Scribblings of Robs

13 Aug 2011

Hard Work Pays Off

Sit tight kids. This is a long one.

Someone got hold of me this week. They wanted advice for their daughter. She wants to break into the industry and become a star! I’ve been there.. I mean who doesn’t want to be a star right? So I gave the advice and even though I don’t really pursue acting right now; it got me thinking.

It was quite hard in the beginning. Nothing you love is meant to be easy. But acting. Well. I really must have loved it. And let me tell you, it’s one cruel mistress. I don’t really know when I got bitten. But it happened. I’d only really done stage work up until matric, so after school I decided to get an agent and give it a decent go.

So there I was. Accepted into Business Science at UCT. Emailing CV’s and calling up reputable agents. Literally none of them took me seriously. I don’t blame them. I told them I was off to study Business Science but I was going to be an actress as well.

Brilliant idea right?

Clearly most of them did not think so. I just don’t think they realised how hard I was prepared to work. At the time I was frustrated. But in hindsight they must have gotten tons of applications from girls with stars in their eyes.

And I knew that once I got an interview I’d be fine. But jeez. Getting an interview was tough. In fact. I never did. I didn’t have the drama degree. I didn’t have the strongest pictures. Pretty much all I had was this belief that I could act. And let’s face it. You’ve seen idols. Your own belief in your talent can be suspect at times.

No one would see me. Books were full. Agents weren’t looking. I wasn’t exceptional and they already had too many pale brunettes. I think I actually did get every excuse.

I wasn’t crazy. Bad skin, short, curvy, no book. I knew no model agency would take me at this point. But I tried that avenue as well, as a sort of a backdoor to break into acting.  Because I had worked out that to make any sort of success in SA, I’d have to be comfortable as a model…and as an actress. I saw a few, as it’s much easier to get interviews with model agencies but if you’re not stunning and not ready, open castings are potentially soul-destroying. None took me. And oh, there were about a million reasons why they didn’t. Cue one very warped, twisted perception of my looks, weight and .. well just about everything really. [If I look back now, I can't honestly say that modeling was something I ever truly loved. Even on set, I always felt too fat, too ugly and never quite good enough.]

But I didn’t give up. I felt a bit like a moth bashing itself repeatedly into a brick wall. But the point is I kept trying. I wasn’t even sure why sometimes.

I don’t think it was arrogance. I just refused to believe that people couldn’t see I was good. There are few things I have absolutely unwavering confidence in, and one of them is my ability to entertain.

I then stumbled across a site called modelbase.co.za. A T-Junction for models, photographers and makeup artists. I joined and made use of every opportunity that came my way. Obviously I was selective. But I figured out that if I could build up a decent portfolio, I could take it back and show those agents.

So I worked for about a year. Just working on trade agreement basis. No money. I’d be the model, they’d snap away, some kind person would paint my face and we’d all work for our books.  I wasn’t the prettiest model on that site. By any stretch.  But I was the one that responded to emails, that showed up, learned a lot and was friendly. It was hard work at times and there was no money BUT you can’t put a price on the experience I gained working like this. You really can’t.  I also learned how to be my own agent. A very valuable skill I might add.

Thanks to Modelbase, I built up a very versatile port and I even got some decent, paying gigs.

And at the end of that year I sent my pics off.

And do you know, I got an interview with an actors agency.

And I got an agent. A really, really good one as well.

It’s not my focus anymore, and yes I do miss it. But I had some really cool achievements and it’s still my naive dream to get my star on Hollywood boulevard. Besides, I figure that if I really love it, then I can wait a few years. I’m going to be rock those dentures and retirement-village ads… just you wait and see. This granny is going places with an Oscar in her pocket!

Anyway, the point of this post was to inspire you to keep trying. And don’t believe anyone who says you can’t. Just believe in yourself. Work hard. Keep dreaming. Keep chasing. You’ll get there. It’s that simple.

It comes down to stats really. If you keep trying, someone’s bound to notice eventually.

images sourced here