12 Great Alternative Jobs For Actors

12 Great Alternative Jobs for Actors
By Aaron Marcus

Trying to support yourself solely on acting jobs can be really tough, especially when you are first getting started. Finding the right alternative job to help pay the bills will allow you can concentrate on your acting career.

Not feeling the pressure of having to book a job in order to pay you’re your basic living expenses will allow you to feel much more relaxed during auditions.

But, you have to be really careful when choosing a side job. You need to make sure that it is not keeping you away from doing what you want to do – act.  The job must pay enough so you don’t have to work 24 hours a day and flexible enough so that you can continue to take classes, audition and work on sets.

Something else that you should always keep in mind before accepting an alternative job is to try and find one that allows you to use your acting skills. Bartending, restaurant work or being a driver are the typical types of part-time jobs that many actors get. But, here are a few jobs that can help you with finances, give you flexible hours and allow you to grow as an actor.

Standardized Patient Jobs

There are many teaching hospitals and medical schools across the county that hire actors to play the role of a patient in order to help doctors and medical students get more practice with exams and patient care. The actor will be given a background history of the character. He/she will be told about their characters medical issues, symptoms and other problems that are affecting them.

Typically, the actor does not need to memorize a script, but they do have to be extremely familiar with every aspect of their disease and their history.

The actor is also responsible for evaluating the exam and point out the overall effectiveness of the doctor/medical student’s work.

This can be a fascinating, and rewarding type of part-time job. The fees will vary depending on the location and the actor’s experience. Most Standardized Patients will be paid by the hour.

Role Playing Jobs

Many actors are hired for Role Playing jobs in a variety of places.

In some ways it is similar to Standardized Patient work. But, instead of helping people in the medical field, Role Playing jobs involve training and education for law enforcement, law schools, corporations and law offices.

There are many law schools that hire actors to help students get practice in a court room setting. Sometimes lawyers will hire actors to test out an approach for an upcoming trial and ask for feedback after talking to the “jury.”

Government agencies such as the FBI, TSA, Homeland Security and many other agencies will hire actors to help with interviewing/interrogation techniques.

Learn more about Role Playing and Standardized Patient work: https://howtoactandmodel.com/role-playing-sp

Additional Side Jobs

There are so many other types of great part-time jobs that are perfect for actors.

Audio Books – Actors are hired to record audio books: Check Out This Video

EJury – Lawyers have actors give feedback/comments from this online service

Focus Group – Attend focus group sessions and give your thoughts on a variety of products or ads.

Murder Mystery – Actors are hired to work in murder mystery shows

Sell Your Services – Have a special skill? Sell your services online

Substitute Teacher – You can pick and choose what days you want to work

Tutoring – If you are extremely knowledgeable in a subject, tutor.

Writing Articles – There are websites where you can get paid for writing

Virtual Assistant – Get part-time work as a virtual assistant

Video Editing – If you have editing skills, this could be a great part-time gig
There are tons of really good part-time jobs that will allow actors to use their skills to pay their bills.

The important thing is to make sure you are free to pursue what is most important and not fall into the trap of taking on a job that prevents you from acting.

About the Author: Aaron Marcus

Aaron Marcus has been a full-time actor and commercial model for over 33 years. His new book, How to Become a Successful Actor and Model is an Amazon Best Seller. Aaron has given his seminar: "Book the Job" over 700 times spanning 3 continents. He also offers online workshops. Aaron saves 5 days each month to give private on-line coaching sessions.