Aworld of movie-lovers watched Hollywood on February 27th, when the Academy Awards, or “Oscars,” took place. For the lucky winners, it may just be the of their movie careers, but no matter how successful they are now, they had to start . They all had “day-time jobs” in bars or restaurants, and they went to auditions in their . And they undoubtedly , which probably still represents them today. The Affinity Artists Agency is a typical example. Ross Grossman, who was himself a child actor, and later a comedian, writer and therapist, before becoming an agent. As he explains, even when you become a star, there’s no guarantee that it will last:


Ross Grossman
(Standard American accent):

Recently Adam Sandler and

a bunch

of other celebrities, Chris Rock, they were all sitting around, I think it was

60 Minutes

, and they were being asked: “Do you feel like you’ve made it,

do you feel you’re good, you’re set?

” And all of them said: “No, no way!” Because they said: “

We picked up

a People magazine from five years ago and we looked at all the people who were on top and almost none of them were still on top.” So it is a very

fickle

business. I think that

the public generally likes new

. New is interesting to them. And, at a certain point, I think either the casting directors or the public gets tired, or wants something new. Now, there are certain people, Jack Nicholson, you know, there are certain actors, Tom Cruise, that

are able to ride the wave and stay on it

, but

eventually

most of them seem

to fade

.

CHARISMA
We then asked him the classic Hollywood question: What makes a star?

Ross Grossman

Charisma is a big piece. There is

an ethereal fairy dust

that is on certain people. How they got that way is a very complex... we’d have to have clones and put people in laboratories

to figure out how this person showed up with this much charisma

, but there are some people who have so much charisma, or something about their character that is so unique, that you just know:

they’re riveting

. It’s like when you watch a lion or a tiger, you’re riveted because there’s something so spontaneous and so strong and so

confident

. And that doesn’t mean that each performance is playing a confident person; they could be playing

a nervous wreck

, but there’s a confidence about them, and

a oneness of purpose

and just something very magnetic. But some people try to create a false magnetism by being super-big and important and

loud

and intense, and

it’s not like that

. It doesn’t come from outside, I don’t think, but some people

try to wow you

with what they believe charisma is. But I think, really, what it is is knowing yourself and

making strong, bold choices with your acting skills

and with your personality.

Personality does go a long way

. People in Hollywood want to work with nice people. So, if you’re talented, but you’re really not a pleasant person, there will be plenty of other people who could take your place.

THAT LOOK...
And what about physical appearance? Are looks everything?

Ross Grossman

You have to remember that movies and television are a visual medium: we can’t forget that. And, because of that, many films and television shows

use a visual shorthand

. As soon as you see Paul Giamatti, or just any number of actors, as soon as you see them,

there’s a whole bunch of script that doesn’t have to happen because you just get, "Oh, this is this type of person"

. And that’s like a visual shorthand for people. Just as when you see Charlie Chaplin as the little

tramp

,

that speaks volumes

. You know, you don’t have to hear his entire story. It’s a visual shorthand, so, yes, the look does count, but that look could be

geeky

, that look could be

odd

, that could be unusual, or

plus size

, or

frightening

. It doesn’t have to always be

gorgeous

. It just has to be unique and

striking

.

ENERGY
But, says Ross Grossman, talent, charisma and the right looks are not enough. Aspiring actors also need a sense of initiative. Having an agent isn’t enough: they should build their portfolios, and increase their selection of footage, or “reel”. And Ross Grossman introduced us to a Hollywood neologism; the “webisode.” This is a combination of “web” and “episode”:

Ross Grossman

And then, once they have an agent,

is running out there and doing stuff

, getting in plays, getting into more independent films, getting better reel, meeting people, socializing. If they can’t find scripts to get in, finding people, acting troupes, people who want to put together webisodes. That’s the new trend, is get a bunch of people together, get some writers together, start doing some webisodes. Don’t wait for someone else to make you known. There’s an expression that I love, and I... it was from a man named (Wes) “Scoop” Nisker, he was

newsman

in San Francisco, and

he would always sign off the news with this phrase

and that is: “If you don’t like the news, go out and

make some of your own

”.