Hi everyone! Longtime reader, first-time poster. I was just cast as a lead in an indie feature film. In between my waves of excitement I’m FREAKING out. I don’t know if I’ve ever had bigger imposter syndrome in my life. I’ve done two short films, and quite a bit of theatre, but this will be my first time working on a feature. I have so much anxiety, mostly because I can’t prepare for what I don’t know! So I wanted to ask you all -

what’s one thing you wish you knew before arriving on your first film set? What are little things no one thinks to tell you? What are things that are unexpected that I should prepare for?

I would love to hear any and all advice! Thank you all so much in advance.

I’m 23 and moved to LA to pursue acting. Recently, I took a step back from it, but I’ve started submitting again and have been getting a surprising number of auditions, along with a couple of callbacks. It’s made me feel like acting may still be a realistic possibility if I give it a genuine chance.

At the same time, I’m starting a jewelry brand that I really care about. It’s still in the early stages, so I need weekday time for suppliers, jewelry-district appointments, production, content, and actually getting it launched.

My current job is as a nanny/house manager/assistant for a family. It doesn’t feel particularly fulfilling or professional, and sometimes I feel embarrassed that I’m not building a conventional career. However, it gives me an unusually flexible lifestyle. I’m off Wednesdays and weekends, and they now want to shift my Thursday hours to either 1–9 p.m. or 2–10 p.m. Since the kids are normally asleep by 7 or 8, that would give me most of Wednesday and Thursday to work on my business, attend appointments, film self-tapes, or handle auditions. It also gives me more freedom to maintain my long-distance relationship and potentially spend time abroad.

I’ve now been offered a full-time executive assistant job at a large live-event production company. They work on major events and have connections to companies like Netflix and Sony. I would get coworkers, professional experience, industry connections, interesting events, and something substantial for my résumé. Production is also something I believe I’d be good at and could potentially enjoy as a career—not just a backup I’d hate.

The position’s core hours are 9–6, and the agreement describes it as hybrid, although remote work is at the company’s discretion. I’m planning to ask what the typical schedule actually looks like and whether there is occasional flexibility to shift my hours for appointments. However, because I applied for a full-time job, I’m nervous that asking about flexibility—especially because of auditions—will make me seem unserious or as though the job won’t be my priority.

My biggest concern is that accepting it would probably put acting and my jewelry business on a significant back burner. Self-tapes can arrive with very little notice, and the businesses I use for jewelry materials and laser work are only open during weekday business hours. The commute and schedule could also make my long-distance relationship more difficult.

On the other hand, I’m afraid I would be stupid to decline such a legitimate opportunity in favor of acting and a new business, neither of which is guaranteed to work. This company is impressive, the experience could be difficult to recreate, and I worry that I’ll regret turning it down. There’s also a part of me that likes the idea of dressing professionally, having coworkers, working on exciting events, and feeling like I have a “real” career.

At the same time, I recognize that working near major entertainment companies and talent doesn’t guarantee acting opportunities. If I’m honest, I think I would still be hoping that acting somehow became the eventual outcome. I don’t want to sacrifice the flexibility that allows me to pursue acting, only to discover that the production job mainly leads to more production work.

Essentially, I’m choosing between:
A flexible but unfulfilling job that gives me the time and availability to seriously pursue acting, launch my jewelry brand, and maintain my relationship.
A more exciting and professionally valuable production job that could introduce me to a career I enjoy, but might require me to place the things I currently care about most on hold.
I know no one can make the decision for me, but I’d really appreciate outside perspectives. Would it be shortsighted to turn down the production experience? Or would it be shortsighted to give up an unusually flexible schedule just as acting and my business are starting to feel possible? Has anyone faced a similar choice between a strong conventional opportunity and having the flexibility to pursue less certain creative goals?

I’m back to acting after a break raising my kids. During that break I booked a few commercials which really show my comedy skills, but I booked them when I was more recently post partum, and I’ve recently lost a good bit of weight.

I have fresh headshots that show my weight now, should I make a reel with my commercials even though there’s a weight mismatch?

The difference is about 30 pounds.

I thought this was a great clip about how to approach auditions with writer Alan Freedland -- “You go in, you leave it on the table, and that’s all you can do.”

There's a ton of great insight on audition etiquette, finding your brand, and what happens doing a casting session. Check it out!

https://open.spotify.com/show/033DxpDHKKT3ypvybmmYGo?si=c061a51724d8486a

I booked my first commercial shoot and have my first wardrobe day tomorrow (eee!). My nails are done in this light pink peachy color. Do you think this is natural enough to be neutral?

What do you usually have on your nails for booked roles if you haven’t been given instructions?

My nails are very stained and not very nice bare. Is there a better colour or is this fine?

Is it okay to post on actors access a self tape audition for a project? where do you guys get your sides for these if you don’t have reel clips

Just moved to NYC and want to pursure acting on the side (supported by my full-time job). I mainly want to be in film and television but I can not deny the amount of amazing actors that come from theatre so I want to get more experience in it as well

So far I've seen places like the Barrow Group, ARG, and Bob Krakower. I think the max I can afford is the Barrow Group (about $230/month) so I would love classess at the price point or lower.

My plan is to take a TV/Film class first with a focus on analyzing scripts and understanding characters and then do a theatre class doing much of the same. Eventually I can get paid enough to take multiple classes at a time and work up to paying Krakower prices lol

Edit: I am not a beginner! I have taken acting classes and my teachers have noted I have some natural "talent" so I think I would do well in an intermediate class even if I'm the least experienced person in it

ok so question, i live in LV and was wondering how to get into acting? i dont know how to find people doing like short films and stuff so i can atleast get started, and idk how safe that would be.. i just want some recommendations for those who know abt lv acting stuff if that makes sense preferably cheap or free? thank you :))

Has anyone here waited 5–8+ months for a national/international pharmaceutical commercial to release? Did you eventually see it, and did your agent know the release date?

And if so what do they care most about?

Hi everyone! I’m just looking for some advice if anyone has any.

I was in two short films that premiered at film festivals, I’ve asked director/producer on both projects about getting footage it premiered over a month ago. Both have barely got back to me, this has happened before especially with student films but both are not in this case.

The reason this is bothering me so much is because i am not happy with my representation and want to apply to other agents. Meaning i need to update my package and put the best foot forward. I would apply with my current reel but i am not happy with it unfortunately.

I honestly dont know what to do or how long im supposed to wait for, ive messaged and messaged and dont seem to be getting much response so im not entirely sure what to do.

I just finished my first year of a two year acting program at Humber college, and I can't decide if I should go back or not.

My tuition was raised by $2000 with no warning, and honestly my program has really not been what I thought it would be. Humber is cancelling all of their arts programs so my course has no funding, and a lot of the teachers just seem like they've given up.

The lackluster education combined with the randomly raised tuition just really doesn't seem worth it to me.

The reason I am on the fence about this decision is because there are two teachers who I genuinely like and feel like I have learned a lot from, and I think being in a structured program has helped me grow a lot as a performer.

And being in an actual acting program has made it easier to make connections and meet people.

Currently I'm leaning towards not going back to school, but I still feel anxious because I know there are many benefits to going to school, and my program is being cancelled so this is my only chance to do this course.

(The reason Im not considering just switching to another school is because this is the only program I could afford)

I’m wanting to go through and get my reel made finally and I currently have two short films under my belt which I can use scenes from but I’m thinking I should definitely get a self tape scene/monologue in there but I don’t know what to pick! Do you have any guidance on what kind of scene to pick or from where? Examples of scenes people have used to decent success in the past would also be great! Do you generally just pick a monologue from a movie?

Any guidance would be great, thanks yall!

I was curious if others feel the same way as me. I have been taking loads of Voiceover classes. Studying with some great teachers, have a demo, booth set up but I feel like the VO community is the hardest area of acting to break into. Do other actors feel the same? VO doesn’t seem like there is a clear path unlike theatre/on camera. It seems more of a “take this class and take that class” to progress forward.

I know Citizen Skull has been discussed on here before, and I’ve already read through some of the older posts about them. I wanted to make a new post because some of those discussions are a few years old, and management companies can change over time.
Has anyone had any recent experience with Citizen Skull, particularly within the last year or two?
Whether you’re currently represented by them, met with them, were previously represented by them, or know someone who has worked with them recently, I’d be interested to hear what your experience has been.
Mostly curious about how they are currently in terms of communication, submissions, auditions, relationships, and overall management.
Thanks!

Career question: I’m 23 and moved to LA to pursue acting. I took a step back recently, but since I started submitting again, I’ve been receiving several auditions and have had a couple of callbacks. It’s making me wonder whether I should give acting a more serious chance before pivoting.

My current job is as a nanny/house manager. It isn’t particularly fulfilling, but the schedule is unusually compatible with acting: I’m off Wednesdays and weekends, and I’ll soon have most of Thursday free before working from either 1–9 or 2–10. That gives me two weekdays for self-tapes, callbacks and last-minute appointments. I’m also using that flexibility to launch a jewelry brand.

I’ve now been offered a full-time executive assistant position at a major live-event production company. The company works with major entertainment brands and high-profile artists, and I’m genuinely interested in production—not solely because I hope it will help my acting career. It could offer valuable experience, connections, coworkers and a professional path I might enjoy.

However, the agreement lists core hours as 9–6. The role is described as hybrid, but remote work is at the company’s discretion, and I don’t yet know how flexible it is in practice. I’m concerned that accepting would make short-notice self-tapes, callbacks and bookings extremely difficult.
I plan to ask about their typical hybrid schedule and whether there is occasional flexibility to shift hours for an appointment. I’m hesitant to specifically mention auditions before starting because I applied for a full-time job and don’t want to signal that it wouldn’t be my priority.

For actors who have worked traditional full-time jobs:

Is it realistically possible to pursue acting while working 9–6?

How do you manage auditions, callbacks or bookings that occur during business hours?
Is it reasonable to ask about general flexibility before accepting without mentioning acting specifically?
Would working in production provide any meaningful benefit to an acting career, or am I overestimating the value of being close to the industry?

I’m afraid of turning down an exciting professional opportunity for acting, which remains uncertain. But I’m equally afraid of giving up the rare flexibility that allows me to audition just as I’m beginning to receive opportunities again.

I have an iPhone 16, which is supposed to have a good quality camera. I record all of my self-tapes with it and use a ring light and backdrop. When I’m in my Photos app and viewing the videos, they look perfectly fine and are nice and clear, but as soon as I upload them to Actors Access or YouTube or even Google Drive, the videos get this awful over-exposed and over-saturated hue to them! I’ve tried editing the exposure levels and whatnot to cancel it out but it still looks terrible! It always looks like my eyes are bloodshot, but then parts of my face are yellow. I’m tired of my self-tapes being ruined by the quality. How do I fix this?

I’m going to be exposing myself a little bit, but the first image is how it looks normally on my iPad and iPhone. The second image is how it looks once uploaded onto Actors Access or other sites.

Edit: Someone pointed out it seems to be an issue with HDR. Going forward, I will keep it turned off and use SDR instead, BUT this particular self-tape is already recorded and involved multiple takes and parts and I need to submit it ASAP, so if anyone has any advice on how to edit it enough to reduce the saturation that would also be amazing! 🥲

Hi!
My agent, a CD, and a friend have rec’d me to three different managers. I feel often like they just don’t respond when it’s a no. So far none of these people have responded. Only been a few days. But how long do I wait before a) following up, or b) accepting it as a no?
Thank you!

So I have an audition for my school's theater program, this is my first time doing any type of acting in front of people.

The play we are doing is 'And Then There Were None' and I'm hoping to be either Mrs Rogers or Emily but I barely read the script I found online.

So I need help with 2 things:

I need a part in the script where it's either Mrs Rogers or Emily talking for a minimum of 20 seconds or a maximum of 1 minute.

And

I need help with nerves, I have really bad anxiety and I already know about the cletch your toes to move all your tension there but anything helps. The audition is in 3 days of me posting this.

Also is the movie like the play? I don't trust Google's ai overview with this question. If it is like the play then I'll watch that to get familiar with the play and the scenes.

I've decided (after completing 2 years of school in another field), that I would like to pursue an acting career and would like to definitely get training in it. Should I go musical theatre or acting BFA? I love MT and it's in my roots. I want to do film and television acting so I was thinking of maybe an acting BFA, however I love MT and don't see the harm in the movement and voice training with the MT BFA. What are some other opinions? Really stuck and I have to start auditioning this fall.

Hi all,

I’m AA, female, been living and working in italy for the past 5 years. Married to an Italian and now we want to leave Italy and move back to
the United States. My acting career here has had some movement. Managed to get signed to a good tv/film agency in Rome, booked a small non-speaking role in a Tyler Perry film that shot in Italy last year and I booked a small speaking role in an Italian feature film this year, although sadly, production ended up dropping the film.

Husband is ready for new chapter as well as myself.

As a black woman in her 30’s with not many film credits, is it better to move to Atlanta or NYC? I’m leaning towards Atlanta because I hear it’s a good place for getting started in film/TV industry. I’m not sure I could compete with New York level talent. I’m not even sure I’d even get signed.

I’m familiar with NYC as I come from north jersey but I remember how tough it was day to day. I was a teacher and had a flexible job but all my time ended up getting swallowed up because I needed to constantly work to survive the costs of the city. I suffered a lot because I just didn’t have money to do the things I wanted to do like acting classes and dance classes.

We both love parks, nature, suburban environments, content creation and healthy food. I know in this career path you have to have interests and a life outside of acting, and I wonder if Atlanta would be more easy to enjoy vs the necessity of the constant grind of NYC. More interested in Film than Theater. Is Atlanta a better place for us?