Where I've Been

In short: treading water in a sea of negativity.  It's known to happen from time to time among actors and other creative types.

In...long: It's been a slow year, though things have been more interesting for the last week or two.  But as many of you probably know firsthand, when things get slow your mind starts working overtime.  Self-doubt can creep in, bitterness, all those fun things we do our best to avoid.  I was properly mired in it, and anything I wrote here would probably reflect that.  I didn't want to add to the millions upon millions of words actors have wasted lamenting their lots in life, so I stayed silent.  At one point I thought "well, I should write what's happening with me right now, shouldn't I?  Won't the truth have value to someone out there?"  I tried, I really did, but I just couldn't pull myself above the negativity.

What finally worked, you're surely dying to ask me?  I made a couple of decisions that have led or will lead to me being more proactive, and not necessarily as dependent on others to make something happen.  I've also gotten a few more responses to submissions I've made on my own, and had a decent meeting with an industry pro.  Unfortunately, we do have to rely on others from time to time.  To cap it all off, I just saw a trailer for the web pilot I shot at the end of last year and it looks absolutely great.  They're preparing a launch for next month, so don't worry.  I'll certainly bug you all then about it.

I've also dug deeper into Zen, which is something that's always been hovering around me but not something I've pursued as actively as I have been lately.  Having any sort of system in place that helps you deal with the world as it is and be happy with your situation is always a bonus for us.

Finally, an actual anecdote from an audition this week: I went in on a self-submission for a short film and wrongly assumed I had a headshot/resume in my bag.  Always double-check, folks.  I did find one in there with outdated agent info on it.  I briefly debated whether it would be better to cross it out and write my own info in, or just forego the h/r altogether.  I went with the former.  After my reading, one of the guys asked where I was from.  "Tennessee," I said.  

"We're all from Tennessee!  I saw UT Knoxville on your resume!"  We all grew up about 45 minutes from each other.  And if I hadn't brought in that resume, we would never have known.

Photo courtesy of Getty Images

--Colin Fisher

Comments

[Linda Fausnet]

Glad things are looking up.. Keep the faith!

[Brittany Baratz]

The glass is half full! Hang in there.

[Colin Fisher]

Exactly! Thanks guys, and thanks for reading!

[Erin Brese]

Hi Colin! As a fellow backstage blogger, I often wrestle with whether or not to post about the down times. I always want to have something good to say, but I think it's important to share the good and the bad. Makes you more human. Here's hoping things start looking up soon. And thanks for sharing!