"Us" And "Them"

Something that's rather interesting about acting professionally is what types of people you are aligned with and what sorts you contrast with when placed in proximity. Whether one is on set or in auditions, it's common enough to be in large groups who share attributes with you. In this way, you can learn a little about yourself by seeing what company you are forced into. This is as instructional as what any friend could tell you.

I have hardly been acting for so very long, but I've been in a few auditions and seen what sorts of people are around me. They are not your conventionally handsome sorts. Some look more like me than others, but it all adds up to quite a picture, even when what you all share is a general inappropriateness for a certain job. That aside, I consider myself to be in an enviable position. There looks to be plenty of work for me.

You sometimes see, as I said, contrasting types. Different commercials audition in the same place, and so you'll see actors who don't look anything like you. They are bound to be for a different commercial. I have found that when big, strong guys are around, they are probably not there for what I am. This is generally true for your model-beautiful types too. I'm not too sorry about that, as at least I am around them.

I have enjoyed my conversations with people both of my type and of others. It's common to bring a book for the long periods of down time, but I can hardly bring myself to read mine. There's just too much to see and too many people to talk with. I don't regard myself as naturally social, but the people in my book are nobody that I can make friends with. All time is potentially useful time, and I'd just as soon make some friends, be they "us" or "them".