Tag Archives: acting

Watching Some Inspiration (or A Weekend Of Screenings)

Posted on October 13, 2015 | Comments Off

I realize that I’m pretty lucky with the screenings I get invited to. Some of them are because I am current on my SAG-AFTRA dues and I get to vote for the SAG Awards. Some of them are through Women In Film. And some of them are because I pay to be a part of the SAG-AFTRA Film Society.

Most of the screenings I go to (with the exception of the voting season for SAG Awards) are through the SAG-AFTRA Film Society. Prior to this past weekend, I had been to lots of movies through them. Most of them are either in theaters right now or about to be in theaters. And on the rare occasion those screenings include a Q&A.

Late on Friday night, I went to go see “The Walk”. I knew the story pretty well because I had seen “Man On Wire”, but I think that this film was pretty awesome. The screening was in 3D and my palms were sweaty the entire time the walk was going on (the friend who joined me said that he was barely able to breathe that time because he was nervous). It was a fun movie to watch and even though I was really tired Saturday morning I’m glad I went out to see it.

And on Saturday I got to see “Steve Jobs”. I was looking forward to this movie because I love the actors who are in it. I picked a screening time to go to that worked out with my schedule and was ready to go. But then a few days before the screening I found out that the screening time I was going to was also going to have a Q&A with the writer, director, and 3 of the actors in the film.

I was excited to attend the Q&A (which fortunately was after the film because it’s always weird when it’s before the movie you are seeing), but I knew that that movie was going to be extra crowded because of that.

I got to the theater pretty early and was a decent way back in the line, but I managed to find a pretty close and centered seat.

The movie was amazing. I had read the biography of Steve Jobs that the film was based on, but the movie was so different from what I expected. It pretty much takes place in 3 distinct acts (each act is a somewhat real-time representation of a certain day). The pattern of the movie was fascinating to watch and it felt like the movie flew by.

And soon as the credits were done, the Q&A started.

It’s always fun to hear about the making of a movie, but what truly inspired me was hearing how they did the rehearsal process for each of the acts. The actors had over a week of real rehearsal time (not being distracted by wardrobe fittings or other things) where they were in a rehearsal room with the set being marked out by tape. This way, the actors had time to get used to the dialogue (and there was a lot of dialogue) and not have to worry about taking up time on the set while the crew was there.

They got to do this rehearsal process for each of the acts (rehearsing for the week or so prior to filming that section). This is not normal. Most movies don’t really give actors real rehearsal time to work on their characters, lines, and relationships. But hearing that some directors feel this passionate about making sure their actors had what they needed to do the best performance possible really made me happy. I can only dream that I get to have an experience like that on set one day.

Normally when I go to screenings, I have fun because it’s a day or night at the movies. This past weekend, going to the movies inspired me to keep going and keep pursing my dream. Just seeing the passion in the filmmakers’ and actors’ eyes proved to me that I’m on the right path.

Comments Off on Watching Some Inspiration (or A Weekend Of Screenings)

Posted in Acting, Fun Stuff

Tagged acting, movies, SAG-AFTRA, screening, union

Lots Of TV (or What Season Is It?)

Posted on October 9, 2015 | 1 comment

You may have noticed that I haven’t written a post about the fall TV season yet. I usually post something about how I do my research or how I feel about the new TV shows (or their trailers).

I’m actually pretty behind on my fall TV viewing this year. I haven’t had as much time as I have had in the past. It’s a combination of having my workouts in the evenings, different events around town, and the SAG-AFTRA Convention. I’ve got about 10 new TV shows on my DVR that I haven’t had a chance to check out. But I’m not as stressed as I’ve been in the past because I upgraded my DVR with my cable company so I can record 6 shows at once instead of just 2 (I rarely record more than 2, but it’s nice to have it when I need it).

I’m hoping that I’ll be catching up on my research in the next few weeks or so. But while my focus was on the fall TV season, it’s now on pilot season.

Pilot season is typically after the new year and into April or so. That’s when the networks decide what shows they want to consider for the new TV season. I’ve heard for years that pilot season is disappearing because of cable and new shows coming on TV all throughout the year. But in the past, my pilot auditions have always fit into the classic pilot season timeline.

Until this week.

While I was at Disneyland, I got a text from my agents that I had an audition for a series regular on a new pilot this week. I was a bit shocked to get a pilot audition in October, but I’m down for whatever!

As I mentioned in my Disneyland post, we left pretty early. So as soon as I got home I printed out my audition sides and got to highlighting.

Since this is a very big deal audition, I wanted to take it as seriously as I could. And since I had a couple of days before the audition, I had time to get coached for it. I checked with Marci Liroff first since I have worked with her in class in the past, but she’s busy casting a new project. She gave me a referral, but I also heard back from Peggy Lane O’Rourke, who I met through the SAG-AFTRA election (she was on the other side and technically my “enemy”).

Peggy and I really connected while we were campaigning for the election and again at the convention, so I decided to drive out to her for coaching. And of course, we did 1 hour of coaching and 3 hours of goofing off and chatting. But that’s totally fine with me because she got to know me better as an actor and I think she understood my abilities better.

I think the coaching session went really well. I had some points in the script where I knew the choice I was making wasn’t right, but I didn’t know what I wanted to do either. She helped me discover and develop what I wanted to do.

And when I was in the room, I think I did a great job! One of my biggest issues in the audition room is talking too fast, but I actually got a note after my first read that I had too much air in the reading and she wanted me to speed up! That’s a first for me!

This pilot isn’t supposed to shoot until January, so even if I do get a callback I might not hear anything for a while. But no matter what, I know that I did the best that I could in the room and I have no regrets of any of my acting choices (and because I could hear through the door, I know my choices were very different from the other girls auditioning before me).

Now that my preview of pilot season is done, I can get back to focusing on the fall TV season and seeing what shows I want to target and what shows I can see myself fitting into.

Hopefully in the not-so-distant future, I will be on one of those shows. And it doesn’t matter to me if it’s a series regular or a 1 line part. I’m making strides to making my dreams come true and that’s all that counts to me.

1 Comment

Posted in Acting, Fun Stuff

Tagged acting, acting coach, audition, research, TV

The Convention Gala (or An Evening Under and With The Stars)

Posted on October 7, 2015 | 1 comment

With all the business surrounding the SAG-AFTRA Convention, I’m glad that there were a couple of fun events planned as well. Most of the fun things were free (like a screening I decided to skip because I needed to catch up on sleep), but there was one ticketed event as part of Convention.

The gala did cost money to attend, but I justified it by saying that I was saving money by not having to buy food during Convention (since they fed us) so I got a ticket before they sold out.

Part of the gala was the American Scene Awards, but mostly this was an event to have fun, dance, and get to know the other delegates there.

Since Convention was at Universal and the gala was at WB, I didn’t want to have to go home to change (I never would have made it in traffic). Fortunately, one of the SAG-AFTRA staff members let a couple of us use a meeting room to change in at the hotel. While there wasn’t privacy, none of us minded since it was better than having to change in the bathroom (I don’t want to have my bare feet on a public bathroom floor).

After we got ready, we carpooled over to WB were there was some on-site parking for us (most people bussed over, but I wanted to have my car there to get home quicker). The parking was pretty easy and we were on our way to the backlot right away so we could enjoy the party.

Of course, when there is a step and repeat, we have to take a photo.

The museum was open for us to enjoy, but I ended up not making it up to the second floor. I was having too much fun seeing my friends there and enjoying seeing everyone dressed up fancy.

We moved over to the buffet to get dinner and to the bar for drinks (just sparkling water for me) and then found a table to sit at for dinner and the awards.

Yes it was cool to see the awards, but I really just enjoyed having a fun night out. There are so many things to vote on and debate about at Convention, but this night was all about fun. I goofed off with people at my table and was just silly and giggly (it’s been a while since I felt like that).

After the awards and getting dessert, it was time to move over to the dance floor. There was a live band there and they were pretty awesome!

I’m not much of a dancer, but when there is a good band and lots of awesome people, I can’t turn it down. I was jumping around and pulling people into our group to dance. I’m not sure how long I was dancing, but by the time I was ready to go I was super sweaty and my feet had blisters. And I didn’t even care because I had such an amazing time!

I was worried about the timing of the gala, especially since I don’t live super close to everything. And yes, I was a bit tired the next morning, but it wasn’t unbearable and it was totally worth it. Bonding with my fellow delegates and getting to know people from all over the country was amazing and really helped me not feel like an outsider in the union anymore. I had gotten some haters during the election who didn’t believe that I should be a delegate due to what they perceive as a lack of credits. I questioned things a bit, but even beginner actors have the right to be active in the union government. I don’t regret things at all anymore and seeing everyone having fun all night made me realize that I totally fit in.

The next gala (and Convention) is 2 years away, but I’m already counting down the days. This entire 4 day process really was an eye-opening experience for me and reaffirmed all the choices that I’ve made in my career. And if I can feel that from my first Convention experience, I can’t image what will happen after my next one!

1 Comment

Posted in Acting, Celebrations, Fun Stuff

Tagged acting, party, SAG-AFTRA

SAG-AFTRA National Convention (or I Had No Idea It Would Be Like This)

Posted on October 6, 2015 | 4 comments

I’m going to split my recap of the SAG-AFTRA Convention into two posts. Today will be about a majority of the 4 days I spent at Convention and tomorrow I’ll write about the gala.

I’ve mentioned this on here before, but when I ran for my delegate seat I wasn’t 100% sure what I was in for. I knew that it would involve attending the National Convention, but that’s pretty much all I knew. I have been wanting to get more involved in the union for a while, so this was jumping in with both feet.

With National Convention coming closer, all the delegates got lots of emails with schedules and things that we would need to be aware of. The Convention website (and later the app they created) had all the amendments and resolutions that we would be voting on during Convention. Some of these things made sense to me, but many confused me. Fortunately, I have friends who know more about the union than I do that I can trust and they explained things to me and helped me understand which way I was wanting to vote on each thing.

The first day of Convention was Thursday evening for the delegate party. I don’t have any pictures of this because I had to run an unexpected errand right before the party and ended up arriving an hour late (the party was only 2 hours). I checked in and got my delegate badge and bag filled with information for the weekend.

I got to see a bunch of my delegate friends at the party. But since I knew the next morning would be a very early morning for me, I didn’t stay too long.

The next morning was the first day of “real” Convention activities. We voted on the Executive Vice President as an entire group and then we divided up to vote on Vice Presidents for our regions or categories. The voting took time, but I appreciated that because on Friday (and again on Saturday) I was working my box office day job from Convention. I got permission to do chats only and not phone calls, but I still had to focus on my customers. So while the voting was being done or counted, I sat at my table and worked (most of the other delegates used that time to talk to friends or meet new people from other parts of the country).

We also spent a lot of time at Convention voting on the amendments and resolutions that we had been sent prior to Convention. I really can’t say too much about what happened during that voting. But I do want to say that while during the elections over the summer there was very much an attitude of one side versus the other, at Convention everyone came together as one and we all worked to make sure that what we chose to do is in the best interest of all performers, recording artists, and broadcasters in the union.

We also got to hear from our National Executive Director, David White, about what is coming for the union and what he wants us to accomplish. I’ve met David White briefly before, but getting to hear his report was so inspiring and I’m so happy that he is our NED and helping us make the union the best that it can be. Again, I’m not able to share a ton of what was discussed, but there are some really great plans for the future that should be announced in the next few months.

At one point during Saturday, we got to split up and chose a workshop to attend. There were a couple of different options and it was tough to choose one, but some of my fellow delegates and I decided to all try to attend different ones so we could share what we learned. It was interesting hearing the issues that members of the union face and learn what we can do to fix things, whether or not we are personally affected.

While a lot of the business was work, the staff (who did an amazing job putting together and coordinating Convention) did try to make things fun for us too. Every morning there was a breakfast (I only took advantage of that on Sunday when they had some eggs, bacon, hash browns, and fruit) and on Friday and Saturday there was lunch provided. Friday lunch was good, but nothing too special. But Saturday lunch was provided by several food trucks!

I got to enjoy some tacos and ice cream before heading back into the Convention room to get back to work. The food truck lunch was a highlight for many of us and a much appreciated break from working so hard on getting things done.

We heard speeches from our President, Executive Vice President, and Secretary/Treasurer to hear what their plans and goals are for the next 2 years (when the next election and convention will be). There have been so many things done in the past 2 years and I know the next 2 will be just as productive, if not more so.

I know this sounds like a lot of information. It is. I’m still a bit overwhelmed on everything I experienced. A friend of mine asked me to explain why I thought that Convention was so beneficial for me as an actor. The best thing I came up with was that before it was like I was a tourist of my union. Now I’m a citizen or resident of the union. I had no idea about the issues that the broadcasters or recording artists deal with, but since we are one union it is important for all performers to help them with their fight. I learned so much about what I can do when I see things that aren’t on the up and up and how to properly report them to the union (I haven’t done that properly in the past). I learned about how there are so many things in the works for the union that can’t be announced publicly yet because that puts those things at risk for not being able for being done. But most importantly, I became more proud of being a SAG-AFTRA member than ever before and want all my fellow union members to feel that same pride.

I hope that this is just the beginning of my political career with SAG-AFTRA. I know 100% for sure that I will be running as a delegate again in 2 years. I don’t know if I’d want to be a board member yet, but I’ve got plenty of time to learn more about that position and to decide.

But for now, I’m taking the inspiration that I feel from Convention and making sure that I keep this feeling and momentum going and share it with you all.

4 Comments

Posted in Acting, Fun Stuff

Tagged acting, Los Angeles, SAG-AFTRA, union, vote

Another Meeting of Mentees (Social Hour and Not Business Hour)

Posted on October 2, 2015 | 2 comments

On Monday after my epic doctor afternoon we had another meeting of the mentees of my Women In Film mentoring group. I was really happy that the meeting was that evening because it gave me something to look forward to while nervous about all the pain from the medical stuff. And I tried to focus on that while in the middle of each thing (sometimes focus can help me not pass out with shots, but it’s not a guarantee).

This meeting ended up being a bit small. We try to figure out when a majority of the group can make it, but everyone is really busy and with all of us being creative types sometimes last-minute schedule conflicts come up. But even with a small group, we still get what we need out of the group.

We started as a more social gathering than anything else, but that’s maybe because we were waiting to see who else might be coming. Once we realized that everyone who could be there was there, we went around the group sharing what we had done over the past few weeks since our last meeting with our mentors.

Sometimes when we do that, I feel a bit pathetic. It always seems like everyone else has amazing updates while I just have my same old things to say. And I know that it’s because many of the other women in the group (and almost everyone who made it this Monday) are writers so they are able to control their work a bit more than I can. They can always start a new script while it’s not as easy for me to find a new project to act in or put together my own project.

My updates are pretty simple but even with the little things, my fellow mentees are very excited for me. They love that I won my delegate seat for the SAG-AFTRA Convention and that I’ll be there all weekend this weekend (I’ll share some posts about that next week). And I told them a bit about the blogger conference I was at recently and how I think that will improve my blog in the long run. Their excitement about my baby steps makes me feel better about what I’ve gotten done.

After we all went around and shared our updates, gave advice, and cheered each other on; we were back in social mode. I know I keep saying this, but I love that we’ve gotten to become friends and we can have a lot of fun at our gatherings. It doesn’t feel like there’s ever pressure to impress each other (even though I put that pressure on myself) and I feel more like I’m spending the evening with friends instead of a networking/goal accomplishing group. I think the best goal accomplishing groups are made of friends, and I love that we have organically become that.

It makes me wish that I had made a bit more effort with the 2 girls who showed up regularly with my original mentoring group. I think that if I had tried a bit more, we could have created something great among ourselves even if our fellow mentees didn’t come to meetings or we didn’t have regular meetings with our mentors. But knowing that I can do this now motivates me to continue doing this in the future.

I know that my current mentee group is going to continue meeting after the official mentoring time is done. At our next mentee meeting, I think we are going to set up the plans for how we want to keep this going for the long run. I’m glad that everyone else seems to be on the same page as me, because every time I meet with these women I feel more and more grateful that I was placed in a group with such like-minded women and that they have encouraged me to better myself without pushing me or making me feel less than.

2 Comments

Posted in Acting, Fun Stuff

Tagged acting, friends, meeting, mentoring, motivation, Women in Film

Rehearsal Pro (or Help Build An Amazing App!)

Posted on September 3, 2015 | Comments Off

I’ve talked about some apps on other blogs that I have found essential as an actor. So many apps that I love are freebies because I’m very cautious on how I spend my money. In general, I rarely pay for apps because many times there are free versions of anything I want. But there’s one app that may be the most expensive one on my phone, has no freebie version, and is also the most important one for me: Rehearsal 2.

Rehearsal 2 is seriously the best app for actors ever! You can import your scripts into it and you can highlight lines, make notes, black out your lines to rehearse with yourself, and even record the other lines so you can rehearsal against your own voice! I love recording the lines around my lines in a normal voice and then my own lines in a whisper. Then I play it through my car speakers while I’m on the way to my auditions. I get to rehearse against myself while driving in traffic and if I forget my line I can listen to my whisper to hear what it’s supposed to be. It helps calm me down and lets me prepare without worrying about taking my eyes off of the road.

I downloaded this app the day I got my iPhone (it’s iPhone only). I’ve used it for every single audition and many actors I know use it for auditions and booked work. We all still print out sides for auditions (I never bring my iPad with me to auditions), but this does help save paper for booked work scripts.

I’ve loved this app since day one, and the creator of the app is very happy to help you with any questions you might have (he also ran with me in the recent SAG-AFTRA election). When I did run into the creator, David, at the ballot counting for the election, he let me in on a not-so-secret secret. He was getting ready to announce the newest version of the app: Rehearsal Pro!

Rehearsal Pro is going to be incredible! There are going to be some great new features. The one that I’m most excited about is being able to sync your scripts between devices (this was an issue with the studios in the past due to privacy concerns). But there will also be some other fun things too (I’m not sure how much I can share because David told me some of these features but I don’t think they have been officially announced).

Of course, as soon as I found out that Rehearsal Pro was happening, I asked David how I could get the new version and how much it would cost me. He told me that there is an Indiegogo campaign to help raise the funds to build the new app and would allow me (and everyone else who has Rehearsal 2) to get Rehearsal Pro at a discount!

~~At the time that I’m typing this, there are 3 more perks to allow current Rehearsal 2 customers to get Rehearsal Pro for $5~~! (quick edit, that perk level sold out, but there are plenty of upgrade perks available at the $10 level!) After that is filled, you can still get Rehearsal Pro at the discounted price of $10 (it’s going to be $20 normally). I highly encourage all actors to donate to this campaign. Not only do I want to see Rehearsal Pro built, but this is an app that I cannot recommend enough to you all! And if you aren’t a current Rehearsal 2 customer, you can still donate $20 to get Rehearsal Pro when it’s released.

If you aren’t an actor and you want to help actors, you can donate without getting Rehearsal Pro as a perk (there are a couple of levels that allow for that). I hope you all know that I rarely share things on here that cost people money. This is something that I’m not getting paid to do. I just honestly feel that strongly about this app and want to see my fellow actors have a great tool to use to make sure they all have the best auditions they can have.

If you have any questions about this app, feel free to ask me. If I don’t know the answer, I’m happy to pass it on to David to get you the answer! I just want all my fellow actors to be able to enjoy this app the way that I have for years!

Comments Off on Rehearsal Pro (or Help Build An Amazing App!)

Posted in Acting, Fun Stuff, Shopping

Tagged acting, audition, technology

The End Of The SAG-AFTRA Elections (or Being An Observer)

Posted on August 25, 2015 | 2 comments

This past Thursday, the ballots for the SAG-AFTRA election were counted. The ballot count was at the SAG-AFTRA offices starting at 9am and originally we were told that we would hear results around 5 or 6pm.

As much as I would have liked to be there in the morning, I had to work. So as soon as work was done at 3pm, I headed to the offices to wait for the results to be announced.

At first, I just waited outside the counting room. I knew I couldn’t use my phone inside the room and I was helping to update a lot of people who couldn’t be at the count. But some of my fellow candidates encouraged me to go inside, so I did.

I have to say, watching the counting was pretty cool. The main counting was done so I never got to watch the counting machines in action. But what I did get to observe was the counters hand counting questionable ballots. Those questionable ones were ones where people might have over voted (or over voted and then crossed some things out) or where the bubbles weren’t filled in in a method that the counting machines could recognize. It was pretty cool seeing these people analyzing what the intention of the voter was. It’s impressive to see how seriously they take their jobs and I feel very comfortable with the integrity of the count. If you ever have the opportunity to do something similar for a ballot count, I highly recommend it.

6pm came and they were saying we were still hours away from the results. So my slate went next door to Marie Callendars to eat and wait (too bad I already used my birthday coupon!). Ken Howard, who was running for National President, was going to get a phone call when the national results were in (we knew those would be first). Every time his phone rang, everyone got quiet and waited to see if it was “the call”. Finally, it was and Ken got the happy news that he was re-elected as president! But then we had a twist: his running mate for Secretary/Treasurer was not elected but instead the candidate from the other slate one that position. Everyone in the room was celebrating when we heard that Ken won, but then went into shock when we heard that Jenny O’Hara lost. I was really hoping for Jenny to win. I had gotten to know her really well while campaigning and I felt like she would be so amazing in that position. But now I must have faith in our new Secretary/Treasurer Jane Austin.

After Ken’s win, we heard that it might be another hour or two for the rest of the results. Many people decided to go home, but I figured I might as well stick it out as long as I could.

Since the restaurant closed, we all went back to the offices and hung out in the counting room. We kept watching for signs that the count was done. We had been told that if we were still in the room when it was done, they would let us go in and meet with the election committee one by one in private and they would tell us our results. If we weren’t there, we would get an email (actually, we’d get an email either way but finding out in person was going to be first).

I knew I couldn’t sleep until I knew so I waited it out. And finally around 11:30pm we were told to line up. There were a couple of people in front of me and some of them didn’t get elected for everything they ran for. I was so incredibly nervous and when it was my turn the nerves were even worse.

The room that we had to go into for the results felt like a judging. It was as conference room with about 10 people and you had your name and what you were running for announced so they could all check their information. It felt like forever before they could find my name. And when they did, I got the happy news that I won my convention delegate seat!

I went outside and waited for everyone else from my slate to get their results. There were some surprises on some losses, but in the end my slate has maintained the majority that we had before. And I think that maybe having the national positions split will help bring the two slates closer together and the next election won’t be as nasty.

I went to bed as soon as I got home and had this email waiting for me when I woke up in the morning.

It all feels real now! And I’m getting emails about joining committees and other things. I’m seriously so excited! While I haven’t been treating my career as a hobby, I think that maybe I have been treating my union membership as one. I’m so excited to be more involved from now on with the union and hopefully make a difference in our working conditions, pay, and other issues that I and all SAG-AFTRA actors deal with.

Thank you to all of you who voted for me! I’m so excited to serve you as a convention delegate for the next two years! And who knows, maybe in 2 years I’ll be running for a board position too!

2 Comments

Posted in Acting, Celebrations, Fun Stuff

Tagged acting, election, SAG-AFTRA, union, winner

The End Of The Election (or Actors Please Remember To Vote)

Posted on August 14, 2015 | Comments Off

I had mentioned before that I’m running as a convention delegate candidate for Unite For Strength in the SAG-AFTRA election. When I was asked first if I’d like to run, I wondered how involved I could really get because I’m not running for the board but for a convention delegate. But I’ve been able to be more involved than I thought and I’m so happy about that!

I’ve been pretty active on social media getting the word out that I’m running and who else is on the slate I’m running with. If you are SAG-AFTRA and haven’t voted yet, you can check out our handy voter guides and see who else is running with me!

I’ve gotten to know so many actors who have been very involved with the union for years, even before the unions had merged. Some of these actors are actors that I have watched on TV or in movies for years, and it’s makes me smile now that I can consider them my peers.

I’ve learned so much about the union that I was uninformed about in the past. I’m a bit embarrassed about how uninvolved I’ve been in the past, but I’m hoping to make up for that now. I have friends who have come to me with issues that they have encountered on sets or auditions in the past. I’ve been able to bring those up to current board members who are running for their seat again to find out what we can do to fix those problems. And I’ve learned that as actors, we do have more power than I thought before.

I have met people who are running on the other slate. Online, there are many nasty people. There are people online claiming that I (and my slate) are responsible for actors not making a living and that few actors are eligible for healthcare (the healthcare eligibility has gone up since the merger, but it’s still a small percentage of actors who make enough to qualify). But those running on the other slate who I’ve met in person have been for the most part very nice and friendly people. Although they have very different ideas about what is most important for us to focus on as a union, we have been able to have some polite and honest debates. I’ve brought to them some of the arguments or complaints that people have said online about why they won’t vote for me and the people from the other slate have pretty much said that all those reasons are either not the fault of the slate or something that no slate could fix anyway.

I’ve met lots of actors who either haven’t voted yet or didn’t realize that there was an election going on while I have been campaigning outside of union events. The elections typically have a turnout of about 20%, and that is just sad to me. More actors should care about their union and who is representing them. If you are a SAG-AFTRA actor and have not voted yet, do it now! You need to have you ballot received by the 20th, so we recommend mailing them today or tomorrow to get here in time!

Whether or not I win my seat, I’m so grateful that I’ve been a part of this election process. It has motivated me so much and has made me realize that even if I’m not elected there is so much more that I can do with the union to make sure that my voice is heard. I’ve learned so much about the union in general and have heard what other actors are concerned about regarding the union and the acting industry in general. And I’ve been able to hang out with old friends and make some new ones along the way.

Please remember to vote if you are a SAG-AFTRA actor and get your ballot in the mail today!

Comments Off on The End Of The Election (or Actors Please Remember To Vote)

Posted in Acting, Fun Stuff

Tagged acting, election, SAG-AFTRA

Less Networking More Socializing (or Another Evening With My Fellow Mentees)

Posted on July 30, 2015 | Comments Off

My Women In Film mentoring circle had another one of our potluck gatherings at my house. While I love when we get together on the alternating months with our mentors, I really look forward to the mentee only meetings.

Since it’s been hot here (and I don’t have a/c), I put together food for the potluck that required no extra heat in my house. Trader Joes saves my butt in these circumstances. They have great cheese selections and the meats and crackers are good too. The crackers were half-broken when I opened the box, but I tried my best to make the tray look as pretty as possible.

I think a lot of us had the same idea because so many things that were brought were pre-made. We had wine, some chocolate, potatoes salad, and regular salad. It made a nice little spread for us. But that’s fine with us since we are there for the company and not the food.

And yes, the point of these gatherings is to network, discuss our goals, talk about the progress we’ve made, and encourage each other. And we do that for a while. We set a time limit for everyone to talk so we all get a chance to talk, and the “business” conversation took a little over an hour.

I talked about some of my frustrations I’m going through including wanting to get back into improv classes. I’ve almost got all the money saved up, but the schedule of upcoming classes doesn’t really fit into my schedule. I mentioned how I hadn’t had any auditions in the past month, but that really doesn’t worry me. And of course I talked about how I’m running in the SAG-AFTRA election (although since none of the women in my circle are in the union they can’t vote for me).

And after that, we kind of just had fun together. I really love this. I’ve made some wonderful new friends and I feel encouraged that we will continue to meet (maybe not as regularly) after the officially mentoring circle has ended. I love that we have really bonded as a group and we really look out for each other and want the best for each of us to have in our careers.

I actually saw one of the board members of Women In Film at my Sunday job this past week and got a few minutes to talk to her. I told her how grateful I am to have this new mentoring circle and how we have really connected as a group. She seemed really happy to hear that our mentoring circle is doing so well. Many groups sound similar to how my old group was (not meeting regularly), so our group is in the minority with our motivated we are with setting our meetings.

We should be having our next meeting with our mentors next month (hopefully I’ll have more to update by then). And I’m looking forward to that. But I’m really looking forward to the next mentee only meeting where we can sit back, relax, and really just talk and support each other.

Comments Off on Less Networking More Socializing (or Another Evening With My Fellow Mentees)

Posted in Acting, Food, Fun Stuff

Tagged acting, mentoring, Women in Film

Unite For Strength (or SAG-AFTRA Election Time)

Posted on July 22, 2015 | 2 comments

I’m so excited to announce that I am running for a Convention delegate seat with SAG-AFTRA (the actor union I’m a member of)! I was asked if I was interested to run by a friend of mine. I was a bit hesitant at first, but the more I thought about it the more it made sense. So I decided to go for it! I’ve been wanting to be more involved in my union and this is the perfect opportunity to do so. I just needed someone to give me the push to get involved.

I’m running with the Unite For Strength slate. The UFS group was formed before the two unions merged. They were the SAG-AFTRA representatives that were pro-merger. I actually got to attend one of the pre-merger UFS meetings before I joined the union. The same friend who asked me if I wanted to run this year brought me as his guest. It was a bit overwhelming at that party at first since I really didn’t know anyone (and everyone seemed to be a really established actor who I had looked up to and I was a bit nervous). But I was immediately struck by how smart and friendly everyone was. And even though I was a non-union member attending the event, everyone was interesting in getting to know who I am and answer any questions I might have had (and I had a ton at the time).

I’m honored that I’m a part of UFS for this coming election. We actually have a ton of really amazing people running for various positions in the union.

(I’m #144 on the list!).

We had a meeting as a group the other night to discuss some election things including rules of what we can and can’t do while we campaign and so us newbies could meet some of the more experienced union members who can help us out. It’s a little intimidating being in that room and hearing what other members have had to deal with in past elections, but I tried to listen to what everyone said and take in as much as I could (thankfully, UFS also sends us emails so I have copies of all the super important stuff).

Again, I was so impressed by everyone else running with UFS. Everyone was so friendly and really was there to help everyone else. I got to talk to most of the people who were at the meeting and they helped me realize that everyone has the same nerves and fears when they ran for a position for the first time. But that’s why you join a group like UFS. They are almost like election mentors and they are there to help guide me through this. And hopefully I’ll be elected and then they will be there for me again to help make sure that I am able to be a successful Convention delegate.

I think the most important thing I learned at the meeting was that it’s ok for me not to know everything. I’m going to learn and there are plenty of people who are supporting me who can help me out if I can’t answer something. My job is really to listen, to learn, and to be a voice of the union. And that’s something that I can do.

If you are able to vote in the upcoming SAG-AFTRA election, I would love it if you would vote for me (#144) and the rest of the Unite For Strength slate. But even if you don’t want to vote for me or the slate, it is so important for you to vote no matter what. I know for the merger vote there was a pretty high turnout but for this election it’s not expected to be nearly as many. So every single vote counts. It is important to be an active member of the union and by doing so you may be inspired to get more involved one day like I’m hoping to do if I win my delegate seat.

If any of you have any questions about Unite For Strength, the upcoming election, or anything else regarding SAG-AFTRA; feel free to ask me. You can comment on here or you can use my contact form if you want it to be a bit more private. If I don’t know the answer, I will find someone who does and get you the answer. Even if I don’t get voted in as a Convention delegate, I really do want to help any of you find the answers you want regarding the union. I had people who did that for me and now it’s my turn to repay the favor.

Ballots should be getting to you in the next few days, so please take a look at the Unite For Strength slate and make sure you vote!

2 Comments

Posted in Acting, Fun Stuff

Tagged acting, election, SAG-AFTRA, union, vote

Tag Archives: acting

Watching Some Inspiration (or A Weekend Of Screenings)

Like this:

Lots Of TV (or What Season Is It?)

Like this:

The Convention Gala (or An Evening Under and With The Stars)

Like this:

SAG-AFTRA National Convention (or I Had No Idea It Would Be Like This)

Like this:

Another Meeting of Mentees (Social Hour and Not Business Hour)

Like this:

Rehearsal Pro (or Help Build An Amazing App!)

Like this:

The End Of The SAG-AFTRA Elections (or Being An Observer)

Like this:

The End Of The Election (or Actors Please Remember To Vote)

Like this:

Less Networking More Socializing (or Another Evening With My Fellow Mentees)

Like this:

Unite For Strength (or SAG-AFTRA Election Time)

Like this:

Follow me on Twitter

Like Me On Facebook

Follow Me On Instagram

thejenlevin

Recent Posts

Archives

Tag Archives: acting

Share this:

Like this:

You Might Also Like

Share this:

Like this:

You Might Also Like

Share this:

Like this:

You Might Also Like

Share this:

Like this:

You Might Also Like

Share this:

Like this:

You Might Also Like

Share this:

Like this:

You Might Also Like

Share this:

Like this:

You Might Also Like

Share this:

Like this:

You Might Also Like

Share this:

Like this:

You Might Also Like

Share this:

Like this:

You Might Also Like

Connect With Me!

Subscribe To Finding My Inner Bombshell!

Follow me on Twitter

Follow Me On Instagram

thejenlevin

Recent Posts

Archives