In this episode, I sit down with actor Michael Schaeffer to talk honestly about the modern actor’s reality: self-taping, pressure, rejection, creativity and mental resilience. This is a conversation about process — the parts no one teaches you — and how to stay grounded when the industry keeps shifting under your feet. Michael shares his evolving self-tape method (Line Learner, learning fast, “sliding into” takes), while I break down my own approach — cutting scenes, reshaping text to reveal essence, and using tools like teleprompters to free rather than freeze you. We dive into the mental health toll of the job, how to reclaim authority and agency in your tapes, and why building your own creative practice (like Michael’s 10-year poetry podcast, The Poetry Exchange) is essential to survival. 🎭 What You’ll Hear Why actors rarely talk about process openly How self-tapes became their own art form Fear, procrastination & the Friday 5 pm audition email Michael’s method: reducing friction, learning fast, Line Learner, using solo time well My approach: cutting scenes, bending text, personalising material, teleprompter freedom Reclaiming authority and playing on your terms Why perfection kills instinct — and how to avoid it Ghosting, rejection & separating self-worth from the outcome Self-taping as practice, not punishment Creativity and community as tools for survival 🔑 Key Takeaways Self-tapes are the norm — learn to own them, not resent them Your method only matters if it releases behaviour and aliveness You are allowed to adjust material to serve your essence Casting directors want something real, not perfect Editing should feel like play, not punishment Resilience is a skill: mindset, preparation, perspective A private creative practice helps support your mental health Community reduces isolation and pressure Self-taping can become meaningful artistic work ⏱️ Chapters (Approx.) 00:00 – Welcome 02:00

Hi all — Just a quick update about something useful that came out of yesterday. Michael Schaeffer and I finally managed to record the session we’d planned. It was originally meant to be a small group coaching workshop, but a few people understandably felt that being coached or performing in front of others was too exposing. No issue there — it’s helpful for me to know that for future planning. So instead, Michael and I turned it into a one-to-one conversation about self-taping, resilience, process, and the realities of the job. We covered a lot: how he approaches tapes, how he handles pressure, how he works with text, and how he maintains some kind of equilibrium in an unpredictable career. It wasn’t planned as a podcast episode, but it ended up being exactly the kind of clear, practical discussion that I think will be useful to many of you. I’ve uploaded the full recording to YouTube, behind a passworded link, exclusively for TRA members. Here it is: 🔗 Link: [YouTube link] 🔑 Message me for the Password. Watch it whenever suits.If anything in it sparks a question or something you want to explore in more detail in future sessions, let me know. Elliot I am The Resilient Artist, and so are you.

of my chat with member Michael Shaeffe yesterday afternoon. More on the link below with permission...https://youtu.be/oNypRVmXW3c?si=AvOWKYBStH_-UMZB

Hi everyone — I wanted to float something by you all. I’m planning to run a live workshop this Saturday at 2pm to take people through my Kooky Loopy Method from start to finish, as laid out in the eBook I’ve been working on. Before I make this part of a new paid tier, I’d love to test-drive it with you — my founding members — and get your thoughts, questions, and honest feedback. What it will be: - A 45–60 minute live session on Zoom or Skool (whichever works best) - I’ll walk you through the entire Kooky Loopy Method, step-by-step - We’ll go deeper and more granular than the eBook - You’ll be able to ask questions throughout - It will be recorded and used inside the next tier of the membership Why you might join: - You get the workshop free as founding members - You’ll appear (in gallery view) in the recorded version unless you choose otherwise - You can help shape the final delivery of the method - You can offer feedback or short testimonials afterwards — only if you want - And you help me build a version of this work that can reach more actors without always needing 1:1 time Honestly, even if it’s just one or two of you, that’s absolutely fine — the point is simply to get this thing on its feet. Interested and available this Saturday at 2pm? Drop a comment below so I can send you the link. Thanks so much — and as always I am The Resilient Artist, and so are you. Elliot

Hi TRAs! Hope you’ve all been doing well. Thought I’d start some proper community chat! It’s been an interesting week — I’m back in the rehearsal room with Rebecca Frecknall (Cabaret, Streetcar Named Desire) on a new musical. Great company, brilliant singers, and an incredible MD, Tom Deering (Olivier winner for Standing at the Sky’s Edge). I’m part of the non-singing, story-telling ensemble, swinging between characters and accents with no pressure to be perfect. It’s a bit like self-taping — dance like nobody’s watching. Perfection is the enemy of productivity. That said, there’ve been the usual obstacles: late tubes, flat tyres, dying iPhones … but I’ve kept showing up and giving my best when I am there. Meanwhile, I’ve been listening to a course coach who says: before you make a course, find out exactly what your people need. And I think I know who “my people” are — actors like you who’ve been around the block, who can ride the waves of this job but find self-taping exhausting, demoralising, and often fruitless. So yes — a course about self-tapes. But not just about lighting and sound. It’s about mindset, joy, and rediscovering the spark that got buried somewhere between “Slate, please” and “Upload by noon.” This coach suggests a 4-week course: four one-hour modules with instruction, guidance, and homework — each week shaped by your feedback. As my first TRAs, I wanted to ask: how does that sound? Would you find value in something like this — if it was well-presented, full of insight, and built on the experience (and slightly radical honesty) that informs my Kooky Loopy Method? It would go beyond the technical prep and setup into mindset and creative resilience — how we show up, how we recover, how we keep the joy alive. You’ve already been so helpful answering the Self-Tapesteem Quiz — I hope it sharpened some of your thoughts about how you approach self-taping. So tell me — from that place, how do you want to evolve? What would most help you next?(Or maybe I should devise another questionnaire!)