Featured Actor ~ Model Club

Annika Salgado's Headshot is featured here:::

http://www.modelclubinc.com/kids_actors_girls.php

If you click on her face, you will link to her resume.

Annika has been busy with lots of wonderful opportunities coming along from the Agents.  She has been auditioning a lot.  Most of the auditions are at Hasbro Headquarters in Pawtucket RI or at Christine Wyse in Boston.  Featured clients have been Houghton Mifflin, Phillips, Hasbro, Massachusetts Dept. of Tourism...etc.

Creating your child's resume takes time and focus.  Both the Parent and the child must take the time to gain the experience so that a resume can be created.  There are many ways to do this.  If your child is inexperienced, you may look into church programs, and community theater to help boost the resume.  Another wonderful idea is to take a 6 week or summer program (you pay for these) at a reputable theater company like Trinity Rep. or Artists Exchange (in Rhode Island).  You will pay for it, but you can have it on the resume.  In Annika's case, she participated in
Celebrity Actors Camp and was trained by Disney Stars.  She also had a Showcase and performed to agents from all over the country.  This was excellent for boosting her up in writing!

Battleship Ball charity for Hasbro Hospital

Hasbro Children's Hospital Battleship Ball

in the Ballroom at the RI Convention Center

Saturday, March 3rd 2012

Annika was part of a wonderful charity event.  Alongside about 8 other Model Club Inc Actors and Models who have used the services of the Children's Hospital, Annika was able to land three jobs in the production of the event.  The first job was to create a commercial that advertized and publicized the Ball.  The second job was to create a Music Video that was shown at the Ball featuring the children dancing to a B-52's song.  The B-52's were the Band that performed at the Ball.  Finally, the children were invited to participate in the Ball and assist in achieving the financial goals for the Children's Hospital.

For those of us parents who were there, it was a wonderful time to bond and get to work together.  The children also enjoyed getting to know each other.  They were so adorable and everyone at the Ball seemed happy to see them and hear from them.  They worked with the Channel 12 Meteorologist, Tony Petrarca.  He was the hard-working MC for the night.  The kids and him made a great team.  Sheryl the organizer and creator of the event had a wonderful team of people who thought of everything that would make us comfortable.  Paul created the video and Guy Abelson was the one who actually hired the children.  It was awesome to get to work with professionals of this caliber!

When the night was over, the B-52's had sent candy and autographs for the children, Sheryl let the kids take their sailor suits home and asked us if we could work together again sometime!  Everyone said Yes! 

It was a wonderful time, not soon forgotten.

Pilot Tv Series!

Annika was invited to audition for the role of 8 year old Emma in the new tv pilot series for ABC called Glided Lilys.  It looks like a fascinating and different script!  I think this could really catch on.  It is a show I would definitely watch! 

So we are so excited about the possibilities.  More on this after the audition tomorrow.

Finding Jobs in BeanTown

If you are not from around here, Beantown is Boston.

Ok, so the Agents called us Tuesday for this Casting Opportunity Thursday.  I run a daycare and Thursday is the day that ALL the kids are here and I have no assistant.  SO...I get on the phone and start making calls.  I manage to get her Dad to stay home with our son and one other child and I change the schedule of two other children and then I have my afternoon pickup arrive early.  Now Dad had to get Annika from school on his way home.  DONE

Tuesday afternoon, following that call, Annika shot a Music Video for BattleShip Ball at Hasbro Children's Hospital.  She made he first friend in the acting world, a girl named Emily!  I was so happy because I had seen Emily a few places before and then she appeared in the commercial with Annika.  They were able to be in the music video together!  After 2 hours of dancing, we went home tired.  Annika still had to complete homework, her ALAP Honors project which she happens to be writing about "Acting".

Thursday I felt like a truck hit me by mid-day...so tired, and sore throat.  Not many people know this about me but I have CFS, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.  I used to let it hold me back from trying to be more busy and active but now, I just face the symptoms as they arise, which they did...Thursday.  I became a whiny, miserable nag about the drive to Boston and complained that no one understood how hard I work for Annika's Acting Opportunities.  POOR ME.  I wish I could take it all back now, but I was "set off" when Annika was moving slowly in preparing to leave.  Anyway...we finally got in the car at 2:15pm and her Casting Call was at 4:30pm in Back Bay Boston.

I found a decent parking spot at about 3:30 and Annika and I could not believe how fast we got there.  Looking back, it was fortunate we had arrived eary because we signed-in early, did a headshot, read the script and had the opportunity to see the Director before he left for a late lunch.  Had we arrived after 4, we would not have seen him!  It was Jonathan...the Director from her Common Core Job!  I said hello to him by name and asked if he remembered Annika and he did.  He explained that the video she created had been "shelved, possibly for good" because the project was not being funded now."  He said we may be able to see it at some point if we come to his office.

Annika announced she loved Boston, after we left the Audition.  She loves the Bigness of the City, the Buildings, the people and the sounds.  I have to admit, I love it too. We added a few quarters to the meter and grabbed a sandwich before leaving town.  It was fun to relax.

The drive back was as quick as the drive out, and NO STRESS.  What had I been so uptight for?  I didn't even know.  Why was I so edgy?  I had no idea!  It was a great day and from the sound of it, Annika nailed her part so now comes the odious task of choosing from all those wonderful kids!  We had a few great chats in the waiting room.  We met some other wonderful young actors and their parents. 

I really do love what we are doing.  I want to do it more...fill more of my time with it.  I hope for Annika's sake, she gets a movie role in 2012!

Getting to The Casting Calls

The most important and insane part of the Acting process for a child actor is getting to the casting calls!  It is hectic and often there is little notice.  Children must be escorted by an adult and the adult most likely has a job, which means they are juggling their schedule.

Today Annika has a Casting Call at Christine WYSE Casting in Boston's Back Bay area.  I hate the drive to Boston, especially in the afternoon and evening coming back.  BUT...I love Annika and I want her to have her opportunities.  We checked the train schedule and of course, it is sold out for the times we need to commute.

So instead I onsessively studied the driving directions and used the Google Map feature of street view and attempted to ingrain to my memory what the street turn would look like.  This way I will not miss it!

On my last trip to this particular casting location, I missed my exit in Boston and I had no gps to circle me around.  Luckily, I had been there about 3 times before and we have walked all about Boston because her Agents are nearby and other casting locations are nearby.  So on that day...I circled and circled until I found the street, identified the address and then could not find parking.

It all worked out that day, although she did well for the casting she was not hired for that job.  But getting hired is important, it's just not everything.  Remember that!

Battlefield Ball Tv Commercial

Here is Annika's tv premiere (commercial)

This is in Rhode Island.  Her Agency, Model Club is in Boston.  Chelsea Gilson has been responsible for a lot of Annika's job leads and also our old friend Andrew Wilson...both from Model Club Inc., of Boston.

For her ALAP project, Annika is tackling the query of, "What opportunities exist for children in Theatre and Tv?"

This is what she is passionately driven towards.  All aspects for theatre and Acting appeal to her right now.  In time, she will learn what she would like to specialize in, and then get training toward that.

For now...Thanks again Adrian R'Mante and Celebrity Actors Camp!  I am glad we took the chance!  Thank you to our good friends, Linda Sundstrom and Gregory for the extra Improv course last Spring!


Sincerely,  AngelMarie

The S L O W road to success

Child-Acting is fun...but not glamorous.  It is work.  It is worry.  It is Managers of ingenuity meeting up with Masters of Industry and it is an exceptional child that plants their seed in the minds of those who will hire her.  They will not adore her, but respect her and the process.  They are the consummate professionals.  I feel humbled being in their world.  We just work at it every day and do our best to be where we need to.

Annika's first tv commercial has been aired on channel 12/WPRI in RI.  I have not yet seen it and neither has she!  Our friends have seen it!  I am glued to the tv watching for it.  I know it is probably a beautiful commercial.  I am glad her first appearance in a tv ad is for a good cause and not for a product.  It will not always be that way, but I place a lot of trust in the universe to deliver the right jobs and the right time and the right people...all for her best outcome. 

Everyday I am grateful to be on this journey.  Everyday I wonder how will we...when will we...where will we...and then I surrender it.  I do not have all the resources I need to make every detail come together seamlessly for Annika and for her career but I have not let that stop me!  I will not let that stop me.

Annika's First TV COMMERCIAL!

Child-Acting is a funny world..a funny Industry. 
It is not at all what it seems!  People may think it is glamorous and easy but it is hard hard work.  It takes hard work, dedication and patience.  Every step of the way and in every moment of the journey, a youth actor must always remember who they are and why they are doing what they do.  There is a great need for a child actor to have a strong support network and especially to have parents who are instilling some strong moral fiber and values.  Without a strong mind, the child actor will give up, be full of fear or just turn obnoxious.  The Acting Industry is a People-Industry that requires the highest degree of interpersonal skills in order to achieve any success.  You RECEIVE back as much as you GIVE.  A child actor must know and learn to give...GIVE of themselves and be kind and courteous and always joyful.

My Annika has a unique quality that truly endears people to her.  I must share, however, about the dark side of people...and their influence on Annika over the last 11 months.  There are those people around her who give here their unwavering support on an emotional level and also make sacrifices to help her ...so that is on the physical level.  Some really spiritual and encourgaing people have even helped lift her to some greater depths along the way too.  But sadly, there are those who choose to cut-down and be offensive to this hard-working little actor.  Children in her grade have chided her...friends have put her down ...even other adults in our lives have sent such conflicting behavior about her that it has become necessary for us to simply ignore it and overlook it.  We (meaning Annika and Me and her Dad) have had to do this in order to not behave badly back to those people.  Actors need thick skin...to overlook the abuse they may encounter from negative people.  But it is worth it.  It is worth it when you have a week like ours.

So Annika had not had a Casting Call since October 22nd.  I checked in with the agency as a good Mom-ager should.  I keep things positive, I try not to complain or nag or be overbearing because I can only imagine that they have some Talent in there, whose representatives do that!  I remind them regularly that we are grateful.  I visit their facebook page and read their posts and "like" their comments and offer encouragement to the other youngsters who are experiencing successes.  None of us can possibly know which of the children will become lifelong actors or which will give up or which will be Broadway stars or Hollywood Icons one day.  We do not have a crystal ball. My Annika is no different than any of the others...just a good kid with a great personality and a lot of special... something!  So how did she come to inherit her first commercial?  Glad you asked.  Since you are no doubt reading this in order to learn how to help your child or yourself get into acting, I will include as much detail as I can recall.

First, about two weeks ago, Model Club Inc. sent out an email to all the Talent in a certain age group asking if anyone had ever used the services of Hasbro Hospital in Providence RI.  When Annika was born, we were living in Providence and as a young child, she was twice treated at Hasbro.  I responded to the email right away (I always make myself available for Model Club).  I wrote them a short two paragraphs about here expereinces at Hasbro. We were told in the email that if Hasbro wanted our child, we would be called by Hasbro directly.  A week passed and no phone call.  I assumed we were not selected.  No problem..we went about our business.  Then one morning, I get a call from Model Club asking if we can reserve Tuesday January 24th for a possible Hasbro Shoot.  The word shoot is vague, I know.  I had no idea what kind of project this was and neither did our agent surprisingly.  But of course I said, YES!  Nothing was confirmed until the morning before the "shoot" when we received the instructions from our Agent to report to Hasbro's World Headquarters Office in Pawtucket RI that day at 1pm.

Annika was thrilled and after a bit of negotiating we got my clients situated and our transportation situated and a sitter for Annika's little brother and we headed out to the job.  Annika and I try to make these special days fun and engaging and we really try to "suck the marrow" out of it...just throw ourselves into it and have a lot of fun.  Arriving at Hasbro was like a mini-trip to Walt Disney World.  Here are some great photos of this fabulous RI Company:

For those who have never heard of Hasbro, they are a RI-based toy company and are world-famous!  Their Hospital...The Hasbro Children's Hospital...is a beautiful and high-tech facility that among other things homes a Cancer Unit and Burn Unit for children in our local area.

When we arrived, we were given "Visitor badges" and escorted through a maze of hallways cleverly named and proudly displaying the company's life-work...their toys!  I wished we could snap photos but this was not allowed.  We can only cherish the experience to ourselves.  However, I can tell you that we first came up Memory Lane and then Crossed down Main Street, taking Light Brite Way and passing "The Hinge" before finally arriving to Cake Mix Studios and our first Commercial Shoot.  When Annika found out she was to be in a Television Commercial for Hasbro Childrens Hospital's upcoming Gala Fundraiser, she was thrilled!

Here she is getting into hair and makeup:

Some of the pictures are blurry but hopefully the fun shines through.  Ever the learner myself, I had many questions for Aaron, the Second Assistant and Kris our Hair/Makeup Specialist.  It was fascinating to hear her story of how she came into her job through her passion for the Industry and willingly working in a variety of roles within the Industry until she was able to find her niche here at Hasbro and she loves it.

Annika had fun reading her lines and the Director Ashley has such a great technique with getting the right lines and the right delivery from the kids.  A child is professional if they can really follow the directions and change as they go along and be positive and ultimately deliver some great lines and their were a few very special moments where the crew and Director really liked Annika's work.  Altogether we were there an hour or so.  We left on a high...with Annika's beautiful hair!  Here was us decompressing outside after a fun commercial shoot:

Ah...the many sides of Annika.  She really has a charming face.  I am her biggest fan.  I really am.  I am so proud of her.  She is brave and adventurous and good at what she does!
But don't just take my word for it...listen to her tell you herself:

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