It was June 2012 and I was on the corner of Hollywood & Highland, in front of the Roosevelt Hotel, sweating like any Dutch girl would at that time of the year at that location. But an egg shell colored Beetle with a sassy brunette at the wheel came to relieve me. That is how I first met Grace and why I had no choice but to like her. That and the fact that she is a down to earth, sweet and smart actress, not always abundant in LaLaLand.
Grace was discovered at her high school in Austin, Texas and started working pretty much immediately after she touched down in LA. Two years, a bunch of exciting acting jobs (you can currently see Grace in The Vampire Diaries) and quite some LA wisdom later Grace was kind enough to share her experiences and advice here…
You were discovered by a talent agent during a high school production. What was that like? How did your classmates and family respond? It was certainly strange to have been “discovered” in high school. I wasn’t pursuing a professional career at that point and we had never had an agent see a show. It wasn’t really on my radar being from Texas.
What were your first weeks in LA like? Was it hard being away from your family? My first week in LA was crazy, I didn’t have a headshot, I stayed in an extended stay for six days with my mom. On my sixth day I auditioned for Fright Night and got an apartment I talked my way into with a report card and a promise. That night I stayed in my new place on an air mattress and that next morning I got to table read for Fright Night.
What was your first day on the set of Fright Night like? Were you nervous? I think I had so little idea what I was doing when I got to the set of Fright Night I didn’t even know what to be nervous about, but I learned a lot very quickly to keep up and only made a fool of myself most of the time. :)
Even though you started working pretty soon after arriving in LA, did you ever have doubts or moments you wanted to quit? My fourth month in LA I had kinda let the city get to me. I think I lost any self confidence I had moved out with and had to go home for two weeks and do yoga everyday for like two months before I came into myself again. It was a lot of not knowing anyone and certainly not knowing who to trust.
What do you find to be the hardest thing to deal with in this industry and LA? And how do you deal with it? I would without a doubt say that the part I hate most about show business is the business. All the being on set and actually acting I LOVE. It’s when Twitter followers of all things get brought into consideration for who gets to play a role when I feel like gagging myself with a spoon.
What do you think is the biggest misconception about LA and the film business people in it? I think people assume the glamour you can see on a Hollywood screen bleeds into the lives of those who work in Hollywood. I think a lot of people would be surprised how hard people work.
What is the best advice you ever got? Take Fountain! (that’s a traffic joke) But seriously, I had a camp counselor once who made me define success before I got there, because if you don’t you can never be satisfied. So I knew that the minute I could pay my rent with doing any sort of art, I would have made it- anything else is icing.
And last but not least, what advice would you give to other actors coming to LA to try and make it? To an actor coming to LA I would say, listen to all advice to get, but dont take all of it. The second you come out here everyone has rules for you (always hold your sides, smile in your headshot, always ask a question in an audition, leave the audition as quickly as possible, make a choice no one else will, etc.) and while some of these rules might be good, and some of them may have worked for others in the past, if they aren’t exactly what you would do, (i.e. if they block you from what you truly are as an artist) they probably won’t work for you, and if they do, you might not be happy where you end up.
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Very interesting interview!!
Dear Shanice,
if you have time can you please write what non touristic cool places to visit in LA))
Thank you so much
Hi Nina, I might do that when I’m back in LA. In the meantime: stay out of Hollywood (big disappointment) and go hiking in the Hills, tour Beverly Hills and visit the coast towns (Santa Monica, Venice, Marina del Rey etc)
When are you moving back to Los Angeles? I’m looking forward to reading more about your journey over there.
As soon as I get my visa and then my finances sorted, I will definitely keep you posted here!
Great, looking forward to it!
Hi,
I was just wondering which community college you went to? How many hours of classes did you have a week and which courses did you take? How much did you have to pay for applying to the college and per semester? I’m just curious because I’m looking for a college right now in L.A. but I have no idea which one to choose.
Thanks
Hi, I went in Santa Monica, information about tuition and classes are all on the colleges’ websites. Good luck!
Hello. This is kinda off the topic but I was wondering where you learned your English coming from Holland. I’m from Norway and my English is kinda…err..I guess you can say ‘bad’. And as I read your blog entries, I noticed how good you are in writing. So yeah,..little advice?
Mostly from movies, to be honest. You’re lucky though because Scandanivia’s vowels and consonants are very similar to those in the English languagr so you probably won’t have a big accent!
Hi! I really enjoy your blog. I was wondering what Grace meant by “hold your sides”. I’m going to LA next month and I’m still not sure about some of the audition terms. Thanks!
Hi Felix, by sides she means audition sides, the script with the lines for your audition. So don’t go and cling your hands to your waist now! Good luck in LA and keep us updated!
Great thanks so much! :)
I recognize her from vamp diaries. Cool that she got so much work that fast!