I'm a Dad!

Image courtesy of FOX

No, I didn't have a baby nor do I have one on the way, but I do have a baby-sized victory that I'd like to share with you.  All of my commercial auditions so far have consisted of a role with the modifier "Asian" in front.  Asian businessman, Asian scientist, Asian man, etc.  But the most recent audition I went on was for the role of "Dad".  Not Asian dad or ethnic dad, just dad.  I consider this a victory for many reasons, but mainly because we are all just PEOPLE and someone in Hollywood is beginning to realize that.

My getting called in to audition for the role of plain ol' dad may have happened for a couple of reasons:

1. My agent is awesome and submits me for projects as long as I fit the description.  She once sent me to a Goodyear tire audition that turned out to be a NASCAR commercial.  It was rather hilarious as the casting people didn't know what to do with me and ended up sending me home.  "There's no Asian people in this spec," said the casting assistant, "but from one Asian actor to another, I think there should be."  The audition called for a tall, athletic man with a great personality and a great smile.  That's it.  I can't fault her for sending me.  =)

2. The casting director that brought me in for the "dad" audition is one that I have been building a relationship with for the past 2 years.  I'm building a relationship with his staff as well and I'm always professional and at my best.  I don't know for certain if any of the above actually helps, but it definitely doesn't hurt.

When I arrived at the casting office, I was the only ethnic person in the room.  We were being paired up into families; a husband, wife and one or two kids.  The casting assistant paired me up with a nice lady and an adorable little girl, but offered to pair me up with a more ethnic family because she thought it would "help" me.  Help me?  Was it so unbelievable that an Asian man and a Caucasian woman would be married?  Yes, the little girl was Caucasian too, but she could have been from a previous marriage.  Is that too far fetched?  Am I over thinking this?

I think being paired into an "ethnic" family would actually hurt me because the unprinted fine print reads: "Limit one (1) Asian person per movie, scene or TV show, unless it's the 'Chinatown' episode, then the use of many stereotypical immigrant Asian people is permitted."

Once the nice lady and adorable little girl were told that I would make their family complete, the lady leaned over to the little girl and said, "It's ok, we adopted him." to which I quickly and confidently replied, "No, I think you meant to say that you married me."  I wasn't going to let her pervert this innocent, impressionable little girl who probably doesn't really notice or care about the differences in people and who definitely did not have the word "racism" in her vocabulary.  Not on my watch, lady.  She had no response for me and just laughed nonchalantly.

I ended up auditioning with the same lady and little girl as the casting assistant who was conducting the auditions actually preferred the combination.  The audition itself went off without a hitch.  We were pretending to make an announcement at a press conference as a family.  We had a podium and a microphone that was way too tall for the little girl.  When it was her turn to speak, instead of lowering the mic to her level, I lifted her up to the mic and held here there while she delivered her line.  I thought it was a cute touch, if I do say so myself.  It also got me more camera time.  Zing!

There were quite a few mini-victories that day, and I'm going to chalk them all up as progress in reaching my goal of being seen as a leading man.  I can't wait for the day that I get called in to an audition for the role of "Man".

One day at a time, one person at a time.  Keep fighting the good fight, my friends!

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Blazing Her Own Trail

Sarah Tadayon by Phil Holland

One of my friends recently made a HUGE change in her life, all for the sake of pursuing a career in acting. She moved from Los Angeles to TAIWAN!  She went clear to the other side of the world as part of her strategy to launch her career!  I found this move to be very intriguing as most people try to move to Los Angeles for acting, not away from it.  I wanted to learn more about her motivation in making such a big change and asked if she would participate in a quick interview.

Without further adieu, live from Taiwan, an evening with Miss Sarah Tadayon (Official Website)

How are you adjusting to Taiwan?
I am sweating non-stop.  I recently went for a bold hair move and got a perm, and in L.A., it looked awesome, but here it's just a mess of frizz.  I am covered from neck to toe in mosquito bites.  The bedroom I rented out was pretty dusty and unkempt.  My apartment is in a popular district for foreigners to move to, to teach English or study Chinese, so it's had such a big turnover that nobody really took the time to sweep out underneath the bed or dust the room.  I spent all of last night just cleaning, and I found an exorbitant amount of old garbage and belongings, including a Hentai (Japanese cartoon porn) DVD in one of the drawers.  Awesome.  But all feminine complaints aside, it's the best life decision I've ever made.  I love it here.  I love the metropolis lifestyle.  I love the metro system.  I love the people here.  I love the fruit here!  My mother's family is here too, and I am enjoying getting to know them better.  They are truly so kind, they are truly the best support system.

Why did you leave L.A. and move to Taiwan to pursue acting when everyone moves to L.A. for acting?
Pure math.  Here's the explanation: I had already been pursuing acting in L.A. for the last five years and I've done pretty well for starting from total scratch at age 17, finding my own representation, classes, auditions, etc.  I got to work on a few indie films and a couple of television co-stars.  But I felt that I was never getting as many auditions as I wanted.  Maybe it was my cast type, or the people working for me, or that I wasn't presenting myself in a way that showed other people that I had the confidence to do well.  It is most likely a combination of all three.  Really, I felt like a tiny fish in a humongous pond, and I felt like I was drowning.  My mother (who is from Taiwan) always told me I should try the Asian film market because of my look (Sarah is half Chinese and half Persian) and my language abilities.  While I was here in December for three weeks on a family trip, I thought I might as well reach out to the Asian industry.  I ended up booking Zhong Yi Da Ge Da (Asia's most popular variety show) within the first week, which airs on China TV, and it was kind of a big deal.  But because I wasn't familiar with the show, the host, or the repercussions of being on a show like that, I didn't feel any pressure, and I was free to just... entertain.  It was an incredible experience, everybody was so kind, and they invited me back.

I was in Taiwan for a week and landed a major show, versus being in Hollywood for five years and barely scraping by with one or two lines on television and a handful of low budget films.  If my life as a performer was a science experiment, the odds are definitely greater that I would find the success that I want in Taiwan, rather than Hollywood.

What's your overall strategy or plan in Taiwan?
Well, yesterday I called Chang Fei (host of Zhong Yi Da Ge Da) and left him a voicemail.  Six months ago, he and his production staff asked me to come back to the show whenever I was able to relocate here.  I'm hoping they will still feel that way now that six months has actually gone by.  The industry is fickle, and I don't expect anything to go as I think, so if that doesn't follow through, it won't be the end of the world for me.  I plan to find a top agent here in the next month for print modeling and commercial work.  I love film acting, but I know that the Taiwanese market works on popularity and hype, even more so, I believe, than Hollywood.  Because my Chinese isn't perfect, and because I look everything but Asian, I know I'll be limited as an actress unless I gain enough popularity that people will want to give me the opportunities to act.

You've already seen some success by appearing on the most popular variety show in Taiwan.  Do you think that will help you get in front of more casting directors?
Well, yes, of course.  But I don't think Taiwan has casting directors... I'm not sure how casting works yet... but logistics aside, yes.  I'm positive that being on that show will help me.  How could it not?

Where do you go to meet other artistic people in Taiwan?
Word of mouth.  Knowing people who know people.  "My church friend's daughter represents S.H.E. Let's go have lunch with her and see if she will introduce you to her daughter" etc.  Also, the night club scene apparently.  Overall, I'm not sure, but I'll let you know when I find out.

Typically, Asian parents aren't too supportive of their kids pursuing the arts.  Is the entire country of Taiwan the same way?  Or are they more supportive of creative pursuits?
Well, I can't speak for the entire country, but I can speak for the people around me.  My 17 year old cousin is a classically trained pianist, and her parents really invest in her lessons, competitions, recitals, etc.  My other cousin who is my age is a pretty well known actress and model in Taiwan, and I just saw her mother yesterday and she seemed pretty proud of her daughter.  One of my aunts is pushing me hard to eat well and exercise a lot so that I can look good on camera, but my other aunt seems to think the whole idea of even becoming successful in the business is a joke, an impossible thing.

When do you plan to return to the U.S.?
I can't answer this question.  I have no idea.  Six months?  One year?  Never?  I have a one year open ended return ticket, so I will definitely be back at least for a visit, but do I plan on moving home?  I have no idea.  It's only day three.  Ask me again in three months.


Thank you, Sarah, for taking the time to share your thoughts with the Los Angeles Graffiti community!  Best of luck to you!


I hope, my dear readers, that you've found this interview to be inspirational/motivational.  Does Sarah have all the answers to a successful acting career in Taiwan?  No, but she came up with a plan and she executed that plan.  That's already 90% of the battle.  Kudos to her for putting one foot in front of the other.

You'll never know unless you actually go out and try.  I'd much rather live life knowing that I tried my best and failed, instead of forever wondering "what if..."

What's your next move, fellow artists?

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