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[0:00] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Survival gigs for actors.

[0:03] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Part-time jobs for actors need to be flexible enough to accommodate their irregular schedules and offer opportunities for skill development or networking within the entertainment industry.

[0:16] Jeffrey Dreisbach: On today's episode, we're going to talk about some of those awesome gigs that can pay the rent and keep you acting.

[0:42] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Here is your host, Jeffrey Dreisbach.

[0:55] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Well, hello and welcome to today's episode of Casting Actors Cast. I'm Jeffrey Dreisbach, casting partner with McCorkle Casting in New York. How are you? I hope you're having a good day. I'm having a really good day. I'm looking forward to sharing with you these survival jobs that you might not have thought of in the hopes that if you are finding that the financial part of your career growth isn't quite what it should be. In other words, if you're not feeling secure enough about where the money is coming in, perhaps considering some of these part-time opportunities, they might not have, you know, you might not have thought of them. And so I'm here to help facilitate that.

[1:33] Jeffrey Dreisbach: But first, this is that moment of the podcast where I get to say thank you so much for tuning in. It's so great to have you on board. My shout out to my good friends at Actors Connection. Please check out ActorsConnection.com slash New York. Also, just letting you know that the course, it's been going really, really well. This course is through Creative Coaching Partners, and they've produced a video of mine. It's a class called The Art of the Audition. If you go to my website, CastingActorsCast.com, you're gonna see Creative Coaching Partners. That's going to take you directly to their website. There are courses, there are classes available for you, and I think you might get something out of it.

[2:18] Jeffrey Dreisbach: This particular course of mine, The Art of the Audition, it took some time to put together, and I'm really proud of it. I think it's going to give you some insight and some support. And the Creative Coaching Partners team is continually adding new classes all the time, so it's worth your time to check out. All right, I think that's all of our housekeeping. I do want to just remind you, if I may, that you leaving a like or a review. If you could leave a review on Apple Podcasts, that would be so helpful to me. It really means a lot that you are listening and that you are partaking of the information that I'm providing as a casting director and partner at McCorkle Casting.

[3:03] Jeffrey Dreisbach: It would really mean a lot because I'm doing this just for the fun of it. I'm not making money doing this, that's not my intention. My intention is simply to share as much information about the business as I can in the hope that you and I can stay connected and have a like-minded journey together as an actor and as a casting director. So I'm having a lot of fun sharing these, and I hope that you are having a lot of fun. But it would help me to know that you're out there. I know we've had over a hundred and ten thousand downloads of the podcast at this point, so I'm really, really gratified. But I also want to grow our audience. I really want to make sure that anybody who might be interested in pursuing acting as a profession knows that I'm here because I really want to support that endeavor as much as possible.

[3:54] Jeffrey Dreisbach: All right. So we're gonna just talk about survival jobs and what actors have done and what actors continue to do in order to at least have some income coming in. And of course, the challenge is for the actor to be able to have time to do auditions, to be able to, when they book a job, they can leave the money gig because they've got a working job, and they want to do it in a way that's not going to adversely affect the relationship of those people that are employing them. And so there's a lot to be said about some of these jobs that we're gonna be talking about.

[4:25] Jeffrey Dreisbach: I also want to say that I've done a lot of these jobs. I know in our last podcast I talked about painting apartments in between gigs, and that was a great gig because I could sort of schedule my time during the day to be painting these apartments for actors and directors and producers and casting people. And so it was really a very useful way to at least grow and develop a relationship with some of these folks. But it was also really good, honest, healthy work that I really loved. I wish I could say it kept me in really great shape. It kept me in okay shape. It didn't do like a tremendous amount for my body, but it did a lot for my mind.

[5:06] Jeffrey Dreisbach: So let's talk about some of these acting gigs or gigs that actors take on, and we can discuss some of the pros and cons of each, but I'm not gonna waste your time on those things that are obviously healthy and good versus those that are not such a great idea. Does that make sense? All right, here we go. Let's talk about option number one, probably the most prevalent type of part-time gig for actors is restaurant or bar staff or waiting tables, bartending or the like, or you can even throw in working as a barista.

[5:43] Jeffrey Dreisbach: You know what? Those jobs can provide actors with flexible hours and potential for really, really good tips. You can make a lot of money. Additionally, these jobs often allow for networking with industry professionals who frequent a lot of these establishments. It's really, really true that if you are in a locale where you see a lot of people in the industry that are going to the same locale, you might be amazed at how some of those relationships can grow. Now, that's not necessarily a promise, because after all, you're there just to help pay the rent and keep food on the table, but you're also trying to make yourself available for opportunities when you can. And so that's a little bit of the balancing act.

[6:27] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Let me also just put in my two cents about being a bartender or waiting on tables. Please understand that I know that this is physically really hard work. If you're working as a bartender at night and you have to close up the bar, let's just say at two o'clock in the morning, chances are you're not gonna be fresh as a daisy for that 10 a.m. audition. So keep in mind that when you use such physical work, when you put yourself in those kinds of situations, many times I just see actors starting to just do the job to survive rather than keeping in mind why they are doing that job in the first place. So just kind of a cautionary tale, if you will, about taking on those jobs that can be physically a little too demanding.

[7:31] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Here's another part-time gig that I think actors should think about. Retail Sales Associate. You know, working in retail offers a flexible schedule and the opportunity to go home and then use your communication skills or your interpersonal skills, which also can benefit actors in their performances. So I know that I, for a little brief period of time, worked on the main floor at Macy's department store in Midtown Manhattan. I have stories. Wow, that was some job. Now it did provide me with some money coming in when I most needed it, but it was so fantastic when I got hired to do a national tour of a show and I could leave Macy's, because that's really hard work and working with customers on the main floor at Macy's just had a whole other universe unto itself. I don't want to put it down, but I'm not sure it was the best place for me.

[8:34] Jeffrey Dreisbach: But I did find ways to really embrace what that job was all about. So I did learn a lot, I have to say. So let's move on from there. Uh another uh gig that a lot of survivor actors' jobs might entail include freelance work, uh platforms like um Task Rabbit, uh, there's Upwork or Fiverr. See, this allows actors to take on various freelance gigs, um, such as writing, graphic design, tutoring, or even pet sitting, depending upon their skills and their interests. So just reaching out and finding out more information, flexible schedule, of course, being extremely important, and of course, how much money can there be? Sometimes it takes a lot of work to get yourself started, but sometimes, as a designer or a writer, you know, the work can be there for you, and it could be quite rewarding.

And again, in my mind, it doesn't take away from your creativity. It actually could enhance it. Moving on from there, temp work. Temporary agencies can connect actors with short-term assignments in office administration and customer service, data entry, even staffing. So these roles often offer flexibility and a lot of variety. Um, I can tell you that one of the um freelance jobs I had for a while was as a caterer. I would do these events, these parties, and I would have, I would either bartend or I would dress up in my all black clothing and serve canopies. You know, it was it was kind of fun. Um, it's a lot of work, no question about it, but the money was there. The money was really good and very, very healthy to do that.

It's kind of making me laugh now because I'm thinking, I did a lot of these jobs that we're talking about. So that's kind of funny that I'm talking about those things that I've actually have first hand knowledge in. Okay, let's move on from there.

[10:39] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Uh listen, tutoring or teaching is a really uh potential moneymaker for you. Actors that have expertise in a particular subject or skill, such as like music or dance or or acting itself can offer tutoring services or teach classes part-time. I love this because this not only provides a source of income, but it allows actors to share their knowledge and their passion with others. Sort of the phrase, you practice what you preach. And helping young people discover themselves in their acting is such a rewarding and exciting experience. Again, it's kind of like good old-fashioned hard work, but when you can find those opportunities, like I know a lot of actors who love taking their entire summers instead of you know auditioning for summer stock, they do the summer camp thing, uh, the summer theater camp.

There's all kinds of really cool ways in which you can really feel like you're giving back, but also there might be a little, you know, something, something, a little scratch in your pocket as well. Here's one that I didn't do, but I think is a cool idea: fitness instructor or personal trainer. See, actors who are physically fit and they really enjoy exercise, they might want to consider becoming fitness instructors or personal trainers. There's gyms, uh, they often offer flexible schedules for additional training and certification. Really is worthwhile checking out. Plus, it keeps you in shape. What better way could you stay in shape, then training other people and also bringing in some money? Kind of sounds like a no-brainer to me. If that is something that you would be motivated and interesting, interested in doing.

[12:30] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Okay, let's move on from there. A child care provider. I did this as well, babysitting or nannying. That can be a flexible part-time job for actors, especially if they really enjoy working with children. You have to enjoy working with children. And it also depends on what age those children are. You might not be that excited to be changing a lot of diapers. You might not feel that comfortable working with adolescents. So you really want to make sure you kind of uh suss out, oh, good word, for yourself. Which of if that's something that you're interested in doing, what would be the ideal age range? Where do you feel most comfortable? This type of work can also allow for rehearsal time during the kids' nap or downtime.

You might have a moment or two to yourself where you can work on your acting. I love this next one because I think uh it really does uh offer and provide a creative outlet for you at the same time, and that is tour guide or museum docent. Museum docent being a tour guide who has information similar to that of an instructor, but it's not only guiding the person but having information about whatever that tour is all about.

[13:50] Jeffrey Dreisbach: So actors with a knack for storytelling and public speaking, they may really enjoy working as tour guides or museum docent. These roles often offer flexible scheduling and opportunities to engage with a lot of interesting and diverse audiences. Meeting people, being up front, using your voice, communicating information, all of that can be really rewarding, really, really fun. I think that's a really excellent option if you haven't thought of that. And then moving on from there, delivery driver or courier. There are lots of delivery services out there like Uber Eats or Postmates or Amazon Flex. They all offer flexible schedules that allow actors to work when it suits their availability. Again, the work can be rather brutal.

It can be very hard, just physically difficult. But if you have the right mentality for it, if you have the right energy for it, this type of job can be really particularly convenient for actors between auditions and gigs. So there are kinds of opportunities that are out there. A few others that I haven't had or spent a lot of time talking about today are dog walkers. Again, there's some flexibility in the schedule, especially if you're working with a company that does dog walking. And it can be quite financially rewarding. But the idea is to find a part-time job that satisfies the financial need that you might find yourself in, but also helps you stay skilled, helps you stay focused, help you stay energized to continue your acting career. Paying for classes, paying for food, paying for your living situation, those are really, really important things to make sure you have taken care of.

[15:39] Jeffrey Dreisbach: See, ultimately, the best part-time job for an actor really depends on their skills, depends on their interests, but depends on their schedule, flexibility. And it's important, I think, to choose a job which allows actors to, like I said, pursue their acting careers while also really giving themselves a very reliable source of income. Gosh, that's a lot to get to in a very short period of time. I'd love to know from you if you have a part-time job that I haven't mentioned today. What might that be? So that I could share that with the audiences. You can reach me at Casting Actorscast at gmail.com or through the website, castingactorscast.com. Don't forget to fill out the form that says dive into the talent pool.

I'm really excited and happy that you were here, that you stayed through and listened to the whole thing. Please let me know what you liked about it, and I'll see you next time on Casting Actors Cast. Please don't forget to review, like, and share Casting Actors Cast wherever you get your patios podcast videos. Thanks. I'm Megan Grace Martinez!