Advice and musings from a working commercial director. I highly recommend all actors, especially new ones, take a moment to review the posts in this blog. It's free, time tested advice that has been accumulated by an industry veteran.
So a few years ago I had this idea for a cartoon... sort of a "Far Side" but the humor would be inspired by this wacky business we are in. Finally I got together with a storyboard artist and knocked a couple of them out. It was going to be a promotional thing to do every month, but I never followed through with it. Perhaps I'll pick it up again someday... but here's a sample. Happy Halloween!
I have an earlier post about a campaign I directed back in June. Click this link and you will see how it all came together "online". We shot everything, including the web elements and 3 broadcast commercials (not on the site). The buzz word in advertising is "Branding"... but you can call it virals, content, etc. The idea was to introduce 3 different inventors who use alibaba.com in "mockumentary" style so the audience would think these could be real people.
I actually shot a bunch of conceptual "comedy" ish campaigns for Hustler Hollywood... but this is not one of them :)!
I'm not a schmoozer, or a fantastic social network kind of guy... but I do make an effort at least to do the obvious. People constantly say it's "who you know"... which in some cases is true, but what I never liked about this statement is that it implies you have to already know them... it says nothing about "meeting them". It should be "It's who you meet and follow up with". Case and point, a few years ago I was at a friends birthday party... not at all in networking mode. Suddenly I was pulled into a conversation about commercials, and I met a young woman who worked for "Hustler Hollywood", the retail store branch of the Larry Flynt empire. She explained they wanted to do a broadcast TV campaign for the stores but didn't know where to start. I'm not an ad agency, but I do direct commercials, so I gave her my card and told her to call me on Monday so we could discuss... not thinking that much about it. A few days went by, and I started to feel like I should have gotten her number or email or something. One phone call to a mutual friend and I had her EM address.
I sent a link of my work along with my contact info, and then felt at least I had given this opportunity 100%. I got a response quickly from her saying she would pass it along, and 2 HOURS LATER my phone rang with an unrecognizable area code. The next thing I knew, I was talking to Jimmy Flynt Jr., Larry Flynts Nephew, who was in charge of the HH stores. A week later I was on a plane to Kentucky (on my own nickel) with story boards to pitch a campaign to Jimmy Jr. This is not what a commercial director usually does (the campaign is usually created by the agency) but the opportunity was real, and I stepped up. This led to a 2 year run with Hustler Hollywood. It wasn't the financial bonanza I had hoped for, but we did make some good money and had a lot of fun creating and executing the campaigns.
How does this relate to you? When you take a class and there is a guest teacher, send a "Thank You" em to that person. Put them on your EM list so you can inform them of any showcases or shows you are doing. When someone casually mentions "you should meet so and so".... follow up, don't let it slide. A lot of times in this town you just have to be on someone's radar so they think of you in the future. In other words, you don't have to slam them with job inquiries or multiple reels/ headshots etc. just keep and touch and follow through. You never know where the next opportunity will come from.
There are a lot of "showcase" acting programs out there. One of the most successful in my opinion is Edgemar's "Scene Bites". The Larry Moss Studio (Creative Director Michelle Danner) takes scenes from class and makes a showcase night out of it. This is not a new concept, however "Scene Bites" is not a one night event, it's usually between 3 - 5 nights spread out over a week or two. They do aggressive promotion for it, sell tickets, and create a buzz many industry professionals respond to.
It's going on this week, and next week. If you are an actor curious about the Larry Moss acting program, it's worth checking out. I'm going myself, and will follow up in the blog.
This kind of goes along with media networking. Have you ever wanted to learn HOW to use programs like Photoshop? Final Cut Pro? Aftereffects? Iweb? etc. If you ever try to learn these programs by reading a manual, you will go insane.
Lynda.com is an amazing website that is loaded with quicktime tutorials for hundreds of applications. It's like taking a class... well, better then taking a class because everything is broken down into easy to find segments... so you go at your own pace. You may want to explore editing your own reels, short films, or retouching your own photographs, designing your own website. Lynda.com takes the mystery and frustration out of learning new applications and empowers you to creatively handle more things in your career. It's something like $25 a month... but they have several different options... and once you are up and running on a program, you can certainly unsubscribe. I wanted to share this in the blog because it rocked me through photoshop at lightning speed, and I'm constantly bopping back on the site to learn more, or refresh my memory on certain things.
I just went to an event sponsored by BLOG OUT LOUD which inspired this entry. The blog, website, facebook... even twitter. We all need to pay attention to the roll these tools are playing in how we network professionally. Make sure you are diligent in not being left behind as this trend screams forward. I think this breaks down into 2 categories for actors. 1. Opportunities to create a buzz (get attention) and 2. Creating a living resume you can send people to. You don't have to do the first one... but the second one is critical. Every actor should have a personal website at this point. Iweb makes creating a website easy, and there are several other quick "website" services out there to take advantage of if need be. Headshots, resume, video reel, and contact info is all you really need. The easier the better. Casting directors are more diligent about looking at reels and visiting websites and it also helps your agent. It's just another resource to help "sell" you or market you.
I have my work on a big production company website (as a director), but I also have a more personal site that comes in handy. Many times I'll send people to that site first as it gives them an immediate impression of who I am and the kind of work I do. Also the personal site allows me to update things myself easily.
Creating a buzz is also good. I started this blog for both personal and business reasons. I was curious about the format, I wanted information (that I often teach) to also be available (or archived) online, and I wanted to bring attention to my headshot photography company. Read about Alexandra Raines on this blog as well... she created "alex'sinfo.com", another great example of someone helping others while getting attention as an actor. Most importantly, be informed about how people are marketing themselves and try and take advantage of it in your own career.
Whether it's feature films or commercials, there is a selection process that happens where a studio, or advertising agency, are combing through reels, making conference calls, reviewing production companies (in the commercial world), and reading director treatments. I'm going to talk specifically about the commercial directors process since that is what I am most familiar with.
Ad agency producers seek out director reels and production companies to execute a campaign. The reels (now usually just links) come from sales reps, executive producers, or other contacts the agency producer may have. Each link is usually put together in a custom fashion for the project at hand. This was not the norm a few short years ago, but with the ease of internet it is now the expected. In a way, this the same as an actor's "first call"...or even headshot.
Eventually the ad agency selects approx 3 to 6 directors/production companies they want to speak with. The conference call for a director is like a "call back" for actors. This is where a director really has to shine and make an impression. Just like with casting, sometimes the simplest things can make all the difference and usually we (the director) are in the dark about what the agency is "really" looking for. (Sound familiar?!). Once the call is over, the director writes a treatment and the producer puts together a budget ("bidding" the job). We send this in and then we wait it out.
The preparation I do for a conference call inspired a comedic short film called... of course... "The Conference Call"...take a look! Anyway, the point of this entry was to help actors understand that the director judging you is no stranger to being judged. Not taking it personal is key, and I feel I become better at calls and treatments the more I do... even if I don't get the job.
I recently became aware of actor Alexandra Raines. She has started a service for actors that I think is great! It's called Alexsinfo.com, and it's a free daily email for actors with the best information and resources on everything from castings, classes, marketing to traffic and lifestyle. Many of the resources offer discounts and specials exclusive to alexsinfo.com members -all in the hopes of helping actors build their careers. The mission of Alexsinfo.com is to keep you up-to-date on all the information, resources and research you may not have time to do in a way that is accessible and easy to understand. Alex enjoys sharing information and referrals about all the products and services available in and around Los Angeles - as well as giving you the opportunity to share your services. To check out the website go to www.alexsinfo.com and sign up to receive daily emails. This is a wonderful example of being proactive in your career, and at the same time doing your best to help others. Alexandra's Karma must be in a strong orbit! I urge everyone to sign up, or at least check it out.
Director/Editor Scott Young has worked with many of the worlds top ad agencies, directing well over 150 commercial campaigns for clients including YAMAHA, HYUNDAI, LG, BOEING, DAYS INN, COMPUSA, LINCOLN, HONDA, DIRECTV, TACO BELL, and LOWES. His award winning career has also been featured in ADWEEK, VARIETY, and SHOOT.
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