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.

Martin Bentsen has been featured in:

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

I remember a few years ago hiring a consultant to come in and help me with my PR strategy for my company.

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 connection like that sitting right under my nose, yet I failed to see and take advantage of it.

And yet this happens every day with actors I meet.

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

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 would ask if I knew 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.

Career Blind Spots

I've come to the realization that every actor has numerous 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!" moment.

In most cases, it's something so simple that it can be tweaked within a day and you'll see instant 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.

So far, I've discovered over 31 Career Blind Spots, and I'd like to present a few of them to you right now:

Career Blind Spot #1
Brand Not in Alignment

Do your marketing materials (like reel & headshots) capture the essence of your brand? Do you know what your brand is?

For one actress I worked with, I took her through a simple 5-minute branding process in our meeting and we discovered that her brand was "A bubbly, fun, and loving big sister."

Now can you guess what her headshot looked like?

The background was black. The font for her name was bold and intense-looking. And the lighting was dark and moody.

Don't get me wrong – it was a great headshot 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, do your marketing materials match it? And if they don't, do you know exactly what needs to change?

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.

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 of her resume on the spot, and it took us about 5-minutes to do.

Career Blind Spot #3
No Clear Game Plan

One of the most common Career Blind Spots I run into is simply not having a long-term game plan.

It can be easy to fall into the repetitive trap of:

Endlessly attending classes and workshops, with no clear goal or outcome attached to each.
Submitting over and over again online, but not seeing a noticeable improvement in the quality of work you're getting.
Trying to get an agent or manager, hoping that everything will change when you do, but rarely hearing back when you reach out.

Whether you're brand new to the industry or you've been doing this for years, not having a crystal clear, step-by-step action plan can make building a successful acting career take WAY longer (and feel significantly more overwhelming & confusing).

What are you specifically planning to work on next month and why? How about in months 2, 3, and 4?

If you're not clear on this, years (or even decades) can pass you by, and before you know it you'll look back and wonder, "Where has all the time gone, and why is my career still in the same place?"

Are Career Blind Spots Holding You Back?

I've discovered over 31 Career Blind Spots so far, and most are quick, easy-to-fix things that can help you get in the room more often.

Step 1: 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 2: Learn 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 creep up in the future.
Step 3: 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?
Step 4: Organize these fixes into a step-by-step plan. Once you know your Career Blind Spots, it's time to organize them into a step-by-step plan that makes logical sense and will help you get from where you are to where you want to be as quickly as possible. Fixing Career Blind Spots in the wrong order can actually cause MORE problems later on, so it's essential that you complete them in the right order.

So now, I'd like to present:

The 1-Hr Career Audit

The 1-Hr Career Audit is an hour-long Zoom call where I personally 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.

Discovering those blind spots will help you get invited to submit more self-tapes, get more responses from casting directors and agents when you message them, and even get called in to audition for higher-level roles.

The 1-Hr Career Audit also includes me helping make sure you follow through for the next 3 months.

A 1-hour (or longer) Zoom call with me where we find a series of hidden opportunities and simple tweaks you can make to move your career forward. I'll do research on your beforehand, and then we'll talk strategy, next steps, and I'll even help you work through whatever current challenges or difficulties you're having. Be prepared though – these calls often last longer than an hour!

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 action plan (in the right order and with corresponding guides) you can implement on your own over the next three months.

Three monthly email check-ins to make sure you're following through on your action plan. 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 don't give up.

Audio and video recordings of our call, with my personal notes. At the beginning of the call, I'll ask if you're OK with me recording and sending you the audio/video files of our meeting (I will not use the recordings anywhere else of course). You'll be sent the recordings, along with my meeting notes and step-by-step action plan for you, so it's as easy as following your personalized, step-by-step guide over the next 3-6 months.

$95

Book Now

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

Aser García Rada, Professional Actor

"I can write emails to casting directors or to find an agent, but in many cases I will receive no reply. Did they read it? Were they interested but too busy to respond? Are they fed up of unknown actors filling their inboxes? Should it only be an agent who contacts them? And how do I even get an agent? Will they think my material is even worth considering?

The most fascinating thing about Martin's working method is that he makes the ungraspable tangible. Through a very studied and refined methodology, following a defined strategy, he manages to make many of these things depend again on specific actions that we can develop.

Martin's method has started to work for me in a fascinating way: After writing a single first cover letter to a casting director following Martin's guidance, a few days later I got one of the most promising answers ever. A few weeks later, an agent offered to represent me, and a week after that I received a direct invitation for a casting call of a Netflix series!

Above all and after struggling to find someone to understand me and guide me from a professional perspective, I know in a very intimate and profound way that I am finally on the right path."

Michelle Romano, Professional Actress

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.