only wanted the best for me, and for me to be safe, this is not a healthy thing. Do I really deserve to have a life doomed and confined to Columbus, Ohio which accounts for 0.00000000000000000001% of the Earth! I ultimately felt like a prisoner and had to get out! I don't know how many parents read this blog, but if you have children and they kind of hint to wanting a break from school after college, PLEASE don't discourage it. They need it, and deserve it. The most frustrating thing for me in medical school was hearing my colleagues' stories about Africa, Europe, Japan, India, etc. Ok, I got off topic. My original point was that I moved out here to provide myself with opportunities to travel, and until that happens, I'm not satisfied!

So, this is to a GREAT 2007! Starting today, I'm going to end all of my blogs with positive quotes from books I have read, because sometimes things get so depressing that you literally have to overload yourself with positive thoughts just to stay afloat. Here are two that seem to fit in with this specific post.

"I had learned, from years of experience with men, that when a man really desires a thing so deeply that he is willing to stake his entire future on a single turn of the wheel in order to get it, he is sure to win."

"The person who takes no chances generally has to take whatever is left when others have finished choosing"

--both from Napoleon Hill, Think and Grow Rich