The Art of Response: when family or friends ask ‘those’ questions

By: Erica Arvold

Family gatherings are coming– How can I prepare myself for the inevitable questions about being an actor?

“What have I seen you in?”
“Have you met Tom Cruise?”
“You should make your own movie”
“My neighbor’s daughter wants to be an actor, what should she do?”

WHISYI? Do you have the arvoldwarnerstudio.com total prep workbook? Show them each character you’ve created. You could have an entire stack of notebooks to share.

Or, you could respond with a version of… “Your question reminds of of how some people ask a writer how their book is doing in stores when they’ve just begun writing a new book. Even if their former books are huge bestsellers, it takes time to write…and this is what I’m doing right now, creating. It’s just harder to see than a book.”

Or, especially if they are supportive and close, what they are REALLY asking is if you are happy and loving what you do…so you can say just that you are.

HYMTC? Answer, “I’ve met many actors who are incredible artists and as soon as I know a huge celebrity, I’ll invite you to a dinner party with them, okay?

”YSMYOW! “That’s a great idea, will you write it? I have lots of ideas and could use your collaboration. Are you available for about 20 hrs next week and we can get started. OR, I am. But it’s not something I’m ready to share with the world yet…you know, artists have to keep some things under wrap. Don’t tell Aunt Lucy. Wink.

MNDWTBAA,WSSD? What would she do if you heard her say ‘I want to be an astronaut!’? Then apply that same thinking to acting. It’s training, practice, and incredibly competitive. Even a one line (even one word) role can take years to have the opportunity to audition. So, while she may want to be an actor, I’d recommend asking her why she wants to be an actor. And if she can’t imagine anything else better to do, then she starting in the right place.

PS: Do you know it’s industry standard to acronym-ize all project titles in the film biz?

Have a question about how to handle or approach your creative career conundrum? It’s what you CAN do, not what your shouldn’t do that I love writing about. Email aws@arvold.com and I’ll do my best to tackle it with you!