THE BOOK.
The Hollywood Survival Guide For Actors
“To succeed as a professional actor in film & TV, you must have a clear understanding of how the business works.”
Many actors spend years figuring things out by trial and error.
But, in the most competitive industry in the world… there isn’t time for that.
Learn how Hollywood works, now, so you can start getting better auditions and booking roles today.
The Hollywood Survival Guide is a textbook by a working actress with over sixty film and TV credits (IMDB).
It was contributed to by over forty top Hollywood directors, producers, and executives.
It reveals vital insider secrets every actor needs, and explains how each aspect of the film and TV industry works as it pertains to actors.
Give yourself an unfair advantage... Buy this book, today.
Orr… Get it Free!
Get the first 45 pages as a free download when you start your 7 day free trial of the Secret Actor Society.
After 100 days as a member, you’ll receive the full E-book!
The Contributors
Author: Kym Jackson - IMDB
Actress, Kym Jackson is a member of the Television Academy (Emmy Nominating Committee), American MENSA, a speaker for the SAG-AFTRA Conservatory, and a SAG-AFTRA Convention Delegate (re-elected 2021).
She is a busy working actress (see IMDB) with over sixty SAG-AFTRA feature film and TV credits.
Foreword: Jeremy Gordon, CSA - IMDb
Casting Director Jeremy Gordon, CSA has been in the casting department on over 60 films and TV episodes, including Wolverine, We're the Millers, and Knight and Day.
He founded the 110,000 plus-members-strong Facebook group Casting Directors For Actors, and is very active in the actor-education community.
Foreword (Aussie Edition): Tom McSweeney, CSA - IMDb
With a career spanning forty years, Tom McSweeney is an Emmy Award nominee as well as a four time Artios Award nominee for his work in casting for feature film and television.
Tom has cast over two hundred feature film, mini-series and episodic television productions internationally.
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Editor: Tim McGrath - IMDb
Tim McGrath is a writer, director, and producer. He has worked with Charlize Theron, Channing Tatum, Woody Harrelson, Michelle Pfeiffer, Ashton Kutcher and many others.
He created Picture Park Entertainment which has produced over 20 films with budgets ranging from $20k to $20million and is now working at Warner Bros / Turner TV.
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Editor: Hannah Cowley, SAG-AFTRA - IMDb
Hannah Cowley has an honors degree in English literature and a PHD in History from The University of Sydney.
She is a working actress and producer in Europe with several film and TV credits, including the upcoming The Atticus Institute, Rhinelander, and Alex in the Afternoons.
A Note From Kym...
I've been in Hollywood working as an actress since 2004, and it is not easy... but I promise it is absolutely worth fighting for.
The toughest part for me was the first five years.
I wasted a ton of opportunities, time, and money paying for the wrong classes, going to the wrong events, and using the wrong strategies…
All because I didn't have someone guiding me, and ultimately I didn’t understand how the business of Hollywood really works.
“What would you have done differently if only you had known then what you know now..?”
Inside this text are thousands of pieces of vital insider advice that took me over a decade to learn.
For me, most of those lessons came AFTER I needed to know them…
From making costly mistakes that could have been avoided if only someone had shared this knowledge with me.
I’ve worked in casting, production, post-production, development, distribution, writing, workshops, as a business coach and mentor for actors.
I’ve also worked hundreds of days on SAG-AFTRA film and TV sets as a professional actress in lead and supporting roles.
I learned something new every day, and I've worked hard to share that entire wealth of knowledge in The Hollywood Survival Guide.
I want to save you from wasting the years I did and make your journey a little easier than mine.
I spent hundreds of hours meeting with 200+ casting directors, directors, producers, celebrities, studio executives, managers and agents.
I asked them every question any actor could possibly have about how to build a successful career as a working actor.
Each chapter of this book was edited by several experienced Hollywood industry members (in the relevant field) to ensure every word was valuable, accurate and applicable in the industry today.
Hollywood is a ruthless business in which only the most prepared, informed, hard working and connected survive. You simply do not have time to learn all of this through trial and error like I did.
“If you want to succeed in Hollywood, you must know how it works. Top to bottom, inside out.”
I want you to quickly and easily learn the business knowledge you need, so you have the freedom to focus on what you love: the craft... the characters... the fun of it all... the acting.
Oh - and how to choose which one? Simple... if you're Aussie, get the Aussie one. If not... get the not-Aussie one. Rocket surgery, right? ;)
Ps: I've added a video below so you can get to know me a little better. :)