Career Audit

Boost Your Acting Career in Just One Hour

Let's jump on a Zoom call and discuss your career.

I'll help you find the quickest ways to book more work, and I'll be there to help you follow through for the next 3 months.

"Wow, I can't believe I missed that."

I recently hired a consultant to come in and help me with my PR strategy for my company.

I remember in one of our first calls, she asked me whether I happened to know anyone who worked at Actors' Connection.

"Absolutely!" I exclaimed. "I'm good friends with Tony Nation, the former CEO."

She then asked whether I'd considered sending him a quick email to ask about being on their Free at Three series as a guest speaker.

I hadn't thought of it.

She said to send a simple email to him, and just like that, I was suddenly speaking in front of hundreds of actors and had a bunch of people sign up for my mailing list and digital courses.

I thought about it later and realized how silly it was that I had such a powerful opportunity like that sitting right under my nose, yet I failed to see and take advantage of it.

And yet this happens every day with the actors I coach.

Over the past ten years, I can't tell you how many of the actors I've worked with who had HUGE opportunities right there, yet they failed to see them.

These missed opportunities are what I call Career Blind Spots.

Think of Career Blind Spots as the hidden gold mines you're sitting on but not even aware of yet.

Every actor has a few simple tweaks they can make that will INSTANTLY move their career forward big time.

And because they've been working IN their career for so long, they've forgotten how to work ON it, and that's what's keeping them stuck.

Hi, I'm Martin Bentsen.

You might have seen me speak at NYU, Actor's Connection, or The Actor's Green Room. Or you might have taken headshots at my #1 Yelp and Google rated photography company called City Headshots.

I've had the opportunity to work with over 6,000 actors since 2009 when I started, and almost every week, someone asks if I know what they should do to book more acting work.

How should I know? I used to think. I'm just a headshot photographer!

But soon, I started paying attention. I realized that most actors were so busy earning a living, paying their bills, training, and performing, that they had ZERO time to figure out how to position themselves properly so they could start booking more consistent paid work.

30 Career Blind Spots
(and counting)

I've realized every actor has a few Career Blind Spots, which are simple tweaks they can make in their acting career that will instantly change the results they're getting.

It's like a sudden "Aha!! So that's why I've been stuck!"

In most cases, it's something so simple that it can be tweaked within a day and you'll instantly see results like this:

"I've already gotten responses with the cover letter you gave me to use and I'm in the process of signing with a new agency! I am both surprised and not surprised. I knew that your strategies were effective but I just did not know how effective they would be! Thank you for your wisdom! It has blessed me." - Chloe M.

In Chloe's case, one of her Career Blind Spots was her cover letter, and changing it instantly made a huge difference.

So far, I've discovered over 30 Career Blind Spots, and I'd like to present a few to you right now:

Career Blind Spot #1
Website & Brand Not Aligned

Does your website (or marketing materials like reel & headshots) capture the essence of your brand?

For one actress I worked with, I took her through my simple branding process on the phone and we discovered that her brand was "A bubbly, fun, and loving babysitter who can be condescending at times."

Now can you guess what her website looked like?

The background was black. The font was bold and intense-looking. And the visuals were dark and moody.

Don't get me wrong – it was a great website and looked extremely professional. But the aesthetic did not match her brand at all!

So I'd like to ask: when you think about your own brand, does your website, headshot, and reel match it?

And what do you do if it doesn't?

Well, luckily there's a simple solution, and it does NOT involve hiring an expensive graphic designer.

In fact, it simply involves using Google Image Search and it takes about 10 minutes.

By the end of this simple process, you'll instantly know the colors, designs, fonts, and overall aesthetic that you should use on your website to capture your brand. You'll also know which photos and footage would be best to highlight if you want to book more roles that align with your brand.

With the right aesthetic for your marketing materials, casting directors will get a feeling that you're "right" for a role, even if they can't exactly explain why.

Career Blind Spot #2
Your Resume Look Suspicious

Is your reel making your resume look suspicious?

This was another Career Blind Spot I discovered with the same actress from above. When I first looked at her resume, I was quite impressed because she had many "Lead" and "Supporting" credits next to films that were listed as "feature."

I assumed she was extremely experienced.

But you know what happened when I watched her reel? I got really confused.... Where was all that high-end footage?

Every scene looked like a low-budget homemade video.

And that disconnect made it look like she was trying to pad her resume.

She wasn't lying, but it was clear that she was trying to make each of those little videos look like a real feature film.

Although it's true that they all lasted 40 minutes (which is the minimum length required for a video to be called a "Feature"), the way they were presented felt dishonest.

Important Takeaway: Remember, at the end of the day, people only remember how you make them FEEL, so even if you're not technically being dishonest, a casting director might FEEL you were, and that's the kiss of death.

We literally re-wrote a part her resume on the spot, and it took us about 5-minutes to do.

It's way better to be honest and submit a fantastic self-tape (and get called in on your own merit) than to try to trick a casting director into calling you in because you have an impressive resume. Doing that almost always backfires and will cause you to lose out.

Career Blind Spot #3
Your Acting Needs Improvement

It's hard to watch your own acting, right?

I personally hate staring at myself (and if you're wondering, yes I do perform occasionally – especially if actors want me to be in their Screener Shoot).

So how do you know if your reel (and acting) is actually as good as you think it is?

Well, if it's posted on YouTube, there's a simple, free way to find out (hint: it involves looking at your analytics).

I recently took one of my 1-Hr Career Audit clients through this process and explained exactly what his numbers were saying.

His acting definitely could use improvement, but it only took us about 10 minutes to re-edit his reel (yes, I literally brought his reel into my video editing software and adjusted it for him on the spot).

We cut out some of the weakest moments right then and there so it would be more effective.

Remember: a compelling reel is CRITICAL to being called in for important roles, so it must be taken seriously!

Are Career Blind Spots Holding You Back?

As I mentioned earlier, I've discovered over 30 Career Blind Spots so far, and most are quick, easy-to-fix things that can help you get in the room more often.

Step one is to DISCOVER your blind spots. What are the biggest things missing from your career right now, that if changed, could help improve your booking rate and get you closer to your goals?
Step two is to realize WHY those blind spots are hurting you. Why are they problematic and why will changing them help you start moving forward again? Without knowing the WHY behind your Career Blind Spots, you're likely to let the same problems crop up in the future.
Finally step three is to learn exactly HOW to fix them. What are the exact steps you should take to not only fix these problems, but possibly even turn them into strengths instead of weaknesses?

I'll take you through every step if we have the opportunity to work together.

So now, I'd like to present:

The 1-Hr Career Audit

My 1-Hr Career Audit is an hour-long Zoom call with me where I specifically help you discover your Career Blind Spots and learn what to do to fix them so you can make instant, noticeable improvements in your acting career quickly.

And it includes me holding you accountable for the next three months.

A 1-hour Zoom call with me where we find those hidden opportunities and simple tweaks you can make to move your career forward. We'll talk strategy, next steps, and even work through whatever current challenges or difficulties you're having.

We'll edit and fix things on the spot, meaning I'll make some adjustments to your reel if needed, or I'll help re-write your resume or even some of the copy on your website. The most important things that need to be fixed will be done right then and there. Anything we can't do during the call will be handed to you as a step by step checklist that you can implement on your own over the next few months.

Three monthly email check-ins from me to make sure you're doing what you agreed to do in our call. One of the biggest challenges actors face is staying on track for the long run, so don't worry – I'll be there via email to make sure you follow through.

If you don't LOVE our call, you can get all your money back. I always stand behind everything I do, and for that reason I offer a simple guarantee: If, at the end of this call, you don't feel you received ASTRONOMICAL value, all you have to do is let me know how I could have done better and I'll refund you everything you paid.

$195

Schedule Your Call

For questions or concerns, please email [email protected] or call (212) 706-1902.

Roberta Barnes, Professional Actress

"I was looking for focus to restart my acting career and make good use of the downtime here in LA. In the first few minutes of our call Martin helped me define what projects I wanted to work on and I came up with a three month goal (connect with at least 10 - 20 casting directors that are right for me and the projects I want). He also helped me get rid of some of the limiting beliefs I had around success being selfish.

Martin went through my marketing materials and we figured out my three Pride words, which was awesome! [Free spirited, Caring and Strong]. I had done extensive branding classes in the past but this stood out as being simple, to the point, and immediately usable. I also really appreciated Martin's feedback on my current headshots, reel and resume, and the improvements I needed to make so they'd be more professional and match my brand.

After the call Martin sent me a detailed to-do list of all the action items we had discussed, plus helped me figure out what to STOP working on. He also sent me lots of video resources with the tools to help me get it all done. I am so excited to get working and for my progress update check-in's over the next few months! Thanks for delivering tons of value Martin. I'm excited to turn it into success for myself and all those I work with!"

Brian Sanchez, Professional Actor

Before signing up for the 1-Hr Career Audit, I was unsure about what I needed to improve to move forward. I felt stuck and insecure. What attracted me to Martin was that he had so much info on his site already so I figured a conversation would be beneficial.

As I spoke with Martin, he exposed me to blind spots and worked with me to improve them. We tackled my online presence, my marketing materials, and my type/brand. We got specific with each of those things.

The most important thing I got from Martin was a better point of view to work from. Thanks to Martin, I am more confident in my career, and I now have a strategy to get unstuck.