Scott Sedita's Guide to Making It in Hollywood: 3 Steps to Success, 3 Steps to Failure

Praise for Scott Sedita’s Guide To Making It In Hollywood

Coming from North Dakota there wasn’t a lot of exposure to the world of entertainment, so I was understandably apprehensive and intimidated by the spectacle that is Los Angeles. I was curious about acting -- however I was seriously lacking in the confidence department. I am so thankful for Scott giving me the initial push that got the ball rolling for me. Though it will always be a work in progress, I can attribute my beginnings to Mr. Scott Sedita.

-Josh Duhamel, Actor (Las Vegas, Transformers)

I believe the main reason I continue to work is because I strive to be confident and real. I would have had no chance of achieving either of those if it wasn’t for Scott Sedita. His ability to prepare the actor for both the craft of acting and the accompanying business is unparalleled in my experience.

-Geoff Stults, Actor (October Road)

Not only is Scott Sedita incredibly skilled at coaching, but his advice and words of wisdom have been indispensable to me. And now he shares it with all of you.

-Jennifer Finnigan, Actor (Close to Home)

Scott Sedita’s Guide To Making It In Hollywood…will inspire and empower you to become a successful actor. Get ready for some changes with this book!

-Jay Kenneth Johnson, Actor (Days of Our Lives)

Sedita has a fresh, unique approach to ‘making it’ as an actor. This is a book for actors that want to be in it for the long haul and are focused on achieving success.

-Mark Teschner, Emmy Award-Winning Casting Director

This book is like having a personal life coach guiding you through your acting career. It should be required reading for anyone who wants to make it in this business. A MUST READ!!!

-Terry Berland, Casting Director

Scott has done it again! The information in this book is aimed at actors at all levels. I learned for myself and received so much to pass on to my students. ‘Scott Sedita’s Guide To Making It In Hollywood’ answers: how do I improve, how do I better my chances, how can I enhance my career and my life? I urge you to read this book…NOW!

-Judy Kerr, Author of Acting Is Everything

I always recommend Scott’s books and classes to actors who have talent but need no-nonsense, practicable direction to make the most of it. No guru, no flatterer, no flim-flam name-dropper, Scott combines a shrewd business sense with absolute truth-telling.

-David Rambo, Writer/Producer (CSI)

Scott Sedita’s Guide To Making It In Hollywood is a must read for anyone thinking about entering the very challenging business of acting. Scott knows the business from many angles -- as an agent, casting director and acting coach. This book is full of invaluable advice and insight into the world of acting.

-Susan Vash, Casting Director

Imagine you have a really good friend who knows EVERYTHING about breaking into the acting game and you’ll have some idea what’s it’s like to read this engaging and informative book.

-Jed Seidel, Executive Producer

Scott Sedita is an inspiration in person and on the page. His new book is a recipe for success for anyone who really wants it!

-Mary Lou Belli, Emmy Award-Winning Director

Scott’s book is so smart, so complete, so full of real, practical advice that I’m actually tempted to step from behind the camera to in front of the camera!

-Rob Lotterstein, TV Executive Producer

Scott Sedita’s simple and practical concepts will assist the actor to have both the confidence and the tools to start on that very difficult path to becoming a working actor in Hollywood.

-Victoria Morris, Talent Agent, Kazarian/Spencer & Associates

Scott’s enthusiasm for his work and his extraordinary insight in human nature makes this book a ‘must-have’ for any aspiring actor.

-Ellen Pittleman, Film Executive, Paramount Pictures

This book has something new to say. The clarity and wisdom is immediately understandable and personally useful. A ‘must read’ book for every actor.

-Steven Nash, Talent Manager, Arts and Letters Management

I wanted to get better at comedy, so I went to Scott Sedita. A few months later, I booked a series regular on a sitcom! Karma? Maybe. Sedita? Absolutely!

-Jonathan Chase, Actor (Knight Rider)

Scott Sedita highlights the real obstacles that face the professional actor, and gives the advice and counsel so desperately needed in this ‘overnight-sensation’ town. He demystifies and debunks years of silly thinking that has plagued millions of actors as they embark on a career in acting.

-Peter Kluge, Talent Manager, Impact Artists Group

A fantastic roadmap for anyone desiring a career as an actor. All the tools to succeed AND the ways to avoid failure can be found in this book. Specific, tangible action steps to avoid those common pitfalls and propel your acting career forward.

-Lisa and Laura Bunbury, Owners of Actors Info Booth

Scott Sedita’s Guide To Making It In Hollywood…is an insightful and inspirational blueprint for achieving success in the world of Hollywood. It will unlock treasures that an actor needs to attain and sustain a thriving career in the entertainment industry.

-Mara Santino, Talent Manager

An acting career manual! Scott writes in a very specific and detailed format, providing a fantastic roadmap for any person wanting to become an actor. Everything you need to BE SUCCESSFUL -- it’s in there.

-Stew Strunk and Tracy Steinsapir, Main Title Entertainment

Scott has always had a great grasp on this city and its industry. Talent, Confidence and Perseverance is what he preaches and truer words have never been spoken. Thanks Scott!

-Eric Ladin, Actor (Generation Kill)

Scott Sedita’s new book offers a step-by-step approach to becoming a successful working actor. He is an actor’s coach.

-TJ Stein, Talent Manager, Stein Entertainment

Scott Sedita’s Guide To

Making It In Hollywood

3 Steps to Success

3 Steps to Failure

Published by:

Atides Publishing

526 N. Larchmont Blvd.

Los Angeles, CA 90004, USA

AtidesPub@aol.com

Copyright 2008 by Scott Sedita

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, graphic, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author.

ISBN: 978-0-9770641-1-3

Library of Congress Control Number: 2008923937

Cover photo: Collin Stark

Cover and interior design: Andrew Deutsch

Editor: Jim Martyka

First printing: 2008

Printed in the United States of America

To my father, Charles…

…who has always believed in me.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Acknowledgments

AUTHOR’S PREFACE

INTRODUCTION

SECTION ONE

THE WANT

DISCOVERING YOUR WANT

Exercise: I want

ACTOR CONTRACT

THE THREE STEPS TO SUCCESS

CHAPTER 1: TALENT

WHERE DOES TALENT COME FROM?

The Acting Gene

Talent Scales

ACTING IS A CRAFT

PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE

Acting Classes

Actor’s Journal

My Acting Technique: WOFAIM

Call To Action Group (CAG)

Exercise: The Want Game

HOW TO NURTURE YOUR TALENT

CHAPTER 2: CONFIDENCE

WHERE DOES CONFIDENCE COME FROM?

Confidence Scales

YOU CAN BE CONFIDENT

Exercise: I am…

Exercise: I am good enough to be great.

Exercise: I believe in myself.

Exercise: I am a confident actor.

WORKING YOUR CRAFT

OBSERVING OTHERS

KNOWING YOUR TYPE

Exercise: The Typing Game

YOUR COMFORT ZONE

CHAPTER 3: PERSEVERANCE

WHERE DOES PERSEVERANCE COME FROM?

Perseverance Scales

YOU CAN PERSEVERE

Exercise: I persevered when I…

THE FOUR P’S OF PERSEVERANCE

PRIORITY #1: GET REPRESENTATION

Headshots

Resume

Monologues

The First Agent/Manager Mailing

The Second Agent/Manager Mailing

Adding To Your Pitch Package

PRIORITY #2: GET ACTING WORK

Theatre

Showcases

Student Films/Independent Films

Producing Your Own Projects

Help Your Agent Or Manager

WORK PERSEVERANCE WITH YOUR CAG

Exercise: What have you done for your career this week?

NEVER STOP PERSEVERING

SECTION TWO

OBSTACLES

FEAR

WHERE DOES FEAR COME FROM?

FEAR OF FAILURE

Seven Fear Factors Of Failure

FEAR OF SUCCESS

Seven Fear Factors Of Success

Exercise: Identifying your Fear

FACING YOUR FEAR

THE THREE STEPS TO FAILURE

CHAPTER 1: DISTRACTIONS

WHY ARE WE DISTRACTED?

MONEY

FAMILY

A Lack Of Support And Understanding

A Reliance On You Being The Point Person

RELATIONSHIPS

OVER-EXTENDING

CHAPTER 2: ADDICTIONS

WHERE DO ADDICTIONS COME FROM?

ALCOHOL

DRUGS

Alcohol And Drug Treatment

EATING DISORDERS

Bulimia And Anorexia

Binge-eating

Eating Disorders Treatment

OTHER ADDICTIONS

RESOURCES

CHAPTER 3: WRONG ACTIONS

GIVING IN TO FEAR

EXUDING NEGATIVITY

BEING UNINFORMED

BEING UNPREPARED

PROCRASTINATION

HAVING POOR RELATIONSHIPS

TARDINESS

MISCOMMUNICATION

DISPLAYING BAD BEHAVIOR

INACTION

SUCCESS STORIES

WOW, THAT’S WHAT IT TAKES TO BE AN ACTOR

WHO’S THAT GIRL

YOU, I WANT TO REPRESENT

THE PICTURE OF JOSH DUHAMEL

ONE DAY, I’M GOING TO BE THE NEXT MERYL STREEP

Index

About the Author

Order Forms

Acknowledgments

I would like to thank…

…editor Jim Martyka for helping me organize my thoughts, ideas, notes and philosophies into a book.

…my good friend Frank Salamone for sharing his experience, advice and opinions.

…my mentor Judy Kerr for her continued support, guidance and help throughout this process.

…all the readers who helped me edit this book; Deborah Quayle, Rob Lotterstein, Kelly Valentine, Patrick Munoz, Todd Rohrbacher, Tony Rago, Claes Lilja and Terri Cole-Juhasz.

…my loving family for always being there and supporting me throughout my many careers: my father Chuck, Helen, Peter, Guy, Samantha, Van, my Uncle Pat and Aunt Jo, my cousin Rosetta and her husband Charlie, my cousin Don and my dear Aunt Lois.

…my mother Doris who is and always will be my guardian angel.

…my friends for all their encouragement, love and humor; my ever-supportive partner Nicholas Proietti, Ed Fitz, Ellen Pittleman, Phil Oster, Tony Wisniewski and everyone else I might be forgetting. Sorry once again.

…the teachers at Scott Sedita Acting Studios for helping to make our studio the success that it is today.

…all those actors that bravely and courageously shared their experiences and stories with me for this book.

…all of my students who inspire me and challenge me to become a better teacher and a more creative human being. You all make me proud and help me remember why I’m doing this in the first place.

We are all born with innate abilities, skills and talents. What we choose to do with these gifts defines who we are and who we can become. After we acknowledge these gifts, we can choose to embrace them, pursue them and turn them into a career. And if we choose to do so, then we all need a plan, a roadmap to help us fulfill our dreams, our destiny, our life’s work.

This book is a guide for all those people born with the ability to act and the desire and drive to turn that gift into a career. This book is your guide to becoming a successful actor.

Your journey begins…now.

AUTHOR’S PREFACE

I was born with the innate ability to act, write and direct…and that’s pretty much what I did throughout my childhood.

I was always performing, putting on mini-extravaganzas in the living room or backyard of my house in Glen Cove, New York. I appeared in every school play. While I considered myself a leading man, I was often put into a supporting role (or worse…the chorus)! In retrospect, I guess it wasn’t likely that a funny, chubby, curly-haired kid with a Long Island accent would play Tom Sawyer or Prince Charming. Nevertheless, I knew I wanted to be an actor.

Over time, that funny, chubby, curly-haired kid grew into a tall, fit and trim teenager. Gone were the supporting roles! I now played the lead in all the school plays and community theatre shows. I also wrote, produced and directed elaborate productions in the high school auditorium and community centers.

When it was time for college, I was accepted into the acting program at Boston University’s School of Fine Arts. I immediately noticed the varying degrees of talent among my fellow students: some actors were brimming with talent while others had a harder time accessing it. I also noticed the different degrees of confidence each actor possessed: some came to the program with a solid foundation of confidence already instilled in them, while others seemed unsure, hesitant and lacking faith. There was also a clear distinction between the actors who had more drive, passion and perseverance about the prospects of an acting career than those who didn’t.

It was during my second year of acting school that I realized I no longer wanted to act. I discovered that I didn’t have a great want to become a professional actor, and it became apparent that if I didn’t truly want it, it wasn’t going to happen. At the same time, I found myself more interested in writing and directing scenes for actors. So, I chose to leave the acting program to pursue those other creative avenues.

I didn’t go far. Actually, I went right across the street to B.U.’s Film School. For the next two years, I worked diligently at making as many student films and TV projects as possible. I enlisted my acting school friends from across the street to appear in my productions. I also worked hard to make industry contacts in Los Angeles…and it paid off!

By the time I graduated, I had a job waiting for me in Hollywood. But the day after I graduated, I got a phone call informing me that there was a writers’ strike and the job was no longer available. With no other options, I moved back home to New York City.

Needing work, I took a job as an agent’s assistant with a well-known talent agency called Writers and Artists. I quickly became very adept at my job. I had an instinctual understanding of the workings of being an agent – talking to casting directors, spotting new talent, taking care of actors.

I worked for Writers and Artists for a year until I accepted a position as a full-fledged agent at the Mary Ellen White Agency. I was 22 years old and the youngest franchised agent in New York City. Every night, I went out to showcases and discovered new actors. I signed them, guided them, nurtured them and groomed them for success. And it worked! Or should I say, they worked. After a two-year stint at the Mary Ellen White Agency, I moved to a hot new agency called Frontier Booking International (FBI).

During my time at FBI, I was instrumental in discovering and building the careers of several of today’s top stars, including Courteney Cox, Matt Le Blanc, Dylan Walsh, Teri Polo, Vincent D’Onofrio and Christopher Meloni. As an agent, I worked very closely with my clients. I guided them on building their careers as well as their craft. Considering my acting training, I often coached my actors before they went out on their auditions. I enjoyed the process of working with actors and seeing them grow as artists.

Being an agent was exciting but there was something nagging at me. I still had the need to explore my creativity; I wanted to write. I started taking TV and film script writing classes after work. Then, one day I had an epiphany. I was sitting at my desk and suddenly thought, Does being an agent still make me happy? The answer was No.

After nearly a decade of representing actors, I decided to call it quits. At the top of my game, I chose to give up being a talent agent and I moved to Los Angeles to pursue a writing career.

I had a great beginning. I got an agent, took meetings with network and studio execs and booked some TV writing gigs. Then the momentum started to wane…and so did my desire. I was waiting for my big break: to get on a TV show as a staff writer and it wasn’t happening quickly enough.

I was also now in my mid-30s and I wanted a life of stability and security. Luckily I had a great survival job that would soon present a brand new career opportunity.

As I was pursuing my writing career, I worked with casting director Danny Goldman, where I got a unique perspective on the casting process. As I watched thousands of actors audition, I very quickly recognized the experienced actor versus the inexperienced actor, the talented versus the not-so-talented. I saw, once again, how an actor’s confidence plays a major role in achieving success. I also got a view of how actors – through various forms of fear – sabotaged themselves in an audition.

I witnessed how important it was for actors to understand who they were and what type(s) they played best. The actors who knew themselves were the ones that consistently worked. I got excited when an actor was right for a role, worked hard, and booked it.

During my time casting, I ran into an actress I used to represent. She asked me to coach her for a TV series audition. I did and she booked the job. This lead me to start offering acting classes (at Danny Goldman’s) as well as private coaching sessions, which helped many actors to book jobs on films, TV shows and soaps.

I quickly discovered that I loved coaching actors. There was a thrill in seeing an actor seek, find and speak the truth. Actors responded well to my style of coaching, my acting techniques and my straightforward approach to the business. I not only wanted actors to learn the craft of acting, I also wanted them to understand what it takes to have a career in acting.

I found a whole new kind of satisfaction in teaching and coaching that I had never experienced before. I was now at another crossroads and I was taking stock in what I wanted to do with my life. The choice became clear…I wanted to redirect all my creative energy into a career as an Acting Coach.

One evening after work, I drove to Larchmont, a quaint, hip section of Hollywood, to meet a friend for coffee. On the way, I spotted a Space for Rent sign on a building on Larchmont Blvd. I thought if I ever opened an acting studio, this would be a great location: upscale, quiet, safe. So I stopped and checked out the space. It was perfect! I decided right then and there, this was going to be my acting studio. I signed a three-year lease.

I opened my studio in 1998 with high hopes and only 10 students – which didn’t even cover my rent. During the day, I ran the business and coached actors. At night and on weekends, I taught acting to kids, teens, young adults and adults. I worked hard to build up my courses, my student enrollment, my studio and my presence in the industry.

Now, 10 years later, Scott Sedita Acting Studios has over 200 students, a staff of six acting coaches and a reputation as one of the leading acting studios in Hollywood. Many young talented actors have gone from my studio to become successful actors on film and TV, including Josh Duhamel, Brandon Routh and Jennifer Finnigan. I continue to see many more potential stars walk through my studio doors every day. That, to me, is more exciting and satisfying than anything I’ve done in the past.

At this point in my life, all my talent, confidence and perseverance has paid off. I’m a successful acting coach, I’ve authored two books, I give seminars all over the country, I consult for networks, I work on television and best of all, I get to work with actors on a continual basis.

I feel very fortunate that I’ve been able to explore several avenues of this business, and that I’ve been able to experience what it feels like to act, direct, agent, write, cast and most of all…coach.

We are all faced with opportunities, obstacles and choices when it comes to our careers.

As you begin your journey as an actor in Hollywood, you will also be faced with opportunities, obstacles and most of all, choices. They will all lead you somewhere in your career and they will all help you grow as individual artists. Who we are and who we become are dictated by the choices we make in our life and in our career.

It’s those choices – and the conflicts, successes, failures, joys, pain and possibility that accompany them – that form our lives and will eventually tell our stories.

Embrace this choice to pursue your acting dream, celebrate your decision to be an actor and enjoy the experience that this acting career will bring to your life. Most of all, love what you do.

Scott Sedita

2008

INTRODUCTION

Recently, at the Larchmont Deli, a few blocks from my acting studio, I ran into a former student of mine who I hadn’t seen in a few years. I’ll call him…Brent.

As Scott stands at the counter ordering an over-stuffed gyro, Brent, a young, good-looking actor approaches.

BRENT: (CHEERFULLY) Hey, Scott.

SCOTT: Hey, Brent! (THEY HUG IT OUT)

BRENT: Good to see you!

SCOTT: Good to see you, too!

At this point in the conversation, I would usually ask an actor I hadn’t seen in a while how their career was going. But something inside – an instinct perhaps – led me to rephrase the question…

SCOTT: So, how’s…life treating you?

BRENT: Good. Yeah, life is good, very good.

SCOTT: Good to hear!

BRENT: Except I’ve been depressed ever since I gave up acting.

SCOTT: Oh, well, that’s certainly not good to hear. I mean…the depressed part.

BRENT: I was there, you know? I was on my way…and then I just let it all slip through my fingers.

A little history: When Brent first came to my acting studio a few years back, he was a very charismatic young man with an innate ability to act as well as an agent who was grooming him for stardom. All Brent needed to do was study his craft, build his confidence, and stay focused and he’d be on his way. And that’s what Brent did…for the first six months.

For the next few months, Brent’s commitment to his craft and career started waning. Even though he booked some small acting gigs, he started to flake when it came to class. He didn’t do his homework, he’d procrastinate, he’d show up late or he’d just miss class altogether. He even began missing auditions! Suddenly, Brent’s acting career was full of distractions and he took too many wrong actions, which ultimately put him on a path to self-sabotage.

When I confronted him, he had a million excuses: family obligations, friends in need, roommate problems, girlfriend drama,