Words of Wisdom from the Game's Barry Floyd
No Distance Too Far for a Dream
While it’s possible to act anywhere, the heart of the movie business is in California and, according to Floyd, that’s where anyone that’s serious about acting, writing or producing needs to be. “A lot of people try to do it from Atlanta or New York because this is a long way to move for people,” he says. “I came from the East Coast—that’s 3,000 miles—with no friends or family out here so it’s an intimidating thing to do but you have to do it because even though there’s work in New York and Atlanta, most of the work is here [in LA]. You got to be out here and you got to be making connections. That’s the main thing just having the courage to move out here and just go all in.”
An Uneasy Journey
With more actors than there are roles in Hollywood, most neophyte thespians have to pay dues in other ways before getting any substantial camera time. “A lot of people get discouraged because they're not doing what they wanted to do right away,” says Floyd, who toiled behind the scenes for three years before getting his big break. “You have to be okay with taking a PA job or something that’s not the job you initially saw yourself doing because you’re going to have to work your way up.”
Network Your Ass Off
According to Floyd, connections are just as important as talent. Throughout his years of paying dues, he made sure to forge solid relationships and a reputation as a hard worker. “Had I not been the best PA [on Cuts] they wouldn’t have been so hype to recommend me for the job [on Girlfriends] so hard work pays off,” he says. “Also, it’s definitely about who you know and how they feel about you that will determine how far you get in this business, because people always hire their friends and they look out for people that’ve done good work for them in the past.”
Work Your Ass Off
“Once you get here you got to have the work ethic, because it’s not going to be easy,” says Floyd. “Even when you get a little bit of success it’s still not easy because that’s when the real work begins. You still got to keep grinding to capitalize on that success you got.”
Save, Save, Save!
From the outside looking in, the life of an actor looks like all glamour and glitz. The reality, however, is much more like the everyday man. Before moving to BET this year, The Game was cancelled for two years, leaving Floyd on the unemployment line. “This isn’t a stable industry,” he says. “You might be working today and you don’t know when you’re next job is going to come or how long it’s going to take to find that next job. So you got to save your money; don’t blow it all on the cars or whatever when you get your first check. I saved a lot of my money from The Game and I had unemployment and you get residuals when they show the reruns, so I was able to manage my money to last me until The Game came back on air.”
Don't Quit
The reason most people fail at achieving their goals is not a lack of talent but a lack of dedication to seeing their dreams to fruition. “If you come out here [to LA] you got to be here, you can’t be like, ‘Oh, I’m going to give myself a year and if it doesn’t happen I’m going to go do something else,’ because it might take a lot longer than that,” says Floyd. “A lot of people come out here and give up before they catch their break and miss out on their opportunity—don’t give up.”
via BlackEnterprise
