10 things to do when the industry feels slow
You’re refreshing your email, your heart jumps when your phone rings, you’re working a day job you hate to be able to audition and act…but no auditions or jobs are on the horizon and you’re slowly losing your sanity. The industry is slow, or maybe it feels slow to you while everyone else is seemingly booking (the woooorst feeling!) First of all, don’t panic. You are NOT alone in this! This industry can fluctuate, or can seem dead for months on end. Especially while still recovering from the pandemic and recent strikes. It’s up to you to make sure those times are as rewarding and enjoyable for you as when you’re a busy bee with all things #actorslife! Here’s some things to do when you’re in one of those slow times…
1 - remind yourself it’s not just you
98% of actors don’t earn their main source of income from acting work. If others are working on an acting job right now, they might be exactly where you are in just a matter of days, weeks or months. Your time will come, even if only for a little! Which is why it’s important to not put all your eggs in the acting basket. An acting job won’t solve all your problems and make life nothing but sunshine and roses, and feeling that way can make the slow times feels even more painful. Make sure whatever world you come back to after an acting job is as nice a place to be as on set/stage etc.
2 - Detatch completely
From the industry, from your email refreshes, from social media. When things are quiet it might feel natural to want to be productive and put yourself out there, but exposing yourself to social media or places full of other actors will in turn bring inevitable comparison. And you know what they say, “comparison is the thief of joy”! Give yourself a holiday. Not literally...(unless you have the means to jet off somewhere!) but from the #actorslife graft. If things are quiet in the industry, or quiet for you, take this as a chance to focus on other things in your life that usually get a bit neglected while in the actor hustle. Message an old friend, spend time with family, go for long walks, watch old movies instead of brand new stuff that just makes you think “I wish I could be in this!”. Pick up some extra shifts and use the money to buy yourself a gift, do some volunteer work, start a new hobby, practice self care…get yourself to a place where you’re in the best place possible for when things do pick up again!
3 - get creative
Whatever your job is in this profession, you’re a creative at heart. And there are so many ways to be creative! It can be easy to get down in this industry because something that used to be a hobby we spent all our spare time doing, now only seems available to us when someone else gives us a ‘yes’. Try not to fall into this trap! Fill up your creative cup in a way that excites you and brings joy. Acting wise or not! Below are some examples of creative things to do, both in terms of acting - and not!
Arts & Crafts
Painting
Drawing/Sketching
Writing
Playing/Learning an instrument
Journaling
Photography
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Find some theatrical writing prompts online and write a scene or a short play. Or a monologue/duologue
Get some friends together and do a play reading
You can find scripts online for well known TV shows. Find an episode of a show you like and gather some actor pals to read through and bring new life into the characters!
Practice your self taping skills
Learn a speech from your favourite tv show or movie and put it on tape
4 - immerse yourself in your hobbies
This is going on from point 3…capitalism has taught us that we have to be good at everything we do and that once we are, it’s time to monetize that!!
FORGET THAT!
Hobbies are a wonderful way of exploring who you are outside of being an actor. Or they can be skills you can end up using as an actor and can add to your CV!
But remember..hobbies are first and foremost for you, and it’s important to have them. Hobbies help with having a work/life balance, they can improve mental health and decrease stress, they can stimulate creativity and spark inspiration. Doing hobbies with friends helps with personal connection, or doing them alone aids in personal growth, self discovery and self reliance.
Some of my hobbies are:
Crocheting/knitting
Writing
Painting
Caring for my 50+ houseplants
Dance classes
Yoga
DIY miniature building
Arts & Crafts
Scrapbooking
Reading
Playing piano/ukulele
Dancing in my living room like no one is watching
When things are quiet in the industry, view it as a bit of ‘me time’! Let go of the hustle and constant need to “take next steps” for your career. Remember you’re a person first, actor second.
5 - spruce up your acting stuff
If you did want to keep one foot in the #actorslife hustle when things are quiet, now might be a good time to do some of the following…
Check in with your agent.
Only do this if you have something to actually say or ask…calling your agent to say “why are things quiet, can you get me an audition, I’m losing the will to live” won’t have the sort of results you’re hoping for. Your agent is probably already aware and already trying to push for you! Instead, you could ask if they have any thoughts on how to shake things up. Do they have any suggestions on what you could be working on during this time? ie…perfecting your self tape set up, working on the art of self taping, perfecting an accent, taking a class or a workshop, getting a showreel together, putting something on tape to put on your Spotlight page, etc. If your agent knows you’re wanting to work hard and looking for opportunities to perfect your craft, they are, in turn, going to feel more compelled to want to also work hard for you!Get your materials in order.
Look over your Spotlight/casting profile and make sure everything is up to date. Maybe change up your ‘About Me’ so that it seems new and refreshed for those who may come across your page compared to the last time they did. Make sure you have some sort of footage up there to show what you look like on screen. Ensure all credits are up to date, measurements, recent headshots. If your casting profile has been tweaked to the inch of its life…here are some other sources of materials you might want to think about working on:
- Vimeo. Upload scenes from projects or auditions you’re proud of (*only if the project has been released and you are able to post publicly). Put yourself on tape performing a speech from a movie/tv show. Put your showreel on there. There are loads of options even for the free version of Vimeo, and can also be a good platform to connect with other creative and filmmakers.
- IMDb pro. Yes, this costs money and is not cheap and honestly is only really worth it if you have a few credits already and want to be in control of your own page. But IMDb pro not only allows you to add photos/videos/credits and info to you own page, but you can then have more access to other information that the basic plan doesn’t have. Add some photos, not just headshots. Like stills from screen projects, profile shots, event appearances. Add your showreel. Write an engaging bio. If you are in early stages of making film work of your own, create a credit for it being in ‘pre-production’.
- Draft some emails. Get in touch with a casting director you admire the work of, or a producer of an indie film you watched recently. Remember the golden rule to reaching out to industry pros - make sure you have something to say/share. A “hello, here is me and this is what I look like” doesn’t give a CD much to work on. Be specific and intentional. You can read a thorough breakdown of the best way to reach out to CD’s/industry pros HERE.Work on the craft. As mentioned in points above, go back to viewing acting as a fun hobby that fills up your cup. Take the pressure off! Work on a scene, or a speech, or a part of a play with a friend. Without the idea of needing to impress, or prove yourself, or book a job. Put yourself on camera. Find a scene from a show and record it in a new, exciting way. Maybe the character is a man and you want to try it as a woman to see what new flavours that brings. Maybe you want to workshop an accent you’ve been working on. As actors, our bodies are our tools. Keep yours well oiled in a way that brings you joy!
6 - get outside
When you’re feeling uninspired and fed up, leaving your safe space can feel like the last thing you want to do. But breathing in some fresh air and leaving the house, not to do anything, but to just be, can be revitalizing. Borrow a friends dog, find a new walking trail, put on a mindfulness meditation (Insight Timer is my favourite app for free meditations) and get outside. Nature is a healer!
7 - fall in love with acting again
As already mentioned, when acting becomes your profession it can sometimes take away the original joy, excitement, and feeling of being free. Find ways to remind yourself of why you’re living the #actorslife to begin with. Go see a show, support your local theatre, pick up an old Shakespeare monologue you haven’t touched for years and give it a whirl (I recently did this with a speech I hadn’t done since drama school and the way I perform it now is so differently informed it was so fun and experimental!)
8 - support the community
Maybe your friend needs a reader for their self tape, or a professional acquaintance needs actors to workshop their writing, or some peers have released a new project and need help spreading the word. Put some energy back into the community, lift up your peers and help them creatively. You may not be putting yourself out there professionally in a way that benefits you, but community is so important in this business and helps rid you of the envy and comparison because the more you learn about other people’s experiences, the more you understand how different everyone’s journey is. Also, when it’s your time for needing support it will come back tenfold!
9 - Spend time with non-actors
On the flip side, this might also be a great time to spend more time engaging with friends who aren’t in the industry. Give them a heads up that you don’t want to be asked “what’s coming up for you?” or “so did you hear back from that audition?” and you won’t find it rude if, in fact, they don’t ask you anything at all! Get together and watch some trash TV, learn a silly tiktok dance, listen to them moan about their office job, and remind yourself of all the things your friends love about you that aren’t to do with the entertainment industry.
10 - listen to the 98%!
With 100+ episodes to binge, if you haven’t listened to The 98% podcast yet this couldn’t be a better time to dive in! While there are so many industry specific episodes with brilliant guests, for the full experience I recommend going right back to the start and listening in order, that way you join Katie and me in our own journey’s of navigating this difficult industry in a way that will leave you feeling comforted, supported, and thoroughly amused!
You can find The 98% wherever you get podcasts. Click HERE to find out more about the podcast, or click HERE for a quick link to listen on Spotify.
I hope that helps! As much as we want to be busy, slow times are inevitable. Try and rewire your brain to view these times as an opportunity, not something that keeps you from opportunity. If you found this encouraging and helpful, be sure to check out my other blog posts! If you’d like a more personal approach to this, or any other aspect of your #actorslife BOOK IN for a session with me any time!
Sophie Holland CSA also posted some great video content on instagram as advice for actors when the industry is slow, you can see it here!