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THE GAME OF ROUNDS
By Jennifer Courtney
September 1997When Penelope asked me to write an article on the benefits of stopping by offices, I had no idea that I was unusual among her clients. I thought everyone was making time to drop in on unsuspecting agents, casting directors, etc., but Penelope tells me that not everyone believes that it really works. I am here to tell you that it does.
I remember when I first heard about making rounds and dropping by cold I was shocked. I thought, "I can't do that, They'll yell at me, kick me out, I'll make a fool of myself." First of all, so what? If that's the worst thing that happens, so what, big deal. It really made me break down what I was afraid of and realize that the very worst thing I could imagine happening was really no big deal.
Well, on one of the first times that I did stop in, the very worst did happen. The assistant of a casting director I vaguely knew pretty much yelled at me about taking up her time, they were very busy, etc. I was very appreciative of her time and what I asked for was a list of agents I might get from the C.D. to contact for commercial work. She was still really annoyed with me but surprisingly went into the C.D.'s office to ask him and came out with a list and apologized for yelling at me saying it was a really crazy day. I was dumbfounded. I couldn't believe it worked, and began freelancing with two of the agents on their list.
I recently walked into the office of a C.D. for one of the TV shows filmed here in NY and asked the receptionist if the C.D. had a minute for me to say Hi. She did and now she knows who I am and I'm working on setting up an audition with her. Also, recently a friend of mine said that he would introduce me to his agent, but she never calls anyone who he suggests. Well, that sounds like a challenge to me now (now I'm getting cocky) and I marched right into that office and talked to one of the agents and I'm setting up a time to bring in a scene.
It seems as if most of the time I'm walking out of an office saying to myself "I can't believe it worked". I feel like it's a big game now and all these people think there are rules to follow and I'm just making up my own rules. And I'm not a naturally pushy person - I just am really friendly and smile a lot. I've found that I'm more confident talking to anyone now; it's made me more fearless. So much so that last week when I saw an actress whom I admire at a party I went up to her and told her how much I loved her work. In turn she invited me to come talk to her backstage when I see her current show. Stopping by also forces me to look my best, figure out which clothes look good, keep my picture and resumes updated and stapled ready to go.
I've made more headway career-wise with dropping in on people than with anything else. I've generated relationships with people who I never thought I'd even meet. And it's made me feel if I can do this, I can do anything. The business of acting has become much more approachable.
Stopping by makes me feel like I'm playing the game and once I think of it as a game, I can find the fun in it and make it work for me.Well, I have to go now. A casting director I met eight years ago is about to get a visit from an old friend. Let me leave you with a great quote that applies here: "a life lived in fear is a life half-lived."
See you on the streets of New York!
P.S. A week after she wrote this article Jennifer got a TV audition from one of her cold drop-ins! That led to her booking a job on the series.
Sow yourself like a seed.
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