Commercial Blues

Just got off the phone with my commercial agent...

I called him recently, after noticing the Cold Stone Creamery commercial I did last year was still running on their website; I wanted to know if that meant I was entitled to more $$$.

And it turns out, I am entitled to more $$$. The Internet contract expired on the 20th of last month (And I just checked - as of now, the website is still up, and the commercial is still on it).

Anyway, my agent called Cold Stone, and he called the ad agency - I believe it was Saatchi & Saatchi - and has gotten no response (He actually called them a couple of times).

He hasn't heard back from anyone, and told me they clearly plan to do nothing about it, hoping it'll just go away.

So now the ball's in my court - While I'd like my agent to take this further, he's got 200 actors to deal with, so he's pretty much done what he's gonna do for his 10% - so I've downloaded the "claim inquiry" form from the SAG website, and me and SAG will be taking things from here.

(I'm not the happiest actor in the world as I write this - Why can't the people in power in these situations ever just do the right thing? - but this is the "business" part of "Show Business". They want to screw me, I don't want to be screwed, and this is why professional actors need a union.)

While we're on the subject of commercials...I had the Campbell's Soup audition yesterday.

It was nothing - I was basically supposed to act like I was making soup - and I left feeling vaguely depressed; as often as I tell myself not to look for acting satisfaction when doing commercials (Or commercial auditions), it's still tough sometimes to feel like it's basically a "face lottery", as I once heard an actor refer to the process, that has little or nothing to do with acting.

(Sometimes you go in for something that involves a little acting, something funny and fun, but more often than not, not.)

Anyway, I didn't leave with the sense that "I could book this". On the contrary - I'd be stunned if I booked it. To be honest, I don't even think I managed to look credible making soup.

(But don't get me wrong - I'd be "stunned" to get it, but in this particular scenario, I'm up for being "stunned".)

So anyway, I'm feeling a tad "bluish" right now.

But it'll pass.