Report from the trenches: strike blues (2 of 2)

Report from the trenches: (2 of 2)

I’m starting to hear rumors that the WGA strike may end soon.  However, residual effects could linger for who knows how long, especially with a SAG strike looming in the summer. NBC canceled all of their pilot orders a week after CBS and Warning Brothers / CW pretty much did the same. None of the networks have announced an alternative plan to fill their programming so advertisers are holding their breaths about new campaigns—meaning the next sector of the industry to suffer could be commercials.  If the WGA strike lifts hopefully the networks will rush to restore their scripted content.  But if the networks are sour on writers after the revenue losses incurred by the strike, and wary of the SAG contract expiration, they might be reluctant to forge ahead with another pilot season.

Last week I described the “trickle-down” effect a strike like this can have on professional acting opportunities.  The short of it is, jobs become scarce.  So what can we do in a time like this?

First, you have to go easy on yourself. If you were auditioning and/or booking often prior to the strike, and now the well is dry despite your continued due diligence in finding and submitting on auditions and following up with your industry connections, you have to accept that this is just the way things are going to be for a while. Making radical changes to your processes or launching major initiatives to find representation or expand your contact list will have no positive short-term effects and might just drive you bonkers. By all means continue submitting—you never know what might happen!—but this is a good time to focus on some goals that are less contingent upon the fickle ups and downs of the industry.

First, and regular readers will find this no surprise, this is an excellent time to train. I just signed up for a six-month workshop with one of my private coaches. SIX MONTHS! I figure I might as well make myself better and more marketable if I have to sit on the sidelines. When things heat up again I’ll be that much better able to compete.

Second, you can turn your unwanted spare time into money. Get another part-time survival job and save some bullets. If you are frequently unable to train or pay for networking opportunities this is a perfect opportunity to save up some resources for later. If the strike goes on, and if SAG does indeed strike this summer, we could be looking at a slow industry for months.  You could amass a considerable war cest during that time!

Third, you can address major personal initiatives. One of the hardest things about being an actor is the constantly being “on-call.” Going out of the city for even a long weekend can easily mean a major missed opportunity, particularly during a busy time of year. So if you want to take that big vacation, or backpack across Europe, or visit all the baseball stadiums in the land, or audit a few classes at the local university, or buy a co-op in Forest Hills, well hey—go for it!

Finally, as I’ve recently written about, you can create your own opportunity. Get a play-reading group together. Write something and rent a cheap space for a limited run of performances. Shoot some sketch comedy pieces and post them on YouTube. The professional opportunities may have run dry but that creative well within you is still flowing, and you neglect it at your own peril.

You can do it, true believer. Turn those strike lemons into MARGARITAS!