Thinking of moving to LA for acting.. need advice..

S

sithroya

Member
Im 19 & thinking of moving from Virginia to LA for "comedic"/general acting.. my questions are:

1-how much will I need to move there?
2-will i need a car?
3-which areas are best for acting?
4-what is the turn over rate for this kind of thing?
5-what are the best way to get auditions?

6-is it a good idea to go if acting is your passion.. or am i just wasting my time/money?

thanks:thumbsup:
 
1 - I'd recommend having at least six months' living expense money in pocket. Rent, food, etc that's probably going to be somewhere around $7500 or so. At minimum.

2 - Yes, you will need a car. Or a motorcycle. It's possible to get around Los Angeles via public transportation but to go very far it's a real time-suck. Plus should you need a job in a pinch having your own car makes you more employable.

3 - The whole Los Angeles metro area is good for acting because you will travel wherever in the city the auditions and work are.

4 - I'm not sure what 'turn over rate' means. Do you mean 'success rate?' Depending upon how you define success I would guess it's around maybe 10%-15%. But that's a total guess.

5 - The best way to get auditions is to have an agent. As for getting an agent...

6 - You are taking a very, very long shot in terms of the number of people trying vs. the number of people earning their living as actors. Just be aware that that is what you are doing. Really, I don't know that anyone can advise you there. I can't; I've never seen you perform and I'm hardly an acting guru anyway. But if you can't be happy otherwise, if being not-in LA and not-acting will keep you miserable over long sleepless nights, if it's what you have to do...well, there you are.
 
that's a very big decision; risky. i don't know what your situation is, but i'd get a college degree in the meantime. NOT in acting, but something more conservative (i.e. employable). you can work on your acting through college, and might even get paying gigs if you're good at it. this is just my personal opinion.
 
1-how much will I need to move there?

Like Max said, you need six months living expenses. See if you can find a roommate to save costs. You have to bootstrap. That means clubbing and drinking is pretty much out. I have a lot of friends who moved there, with varying degrees of success. Some are paying their bills. Some are on their last 100 dollars.

2-will i need a car?

Yes. You can use public transit - but it'll take forever. Public transit works for your 9-5. But if you get an audition, you might have hours to get there. Public transit won't do it for you. PS. Don't expect your car to look pretty after a few months. My Matrix took a beating out there. Most damage was caused at car washes and parking lots, but my paint job isn't as good as it used to be.

3-which areas are best for acting?

Stick close to LA. Transit time counts.

4-what is the turn over rate for this kind of thing?

Success rate? Not great. Too many people. Too few jobs. And even if you get an acting gig, it might not pay the bills.

5-what are the best way to get auditions?

Well, you missed pilot season. Try ~Jan forward. There will be a great deal of shows casting. Look into small boutique agencies and management companies. Have a demo reel and work before you go. At the very least, subscribe to Breakdown Services. You might be able to self submit to projects. But it'll require a headshot and a resume. When I was working for a management company, I was submitting our clients like wildfire on that site. Our managers would only initial the casting breakdowns and select who we will submit. And I did all the rest. And that was dozens and dozens of submissions per person per day. Literally, if they fit the description (even if they didn't) we submitted them. It's a whirlwind.

6-is it a good idea to go if acting is your passion.. or am i just wasting my time/money?

Eh. If it's your dream. Do it. Or forever wish you had.
 
thanks for the responses everyone..

some follow up questions

-would it be wise to drive from D.C. to L.A. in my corolla, or is it better to fly to LA and rent a car?

-how is the misc./temp job market in L.A.? would it be easy for me to find a job @ 19 aside from film?

again thanks you guys rock!:grin:
 
Have you ever been there before? I would never consider moving anywhere unless I spent at least a weekend there. So why not save up for a 2 or 3 day weekend, book a hotel and hang out and see if it's your kind of town or not.


Bear in mind I've never been to L.A, and why would I, but whatever... (in jesting )

1-how much will I need to move there?
2-will i need a car?
3-which areas are best for acting?
4-what is the turn over rate for this kind of thing?
5-what are the best way to get auditions?

6-is it a good idea to go if acting is your passion.. or am i just wasting my time/money?
Click to expand...
1: Cmon man? How much will you need? Maybe 2 pairs of pants, 2 shirts and a half dozen pairs of socks. Maybe 2 pairs of shoes. Maybe a tie.

2: No.

3: None.

4: Turn over rate? I'll let Max handle that but I'd say you can bet on never getting hired.

5: Good question even though you spelled it wrong. Check the acting forum here.

6: Your young. Go and find out. It's your life, not mine or anyone elses.
Go on welfare. Look for gigs. Spend a summer on skid row eating at the food banks. I'm serious. Do it for a summer and find out. It won't kill you at 19 years old.
 
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I drove from the DC area to LA in a Ford Probe, so it apparently can be done...assuming your Corolla is in decent shape and safe for a cross-country drive. Renting a car is the most expensive possible way to have one. If you're here for a week, rent. If you expect to be here longer, bring your own. Plus, driving means that you can inexpensively haul your crap with you for the move.

There's a lot of competition for work in LA, same as most of the country. Still, this is one of the largest metro areas in the US, with a correspondingly (proportionately) large job market.
 
Are you a professional actor now? If not, I would absolutely NOT move to LA any time soon. I think you would do MUCH better coming to NYC. I still think NYC is an easier place to get a start, and learn some craft. Or there are places in DC to do that as well. Or some smaller market. Like Chicago. Another great town for actors. And so is Minneapolis. Good actors to work with, build some chops, then go.

If you've already got some training and experience, and some contacts in LA, then sure go for it. But if you are going blind, I would strongly recommend against it.
 
I'll only answer number 6--

If it's your passion then it's never a waste of time. But even if it was, you're 19 and can spare wasting time for a few years. I'd say give it a go if you can.
 
A friend of mine saved up enough for a bus to get to L.A to try and
tap the music scene about 20 years ago. He wasn't successfull but the fact is, as I was saying before, all you need is the cloths on your back and some ambition, and the younger you are the better.

He never died or suffered any ills because of what he tried doing.
If you want to do it, be prepared for poverty and you'll be fine man.
Put it this way, from that point on, you can't lose.

Just be prepared for poverty. If your not willing to do that then idk man. It just goes with the territory don't you think?

Anyways, get used to Kraft dinner and being dirt stinking broke all of the time. And then it might pick up from there. :)

//edit: I need a proof reader. Beer drinkers need not apply.
 
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It'll cost you at least a hundred dollars.

But really, do it. I had a chance to move across the country and at least get my foot in the door a few years ago, but I didn't take it. Now I'm 25 with a ton of debt. No idea when I'll have another shot.

I'd definitely visit first, though. Get a feel for the city. It's pretty hectic out there, at least compared to the Carolinas. If you're just visiting for a week or so, it's okay to rent a car, otherwise don't. You're under 25, it'll be almost double the normal rate.

My brother's actually on a flight to LA right now. Just left 2 hours ago. One more round of Ninja Warrior.
 
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For the gods' sakes don't approach it with a mindset like I'm gonna be eating ramen and living on other people's couches, if I want to do this.

I mean, yeah, that may turn out to be the case but internalizing it is a great way to make it come true.
 
Then there's millionaire Cheng Pei who arrived in L.A. from Hong Kong only three years ago with less than twenty five cents in his pockets.















They never did find the two and a half million sewn into the lining of his suit.
 
Mm. When I moved to LA I did the thing where you roll up the cash, stuff it in condoms and swallow...

...never mind.
 
Like was said before:

Reel............ Resume............ Headshots

It's cut-throat out here, be ready for it. Without decent experience, or that "look", it's gonna be tough.

For every one actor getting paid, there are 1000's not. They all had the same idea.

Not trying to discourage you, just trying make sure you understand.
 
I'd highly recommend going with more than a hundred dollars...I think that's a silly recommendation.

And you either love LA or hate it...or think it's okay.

My friend went out there, hated LA with the passion of a thousand fiery suns, and decided that she no longer wants to be an editor. (She hated her editing position as well).
 
You are still very young. You have a couple of years to "waste". If you do come, treat it as a learning experience. Take any acting gig - any. Student production - $0 - take it. Indie production - $0 - take it. Take it all. That way, you'll make a reel; you'll develop contacts; you'll gain practical experience about the industry; you'll hone your craft. You might get lucky and get paid and "discovered" etc. - sure, but you may also win the lottery. Most of us don't win the lottery, we have to work for everything we've got. Good luck comes to those who put out the effort - take any acting gig. Eventually, you'll get good enough so people will pay you. But you won't get there if you have no work ethic, if you go in with a sense of entitlement, or if you go in thinking you already know all you need to. Learn. Stretch. Don't pass up any opportunity, no matter how lowly. Work as an actor - even if in the beginning you do it for free. Good luck!
 
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