The Wilshire Grand Tower at 900 Wilshire Blvd in Downtown LA is currently under construction. When completed it will be the tallest building west of the Mississippi River with a sail-shaped crown illuminated with LED lighting. In other words it will be magnificent. A show stopper. 2009 was the birth of this building when the owner, Yang Ho Cho of Hanjin International Corp. and Korean Air met with his friend Chris Martin of A.C. Martin Partners to discuss the options available to him for the hotel he owned at the corner of Wilshire and Figueroa. Five years later in February…
Author: Victoria Marie
Slow and steady wins the race. Of late this has been my constant personal mantra. Intellectually I know this to be true and for many reasons that is the way things are flowing naturally right now anyway but it goes against my everything-in-a-New-York-Second mind set. As a native New Yorker I have two speeds, breaking the sound barrier and dead. Five months in and May feels like it was one of those months that very little happened. To be fair a true assessment of what I did accomplish is necessary. Let’s review, shall we? In Part One, which was written…
The words for the month are Awareness and Progress. As April came to a close and I reflected on all that had gone on I realized despite working 55-60 hours a week at my money job I still managed to get a lot done and really make some “progress” which I’ll share in more detail in a moment. Also by pouring over the vast amounts of information on Seed&Spark, my chosen crowd funding platform I learned the most important thing any filmmaker can do in the early stages is to find creative ways to bring “awareness” to their project which…
“You can start with nothing. And out of nothing, and out of no way, a way will be made” – Michael Beckwith This is one of my all time favorite quotes because it is the very essence of the creative process. For most filmmakers, including myself, the only two ingredients present at the beginning of “nothing” is an idea floating around in their gray matter (pun intended) and a combustible amount of passion. And it’s those two ingredients that not only start the process moving forward but also serves as fuel to keep things going when everything else seems to…
The Back Story: In the summer of 2013 I started to become acutely aware of how important it was for anyone in the entertainment industry to make their own content. In fact it was with this SAG-LifeRaft YouTube video on that subject that I found our very own Helenna Santos and Ms. In The Biz. And in fact, I even discuss the importance of producing one’s own content on my own YouTube channel, Baby Boomer Actress in this video. However, at that time this idea of creating my own content would have to wait. And wait it did for well…
Looking Back November 20th, 2014 was my 1-year anniversary of my big move out here. Seems impossible that an entire year has gone by but in the blink of an eye it most definitely has. Although a lot has happened it was nothing like I had “planned.” Ha! Is anything ever as we had planned? I think not. While I did get off to a good start with my acting pursuits, just a few months after I arrived things went awry and I found myself down the proverbial dark alley with threatening shadows lurking from every corner. It turns out…
Last month (Oct 2014) a rather shocking and unrecognizable photo of Renee Zellweger circulated the headlines that left many people speechless. What had she done to herself? One of the most beautiful women in Hollywood had obviously done something and it had turned out…well…many would say that she was now unrecognizable. I remember standing in line at the store and as I saw her picture I thought who is that? And why is she on the cover? She must be somebody, only to learn it was none other than Renee Zellweger! It saddened me and really got me thinking. What…
When we have the information we are seeking or need, we can accomplish great things. Think about it. How many times have you found yourself saying, “oh if I had only known”? You realize at that moment that you would have made a better, more informed decision had you “known.” Had you had more information. Hence why information is power. As a newbie to the industry I am constantly on the internet doing research as I recognize that I have a lot to learn. In my quest to gain knowledge and an education about this industry I have come across…
For as many lights as there are on Broadway and Hollywood hopefuls here in LA, I have learned there are more ways than that to getting an agent. Everyone’s journey is unique and while there are a few standard strategies in which to acquire said agent it’s vitally important to follow your gut when determining what is the best approach for you. Implement strategies that resonate with you because doing so will attract the right kind of agent for you! It’s like a marriage, hence the reason to following your gut. I have come to learn that every agent is…
“The strongest oak tree of the forest is not the one that is protected from the storm and hidden from the sun. It’s the one that stands in the open where it is compelled to struggle for its existence against the winds and rains and the scorching sun.”― Napoleon Hill In so many ways this wonderful quote by the late, great Napoleon Hill describes precisely what we as humans must embrace if we are not only to survive life’s slings and arrows, but thrive. Setbacks, curve balls, crisis, mishaps, adversity…these are just some of the phrases to describe life’s little…
in·spire verb \in-ˈspī(-ə)r\ : to make (someone) want to do something : to give (someone) an idea about what to do or create : to cause (something) to happen or be created : to cause someone to have (a feeling or emotion) To be inspired is to be moved to imagine beyond your current day realities. To accomplish things you didn’t think were possible. To accomplish beyond your wildest dreams. And inspiration can come from a variety of different sources. A person, a place, a book, a quote and more. While I draw inspiration from many things I am most…
Is it better to join the union* and lose the option to book non-union jobs OR not join just to maintain that option of working as many non-union jobs as possible? Shakespeare may have said this differently however the message is the same. Every year actors (denotes male and female) by the thousands arrive in Los Angeles seeking fame and fortune. The path to that end goal will be different for each having many twists and turns but at some point on that journey every actor who is serious about his/her career will join the union. The question is…
Do you know your type? Do you know how important it is to get this down when you’re first starting out? Defining your type (or your look) AND knowing your unique essence or the vibe you give off when you first walk into a room is critically important to getting you off on the right foot and onto the road to success. Yes we are all actors and can take on the persona of just about any character however when you’re first getting started it’s best to start with what comes most naturally to you and being the best at…
Pursuing a career in the entertainment industry requires flexibility. Lots of flexibility, day in and day out, month after month, year after year. Meaning you are ready at a moments notice to drop what you’re doing, hop in your car (or some other form of transportation) and be on set within a few hours time. Plain and simple that’s how this industry works and you have to be ready, all of the time. Life can literally change from one hour to the next and having the ability to just pick up and go is paramount. It can mean the difference…