PHOTO: SHARI LEWIS, DISPATCHRichard Mason, at back, watches Brian Willis, left, and Mohamud Muhidin perform in his class "Acting for TV Commercials" at the Ohio Theatre. The class included Renee Beall, front center, Andy Kramer, center, and Alphonso Sanders.
Acting for TV Commercials preps aspirants for the small screen
Sunday, January 18, 2009 3:24 AM By Nick Chordas THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
It wasn't how Dwight Pigg expected to spend his 45th birthday -- staring at a fixed point on the wall and extolling the virtues of a glow-in-the-dark remote control. "No more fumbling around. And it glows in the dark. Glows in the dark! And here's the best part -- it's only $19.95!"The exercise was part of "Acting for TV Commercials," a seven-hour class yesterday inside the Ohio Theatre. Pigg, a mortgage loan officer from Westerville, was one of nine aspiring actors who attended.
"In this day and age, you have to convince someone to pay attention to you in less than 10 seconds," said teacher Richard Mason, a 27-year acting veteran and founder of Acting in Columbus. "That means you have to be a dynamic performer. It's tough. People don't have any idea how tough it is."Pigg's wife bought him the class as a birthday present because she was "tired of me watching TV and saying, 'I can do that better,' " he joked. "Besides, there have to be some parts out there for a middle-aged balding guy."
Before the afternoon was over, the students learned the basics: how to find a reputable agent, going through the audition process ("It takes 15 auditions to book one job") and, eventually, how to perform for the camera. They even learned the finer points of chewing food convincingly.All that didn't come cheap. Mason charges $200 for the afternoon. Lunch is not included, although snacks are provided. Welcome to the business, indeed.
The monthly class, held inside the chilly confines of rehearsal studio No. 3, usually caps out at 12 students. Mason, who also works as a casting assistant, said he was surprised by the number of students who attended yesterday's session. "Because of the economy, I was panicking that I wasn't going to have anyone," he said. "Acting classes are a luxury, and the industry has been hit pretty hard. Advertising is one of the first things companies tend to cut. "It's a tough time for breaking into the industry, but there are still jobs out there."
Landing those jobs is the tough part. Renee Ritchey, a 40-year-old account executive from Worthington, said she caught the acting bug 15 years ago but never truly pursued a career before the camera. Not surprisingly, her acting resume is limited, including roles in community theater and a commercial for Big Bear in which she dressed like the Easter Bunny.Her first take was deemed "too stiff." The second take, after Ritchey was instructed to loosen up with 15 jumping jacks, worked just fine.
Mason said that 60 percent of the people who take his class book a job within two months -- more than one for SafeAuto Insurance. "SafeAuto is kind of a rite of passage for actors in Columbus," he said. He said that actors can be paid $3,000 for a regional spot that runs 13 weeks, while a national ad for the same run can deliver a paycheck as high as $10,000.
That kind of payday sounded good to Brian Willis of Columbus. The 34-year-old food service and catering employee has been told for years that he "should be in commercials" thanks to a deep, commanding voice. "I don't know if I was too scared to do it before or what, but now seemed like a good time to give it a shot," he said.
nchordas@dispatch.com
