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Josh McHugh is an actor living and working in Los Angeles.
He writes a blog about “The trials, musings and shenanigans of a working actor…” – Josh McHugh, He Acts
His writing is thoughtful, insightful and we are delighted to be sharing it here on Actor Hub.
He writes a blog about “The trials, musings and shenanigans of a working actor…” – Josh McHugh, He Acts
His writing is thoughtful, insightful and we are delighted to be sharing it here on Actor Hub.
Dreams are free. Chasing after them? You pay for that.
The biggest thing I have learned about the acting community is what a passionate bunch we are about the art we have grown to love. So much so we are willing to suffer indignation, rejection, uncertainty. Even poverty.
From the outside looking in, we must seem a crazy bunch. A pile of shiftless dreamers.
We hop off the bus fresh into Hollywoodland, alive with possibility. We are greeted by an industry who look at that enthusiasm with equal parts fondness and pessimism.
Fondness, as many of them remember those first days as a dream. Eager to get started rubbing elbows, showing the world what they were born to do. It is a heady time to say the least.
Pessimism because, frankly, not that many of us will be able to stick it out. The realities of a life in show business are ones you have to experience first hand to understand them. There is nothing you can say to warn someone who is following their dreams.
Philip Seymour Hoffman
Get involved in acting to act, not to be famous or for the money. Do plays. It’s not worth it if you are just in it for the money. You have to love it.
I had my own impressions of the entertainment industry. I to grew up watching “Extra” and “Entertainment Tonight”. Had I discovered this path myself as a younger man, who knows down which roads my dreams would have taken me. As it was, I came to this game a little later than most. By the time I had decided to follow the call to a life in acting, I had already experienced success in a more traditional career path. I had also learned to deal with the disappointments and pitfalls inherent to a life in the arts. My enthusiasm, though large, was tempered with a dose of hard-earned reality.
Those who come out here fed on a diet of TMZ and Variety, believe that stardom is simply a matter of being discovered. Eat at the right restaurants, go to the right parties, buddy up to the right exec and bang presto, you’re red-carpet bound.
“Come on phone! Ring already!”
What they fail to realize is that the “newcomer ingenues” did not simply step into the light one day, ready to take their rightful place in the performer’s pantheon. That is a misconception created by media outlets to do one thing: Sell copy.
I’ve learned it’s important not to limit yourself. You can do whatever you really love to do, no matter what it is.
Most of the folks we regard as stars began their journey much the same as the rest of us. They stood in cattle calls. They auditioned for bit parts in low budget features. They bused tables to pay bills. Ate ramen and slept in their cars.
They did not do it for the money. There ain’t much of it to be had, certainly not starting out.
They did not do it to become famous. There are far easier ways to do that. Just look at reality TV.
They did not do it to become a star. That is not a goal. What it takes to become a star in unknowable. You will either become one or you won’t. There is no class you can take that will make it happen. Many a charlatan has paid for their sports car selling this very dream.
Why did they do it?
Because of the same feeling each and every one of us gets when we are doing what we love. It is utterly transcendent when we are doing it right. We each have a truth we want to share with the world around us. Its a brave and beautiful thing.
Follow your passion.
You may not become a star but, if you’re doing it right, you won’t care.
Other Guest Posts from Actor Hub
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When auditioning to play a nurse do you need to pop to the fancy dress shop and hire a nurses uniform for the day? Or is it cool to turn up in trainers and jeans? What do the casting directors want to see? -
Actor Hub readers and followers share their favourite pieces of acting advice and acting tips. -
From Guest Blogger – LA actress Shanice Kamminga – Famewhore, attention seeker, naive/delusional, unstable, childish – If you want to go to LA to become an actor you are obviously either one or all of these things. Part Two – Attention Seeker -
Guest Post from Actor and Director Ben Hodge – So you’ve all been there. You are prepping for that audition. You look through the breakdowns or the guidelines and begin to stress about what is going to be best. -
From Guest Blogger – actress Sanna Haynes – There have been a few times in my life that I have attended an open call. Contrary to popular belief, as an actor, you can’t just audition for anything. Nope. For any given role that is released to be cast, actors have to be invited to audition. -
From Guest Author – actor Josh McHugh – When at parties, on the bus or chatting at a coffee shop, invariably it comes up: “What do you do for a living?” For the longest time I all but shuddered when someone asked it. -
When you are acting Shakespeare you will often need to stretch yourself to extreme emotions. Here is a fun video exercise from the BBC archive for playing with emotional levels. -
Good people. That’s what you need more than anything is good people who are willing to give their time to a project. Then you got to let them run with it! Give them the tools to succeed, support them and believe in them.
