Peter in Seattle writes:
I’ve been pursuing an acting career but I feel discouraged and that I’m in the wrong place. I talked to one of your psychics last year and she told me that I wasn’t trying hard enough – I need to consider theater work and not just film work. She also told me that going to LA would be a bad idea since it’s so competitive there. She advised me to go to Vancouver, BC instead. I agree with her now, but not when I got the reading. So the question is, do you think it’s too late to go to Vancouver? Do you think I’ll have a problem obtaining a working visa or any other problem that I cannot foresee?
Dear Peter,
If you really want to be a working actor, you are going to have to work for it. Hard!
Vancouver does look like it will offer you excellent opportunities and is an area that you will enjoy. However, getting your work visa and the rest of the stack of paperwork that comes with such a move is looking like it will be a challenging process for you. If you don’t give up, you will eventually have success.
The relocation process looks as if it could take up to two years, before everything would be settled and finalized for a more permanent living and working arrangement. This does not mean that you can’t reside in the States and periodically work in Vancouver. Actors travel all the time in order to complete a project. It is a transient lifestyle, but not an unworkable one.
Changing residence is not necessarily a bad idea, but it is also not the guarantee or key to your success. Putting everything you have into auditions and going to where you get roles, is. If you want it bad enough, you will have to make some sacrifices and adjustments in your life. This is not a career path of stability, but one of varied experiences.
You have chosen a highly competitive field and you will face stiff competition regardless of where you are living. Get used to it. The road to success for you is not easy, and it will require more than one sacrifice along the way. I’m not saying you can’t achieve your dreams, but I am questioning if you have what it takes to tough it out long enough to make it happen. Rejections come easily but that doesn’t mean that they have to define you.
I would advise you to continue studying your craft, and go to any opportunity that presents itself. You need practice, and you need exposure. It is only through hard and consistent effort that you will get a break.
Brightest Blessings,
Red
Ext. 9226
