Booking the Acting Job of a Lifetime

Many times, I see actors get sooooo close to “booking the acting job of a lifetime.”

And then, for all sorts of reasons, it doesn’t happen that one time.

This occurs with actors of all ages, at all career phases. There always seems to be that “one time I was so close that I could feel it in my bones” role.

The “booking of a lifetime” is relative to each person—it could be your first gig ever, a series regular, a featured moment in a popular TV show, or that iconic dream role in theater or musicals.

Patience is truly a virtue in this biz, isn’t it?

Dear fellow artists with dreams, this is not what you want to hear, I know.

You want to work NOW. And you want that incredible life-changing role NOW.

Trust me, I have had my share of disappointments as a director. And that is exactly why I speak with actors constantly about resilience and claiming your own artistry in the process. I know what it takes to stay buoyant in the face of the obstacles. Booking acting jobs is not easy.

It takes a fierceness AND a lot of positive patience to keep moving forward.

Here is my motto of the day:

Love for the art of doing the art.

You might have to think on this twister for a second. Say it a few times. Let it resonate.

Love for the art of doing the art.

Love for the sake of it.

Love the art.

Nurture the love of the art.

And, do the art.

Love for the art of doing the art.

When I say yes to the art—and not just the potential success the art will bring me—I am saying yes to myself as an artist. 

Say yes to the art.

Say yes to yourself as an artist.

I love you, amazing artist. Bring your art into your auditions, your projects that you are creating, your community. And may you thrive and be creating that “life-changing” opportunity of a lifetime for yourself.

xHeidi

P.S. Bonus life points if you can redefine what a “life-changing” opportunity even is? Is it booking that acting job, or is it something else…? It might be creating a project you have been dreaming about for years, finding a new artistic community, pairing with a dream collaborator, or digging deep into audition prep for a role that you just love.

Image: WAITING TO EXHALE (1995) via Shotdeck