A controversial topic

Now that I've gotten your attention ;) Have you noticed a recent rise in new members? Have these new members been posting wanted ads? Have these new members been young, naive wannabes whom we generally tell to read the FAQ and then get annoyed when they don't? ... No? Funny, because we should have seen just that. Sad to say that I don't get enough kicks on this website, and have been more and more visiting Yahoo Answers... and answering the usual 'how do I become famous/an actor/on a movie' questions. (Initially I was just answering stuff about puppetry. But then I noticed how most of the Aussies asking these questions were getting horribly bad advice from Americans, and just couldn't help myself) I've been doing this for several months now, and have now got a basic format for an answer (which you can read at the bottom of this blog post), which I tweak slightly depending on what the question is and where the person is located. For the most part, I get voted or chosen by the asker as having the best answer. Much of what I write informs the person to start here, on this site, by reading the FAQ on agents, searching the companies pages, looking at the auditions page. I know that a few people from YA have come here and signed up; and we've not seen a significant rise in 'job wanted' threads. Perhaps those people truly haven't come and visited, or perhaps those people visited as Walters, and simply chose to read the FAQ without necessarily registering. Either way, I believe this points in the direction of an important factor as to how this site works. I believe that someone may have suggested it in a thread when discussing changes to the site: that perhaps when people register a short intro pops up with links to the FAQ and other relevant topics. Grant did add in a side box, which appears on the right side of the site, with quick links to the auditions page, where to find work, agents info, etc. However, since the site is so large and many people land on a page that may be months, years, weeks or days old, and there's no obvious navigation system for Walters, an intro when you sign up is only useful for those who actually take the time to do so. And despite the new 'side box' with quick links, there's so much stuff on the site, it would take a really careful pair of eyes to spot the fairly small box amongst all the other information; especially since most people see what's right in the middle, not what's at the sides. In order to present an intro when a person first visits, they must either log in, or cookies must be used to track visitors. I don't believe cookies would be the best method; besides, many people turn them off or have problems using them. That, and many of us visit this site not to be confronted by the FAQ every time, but to read the other threads, reviews, or other news. Perhaps what is needed is something else: maybe this site just needs an overall new design and layout, with links and side boxes pared down so that it's easier to figure out what's what. Maybe we need a short banner at the top of the site, encouraging new visitors to learn how to navigate the site (ie. "New to the site? Take the tour!")... Either way, it's quite clear to me that giving people a really basic (ie. four or five paragraphs) of how to get started in Aussie performing arts is incredibly useful to directing them exactly where to go and what to read; and that without pointing them in the exact place they tend to fumble around for the information and annoy us with (what we see as) repetitive questions.

Basic format of answer used on YA

Check out local auditions at theatre.asn.au, or read up on Aussietheatre.com. If you're keen, pay for a membership at QuietOnSet.com.au or Artshub.com.au; they list heaps of auditions every day around Australia. Another good site is screenhub.com.au. My best advice is to visit the first link, head to the FAQ section, and read about finding agents in Australia, how to find work, etc. It also has a lot of stuff about dodgy Aussie agents to avoid. There's heaps of free info there for new actors, and is practically the best place you can find info for emerging actors. There's also a huge list of companies that you can search by suburb. AGENTS DO NOT COST MONEY - IF THEY ASK FOR FEES UPFRONT, THEY ARE DODGY. Visit www.alliance.org.au, the actor's union for Australia and join. If you don't have experience don't expect a professional role or an agent. I suggest you use the next years to build up experience, stay in school, do drama in year 11 and 12, do amateur shows, extra-curricular classes, and then try applying for a local uni course. Trust me, there are too many actors out there and not enough roles. Everyone wants to be in Home and Away and Neighbours; very few actually do it. Those Aussie actors who are in Hollywood have spent the better part of 20 years developing their career - first in Australia, and then overseas. Do yourself a favour; take some classes and do some shows first. Think about attending WAAPA, NIDA or VCA or one of the many great courses out there (there are heaps) when you're ready. There's a lot of indie films being made in Australia, for which you can audition for without an agent; check the first link for examples, or Quiet On Set. DON'T sign up for one of those American talent sites. They are scams and never have anything for Australian auditions.