NETWORKING, NETWORKING, AND MORE NETWORKING
The way in which I have managed to receive great fortune to this point in my career is through networking. Two years ago I met a talent manager by the name of Earl Shank at the LA Film Festival. Earl owns Shank Management and has been in the business for 20 years. Some Earl’s colleagues are names like Bryan Singer and James Franco. I made a really strong impression on Earl and gave him my card.
Since then I signed a multi-film producing contract with Reel Gem Films in Newport Beach. Earl heard through the grapevine about my success as a producer and called me out of the blue a month ago. We met in Hollywood and he offered me a proposal. He stated if I produce and raise money for a pet project starring his A-list talent, we could make each other’s dreams come true.
We shook hands and we both made good on our promises. That night I told him I wanted to get in front of the camera. He introduced me to one of the biggest agents in the business and very quickly I started getting roles in multi-million dollar films and TV shows. Remember, I have no acting experience or training whatsoever.
Based on my experience the best advice I can give you is: networking, networking, and more networking. A best friend of mine is the most amazing actor I've ever seen in my entire life, and because he doesn't network he never gets gigs. On the other hand there is myself, a person who doesn't even know the first thing about acting, gets high paying gigs on projects people actually get to see, just because I network. That's just how the industry works.
You never know whom you’ll meet. Maybe the next hand you shake is the one that gets you set for the rest of your life, but you’ll never know unless you put yourself out there to shake that hand.
Victor Phan & Clark Jones
Torture Chamber Productions
www.torturechamberproductions.com
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3399096/
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3454648/
