Dear Actors: Stop Being Douchebags on Social Media

Manifest Destiny

I’m friends with a lot of actors, both in real life and on social media. I follow a lot of actors on Twitter. Actors continually pop up in my news feed on Facebook. Recently, more and more, I’ve noticed a disturbing trend. I’ll call it: the rise of the douchebag actor. How do you know if you’re being a douchebag on social media? Follow these tips to steer clear of douchebag-ville.

A douche by any other name would smell as sweet.

1. Stop bragging about your auditions

I got an audition for a TV pilot opposite a major actor. #blessed

I’m running from this casting office over to that casting office because I’m so in demand right now. #actorlife

Who cares? Did you book it? If you book work then feel free to humbly express how excited you are.  Getting an audition is no great feat. Also…

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Spend Your Money & Time Wisely

I personally am an actor that takes a portfolio into workshops and does maintain a facebook “fan” page. I have always thought that proper marketing and presentation is good for your career and makes you stand out from the pack when your work is of equal quality, is that the wrong point of view? I found this article from Backstage that makes me question all I am being taught.

Why the IMDb STARmeter Rating Isn’t Getting You Auditions

By Secret Agent Man
On Backstage
July 22, 2013

“My experience has been that actors spend way too much time worrying about things that don’t really matter.

For example, why are actors always checking their STARmeter ranking on IMDb? Do you really think that number means anything? It’s just a rating based on Internet searches by the website’s users. In theory, the rankings are supposed to graph your popularity in the entertainment industry—but trust me: No one cares except for narcissistic movie stars and their publicists.

To prove my point, a 35-year-old actor named Shannon Guess recently held the number one position for more than a week. This dubious accomplishment had nothing to do with her acting career; Miss Guess was at the top because she was arrested for allegedly sending envelopes laced with poison to President Obama and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg. The notes inside read, “You will have to kill me and my family before you get my guns. Anyone who wants to come to my house will get shot in the face. The right to bear arms is my constitutional right and I will exercise that right till the day I die.”

Wow! That’s the ultimate cover letter, isn’t it? I bet agents all over town were scrambling to get a meeting with this future star.
Sadly, there are companies out there you can pay to help raise your ranking. I know that sounds absurd but these places do exist, so some of you must be handing over your credit card number. I guess the hope is that no one will notice the lack of training and credits on your résumé when you’re that popular on IMDb. And maybe that’s why so many actors mention their ranking when they’re submitting to my agency.
Here’s the bottom line: Even if these companies deliver on their promises, none of you are getting a deal or an audition or representation because of a spike in your STARmeter ranking.

There are no shortcuts in this business.

Here are a few more examples of actors burning way too many calories on activities that don’t really matter.

I have an editor friend who works on a lot of demo reels. He recently told me that an actor wasted 10 minutes in his studio trying to figure out which font to use for his name.

When I attend a workshop, actors often hand me elaborate portfolios stuffed with more information than anyone could possibly want. I always feel bad when I throw them away. What a waste of time and money. If I’m meeting you at a workshop, all I really need is your headshot and résumé. Save the rest for your AFI career retrospective.

I’ve been told that actors spend hours and hours working on their Facebook fan pages, just in case someone like me wants to learn more about them. I hate to burst everyone’s bubble, but I’ve never done this, and I doubt I ever will. Why would I? There are only so many hours in the day.
That applies to you too. It’s like Gordon Gekko said, “The most valuable commodity is time.” So use it wisely. Learn some basic marketing skills. Get in great mental and physical shape. Put yourself in social settings that create contacts. Focus on your craft. Become the best actor you can possibly be. Doing this will serve you better than focusing on all that other nonsense that adds up to nothing more than wasted energy.

And that’s it for this week, gang. I have to go submit on some breakdowns. It seems like everyone is looking for a Shannon Guess type”

How To Use Social Media Incorrectly by Marci Liroff

from Backstage

Why Actors Need To Think Before They Tweet

By Marci Liroff | June 13, 2013

“I’ve been encouraging actors to get involved in social media for the last several years. Seems that they’ve been heeding my call! I’ve noticed droves of actors taking to Twitter lately. Some do it well; some…not so much.

While working on the feature film “Vampire Academy: Blood Sisters,” based on a best-selling series of six young-adult paranormal romance novels, I noticed some really bad behavior by a few actors; they were tweeting about coming in for auditions, how they did on said audition. One actor simply tweeted, “Christian Ozera” (the name of one of the very exciting male characters in the book series), and the Internet went wild with rumor mongering.

To put the book’s huge fan base into perspective, the Facebook page for the movie—which hasn’t even been made yet—has more than 250,000 fans.

I got an email from one of my producers, who asked that all casting news come from the production and that what goes on behind the scenes (i.e., who’s auditioning) should be controlled by us. The producer added that any further “leaks” would compromise an actor’s potential for being hired.

The Facebook fan page and Twitter blew up with speculation, and thousands of fans were hysterically talking about whether the actor who tweeted about auditioning for Christian was going to get the part. I had to call his representatives and suggest that this was perhaps not the most professional approach to getting the role. I knew in my heart that he had tweeted this in an innocent way without realizing what trouble would ensue from his simple tweet.

Another actor on Twitter and Facebook who badly wanted one of the lead roles would fan the flames of speculation and neither deny nor confirm that he was being offered the part. He even created a Facebook page for his mission.

Because IMDb is actually a fan site much like Wikipedia, anyone can enter information. We hope and depend that the site actually vets the information, but an actor who was “rumored” to be in the mix, who actually wasn’t, was listed as “rumored” to be playing the role. This added to even more confusion.

I’ve seen actors fired from commercials for tweeting things like “Hey, I just booked a —– commercial!” Same goes for television shows. The producers, networks, and studios see this sort of thing as a leak of information. This news should only come from the production. If after reading this you still feel compelled to share this kind of information, you should clear it with the producers first.

Kevin Brockman, Executive Vice President, Global Communications, Disney/ABC Television Group spoke to me about this topic. “We are very actively involved in guiding our actors and productions in the social media space. At ABC and ABC Family, after series are green-lit and before production begins, our social media and PR teams walk the actors and producers through a social media 101 that points out the potential positives and negatives in these arenas. Series spoilers are a large part of the discussion and our rule of thumb is ask your executive producer or Publicity team before posting anything that may be a problem. Our actors, especially on our shows with mystery elements, like ‘Scandal’, ‘Pretty Little Liars’ and ‘Twisted,’ are very cognizant of this, as they don’t want to hurt the viewing experience for their fans.”

Brockman added, “At Disney Channels Worldwide, we host talent orientation programs that provide new actors information on what to expect from their colleagues on the production team and from their colleagues at Disney Channel, and what’s expected of them. During the orientation, we cover the subject of social media and reiterate to our actors and their parents that what they say and do on social media, or when communicating directly to their fans, should done with care. We remind them to “think before they tweet or post” anything, and ask them to appreciate that millions of young fans may look up to them.”

I also spoke to Dan Berendsen, writer/producer/creator of ABC Family’s hit show “Baby Daddy.” He said, “All five of my cast members have a significant Internet presence (Twitter, Instagram) and are an integral part of the show’s marketing. They are the source of the show’s real social media. We acknowledge that and promote it—they are partners in the successful marketing of the show. Consequently, we talk about what information is best for them to give out and what’s not. To make it work, the actors have to be completely onboard with what you’re trying to accomplish.

Historically, ‘leaks’ and ‘spoilers’ are more likely to come from the studio audience and the extras. There is almost no way to shut that down on a show that’s filmed in front of a live audience—other than to ask people not to ruin the surprise for everyone else.”

Of course, I understand the feeling we all have these days of wanting to share news within our communities of followers on Facebook and Twitter along with our websites. I suggest you share it after the project is completed and only when it’s about to air. Another thing to do to feel connected is to say something benign like “Auditions went great today! I was so prepared!” That way, nobody gets hurt.

Known for her work in film and television, Casting Director Marci Liroff has worked with some of the most successful directors in the world such as Steven Spielberg, Ridley Scott, Mark Waters, Christopher Nolan, Brad Bird, and Herbert Ross. While working at Fenton-Feinberg Casting, she, along with Mike Fenton, cast such films as “A Christmas Story,” “Poltergeist,” “E.T. – The Extra Terrestrial,” “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom,” and “Blade Runner.” After establishing her own casting company in 1983, Liroff cast “Footloose,” “St. Elmo’s Fire,” “Pretty in Pink,” “The Iron Giant,” “The Spitfire Grill,” “Untamed Heart,” “Freaky Friday,” “Mean Girls,” “Ghosts of Girlfriends Past,” “Mr. Popper’s Penguins” and the upcoming “The Sublime and Beautiful,” which she produced as well.”

Why You NEED an Internet Presence & Social Media!!!

YouTube phenomenon & now a writer for Backstage, Taryn Southern knows what she is talking about. Her Career Hacker column is my new favorite reason to read backstage magazine. I will post her past few columns which are taken straight from the magazine here for you to read as I think you will find them just as interesting as I do.

Why Going Digital Will Help Your Career

By Taryn Southern | March 7, 2013

“2012 was a mammoth year for digital content. YouTube invested more than $150 million into “premium” content across its platform. Amazon Studios began production on six pilots. Mobile ad dollars increased 95 percent.

Welcome to the dawn of Digital Hollywood, where everything is new. New gatekeepers, new money, and—most important—new rules.

I’ve been working in digital content since 2007 as a producer, writer, actress, singer, host, makeup artist, gaffer…you name it. A lot has changed since then, but one thing is still the same: The Internet holds massive, unlimited, and untapped opportunities for actors. Most of them just haven’t caught on yet.

Before I launch into a digital media advice extravaganza, let’s start with the basics: why you should care.

The Internet is your playground This almost goes without saying, but it’s the only platform where you can test out your ideas, characters, and formats for an anonymous, democratic, and potentially unlimited audience for free. This is not an acting class
with your peers. There are no entry fees or monthly dues required. Have fun. Experiment.

Exposure Acting class gives you a chance to hone your skills; the Internet gives you a chance to broadcast them. Take the opportunity to write that perfect role for yourself and showcase what makes you unique. Forget about auditioning for a show; you might end up selling one (e.g., “Workaholics”).

Income Did you know some of the top YouTubers make seven figures a year and own 100 percent of their intellectual property? While getting to that level is certainly not easy, there are many ways actors can earn money on their online videos. I’ll focus on YouTube monetization in a future column.

Independence No matter what level an actor is at, by definition he or she is in a constant state of unemployment and usually dependent on someone else for a green light. Finding an agent, getting an audition, and booking the role requires a lot of other people to say yes. To upload a video online, only one yes matters: yours.

If you didn’t care before, hopefully you now care a bit more about this little thing called the interwebs. Whether you’re a beginner or a digital content maven, think of me as your Dear Abby 2.0, here to help you launch your online empire.”

Building Your Brand With Your Brand-New Website

By Taryn Southern |  March 21, 2013

““Before I jump into social media, I want to have a professional website. Where do you recommend I start?”

Unfortunately, unless you’re a Web designer (or sleeping with one), building and maintaining a website is a seemingly never-ending, costly, and time-consuming work in progress.

If you want to save yourself thousands of dollars, days of hassle, and handfuls of hair, it’s important to know how to avoid the top five most common actor website mistakes:

1. A site you can’t update.
There’s nothing worse than paying someone to build you a site you can’t update, leaving you stuck with something that looks like it was published in 1999. The only way around this is to build your own; I recommend about.me (easiest), weebly.com, and wix.com. Depending on your preferences, they can be free or charge a monthly service fee, but all are easy to update. If you plan to blog a lot, WordPress is the best platform, but you’ll need a customized theme first (premiumpress.com, themefuse.com, etc.).

2. Too much content.
Quality over quantity, folks. You can never go wrong with a clean, simple landing page with a short bio and links to your work. If you want to get more in-depth, create separate navigational tabs for Bio, Résumé, Photos, Press, Video, etc., but don’t create categories for areas where you are lacking. Simple is better.

3. Superfluous language.
If you’re not a writer, find a friend who is and force him or her to edit your copy. Nothing is more cringe-inducing than reading a poorly written, self-important actor’s bio: “With her incredible work ethic and talent, Taryn is on the rise to becoming Hollywood’s next big starlet!” Unless you are trying to be funny, I just barfed. Think like a journalist, and stick to facts.

4. Flash site.
Ten years ago, flash was the bomb diggity. Unfortunately, the loading times are annoying, and it’s now incompatible with smartphones. Make sure your site is built in HTML5, the most common and adaptable mark-up language for the Web.

5. No personal contact information.
Post a generic email where you can be contacted, such as taryn@tarynsouthern.com. You never know when someone might need you right away—and pointing people to contact you via your personal Facebook profile is unprofessional.

Follow those rules, and you’ll be just fine. Keep in mind that having a kick-ass website is your greatest promotional tool, and the only one you can completely control.”

4 Sites You Need to Be On (Now!)

By Taryn Southern | April 4, 2013

“Q.: I want to start building a presence online, but I’m so overwhelmed I don’t even know where to start. Do I need to have a Twitter page? What are the “must haves”?

A.: There are no musts, and maintaining a social media presence simply isn’t of interest to some actors. But if you want to optimize your brand, industry relationships, and work opportunities, you should strongly consider investing your time and energy in the following sites:

Facebook fan page Unlike a personal Facebook page, a fan page is a place where you can safely and shamelessly promote your work without confusing potential fans and collaborators with photos of you knocking back margaritas last Friday (though I still do this, on occasion). Once you create an account, upload your headshots, press photos, and demo reel, and update the page with posts about new projects.

Personal website This is the only platform over which you have complete control. That said, a crappy site is worse than no site at all. Make sure it looks professional, can be viewed on a mobile device (no Flash!), and contains the following: contact info, résumé, reels, short bio, social media links, and photos.

YouTube account Even if you’re not out there making your own videos, you can still benefit from having a channel page that showcases your demos and/or clips of your work. If there are videos or trailers already on YouTube with you in them, you can create playlists so these videos will automatically show up on your landing page. Confused? Head to my channel (youtube.com/tarynsouthern), and check out how I organize my playlists.

Twitter It’s hard to explain the benefits of Twitter to people who don’t actively use it and engage with the community, but it can be a wonderful tool for self-expression, branding, and even networking. It’s the one platform where you can easily reach out to pretty much anyone, as well as read about last-minute filming opportunities, screenings, and events. If you’re going to make the leap, just make sure you learn and abide by proper Twitter etiquette (more on that in a future column).

Before you get started on any of these platforms, make sure you register one name across the board (e.g., my Twitter, Facebook, and website pages are named TarynSouthern) to avoid confusion.

Over the next few months, I’ll go into more detail about the best ways to use these platforms to be proactive with your career; it just takes a little initiative. ”

How to Build an Audience on YouTube

By Taryn Southern | April 18, 2013

“Q. I’ve done a few Web series, but they didn’t get very many views. How do I build an audience?

A. I hear this a lot. You spent months slaving away on a series, you upload to the Web, and…crickets.

Unfortunately, gone is the phrase “going viral.” Our Facebook and Twitter feeds have become a marketplace of self-promotion, and when just about everyone seems to be making a Web series, it’s tough to even get people to watch.

While variables such as format, tone, and personality are always going to be a huge part of the equation, here are five YouTube basics you can control to help you build an audience.

Optimize SEO. Make sure people can find your content. To increase search engine optimization, make sure your description box has plenty of information about the series, links, and cast and crew listings. Include video keywords, possible title misspellings, and other brand associations as tags in the description box. The more information you have under the video, the better your video’s search engine ranking by Google.

Increase video interaction. If your video is particularly controversial or newsworthy, comments and likes often come automatically. Otherwise, creatively encouraging people to comment and “like” the video (through graphics or calls to action) can help increase your content’s search visibility. Depending on their settings, social activity on your content is often automatically broadcast to those viewers’ own social media streams (i.e., Twitter). Voilà, free promotion!

Design your video thumbnail. Time and again, Google studies show that people are much more likely to watch a video with a great thumbnail. If you’re not a Photoshop wizard, take a screen grab of your video’s best frame (command+shift+3 on a Mac), and use PicMonkey.com to crop it to 1920×1080 pixels. Apply color filters (increasing saturation and contrast goes a long way), and export the file as a JPEG or PNG.

Consistency. If you’re serious about building an audience, release content at least once a week. Try to keep your series scalable so that you have the resources to continue releasing on an ongoing basis. If you need time off, maintain consistency by releasing behind-the-scenes content, extras, or vlogs.

Annotations. Annotations are the clickable areas of a YouTube video that drive viewers to other content on your channel. I frequently use the “spotlight annotation” tool to point people to other videos or to my channel subscription box. Go to youtube.com/tarynsouthern and watch the last 30 seconds of one of my recent videos to see how I use annotations.

There are a ton of other ways to build an audience around your content. These YouTube basics will help get you started.”

6 Etiquette Tips For Asking Influencers to Share Your Content

By Taryn Southern | May 2, 2013

““Will you share my new Web series on your Facebook and Twitter?”

How many times have you heard this question, via email, text, Facebook, Twitter, or otherwise? We’ve all been there, but for the average online influencer take that number and double it. By 50.

In the Wild West of Web content, seeking promotion from influencers (i.e., people with lots of online fans) often feels necessary to stand out from the crowd, but it can also earn you frenemies if you don’t do it properly.

Here are my top six etiquette tips for seeking promotion from influencers.

6. Group requests. Unless the person is a good friend or owes you a favor, don’t single him or her out. Send a group email (bcc’ing them, of course). Explain that you value their opinion and provide a link to your series for them to check out and share if (and only if) they enjoy it.

5. There are no “small” favors. Never say, “I just have a quick little favor to ask”; social media influencers receive dozens of promotional requests every day, and many of them are paid for it. Influencers’ credibility depends on the trust they’ve built with their fans. When they share content that’s inauthentic to their audience, they undermine their own ability to drive traffic…and risk backlash. From now on, it’s a big favor!

4. Thank you, please. If influencers share your link, reach out and let them know how much you appreciate the help; their next beer or coffee is on you! Even if you don’t ever see them in person, trust me—the offer will be appreciated.

3. No hard feelings. If they don’t share your content, don’t hold a grudge. Maybe your project just doesn’t appeal to their demo. Maybe they just promoted four videos back to back and don’t want to exhaust their followers. Maybe they don’t like your ex-girlfriend. Whatever it is, don’t take it personally. Most of the time, people are just really busy.

2. E-mail only. Facebook’s app sucks for the person attempting to copy/paste/share links. Publicly asking for promotion via Twitter is just obnoxious (and amateur). Texting people links? That’s akin to what telemarketers were doing in the ’90s. Don’t spam my personal cell!

1. Never tag. Would you spray-paint someone’s house with your face? No! It’s not nice. Never tag people in your project trailer so that it shows up on their page. That’s just plain rude.

We all have something to promote these days, but there is a right way and a wrong way to set the stage for authentic, honest promotion from influencers and fans.”

10 Ways to Get Video Views

By Taryn Southern | May 16, 2013

“Q. “I launched a YouTube channel but some of my videos only have views in the hundreds. What can I do to change this?”

A. I uploaded my first video to YouTube in 2007 (“Hott 4 Hill”), and within a week the video racked up more than a million views. This would be my first, and last, “viral video.”

Aside from the anomalies (i.e., Psy, Double Rainbow guy), getting massive traffic to a one-off video without a preexisting audience is next to impossible. When I consult for businesses and individuals, we develop a customized plan to ensure that the content they produce is “share friendly,” with content that is easy to repost across blogs and Facebook feeds.

To get you started on your quest for more eyeballs, here’s what you should consider.

1. Relatability. Does the video touch on topical or niche topics that people will want to share on their Facebook page, blog, or other social community?

2. Relevancy. Touch on topics being discussed in the news or the public zeitgeist to benefit from Google searches on these topics.

3. Frequency. YouTube’s search algorithm favors users who post frequently, with one video per week as the recommended minimum. If one video hits, all the others on the channel benefit.

4. Shoulder Content. Extra content made up of bloopers, behind-the-scenes footage, live chats, etc., are all ways to bring more eyeballs to existing content.

5. Playlisting. Placing your channel’s video content in playlists encourages viewers to watch not just one but multiple videos from your channel.

6. Interaction. Never turn off the comments. Moderate them if you must, but viewers’ social actions show up in their friends’ feeds and move up the ranking of your video by YouTube SEO. Sometimes the best strategy is to simply ask your audience at the end of the video to like, comment, or add to a playlist. Run giveaways. Give your audience a reason to get involved.

7. Press. Aside from major blogs, a few digital outlets consistently cover Web videos and series—Tubefilter, NewMediaRockstars—so consider reaching out to them with updates on your video material.

8. Collaborations with online stars. Web stars can drive more traffic than mainstream stars, so keep this in mind if you’re just starting out on YouTube and trying to maximize your effort.

9. Point of view. This goes without saying, but YouTube is a dialogue—not a one-way viewing experience. Make sure you or your characters have a compelling point of view. Otherwise, you’re lost in a sea of other videos.

10. Bikinis and pets. Enough said.

Getting views on video content amid the masses is not easy, but with time and effort you’ll start to see the numbers rack up. For real-time statistics on your own video views, visit VidStatsX.com.”

Top 5 Ways to Finance Your Online Content

By Taryn Southern | May 30, 2013

Q. You’ve talked a lot about marketing online, but what about raising money to fund my YouTube channel or Web series? It’s expensive!

A. Let’s face it: Raising money sucks. That said, it’s still part of the game. Without financing, there are a number of projects I never would’ve been able to make over the years—and calling in favors only gets you so far. Thus, here are my top five ways to finance your online content.

1. Self-financing Save up income. Hold a bake sale. I don’t know, what did your parents do back in the day? If you really want to see your baby get made, no lack of passion or favors will prevent you from doing so. Typically, you will need to use this strategy for your first endeavor just to prove yourself.

2. Crowdsourcing Online crowdsourcing sites like Indiegogo and Kickstarter have changed the course of the independent artist. Put up a profile and video pitch, incentivize people to donate to your project with different tiers of rewards, and then share the heck out of that fundraising link! You want to make sure your project appeals to a particular demo (gamers? pet lovers? comedy aficionados?), but be clear what you intend to make, how you intend to make it, and how you will allocate your budget. Indiegogo is my favorite, as it allows artists to keep the money raised even if they don’t meet their goal and takes a smaller percentage on transactions.

3. Website distribution Show a sizzle of your project to sites such as Break, Yahoo!, or any of the YouTube-funded channels to see if they would be interested in distributing the series. If they want an exclusive, they’ll need to pay for it. In return, they’ll have a say in production and, most likely, writing and casting.

4. Producer financing These opportunities are becoming more rare, but some production companies finance production of new media projects. Just be wary of a company that gives you a very small amount of money and has no distribution strategy; the last thing you want to do is shoot your project, give up ownership, and have it never get seen.

5. Grant financing Depending on the nature of your project, a number of grants can help. Women in Film, IFP, and TFI New Media Fund are just a few resources to get you started. When in doubt, Google it.

These are the basics, though there are other avenues. Have any of you come up with other creative ways to finance your Web projects? If so, tweet me @TarynSouthern. I’d love to hear from you.”