"crystallize your goals."

as mentioned in my previous post, i wanted to take some time to write out my goals for june  - august 2013.
i've always made dream boards and the like but there's something about not only writing down your goals but how you'e going to go about achieving said goals, that i feel holds you more accountable.
*holy run-on sentence, batman.
it's like paul j. myer once said:

crystallize your goals.

make a plan for achieving them and set yourself a deadline.

then, with supreme confidence, determination and disregard for obstacles and other people's criticisms carry out your plan.

so, i present to you my goals (aka. dreams with a deadline) for june - august 2013:

1) sign with a new agent!
it's no secret that i am unhappy with my current representation.
complaining and whining about the situation i was in did nothing to better it.
i found myself in the same spot...with elevated blood pressure.
so, i've decided to start taking the steps towards finding better representation.
last month, i had a consultation with one of toronto's top acting coaches.
after our meeting, that the acting school will help me get in contact with bigger, better agents in the city.
having their support is amazing and i can't wait to start the process.

2) book my second union project!
one step closer to full union status!
**i'm just going to throw this one out there - DEGRASSIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!

3) attend the mandated workshops for ACTRA apprentices
this one's pretty self-explanatory.

4) contact YEAA and start attending meetings (network, network, network)

those are basically all my goals for the time frame mentioned above.
i just want to audition regularly!

because the relationship between the number of auditions and the number of bookings is a positive correlation - the more you audition, the greater the likelihood of you booking something...

pray for me.

xoxo,
TA

how dare my last blog post be on may 7th?

i've always been the worst at keeping up with diairies/journals/blogs/the kardashians, etc.

but i will try and be more diligent with this blog starting...now.

anyways, from my last blog post, i have some updates for you all - i've decided to kill two birds with one stone and cross of the items off my goals for march - june 2013 list as i update.

so, without further ado...

i) book an actor or SOC role (or two) on a union project  
at the end of last month, i booked my first actor role on a union project!

i also got thisclose to booking a recurring role on a episodic here in the city...

when i got word that i got a callback with the writers and the producers, i was like:

when i got word that i had in fact not booked the role, i was like:

the CD later sent me a note saying how i was fabulous and how i've grown so much as an actress in the past year and to be discouraged, and i was like:

"no, it's totally fine.
thank you for the opportunity."

i was just about to crawl under a rock and fall further into the abyss that is rejection when i got the most amazing email from my wonderful sister.

(i loved it so much that i actually wrote it out in it's entirety and read it often to keep my morale up.)
a little excerpt:

you don't know what amazing, wonderful, incredible reason there is why you didn't get that role. 

you have know idea what's coming, but whatever it is, it's going to be AMAZING. 

i know it!

after reading her email, i was like:

"you right, you right."

i'm now ready and anxious for the next audition that comes my way. 

ii) contact ACTRA toronto as soon as i receive my first union credit and begin the paperwork needed to become an apprentice
i'm now happy to report that i am an ACTRA apprentice member!

*i don't know who this baby belongs to, but i love him!

iii) as soon as you're all set up with ACTRA toronto, contact YEAA and start attending meetings - set up connections!
i'm slacking on this one...

iv) continue practicing and working on my craft in the downtime - get together with contacts, watch movies, practice cold reads, etc. 
i've signed up for a week long workshop with the director of one of toronto's more prestigious acting schools.

v) and lastly, don't get discouraged!

so, yes.

that's bascially what i've been up to in a nutshell.

since these were my goals for march - june 2013, i should probably create a list of goals for june 2013 - august 2013...

until next time.

xoxo, 

TA

purpose of bookout dates?

i recently returned from the most amazing trip to the ums.
upon booking my plane tickets months ago, i sent my agent a quick email letting her know i would be unavailable during said dates.
upon leaving for my trip, i emailed my agent again reminding her that i would be gone for said dates.

so, please, riddle me this - why am i receiving an email with an audition notice?
what's the purpose of book out dates if you're going to submit me for projects that conflict anyways?
needless to say, i was not impressed as it's just not a good look for either one of us.

this whole incident reminded me that it was time to call in my reinforcements and request the industry consultation i spoke about in an earlier blog post.
i need to sever ties with this agent.
stat.

yesterday's audition?

"success has a simple formula: do your best, and people may like it."

so, how did my audition go you ask?

my audition time was 4:10 pm and i got there super early to do my hair and makeup/get in the zone, blah.

anyways, there were three other girls in the waiting room with me - two of which were "visibile minorities", which i took as a good thing for me as it seemed like casting was leaning in that direction.

the girls were in and out of the room at a rapid pace until it was just me in the waiting room.

the casting associate asked me if i was ready and i was like, you know what?

so, i went in and did my scene the way i had rehearsed it and was told to do it again several different ways.
by my count, i must have performed the scene at least 5 times.
i was told my take was wonderful and that it was always nice to see me.
the CD and i laughed at an inside joke (i love that we have inside jokes...) and i was sent on my way.
i'm not sure if i booked the job (*crosses fingers*) but i definitely booked the room.

xoxo, TA

hallelujahhhhh!

my prayers have been answered in the form of an audition for this monday.

when i saw the email from my agent entitled "audition notice - ********", i actually could have cried.
a principal role on a tv series shot in toronto is just what the doctor ordered.
go figure that it shoots around the time i'm to leave for my sister's destination wedding but i'm hoping the Lord will hear my prayers and the stars will align to help me book and shoot this.

in either case, my agent finally did her job and now it's time for me to do mine.
i'm gonna learn these sides like the back of my hand and walk into the audition room like:

*throws sides.

luck is just preparation meeting opportunity, right?

it's a good thing i'm prepared :)

xoxo, TA

the diary of a mad black actress from toronto

first of all, my thoughts and prayers go out to every in boston and it's surrounding areas.
i pray that this madness will end with no more casualties...

i was initially going to write this post as a way to voice my frustrations of being a black actress in toronto canada period.

i was going to talk about how the roles for black actresses are so few and far between in this city and  that when they do arrive, it's almost always for stereotypical "black girl" roles: 

teen mothers, girls with attitudes, bullies, girls named 'chantal' (why this is the "go-to" black girl name, i'll never know), dancers, sidekicks, rappers, rude gyals...you get the point.

i was going to do all uh dat (*insert stereotypical "black girl" snap in a z formation here*) but that would be the longest blog entry ever.

so, i've decided to make my argument via photos:

i present to you, canadian tv shows - 

republic of doyle

heartland

being erica

this hour has 22 minutes

the border

degrassi

*i'll give them a little bit of credit, as they are probably the only canadian show that has a pretty diverse cast.

"i know...it's been sooooooooooo slow."

on friday, i emailed my agent to ask her how the industry was going because i've "noticed" i haven't had an audition in over a month. i also asked her if there's anything i should do to promote myself or if she's heard of any workshops in the city worth attending.

her response:
"i know...it's been sooooo slow!"

my reaction:

28 days.
0 hours.
19 minutes.


xoxo TA