Debbie Grattan

If You MUST Act, Do it For the Right Reasons

For anyone who gets into acting for egoic reasons, to feel special, famous, have adoring fans, etc… This truth is a harsh wake-up call. If you’re in it to be rich and famous, you’re likely in it for the wrong reason and it’s probably going to be a very painful ride sooner or later. Even if you have a lucky break early in your career, it is extremely difficult to sustain a level of success without a deep love FOR and desire to BE an actor.

The unemployment rate for actors, according to the Actor’s Equity Association hovers around 90%. I’ve heard the stat for many years that at any given time, only 3% of actors are actually working (in paid acting jobs).

The United States Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics recently came out with a report that stated that actors “endure long periods of unemployment, intense competition for roles, and frequent rejections in auditions.” — Unemployment is a Lifestyle For Actors and Now Many Others Too

At best, most actors scramble from audition to audition, add a few bookings to their resume, and end up with barely enough cash from their acting jobs to pay their rent and other living expenses. Most have to take on other jobs just to make ends meet. And the pursuit of the next gig is relentless. It’s always about the next gig, the next paycheck, the next chance to show what you can do.

Even if a stage actor reaches their goal of making it to Broadway, the cost of living in New York City is very challenging if you’re trying to make ends meet on an actor’s salary. A typical Broadway contract for a non-star ensemble role could be $1700 – $2000/week. And just a month’s rent in NYC could take 1-2 week’s pay!

Of course, the reward of getting to act in front of a huge live audience or in a movie is the prize that everyone is chasing. Some of my experiences on stage are among the most happy and memorable moments of my life. But, these types of peak experiences come at a very high price.

Working Voice Over Actor: Slightly Less Desperate Edge Than Traditional Actor

Life as a working actor of any type demands a strong will and the ability to be able to roll with the ebbs and flows of an inherently unstable vocation. It requires not only the talent and creativity to understand how to interpret words on a page in any given context, but also tremendous perseverance, tenacity, strength, flexibility, patience, finesse and business sense to find and pursue the actual work.

Given it’s inherent instability, a career as a working actor is one that most people are probably not cut out for. As a professional voice actor, when you’re no longer driven by the next audition or booking, when the marketing, website maintenance, blogging, networking, cold calling and other chores to stay in the game become cumbersome, then maybe it’s time to re-assess goals and make sure it’s still something you want to do.

I’m sure the Tony Award winners from this year’s show are still basking in the glory of being awarded “best” for the season. But even for each of them, the show will eventually close and it will be time to look for the next gig. Ah, the life of an actor!

Go back to Part 1: “The Troublesome Plight of the Working Actor (and Voice Actor, Too)”
Go back to Part 2: “The Working Actor’s Relentless Pursuit of the Next Acting Gig”

Photo Credit: Will Act for Food is a photo essay collaboration between Cameron Stiehl and photographer, Ana Delao. Set in and around San Francisco’s Civic Center, this collection of photos shows the current state of the arts in America where many artists either work at corporate day jobs, relegating their passion to hobby status, or face poverty. Please visit http://www.cameronstiehl.com for more information.

Continued from Part 1

The Working Actor and the Relentless Pursuit of the Next Gig

The desperation in acting is so strong you can actually feel it in casting waiting rooms. I remember that feeling back when I started out in the acting world in the Southern California market. At that point in my career path it was all about landing leading roles in stage productions and going after film and TV opportunities. Armed with a degree in theatre, I pounded the pavement, joined forces with a few agents, went on auditions and booked some real work.

I did a lot of live theatre at the beginning (mostly unpaid) and in time I was fortunate to win a few TV acting jobs. The most notable (for coolness factor) was a little guest role on “Star Trek Voyager” in which I got to play a friendly alien, complete with bony facial makeup, who has a few lines with Capt. Janeway before being beamed down to my home planet (S7:E2 “Imperfection” for any Netflix streaming fans).

And yes, getting beamed down on a Star Trek episode is truly one of the most memorable things I’ve ever gotten to do in my acting career! I still get occasional requests from Trekkies for a signed headshot (some fans make it a hobby to collect headshots of every actor who has appeared in a Star Trek episode).

There were other TV series episode appearances along the way, a wonderful and rewarding run at South Coast Repertory, along with a slew of opportunities to do commercials, corporate and industrial videos and other on-camera work. These were all great experiences for me and helped to build my skills and develop my acting talents for the future.

No Business Quite Like Show Business

Show business is indeed a business. There are scores of great actors out there, who have honed their craft and can brilliantly play Willy Loman or Medea. Sadly, the majority still have a very hard time making a living as actors, and they have to hold part-time or full-time jobs to get through the slow times and just make ends meet.

In other professions, the more experience and skill that you have, the EASIER it is to find work. But in acting, and many other artistic endeavors, skills, talent and experience don’t automatically translate into an abundance of opportunities, jobs, or a livable income.

In the internet age, an actor must learn and embrace the art of marketing along with the art of acting. The days of just waiting around for your agent to call you with an audition or booking are long gone. Today, an actor has to be their own agent, which adds one more huge challenge to the list of what makes acting a very tough profession.

Realize You May Be Treated Like You Are a Commodity

In many casting situations, actors are viewed as a commodity. This is especially true for voice actors. No matter how great of a voice an actor may have, there are ten more who can replace them in a heartbeat. Yes, there are a few extraordinary voices out there who are instantly recognizable. But, that doesn’t mean they can’t be replaced.

One area of exception is probably in animation, where a select few voice over actors can have very long term success with certain characters. Check out these multi-million dollar voices. If you are fortunate enough to land in this circle of actors, then you probably are about as irreplaceable as an actor can be. Count your blessings and buy your parents a new house!

Here are a couple of other factors that can make a voice over actor harder to replace:

1. They are connected with the branding and image of the company they are working for, so replacing them could cause some brand dis-association for customers.

2. They deliver great service and are very easy to work with, so they are unique and more indispensable in ways beyond just their voice over talents and acting abilities.

Up next, the final part of this three-part series: Life as a Working Actor Requires Perseverance, Tenacity and a few other qualities that may need to be developed.

Photo Credit: Will Act for Food is a photo essay collaboration between Cameron Stiehl and photographer, Ana Delao. Set in and around San Francisco’s Civic Center, this collection of photos shows the state of the arts in America where many artists either work at corporate day jobs, relegating their passion to hobby status, or face poverty. Please visit http://www.cameronstiehl.com for more information.

In today’s world of VO, the successful voiceover talent is not only proficient in the art of voiceover, but he/she is also a savvy entrepreneur. The days of working only in a major market, through reputable talent agencies, and having billing go through a third-party (like the union/payroll service, agency, etc.) are forever changed for many talent. That type of payment may account for only a small portion of a voiceover actor’s income now.

Most of my work nowadays comes through production companies, advertising and marketing firms and corporate or small business voiceover clients. In this current voiceover marketplace, the voiceover talent has to be on top of the money game to ensure they get paid for their services.

How to Avoid Payment Issues

I’ve been working as a professional voiceover talent for over 22 years, and in all of that time, the total number of instances when I did not get paid for voiceover services delivered is less than ten. I’m VERY grateful for that fact. Considering that I’ve generated over ten thousand invoices, that’s a pretty staggering track record on the positive side!

In recent years, using PayPal and credit cards to secure the full payment before releasing final audio files has provided some accounting leverage. I use that approach with almost all new clients, many smaller-sized jobs, and nearly all voiceover clients located outside of the US.

The other main reason I think I’ve been able to avoid payment issues is due to the accounting system that I follow religiously. Here are the key things that I do to make sure the check is always in the mail, and ultimately in my bank account.

1. Send out invoices within a reasonable time-frame

My system is set up for Monday delivery of invoices for all jobs completed the previous week. My business manager (aka my husband) handles all the accounting, and employs a checklist-driven system to automate as much as possible. First thing on the weekly list is “Send Out Invoices.” Occasionally we send one even faster if a client needs that. And, when it comes to PayPal invoices, I always send those directly through PayPal as soon as possible, usually upon completion of the project and/or prior to delivery of final audio. So, a good rule of thumb would be “send invoices within one week of job date.” NO exceptions!

2.  Include wording in the invoice that explains what will happen if payment is not received within a specific time-frame

This gives me some leverage and recourse if a payment is overdue. The wording I use says basically, that prompt payment is appreciated and payments that are still outstanding after 60 days (from date of invoice) will have a late fee applied, which keeps increasing monthly until payment is made. You can determine the dollar amounts and/or percentages you want to use for the late fee (I use $20 per month or 2% interest per month, whichever is greater). This is a very standard practice these days, not only for voice over talents but for many other businesses as well. I rarely have to charge a late fee, but it’s good to have it there when I need it.

3. Have a professional, organized Accounts Receivables System

Whether you’re using a software program or doing the old school approach in a ledger, make sure you have an accurate, easy-to-use system for logging your payments as they come in. Since some payments come in electronically through PayPal or a merchant account service if you accept credit cards, you need to have a way to keep track of those digital notices too. Until fairly recently, we used to track payments in a ledger, which created a bit of redundancy, since we also use Quicken to send out invoices. But, when it comes to accounting, redundancy can be a good thing. That approach worked well for many years and we rarely had issues or errors. We now employ a similar method of tracking with the ledger now in an excel spreadsheet. The digital version offers additional useful benefits, such as being able to sort the data for tax purposes or other reasons. It doesn’t really matter what your system is, as long as it’s comfortable for you, and you can do what you need to do each week to keep track.

4.  Follow steps consistently when receiving payments

This may seem obvious but it’s actually worth mentioning. If you don’t have specific steps to follow, you can easily make an error, which will lead to additional work and hassle later on. You want your clients to trust that they’re dealing with a professional, who follows good business and accounting practices. Simple steps, done consistently, will ensure proficiency.

Examples of types of steps to follow are:

– Write the invoice number on each received check, so you can easily backtrack it later on if there is a question.

– Make copies of all checks before depositing.

– Always follow your sequence of steps in the SAME ORDER so it is habitual and consistent. If you have delegated accounting to someone else, make sure they are following a procedure, and not randomly skipping steps.

– Include the “payment received date” and check number in your accounts receivables log.

Keeping a detailed accounting of payments will save you time, energy and money. If you’re not a detail-oriented person or you don’t like tracking things like this, find someone who can help you and pay them to do the job! I can personally recommend Tina Maloney, the VO Helper, who has many great skills and loves to work with the numbers. There are other virtual assistants out there who can assist with accounting. If all else fails, marry an accountant!

5.  Watch the 30 day deadline like a hawk

For me, it’s 30 days from the invoice date. You may prefer a deadline that is shorter or longer depending on the types of clients you work with. From our software and even in the old ledger book, we can easily see when a payment has crossed the 30 day threshold for payment. An email is sent out to all clients who reach this point to follow-up on payment status.

It’s a very polite and friendly message (and not automated), and it almost always generates a reply with a status update of when we can expect the check. If we don’t get a reply, we re-send again the following week. After three attempts, we get on the phone and get more urgent with our communication. But, we always are polite and professional with how we communicate. Here’s a very good article that covers the importance of being polite in these situations.

You may notice that my late fee doesn’t apply until 60 days, but I contact the client at the 30 day mark. This is because, I want to make sure the payment is in process at 30 days. Sometimes the original invoice didn’t get to the right person. At 30 days, I feel comfortable checking in to make sure the ball is rolling, and to find out when I can expect a check to arrive. Keep in mind, I don’t do this myself, I have my accounting support person handle this correspondence.

Another added benefit of having someone else followup on late payments is that I can avoid having unpleasant mental associations with certain clients just because they are late in paying an invoice. It’s easy to fall into that trap and start to feel a little resentful about so-and-so not paying up when you distinctly recall turning around his or her project on a dime and totally over-delivering on the voiceover services end! It’s better if I personally don’t know who is late in paying bills in the 30 – 90 day late window. I sleep better, I avoid negative emotions spoiling my day, and in general, I’m able to feel very good about all of my clients. Knowing that I have someone tracking this and following up on my behalf keeps me out of the whole conversation. In this case, it is true that ignorance is bliss!

An Organized Accounting System Pays Dividends

While staying on top of your accounting system and procedures does take some consistent work and follow-through, the results are hugely worth the effort, and will have a positive impact on your productivity and overall mental state. And, as voiceover talents, keeping that positive mental attitude is a critical part of success over the long run.

Please share any additional accounting procedures that you find work well for you. I’d love to hear about your ideas and experiences!