Dear Tombudsman:
I am an actor, very passionate about my work, and I also am blessed to be financially independent. This means I can construct my day according to my own desires—a position, I realize, that is enviable to many people.
If you were in my position, how would you use the days to further your career? I'm at the beginning stages; I have done quite a bit of local theatre—which I love—and three independent films. But right now I have no agent or manager, and I really think I could use my time and days to better advantage.
Chris P.
via the Internet
Dear Chris:
Well, I'd probably sit by the pool at the Beverly Hills Hotel, read the trades, and hope my portfolio kept growing. Then after waking up from that delightful dream, I'd jump up and realize I'd better find an acting gig real soon to pay the rent. OK, back to reality here.
You are certainly not in the financial category of the vast majority of working-class actors, and as you are blessed to have no worries about money matters, you can push for your acting career without that pressure. That's great, but you have to make sure it doesn't cause you to lose any edge in your pursuit of work. You have to be hungry—not necessarily literally—to stay the course as a professional actor, and financial security might make someone less likely to push as hard as they need to achieve maximum results.
Your plan will be not unlike that of most new actors, you'll just have a bit more free time to do it, because you aren't bogged down in survival jobs, etc. Your basic strategy will be a combination of acting preparation and training, pursuit of representation, and marketing to casting directors who hire actors for employment. That said, there isn't a master template you can follow for your career. I'll propose a sensible starter plan; as always, this is just my opinion.
One to three days a week could be devoted to acting study of some type. In Los Angeles this might be in a scene study class, improvisation workshop, on-camera commercial class, voiceover—anything that pertains to the work that you'll be pursuing. Chris, you could probably afford to study five nights a week. I think that might be overkill. Give yourself time to breathe and fully appreciate one or two teachers or specialties at a time. Two to six hours a week, including class time and homework, is plenty for most actors. More time will be added when you have audition materials to study, either with an acting coach or even alone in front of a video camera.
Part Two is trying to land an agent or manager. You should be focusing on this only if you feel you are honestly at the point of being ready for interviews and to have someone soliciting work on your behalf. If you feel your credits aren't quite there yet, if your training and confidence level aren't yet in peak form, put this on the back burner. Otherwise, taking one or two days a week—perhaps six to eight hours total—to focus on finding a good talent representative is sensible. Working and reworking your cover letter, and devising and implementing a mailing plan that will hit the quality agency and manager organizations will easily eat up this time. I wouldn't spend too much more time doing this, or you risk getting yourself into that mental state that sometimes causes unrepresented actors to lose sight of the bigger picture of their careers.
As a professional actor, most of your time will be filled with marketing to hirers. That generally means casting directors, but don't forget the producers, directors, ad agencies, and other possibilities. Suffice to say, with CDs alone you'll be busy. I think you would benefit by taking one to two hours each day to do submissions for theatre, film, TV, and commercials. Believe me, if you hunt for leads, you'll be able to find more than enough to fill that time, but taking much more time than this every day could burn you out or cause you to over-market.
Working in theatre as you have been will add several more hours a week, and this is wonderful. Between pursuit of stage work through BSW submissions a couple of hours each week, rehearsals, and performances, you'll fill a lot of the evening hours. And you'll still have plenty of time left in your workweek. Take one or two hours a week to visit bookstores, catch a play, or watch a film. Industry events, like symposiums, lectures, other and free events will add a few hours a month to your schedule while giving you information. Spend an hour or two a week reading the other trades—Variety, The Hollywood Reporter—to keep up on the business. A couple of hours a week on the Internet researching acting sites, chat boards, and industry leads might also be time well spent in 2003.
Just as important, especially as you have the financial freedom, volunteer in some non-industry area or take a part-time job away from the field just to make sure you are meeting new and exciting people that have nothing to do with acting. That'll make you a better performer, too. Lastly, take several hours a week to get away from thinking about the business. It'll be there when you come back.
Dear Tombudsman:
I build costumes and puppets by trade. I work for a shop that hires union puppeteers and suit performers to act using my fabrications. Sometimes, however, for myriad reasons, a non-union person is better acquainted with the mechanics or other issue in a particular shot.
Recently I was on-set with a costume, and the actor wearing it was injured. They had one more shot and asked me to place rods in the suit and manipulate it so that it seemed a person was in it and moving feverishly. Being new to the business and a non-actor, I was not familiar with the SAG regulations on puppeteering, and I did it. Should I have? What is SAG's definition of puppeteering? Should I follow up on it?
Another upcoming job may use a costume specifically designed on my body cast. My employer has asked me to go to the set with it but says it will only be used in the background. The commercial is union. What does that mean for me?
A.
via the Internet
Dear A:
First off, let me relay SAG's response to some of the matters in your letter from an e-mail I recently received. A SAG representative wrote, "If the performer is moving a costume by way of hand, string, or rod (or remote control) and is bringing life to the character, then SAG would assert jurisdiction as a principal puppeteer. If the performer is in a body suit, face covered, the performer is characterized as an extra. In this latter situation, as an extra 'body suit,' the performer can negotiate above and beyond the contract and attempt to obtain either a principal on- or off-camera rate for residuals. Probably it is best for the member to contact the Guild directly to find out all of the facts."
I'll add this: You were put into a position of having to choose whether to do a performance on the spot without anyone explaining to you that you could call the Guild for clarification. Should you have done it? SAG didn't address that part of your question, but my take is: If it was non-union, I see no problem, but if it was a union job and a performer was injured, he probably should have been replaced with another SAG puppeteer. Given that things don't always work they way they should on paper, you were quickly popped in there to save the shot.
Many performers, and sometimes even non-acting craftspeople like yourself, find themselves having to make this kind of decision on the fly, and you won't realize until later that you may have stepped into someone else's work jurisdiction and may be entitled to compensation. At the end of the day, producers might easily have gotten the Guild's permission to use a non-union person for a special circumstance, especially in this area.
But you did the gig, so now you need to figure out if, what, and how you should be paid. If this project was under union contract, you should have been compensated the Guild minimum principal rate, which is currently $500. So I'd immediately follow SAG's advice: Contact the Guild to get the skinny on your situation. I do recognize you're in a complicated position, given that you are gainfully employed building puppets; it's understandable that you'll want to pursue any payment claims carefully. The call is yours. With any kind of payment issue, don't wait more than six months to seek remuneration.
I suggest you accept that next commercial "extra" job only after first signing the appropriate union paperwork. Otherwise, the producer may expect you to do it for free as part of your current job responsibilities, or perhaps at a non-union rate. Here's where the Guild's rules come into play again: If you were a principal performer on the previous job, then you are likely going to be a "must join" this next time out as a performer. In other words, the employer will be required to employ you as a union actor, as you are past the Taft-Hartley 30-day period. You don't want to surprise your boss here, even if there is a chance he knows the Guild's rules already. The bottom line is that a union puppeteer would be compensated for the gig, and so should you if you are handed the task.
You would eventually have to join SAG if you continue on the performance route, and the Guild can also explain that procedure to you once you call in. If you have no interest in being a SAG member, then I'd have serious discussion with any union employer about whether you should be the one operating or standing inside one of your creations.
I'm sure I'll get a letter from a professional puppeteer or suit performer telling me something completely different, and that's fine as long as it isn't the big purple dinosaur. He scares me.