Task 1A Completed CV for my Professional Blog Profile

I am happy to present my final CV - which I rewrote from scratch - eradicating any unnecessary information or credits. I learnt that colour was a nice addition to a professional CV - however, I decided against the slightly elementary shade of purple in my first draft. I opted for a deeper purple, which I believe portrays a more professional quality. I remarked that CVs which were easy to read and laid out efficiently were the most appealing.

I prioritised my skillset to how I wish to be portrayed as a performer. I kept everything concise. I added in relevant information which I didn't have when first designing my old CV (i.e. Spotlight & Equity numbers and agent info). Finally, I was strict on the cut off dates for my credits. I didn't list every single school production I've been involved in - I went for quality rather than quantity (until they inevitably become on par... :P)

I am posting this CV on my professional blog profile so as my work on this is now linked entirely with my professional practice. Everything I post relates to myself as a professional actor and I am content to present myself online to show development of my professional practice - combining both my study of the practice and the professional work I do.


I also decided to make a black and white option (as sometimes I don't have the luxury of coloured ink). I think this comes across more or less as effective as the coloured option and it will more than suffice for those times when I need to print out a CV quick.

Task 1d: Utilising Instagram

Woah this is a bit like inception ^^^
Task 1d asks us explore the importance of using images and audio-visual in today's social media. As I highlighted in previous blogs - I believe imagery is the most instant and effective way to get messages across to viewers (especially for visual learners).
As a test - I have linked my blog address on my Instagram page, as well as posting a small sneak peak of my blog as an image on my Instagram. (Image embedded above) Within three minutes of posting this small image, I already had 8 likes. This is nothing in comparison to big Instagram names - however it still shows that the more well-promoted I am; the better I can get my message across.
I want to use this task as an experiment - I am going to see if the views on my blog posts go up since sharing it on my Instagram. If they do - I will take this as a clear indicator that digital storytelling is as powerful a platform as any other social media - if not the most!


Instagram link:
https://www.instagram.com/p/BQ-l5V_ju0c/?taken-by=eleanor_actor

Using Web 2.0 in Teaching - Task 1b idea

Yesterday I taught two contemporary workshops. I decided to utilise Web 2.0 as a tool to aid my teaching. I used the forum of YouTube to show the classes Sia's video for 'The Greatest' and encouraged them afterwards to discuss what emotions / storylines they thought were conveyed throughout the footage. It was enlightening to listen to 8-12 year olds commenting insightfully about the footage they had just watched. I learnt that Web 2.0 can open portals to aid teaching and to encourage creative juices to flow. The workshops ensued with recreating our own versions of the video and group-devising sections of the choreography. The results from the classes were utterly incredible and I will definitely be using this method of teaching again. Web 2.0 as a tool for teaching can be effective and visually inspiring for children.

The Beauty of Imperfection portrayed by Annette Bening

Last night - to wind down; put a bit of perspective on my life and view some quality acting - I watched '20th Century Women' directed by the artistically great Mike Mills.
I was blown away by the sheer realness exuding from Annette Bening. It was as if I was a fly on the wall watching the hustle and bustle in her household.
She has had 4 Oscar nominations - in my opinion an Oscar win is necessary for this wholesome, all-inclusive actress.
It's difficult to express how well-embodied and rounded she was as single Mom, Dorothea Fields. The depth and scope of her character wasn't played with a burdened effort - it came across completely naturally yet still contained the weightiness needed for the realism of this character.
Elle Fanning was a breath of fresh air as the crazy but caring Julie.
The topics raised throughout the film were so close to home. It exposed a Mother's struggling relationship with her teenage child. A quote which really stuck out to me was when the Mother and Son were discussing 'happiness' and thinking 'Am I happy?' The Mother responded with the frank reply:
'Wondering if you're happy it's a great shortcut to just being depressed'
The progression of child to teenager was conveyed sensitively by Lucas Jade Zumann and his struggles resonated with my teenage memories.
This kind of film makes me truly appreciate the practice of acting. It has the ability to evoke feelings in people and to simply convey reality.
I would love to be in a production of a similar genre at some point in my career. I love the idea of portraying an imperfect perfect world and sending out a feeling of slightly dysfunctional comfort to the viewing audience.
This is a great quality for a piece of creative work - The message that it's O.K. not to be O.K.

It's a marathon; Not a sprint

I was recommended to read this article after having a mini crisis about where I'm going with my life.
http://www.mensxp.com/special-features/today/34993-if-you-think-you-are-going-nowhere-in-life-take-a-deep-breath-and-read-this.html
^^ Have a read if you like, it brings up some really good life theories and healthy mind-set ideas. What stemmed my 'mini crisis' was that the other night - I went straight from hostessing at The Business Travel Show to waitressing at my local tapas restaurant. I was over-tired and over-worked. I questioned 'Am I getting anywhere in my professional practice by running myself to the ground to try and financially survive in London?'
I resorted to the reflective practice of noting 2 good things which had happened me that day...
1) I practised a skill which I hadn't in a while - I spoke French to some customers in the restaurant and it reminded me how much I love speaking the language. On reflection it sparked a linguistic passion in me to try and brush up on my former (80%) fluency.
2) I also have set a date set in March with my friend's brother who is a film student to spend a day filming the original scene myself and my actor friend wrote. It will be nice to dedicate a full day to creative and productive work.


By actively noting these 2 good events - I felt a lot better.

Continuation of 1b - Exploring Ethical Considerations

Today and yesterday I was working at The Business Travel Show, Olympia Kensington. As I was hostessing - it was a pleasure to be able to sit in and hear the talks / conferences going on throughout the day.
The Skype on 21.02.17 with Paula and the other BAPP students discussing Professional Communication Technologies was still fresh in my mind - therefore a lot of what the group discussed last night I found I was relating to the Business Travel Talk subjects.
In particular - ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS overlapped. In my previous blog, I mentioned for Task 1b I wanted to develop more ideas and opinions on ethical issues in regards to Web 2.0. We touched on the topic of how accessibility to a computer is just expected nowadays. Train tickets, boarding passes, banking and even oyster are all done online / via mobile apps.
One talk was called "If The App Fits" - discussing businesses using apps to develop. They discussed this problem in a slightly different light - that if all businesses are forced to do everything via mobile apps - some will not benefit as much due to the specific needs / nature of their businesses. They touched on the ethical consideration of "When do we switch off?" If everything is done via a mobile app - then how can one make that decision to "pack in a day at the office" in the evening - if the office is, in fact, in their pocket? How do we separate work from rest? At what time do we decide are our "after work hours"? More and more the typical 9am-5pm (or, in an actor's world, 5am-9pm...) previously conceived as 'normal' working hours are transforming into 24/7. How often have we retired for the night to do some recreational reading or something for our own well-being - and we hear an email ping... And how often do we give in and check this email? Regardless of whether we are in the business world or professional performing world - that tantalising email tone taunts us to stop what we are doing for ourselves and defy "out of work" hours. We are constantly in work. Personally, as an employee of many promotional companies, I fear of missing out on a good shift which would possibly be the make or break to afford my rent that month. On top of that, on the professional side, I submit to checking my emails after 5pm in case there is anything urgently career, agent or professional job related which otherwise I might miss. An entire evening of being ignorant about a self tape due in two days time because of lack of email check could make all the difference timing wise to the quality of the tape. Fitting filming around work is tight enough on time without missing out on an entire evening when I could've gotten the script down. The solution: be a slave to your devices. Succumb to message alerts. For your sheer survival in the professional and work world - you need to do this.
This is a major issue I know I face, and I hope I am not a lone soldier with crazy FOMO* habits in this regard.
A guest at this talk made an interesting comment that France (and other EU countries) are in talks about putting in place a new scheme in order to reduce usage of devices "after-hours" in regards to work. This was something that sparked my interest and I want to research more about...

I believe in making the most of every situation / opportunity we find ourselves in. I relate a lot of scenarios to my studies - but more importantly - to my professional practice and my life.
Another communication technology issue which arose in one of the talks was: Using one device for all work e.g. Phone. For me, I know this is impossible. I do not have the money for an iPod or the latest iPhone so instead I have a mismatch of Apple, Google Chrome and HP devices. These guys are not always pals (i.e. compatible) when it comes to transferring data. However, I have a roundabout system that works and I get by. To have one device wouldn't work for me - as there are some tasks which require me to use my laptop i.e. footage editing.
Some of the guests at the talk voiced their protests to transferring all of their work and tasks to one device - many had different reasons but it all boiled down to the same thing - as much as things look as if they are going this way - there will be many technological problems if everybody is pressured to use just one device.
A practical issue is the size of the iPhone's small screen which would render some practical tasks difficult. From my experience, Kortex isn't compatible with my tablet device therefore I use my laptop to read Reflective Practice. If I was forced to use one device - it would sacrifice my chance to develop intellectually / professionally.
The Protect Traveller's Data talk discussed a mirrored topic which we began to explore during our Skype session - when websites seemingly 'know' your interests. Useful or scary? This was a subject I literally touched on whilst beginning to analyse Reader 1. Since that brief acknowledgement of this ethical consideration - it has cropped up in discussions twice. There must be a reason and I'm guessing it is due to an increasing concern about this topic. There is an ongoing debate as to whether this computer intelligence is useful & clever or scary? When websites know our interests - I can confirm from both the business industry & the performing industry - many people find this unnerving.
Whilst observing talks at The Business Travel Show - it summed up for me that our industries are linked by professional communication technologies. Although our objectives may be different; our actions and processes are the same. They were having similar discussions even though they are a different industry to ours'. It brought to light that my professional practice is my business and it was through this mentality that I began to make the talks relevant to me.
In particular, the "If The App Fits" talk sparked an insight into my usage of professional communication technologies for my practice.
I use the app: 1Tap (Receipts) app. It helps the self-employed keep track of their receipts and expenses by taking and storing photographic evidence. It also sorts out and estimates our HMRC tax, and tax return. You can organise the expenses into sections so you can see clearly which expenses' sector the majority of your money is going on. As a poverty-stricken actor who doesn't have the luxury of an accountant - this (FREE!!) app is a great sidekick to help me begin to get my head around the confusing maze that is the 'tax return' and 'self-assessment'.

*FOMO = Fear Of Missing Out

Task 1a - CV Skeleton

The other evening I mapped out a skeleton of the content needed on my CV. I figured - once all of my information was compact, condensed and correct - I can then easily progress to making it presentable. The main pointers I've picked up whilst reading others' blogs and links to professional CV templates - including Equity's Actor's CV Template - are: not to over-pack your CV with irrelevant credits, quality rather than quantity, and to keep it simple and visually eye-catching.