Deanna Lynn Walsh: Actor in Los Angeles, California.

Hi Deanna, I do have a web page. Please go and have a look at Poppy the troll flying on Willy the seagulls back. It is a great animation which was done by Bill Smith. Thank you for your coments Any ideas are always welcome. Mary Mary Filmer Author

Hi Mary, I highly recommend a book by Guy Kawasaki called APE (Author, Publisher, Entrepreneur).

Hi Damian, I will check out the book. Thanks and did you check out Poppy on my web page it is really quite good. Mary Filmer author

Well, two weeks have come and gone since the original post. My daughter had her first real audition yesterday. (Whew! Glad that's over!) After a bit of trouble getting started in the day, from what she said the audition went extremely well. She was a bit nervous about the whole thing in general as well as her accent (she's recently moved here from Germany where she grew up), not fully understanding American culture, etc., etc. So much for a 19 year old to process at once. The audition was for a movie based on the book "Beyond The Soul" by Slaughter Brown. The casting director(s) were both co-authors of the book. They noticed her accent immediately and one asked where she was from. When she told them, one of the CD's apparently was excited and began speaking to her in German; he spent 6 years in I believe she said Berlin. Then relaxation and comfort set in. They chatted a bit after the audition was over and she asked them if they would autograph her copy of the book which they were happy to do. They asked if she actually read the book, and she told them "Yes, all of it. If you write a sequel, I know it will be a hit also!" And so the journey continues ...

That sounds absolutely perfect! What a great first experience for her. Congrats to you both. I foresee a bright future for her. As always, keep us posted. :-)

vry nice

Welcome to real world. I have said it now many times, talent is only part of the formula. Hollywood pays for branding. That means what about the actor puts butts in the seats. If your branded you will be paid no matter what because you have real value. If I hire a no-name actor with amazing talent to perform in a black box theatre the show will likely not succeed, no one will see it, and no money will be made or paid. If I hire a name actor with less talent to do the same show it will make a lot of money and everyone gets paid well. No one can force you to take a low paying job. I had to take many low paying jobs as I worked my way up the ladder in the legal profession before retiring and going into the acting world full time, and that is the way the world turns. In every industry in America the salary is based on the value you bring to the company and the demand for your labor. In North Dakota McDonald's employees are being paid $20 an hour because of the demand caused by the oil industry. The same is happening in Texas. That is the model for success. Ability and branding meets supply and demand. If you bring in regulations you reduce demand and end up with jobs vanishing. I am not a fan of unions but most of the professional work is being done under union contracts and they pay very well. Not getting paid by an independent producer making a movie on a shoe string budget is something you can not fight to change, there is no money there. Many actors believe that all these independent filmmakers are ripping them off making huge amounts of money and not paying them. Nothing could be further from the truth. 70 feature films a year get theatrical distribution out of hundreds of thousands of independent films made every year. Of course there are producers that take advantage of actors. DON'T WORK FOR THEM and the problem goes away. Actors need to build their branding, and yes that means taking low paying jobs to get the portfolio and build a fan base but you could pay 20-40 thousand dollars a year and go to a university acting program, or wait 15-20 years to build a portfolio. Be happy there is an alternative. You want a six figure income do six figure training and acquire real value. That is not to say that a university degree will get you a job but the equivalent in professional experience will. Acting is not a get rich quick scheme. You have to do the work before they will hire you to do the work. If you have and are doing the training, networking, building branding etc. then you should be getting work. If not you might want to consider a career change.

We have huge problems with wannabee make-up artists here,minimum expensive training,no real qualifications,desperate to meet stars and charge low rates,I`m considering leaving the profession because of no control on standards or ethics.

Eve sounds like Real Estate. LOL! To OP the real challenge is the UN-stated 'grease' for your project to be considered. Who gets a lunch date with an exec... The one who 'Pop's for nice Sushi lunch? Or the one who buys an Ice-tea begrudgingly at a Coco's diner? Say you have a masterpiece done, it must now be put on the shelf front and center. This is in any Supermarket you visit.

Always doubt the naysayers but never doubt yourself if you do you will become one of them

Ignore the naysayers -- they are stupid. Get a crew of visionaries, keep an eye out for the big drugs which kill amazing folks early, and make your move! (And watch out for Psychic Vampires!!)

What ever you do, don't limit yourself. You are going places you never thought you could possibly go.

So true Luis, well said.

True.

so true if we falter because we listen to others we have no one to blame but our selves. we have to take from within all the strength we have to show that we have what it takes to be the best we can be and let it shine for all

I like that. Makes great sense and it is true.

Me too. I am still getting it sorted, but so far working out.