Kerry Beyer

Want to know the secret to a successful acting career? It’s not talent.. it’s no secret that talent is a requirement. It’s not luck… it’s no secret that a lucky break can catapult your career. But neither of those will mean anything if you don’t have the secret ingredient.
So, what is it you ask?

PROFESSIONALISM.

Without that, no matter how much talent you have, it’s likely that you won’t be able to create the opportunities that will enable a lucky break.

Sure, luck exists, but luck is really a product of creating enough opportunities for yourself. Unfortunately, this is the one business where people think they don’t need talent, hard work or professionalism.

A surgeon doesn’t operate without years of training and discipline. An NFL quarterback doesn’t just walk on the field having never thrown a football before. Yet actors think they can be movie stars just by calling themselves an actor.

As an actor, you are running a business – you need to treat it as such. In all of your dealings. Whether it’s with an agent, a casting director, a photographer, a director, or crew, etc.

I recently had a client contact me last minute, wanting a shoot for the next day. I went out of my way to accommodate them. They no-showed the appointment because they didn’t have the funds. While it’s better to tell me before, rather than after we shoot, they should have never made the appointment and wasted my time knowing full well they didn’t have the funds.

Usually when someone contacts me last minute, it’s the first clue that it will be a less than professional experience. It means they didn’t plan – It means they don’t care enough. There are too many actors out there for you to not care about your business. You can’t just skate by.

Here are 6 RULES you should always abide if you want to be successful:

1. Whether it’s an audition, a photo shoot, a booking… you must always show up on time (and on time mean’s 15 minutes early).

2. Be professional and courteous to everyone… even the people you think are unimportant (…and here’s a clue, it’s a collaborative process, everyone’s important).

3. Keep the drama on screen, and leave everyone with a good impression. It’s a small community, and people talk.

4. Offer to do more than what is required of you.

5. Help promote the projects you are in, and other actors and projects as well. Be known as a positive, supportive force in the industry.

6. Do what you say you are going to do. Don’t be wishy washy. Keep your appointments and commitments. Directors like people they know they can count on.