Any Second Could Be the Second

I'm living in a place where something either wonderful or dreadful can happen in a second. That's pretty much the vibe I get after living in Hollywood for a little over a month.

I've always felt March-April was the least exciting time of the year, but boy, is that not case this year. Thanks to family and a small number of contacts, the transition from a small, hometown community to a multicultural, entertainment mecca with a population of nearly 4 million was swift and not nearly as stressful as it could have been.

This was mainly due to a long, and I mean, long waiting game. Now I am among the people who look, speak, and breathe the entertainment industry.

Oh, this place is hectic. Everyone has an agenda, and listening to everyone's word of advice would turn one into Sybil. Standing in line at casting calls or big events or passing the time as an extra on a TV set is the only real time I've had to talk to fellow actors and Californians about anything meaningful. Everyone is so detached.

The trick is showing someone you can make them money. One of my roommates told me only 3% of the 97% of people in entertainment are actually in the door with the big-time producers and directors. This seems logical. Everyone has described a different way of breaking into the business (from an actor's perspective) that I have quickly learned I have to find my own way to get in that 3%.

My "own way", i.e. a job, so far has consisted of mainly extra work in TV shows and audience filler work. This has actually supported me so far, but it can't last forever. I've done audience work for "Let's Make a Deal" and "The Wanda Sykes Show" and extra work for NBC's "The Cape", "Flashforward", TBS's "In Security", "CSI: Miami", and my personal favorite, "How I Met Your Mother".

I've audited three film acting classes and have an idea what I need to work on and who I need to work with. And I'm working on a student film with one to follow, mainly to get film footage for a new reel. (BTW, I'm pretty psyched about it. It involves my first car chase.)

All this to say I have a really long way to go. The trick seems to be to nail down a steady job, even if it's part-time, so I can feel free to throw money towards developing as an actor and business man. You see, I have to get in my head this acting thing is a business, and I don't think I'll really know how to market myself until I get an agent. That will come.

Right now, I'm waiting to hear back from the 50+ jobs I've applied for. Today, I went to round one of a casting call for studio guides at Universal Studios. There were no less than 500 people there. After two hours of waiting, I got to the VIP room and had 30 seconds to make an impression with one of the casting directors. He marked my resume with a "5" and said "wow" when he looked at my headshot. He smiled, shook my hand, and I left feeling good about the whole conversation. I'm going to a film audition tomorrow and waiting for that possible phone call for round two.

What does this mean? Nothing, until something happens.

But I am here and where I need to be to do this. When I stood next to Chris Kattan and Malin Akerman being led by the director and co-creator of "How I Met Your Mother" a few weeks ago, I felt on the right track. I felt the same excitement I felt before taking stage in a show at UNA. I felt any second could be the second.

*Title taken from this ad: www.youtube.com/watch?v=9xAJmdhQzJ4