Be Serious

I believe there was an actor once who said that if you lose your sense of play, you don't belong in Hollywood.
True.
That was also the old template.
The issue with today's Hollywood is that you are your business. And as actor Tom Atkins once pointed out "be serious with the job, not about yourself."

See, back in the old days of Hollywood, there was a little bit of leverage. Not so much in the 30's-50's because everyone was under contract and you knew where your next job was, but in the 60's when you had to hustle for your next gig. Drifters, dirtbags and scum flooded Hollywood to make the next "Easy Rider." Never mind that Peter Fonda was the son of an acting clan and Dennis Hopper was already famous. Yeah...not exactly coming from nowhere.
So, when people come out here, they seem to think it's fun and games. Unfortunately, the find out quick it HAS to be your business. You aren't under any contract and you have to present yourself as someone who can work on a professional set.
Think about it, there are tens of thousands of talent that are smarter, hungrier and more beautiful than you. What makes you stand out, isn't pulling stunts. It's making yourself an enterprise where you take the work VERY seriously. If you talk to people you better know the jargon.
But that doesn't mean being a phony obnoxious smoke-blower-upper asses. I mean, present yourself clearly. I have that problem where my mind races to too many different thoughts. So it's near impossible for me to pitch anything.

But it makes sense. The "art" world is very disorganized and rewards eccentric behavior. This should not be you if you're starting out. However, being TOO serious gets you ignored...
I went to film school with this dude who thought he was Orson Welles. Smug, arrogant...washed out. Man, to this day, that guy still rubs me the wrong way, since we were both very similar.
Except I'm still here.