Acting

Self tapes can feel awkward at first but they offer a chance to take control of your performance. Treat them as mini rehearsal sessions rather than mere obligations. Invest time in good lighting and sound, read the script thoroughly and make strong choices. Over time they become an asset because you get to shape your best take.

https://youtu.be/m5GiZE5d2UA I created thus and it took 8 months!! OFFICIALLY LAUNCHED FOR ACTORS What You Can Do with MyAuditionAI: • Analyze your audition video for acting and receive professional feedback from Meissner, Adler, Stanislawski, … And more • Rehearse scenes using the built-in acting coachs • Use a teleprompter for clean, confident line delivery, WITH READERS! • Evaluate your headshots with industry-powered insights. • Record and edit your actors audition tapes • Improve your performance and technical quality with the video performance analyzer. And so much more in this Actors Toolbox ! Built by ACTOR for actors!

https://youtu.be/m5GiZE5d2UA I created thus and it took 8 months!! OFFICIALLY LAUNCHED FOR ACTORS What You Can Do with MyAuditionAI: • Analyze your audition video for acting and receive professional feedback from Meissner, Adler, Stanislawski, … And more • Rehearse scenes using the built-in acting coachs • Use a teleprompter for clean, confident line delivery, WITH READERS! • Evaluate your headshots with industry-powered insights. • Record and edit your actors audition tapes • Improve your performance and technical quality with the video performance analyzer. And so much more in this Actors Toolbox ! Built by ACTOR for actors!

Will Roberts what an innovative idea? How did you come up with it ?

I've never looked up my IMDB ranking. I don't care. It seems silly to me, to put weight on something one has to pay for. I have credits yes, but I do not pay for my own page. Your post Dan Martin Roesch is a good reminder that it's all manufactured and means nothing as far as landing a role.

I've never used IMDB. Don't really have the credits for it to really count right now. I love the point about how the business remembers authenticity and emotional truth more than analytics. I think if I didn't stay true to the stories I want to tell as an artist, I would feel like the art was becoming fake and I wouldn't be telling the stories that I enjoy or the stories that make me feel most alive.

Hi Haley Mary,

thank you for sharing that — it’s beautifully said.

And honestly, I think your approach is exactly what keeps this industry human. IMDb, analytics, rankings… they’re all just numbers. They can help with visibility, sure, but they’ll never replace authenticity or the emotional truth behind an artist’s work.

What you said about staying true to the stories you want to tell really resonated with me. That’s the heart of it, isn’t it? If we lose that, the craft becomes hollow — but if we protect it, it stays alive, raw, and meaningful.

Credits will come in their own time.

But the voice, the honesty, the intention you’re speaking from… that’s already real artistry.

Thanks for adding such a grounded and honest perspective.

Feels good to be in a community where people still care about the soul of the work.

Warmly,

Dan

The other issue with IMDB and why I never used it, is that id doesn't include theater credits. I have way more stage credits than film/tv credits.

Hi Dan! Glad it resonated! Yeah, I'd rather tell stories that I can connect with that makes me feel alive, real and honest. That's also why I love writing my own stand up comedy for open mic nights. I can connect to something I have written more than anything that I've read in a monologue book. I came across some monologue books at a library this summer and thought I'd look through them and see if any resonated with me, but I ended up not resonating with any of the monologues and I can connect more with my own stories.

I love the rain, Brittany Christine! A few of my favorites are Jurassic Park, The Matrix, and Hurricane Heist.

Rainy days call for bourbon and Dateline. For fictional, it's a good time to watch any M. Night Shyamalan movies. Particularly, THE SIXTH SENSE and UNBREAKABLE Trilogy.

I have to agree with Maurice on the Jurassic Park movie being great for a rainy day. In Canada, we also get some smoke during the summers, so they're good for those smoky days when you're stuck indoors, too. My other faves are adventure movies or disaster movies. Jumanji, San Andreas are good as well as action movies such as the Jack Reacher movies, the Bourne movies and the Hunger Games movies.

Juliana Philippi It's been super long since I've seen Home for the Holidays that I don't remember it anymore so that's the perfect time to watch again! & I love Melissa & Mario have never heard of Holiday in Handcuffs so look forward to checking it out! Just looked up the Family Man trailer and it looks so good too- it's gettin watched, thank you for these!

My Thanksgiving Film lineup while we cook always includes: Stuck in Love, Son in Law, Addams Family Values, Chicken Run, and if we have time for a dark comedy- The Oath.

When I think of American Thanksgiving, I think of football, but as someone who loves thrillers and K-Dramas, I can't recommend the series The Glory on Netflix enough, Brittany Christine.

Ashley Renee Smith I haven't seen stuck in love but just watched the trailer and excited to check it out! and OMG I forgot all about Son in Law, I'm gonna see if it was a a classic in England like it was here and introduce it to my friend Kate to it when she arrives tomorrow. Adams Family anything are always sooo entertaining, i should do a marathon of them one wknd! Chicken Run is cute, and definitely checking out the oath now, I've had a couple girlfriends that work in the industry tell me I remind them of Tiffany Haddish personality wise so I need to watch more of her acting to see what they mean, GREAT recs TY!

Debbie Elicksen Wait, now I wanna know what your fav K-Dramas are too unrelated to Tgiving stuff! HAHA will check out Glory thank youuuu

I used to be in a Facebook group similar to that Haley. Casting Directors for Actors, basically an AMA. They had a separate one for headshot review. But like anything on Facebook it became a toxic waste dump and was shutdown.

Hi Suzanne, it is so true. It is amazing what people will say online. So many things that they would never say to someone in person. We always have to be very careful where we go online for information.

Haley, so glad you subscribed. Just click the notification bell and you will always know when a new video has been uploaded.

Aaron Marcus thanks for this. I would have thought it was obvious no to share on socials after signing a non-disclosure. At the same time I can also imagine how if I got really caught up in the excitement of booking a job I might get carried away and 'forget'.

I had a small part in season 2 episode 6 of the Netflix show "Tires". I knew of people that had been fired for similar things on other projects before, so I didn't even mention it until the new season dropped, just to be safe.

Ashley Renee Smith really enjoyed watching this. Glen Powell is so down to earth and has a great sense of humour. I totally agree with him that acting is about play. That's why i love it.

Thank you Amanda Toney . This is going to be useful when I start to self-tape again.

Great answers everyone!

Suzanne Bronson From an actors POV in a class - paying attention while other actors are performing their work (no texting, chatting, etc) punctuality, familiarity with the material you will be performing, listening to the acting teacher when he/she is talking. Just a few pet peeves as I have experienced them.

being able to work s part of a team, being able ti coloboirate with others abd bringing their ideas to the table, inmag8ination in terms of characater development whilst paotrying them.These ar definitely the most important things i have found when colobrating with client representataives. Trust is another,

I can relate David Horton

Actor ualities go!

Suzanne Bronson Not yet!

I wish ! :) Suzanne Bronson . How about you?

I have but on a much smaller scale. And maybe not what you're looking for for an answer but it was something I produced.

My first feature film "Turbo Cola" (currently available wherever you go to watch movies! Had to get that plug in there! Lol!). We made a really good Indie film. It won Best Comedy and Best Indie Film of the Year for 2023 (according to Film Threat) and I got to act in it in a small role.

Mind you, I had only been acting for 6 months when this thing was made. I had, maybe, three other IMDb credits at the time. Fast forward a few years and I'm STILL talking about this film. But because I took a chance on me and Produced a film, it led to sooooo many other acting gigs.

I've been told on sets (usually non union commercials) that they picked me, not only because I had the look that they were going for, but that I had been in a feature film that did well. On three separate occasions the Directors of these commercials, I had met on our festival circuit.

Sometimes, the thing that changes your life is when you take a chance at making your own stuff.

Thanks for this question!

On the flip side, has not getting a role changed the trajectory of your career? I was listening to the Bones rewatch podcast, and the director of the pilot said that Jonah Hill was in serious contention for the role of Zach Addy. The network loved him, Hart Hanson said he wasn't right. Jonah Hill's whole career is because he did not get cast in BONES.

Something to remember when you don't get a part you really wanted.

bumping this up

Suzanne Bronson yes so simple and yet no so simple in my experience

https://pro.imdb.com/videoproembed/vi4036345625?ref_=ext_shr_lnk

Is that a memorable moment for you Jack Teague ? What made it so?

My apologies, Suzanne, didn't see your response until now. It was for me. IMO, it seemed potentially reflective of conversations hetero parents have with gay children who have been ostracized, capturing remorse, seeking understanding. Being totally outside my personal experience, I had to find that emotion.

Hey what are some memorable moments?

I think it's great that Lucy Liu stood up for her worth, Alexandra Stevens!

Some producers, directors, writers, etc. embrace diversity in the industry, and I think it should be done a lot more.

I think the name of a character should be changed if a person of a different race takes over the role (sometimes). Sometimes names aren't just names in stories. They have meanings, and some of those meanings are cultural.

I guess that's up to all involved. I agree with Maurice Vaughan Sometimes it matters, sometimes it doesn't. Really depends on the writer. I don't see the problem with the name in Lucy Liu's case. Since she said she didn't want to change it to an Asian name, I think that's great. I know Hispanics with non Latino names. I have an ex who is Hispanic, but has a Swedish last name, as that was the name of his step father and his step father raised him. I think it's great if they don't even explain in the movie why she has the last name Slevin.

Interesting that Lucy Liu said she was tired of being seen as the Dragon Lady from Kill Bill. I have forgotten all about that. I remember her as playing Dr. Watson on ELEMENTARY. Which, btw, is another iconic gender reversal and ethnic recast. (See previous post in this lounge for reference.)

I agree, Suzanne Bronson. I use names for different races sometimes, like Brian. And I think it's great if they don't even explain in the movie why she has the last name Slevin. Everything doesn't need to be explained, and it could create some mystery in the story for the audience.

Everything Everywhere All At Once, Ashley Renee Smith. Michelle Yeoh is incredible in that film! Her role inspires me to write better characters. I need to rewatch the movie, especially to study her character and Stephanie Hsu's character.