The Beginner’s Guide to Pilot Season in LA
Aaaand I’m back in Los Angeles. After spending a month eating lotsa Doritos, mayonaise and chocolate, being surrounded by family and friends and cold weather I’m back in my own little apartment in the Hollywood heat. This was the first time I returned to LA -as in went home- instead of returning to the Netherlands, and it’s been a little strange readjusting. There’s just zero overlap between my life in Holland and my life in Hollywood, like they’re two different universes that only exist when I’m there.
It’s also the first time I’m in LA for pilot season. For those of you who aren’t familiar with the term: Pilot season is the season when all TV show pilots get cast and produced. And that’s an infinite amount more than what you end up seeing on TV. I’m a newbie to pilot season myself, but got a very helpful breakdown in my acting class at Lesly Kahn. So here’s a what happens to actors during pilot season in Los Angeles…
This morning I landed back in the Netherlands, and got the camera of a Dutch TV show shoved in my face as I came out to greet my family in a Santa hat after 18 hours of travelling. Despite my slight trepidation when leaving and sheer shock while arriving though, it’s good to be home. Don’t get me wrong; I love Los Angeles. I love being surrounded by passionate people that risk a stable life for telling stories, I love the beautiful people I get to call friends there, I love the climate (90% of the time anyway), I love the dream-big-mentality, the beaches, the hills, the free screenings…I even love the weekly premieres that turn the traffic in my neighbourhood into a war zone. But despite that, I feel like every person in the industry – especially actors – should leave LA every now and then. Here’s why…
In the last month I’ve forgotten my debit card at the grocery store three times, lost a pair of pants, lost my precious Ray Bans, burned my hands while cooking twice and just generally have been all over the place. The reason for all this scatterbrainedness: the short film I’m developing. Okay, maybe also my disorganized personality, but mostly the short film. Producing a film is really a day job (who would have thought? What could the official job title be for that?) It’s a job consisting of a million meetings and spreadsheets and emails; piecing together a million smart parts so they all start working at the right time. It’s kind of like hosting a massive dinner party, which – as a batch of oily, PlayDoh like “cupcakes” can attest to – is not a talent of mine. You’re probably wondering why I’ve titled this “Why Every Actor Should Produce a Short” when I’m rambling about how taxing it is. Well, let me tell ya!
I have booked my ticket back to the Netherlands… for the holidays! You didn’t think I was going back after more than two years of insanity-, tears-, and fear-loaded work, did ya? Nope, life with the O1 visa in LA has been pretty good so far. As an impatient and overly ambitious person I’m never quite satisfied of course, but I’m working on my craft and career everyday, and as long as I can do that I’m happy. For the first time I feel like I am where I belong, with people who are like me. It’s the little things: audiences clapping after a movie, people smiling to each other on the street… And it’s all thanks to that little piece of paper called an O1 visa, and my awesome immigration lawyer 
Let me tell you the tale of a lantern. I’m sure you’ve never heard a more exciting introduction but bear with me, this is one of those posts where I go deep, yo.
First: apologies for the radio silence! During the eight months I was in the Netherlands I dreamed of being busy and so now the universe is like: “You want busy? Take this!” I’ve had the fourth of July festivities (and accompanying eh..refreshments) followed by a 4.30AM call for a music video followed by a 18 hour shoot followed by moving to my new apartment till 2AM and then the many administrative moving hurdles, auditions, Ikea trips, hikes and social gatherings on top. It’s all good of course, but it’s made finding time for blogging difficult!
Good news, the dream apartment I mentioned in the last post is mine! I’ll move in next month, making it the 9th place I’ve lived at in LA. Let me summarize: when I first came to LA for just the summer at 19 I stayed in North Hollywood. I had such a great time that I did so again the summer after. Then when I returned for a six month stretch at 22 I stayed with a friend in Valley Village, followed by two months in Venice with a roommate from hell. Luckily I then met a lovely American lady in Culver City who I stayed with until my return to the Netherlands. And 
On the 17th of May things really got real, like for real. Ladies and gentlemen, my O1B visa is now in my passport. I feel like it should be prettier and shinier, perhaps scented like rose macarons and embellished with Swarovski, but it is just a normal, tiny piece of paper. Only with life changing powers. And ever since everything got official, my to-do list became a little more endless as more moving-to-another-country stuff was added to it. First one: booking a plane ticket. So here it is: a week from now, on May 30th, I will move to Los Angeles!
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