HOLLYWOOD, Calif. — As a little girl who grew up in a small Florida town, Amanda Nicole would watch classic movies on repeat until she had all the scenes memorized.
Even though she lived far from Hollywood, she began acting and auditioning for anything she could.
“It’s something I’ve always done since I was a kid, from being in church plays that my mom forced me to do, and then in high school doing drama,” Nicole said.
What You Need To Know
- Amanda Nicole grew up in a small Florida town
- When she was young, she would audition for any part she could
- She moved to Los Angeles in order to make it big on the screen
- As auditions move virtually due to the pandemic, she is one of many actors leaving Hollywood
Nicole she felt like in order to hit it big in showbiz, she had to be in Los Angeles to attend auditions and land an agent. At the age of 21, she mustered the courage to pack up all her things in her car and move to L.A. to pursue acting full time.
It has been a difficult and rewarding journey.
Nicole has booked gigs like co-starring in a recent series of Dierks Bentley music videos, but her goal is and has always been the big screen.
“Movies is definitely the dream, or recurring TV,” she said.
What Nicole did not realize when she moved to Los Angeles was how grueling the audition process can be – at times feeling like cattle calls.
“You’d go into an office and sometimes there would be tons of people. You wait in a line, you wait your turn, you get one take, and that is it. Thank you, next!” she said.
Due to the pandemic, auditions look very different for Nicole and thousands of other actors in Hollywood. Castings have largely gone virtual and now Nicole tapes her own auditions.
“It’s great because you can pick what you like about it, and you can get rid of ones you don’t like,” she said. “It’s definitely easier at home. You go at your own pace, and you get to figure out what works for you.”
Nicole’s boyfriend can usually be found behind the camera helping her record the casting tapes, and with a rise in self-tapes shot on phones and DSLRs, the pair have even turned virtual auditions into a business to help keep income flowing during the pandemic.
Nicole said she is more passionate than ever about the industry, but this digital transformation caused her to re-think living in Hollywood in order to make it here.
She plans to move home to the East Coast this fall, and continue auditioning while upgrading her quality of life.
“I think it’s the silver lining of this pandemic. Everybody can be just in all parts of the country and get to pursue their dreams still. Live a normal life. Buy a house, raise kids, and still chase your dreams,” she said.
Chasing Hollywood on her terms and staying hopeful her dream gig is just a virtual audition tape away.