Thought I’d share my perspective as a “working” actor in Los Angeles. It’s definitely not glamorous and the slow reversion back to in person auditions is reminding me just what a struggle they are for the 95% of us that still need to work a part time job for steadier supplemental income. 

These micro costs add up and can’t be expensed unless we turn a profit in terms of taxes. If we report a loss as an actor 5 years in a row we (can) get audited. So quality CPA’s that deal with actors will advise against reporting a loss as the IRS deems it as a “hobby” at that point. 

Now back to the auditions. In the last 12 months I’ve booked 3 jobs (including one last December). When I was breaking into the industry my teachers said the goal was to hit a 1% booking rate. After 20 years of doing this I’m at 3-10% consistently. I’ve never once made enough to support myself just from acting. 

Here’s another example of the disconnect I experience as a working actor. People think it’s just laying around and not working too hard. Last week my agent had a meetup he likes people to try to make once a month. I had an in person audition that morning which took about 3 hours total: prep, travel and audition. 

Then I went to the agency meeting for an hour and a half. Then I went to my survival job for 8 hours. Then I got home and spent an hour self submitting for other projects since we can’t rely on our reps to cover every aspect of our careers. This is a relatively normal day. 

I’m lot having a pity party, but just trying to give people a glimpse of day to day in my life. Imagine going on 100 interviews a year, every single year. It takes a lot of mental energy to be “on” that often and to remain positive in the face of so much rejection. 

Then on top of that encountering people that 

don’t respect actors even though they spend all their time watching Netflix and can recite lines from their fav TV shows. 

I wouldn’t change my path because I honestly love what I do, but I’ve been more introspective lately as I approach 50 and how I’ll survive when I physically can’t bartend anymore…

…how many 50 year old bartenders do you know? It’s pretty tough on the body. So maybe I’ll pivot, maybe I’ll move, maybe I’ll find a subway to live in and perform monologues, haha. Either way it’s been a wild ride and I’m thankful I got to do something I enjoy on a daily basis and live in some amazing…

I had an in person audition last week and a callback for it this week in SM. Meter parking both days cost me $10, for one audition/callback. 

This year I had a record breaking 100 auditions to date. If half of them were in person it would cost me roughly $500 a year just for parking.

building far.quest & @wieldlabs.eth. cofounder at miy.com ventures. FID #274. Previously Square/Cash App. https://hiimnico.xyz/

I say there is no right or wrong way of making it. Find the path that resonates because that's the path the person will most likely continue on when times get tough. It's a very easy career path to get sidetracked on when money gets tight and everyone is naysaying. It's 100x tougher now to survive than 40 years ago.

what do you think of folks pursuing professional acting vs doing YT or TikTok as their 'debut'?

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Thanks for sharing this. Really interesting. I have a friend in her 50s who’s a stand up comedian and actor but due to kids is just now really getting going with acting. Really interesting to hear her talk about auditions. Don’t think I could do it!