You've just graduated from your acting degree and your full of hopes and dreams and you start your journey of being a working actor. You fortunate enough to land yourself an agent. 3 months go by, no auditions. 6 months go by, a couple of auditions. You've been doing the right things by going to class, attending workshops and short courses as well as getting accent private tuition. 9 months go by and you've only had a handful of TVC auditions but nothing meaty to get your teeth into.
You don't want to hang out with your other actor friends because all they do is talk about the plays they're in rehearsals for or the films they're shooting or how busy they are because they've got auditions every week and yet, here you are not getting creative.
So you decide to leave you agent, search for a new one and the cycle starts again. This time, there's a few more auditions but again - nothing meaty to get your teeth into. You leave and it starts again.
Whenever an actor starts to compare themselves to their peers, that's when everything starts to go pear shaped.
1. You are not them - they are on their own journey so you can't compare yourself to them.
2. They have different reps - every rep will specialise in something specific and have relationships with CDs in accordance to those areas.
3. Market - the climate of the market often dictates which type of actors get called into the room.
4. Materials - your friends may have stronger, better materials that are being sold well which is why they're getting in the room.
5. Relationships - your friends may have stronger, tighter relationships with the CDs which is why they're getting in the room.
6. Unpaid Work - Your friends may be doing unpaid work however they're doing it for materials, networking, etc
There are so many variables that count towards how an actor moves forward in their career that comparing yourself to others isn't the best idea.
So what do you do when you feel you're stuck?
Stay with your rep for 12 - 24 months. Talk to them. Come up with an action plan with your rep.
Find patterns in your submission reports and cater to those gaps.
Cater to strengthening those relationships.
Figure out your types and make sure you have the materials to sell them.
Get out to events and meet industry people.
Up skill and level up.
Take care of your diet, increase your fitness, clear the skin and do things that make you happy.
All of this will aid in getting you in the room.
During this time, your rep will notice changes and will be able to sell you better. Every time you update your reps with the fact you've met XYZ person and ABC event, then they can follow it up and strengthen that even more by sending mind blowing materials.
Give it time, give it a chance and fight for it. Don't give up until you've literally tried everything you can with that rep. Once you've exhausted ALL options, then consider it. but until then, fight! Fight for your dream.
I know a number of performers who've left their reps too early and they find that they get stuck in this cycle of not getting in the room because they gain a reputation for rep jumping. They never end up establishing relationships in the industry because when someone wants to connect, they've moved on to a different rep and become uncontactable.
Opposite that, I know performers who've stuck it out when times are tough and 2 years later, they get a break that catches the industry's eye. Then it's a slow but uphill climb from there!
Everyone is different. Compare yourself to yourself a year ago. 2 years ago. That's the only comparison you can make.