* – (On being this actor in this town at this time)
Hello there. Welcome to my first official blog posting.
Enough pleasantries, time to be blunt. Being this actor in this town at this time, well – it sucks actually. I have not had paid acting work in two years. I lost money producing my own play just to give me the opportunity to be on stage. This, so you know, is not whining. These are facts. And the following are my personal observations on why they exist.
Over the past few years, I have worked very hard at developing a positive attitude. Whereas before, I raged in the darkness, I now see ways out of dead ends and take decisions to seek out the sunlight. The minutiae of my personal journey are not important to this piece. I am just letting you know I have a plan.
But first, let me mark my observations on why it sucks being this actor in this town at this time. I will address this premise regarding theatre on another day. For now, I’m going to concentrate on film (by which I mean and/or television). And, just in case there is any doubt, the town of “this town” is Toronto, Ontario. Toronto once held the title of Hollywood North. Apparently this title is not unlike one bestowed in boxing. You only hold it so long as you defend it. The title transferred to Vancouver several years ago. Perhaps the title is now vacant as I understand Vancouver, too, has lost it.
When I first became a bike courier back in ’99, I used to curse film shoots because they took up so much of the road. And they were everywhere, sometimes two different ones a block apart. Now, I count myself fortunate if I see one a week. Obviously, there is less filming going on than there was in days of yore.
There are many factors for this but the primary one is we are no longer a Hollywood branch plant. Love it or hate it, Hollywood sustained the industry in this town But not at this time. The higher Canadian dollar has contributed to this decline, as have encouragements for American productions to stay at home. I suspect labour unrest on both sides of the border have also had a hand in these, quite literally, dark days. Unfortunately the homegrown film industry is unable to fill the gap. It has never been robust and is spread quite thin across this vast land. A possible bright spot here is the recent opening of Filmport down in the Docklands, which has the largest soundstage in North America. However, at this point, I do not think they have any work lined up. There are, undoubtedly, other factors at work here of which I am unaware. This is a very complicated situation, but the thing that most directly concerns me is the Reaganesque trickle down theory.
Now, I have had a few successes in my day, so I seemed to have achieved some higher status in the quality of auditions I am privileged to attend. I don’t get many auditions (1 or 2 a month) but they are all for good jobs. So I am often competing for roles with notable Canadian actors. Believe me, I cannot ask for anything better than playing with the big boys. But the thing I’ve noticed of late, many more notable Canadian actors are showing up at auditions for voiceovers and commercials. Now, if I think of these guys as A-listers, then that puts me firmly in the C-list, on tiptoes, reaching up and scratching at the bottom of the B-list. I know I don’t have much of a chance. Especially when a casting director addresses an A-lister with this sort of question: “How is my godson?” Now, I’m not suggesting the A-listers are either slumming or purposefully taking work away from me. No, it hurts being at the top too when there’s less work available. Food chain, trickle down, whatever you call it, it’s real. The A-listers are desperate, too, and are just trying to get any job they can.
So, in such a situation, one needs a plan. And here’s mine. Outlive them all. I can hardly wait to get all the really great parts they write for really old guys. And the other wonderful thing about my plan is, I am graced with a lot of time to work on it. Of course, the downside it, I have to survive until then. Hence, the aforementioned work as a bike courier. No doubt I’ll get in to that work at another time. For now, it will suffice to say that I have chosen to be a bike courier. I suspect I could make more money doing something else, but for me, flexibility is far more important. I can come and go as I please as a bike courier. Just in case plan B comes in to effect and I get the call from Hollywood. Hey, it’s happened before. No reason to assume it won’t happen again. You see, I have been in this business for thirty years and know there are ups and downs and monsoons and droughts. I have also come to see, through many a hard knock, that it always works out. Maybe not in the way I wanted, but it is, as they now say, a way forward. I have also come to understand one of the simplest things I’ve heard a million times: I am blessed with good health. So, whenever this current drought gets me down -and some days, it is powerful- I remember these paraphrased words of Anne Frank. No matter what happens, recognize the beauty that remains.
And have a plan. So here am I raising a glass to outliving them all.
