Aileen Maria Blog

This should be equally informative for artists as well as others. Judging from the headlines a lot of people are currently in between jobs and I’m sure would benefit from some extra work.

Background Work:

One interesting and fun gig is actually working as background aka extras for movies and TV. Any time your favorite characters are in a restaurant, bar, concert, on the street the people around them are extras. Often they will need people of all ages and all ethnicities for this type of work because different sets demand different things. You don’t have to be a great actor to do this because it involves doing everyday things, so don’t be intimidated. Usually background work DOES require you to be on a set for long hours so you can bring a book along or your laptop and get some work done. It’s great because you are getting paid to study and catch up on work. You should not commit to doing this on a day that you have anything else planned. The amount of time they will need you for is completely unpredictable so make sure you do background work on a day that you are completely free.

A few agencies that cast background in are:

Central Casting- http://www.centralcasting.org/

Sylvia Fay- http://www.sylviafaycasting.com/

Grant Wilfey -http://www.gwcnyc.com/

Promotions - Another fun job is doing promotions. These jobs are often listed in the events section of craigslist and may include passing out samples of a product as a brand ambassador, working a tradeshow, street team work and hosting events. A few companies that hire for promotions are:

http://www.redlightmarketinggroup.com/

http://www.integer.com/

http://interferenceinc.com/

A few other ideas for flexible work while you are job hunting that you can look into are: catering, tutoring, substitute teaching, translating, and getting work through a temp agency. The information above varies depending on where you live but you can find work locally by looking up companies that provide staff for that work in your area.

There are some materials you will need to get yourself out there. As an actor you need headshots and as a model you need comp cards as well as a portfolio. All this can be costly if you don’t have the connections and patience. However, there are ways to get it for free! While shooting your picture can be free, the massive printing that you will need to distribute copies of your cards is not.

As an actor or a model you can find photographers who will have you work for them in exchange for your time. It’s often abbreviated to TFP-TFCD (trade for print, trade for CD) in castings. The photographer is often building or updating his/her own portfolio and will have you serve as their muse. In exchange for your time you receive pictures to use for your own self promotion purposes. Make sure you keep their contact information. It has been known to happen that you work with a photographer and you never hear from them again but don’t worry there’s a circle in hell for them.

In the past I have mentioned two easy sites to find photographers needing to update their book:

www.craigslist.org

www.modelmayhem.com

You can also check at local photography or art schools. They will put you in their database so that their students build their portfolios with you.

Before agreeing to shoot with the photographer, you may want to ask to see a link to their portfolio or samples of their work. Your time is valuable and you don’t want to waste it if you are not into what they typically shoot.

As always use your judgment when responding to people who post on these sites. If the photographer has you meet them in an area you’re not familiar with at an unreasonable time then don’t go or take an intimidating friend with you.  Or just a regular friend gifted with common sense will do.

Seriously, be aggressive about these things. Schedule the shoot in a place that you are comfortable with such as a public park or a studio. Even if you feel safe always try to drag someone along. As we say in my native tongue, "Caras vemos, corazones no sabemos."

This is short notice but for any of you who just happen to have a screenplay sitting somewhere maybe you will find this interesting. It is a screenwriting competition by netflix that awards 150,000.The deadline for the application is monday:

http://www.netflixfindyourvoice.com/