Every actor auditions with the goal of booking that first real acting job. By “real” I mean a paid union gig with residual earning possibilities. But once you do book that first job and finish crying tears of joy, what do you do next? I’m glad that you asked.
1. Check to see if you have to pay union fees.To be eligible to work on a SAG-AFTRA project, you must be in good standing with the union. If this is your first union gig, you might be Taft-Hartley’ed, meaning that you can work on a SAG-AFTRA without having to pay the initiation dues. But if you’ve worked as a union extra on enough projects to be considered a “must join,” you will have to pay to join before you can show up on the set. The union initiation fees are a bit hefty (at least $3,000), so you might want to start saving now or you can ask your agent for an advance.
2. Don’t change anything.Once you book the job, please don’t go out and drastically change your look. If your hair is brown, don’t become a platinum blonde overnight. If you have a full beard, don’t shave it all off on a whim. Unless someone connected to the production like the producer and/or director has explicitly told you to change the
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