Episode 4 / Rosemary Bashford, Co-Director of Agency Shannon & Bloom
/by Roj Whitelock
London-based photographer and HSM Associate Member
Rosemary Bashford, Co-Director of agency Shannon & Bloom, talks about setting up an agency, advice for her younger self starting out in the industry and navigating tough times as an actor.
How Did Shannon & Bloom Get Started?
Note: View on YouTube for captions.
"I really wish that when I graduated I thought about being confident enough to communicate with my agent. I think that's just really important. I let myself feel small when I should have known what I wanted and who I was."
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How Did Shannon & Bloom Get Started?
We met, Lauren and I and we are very different. We're really different, but it works beautifully because we're like professional soul mates - that's what we always say. So we knew that we both had really different skill sets and if we put them together it would be - magical. And it has been, we absolutely love it! So we created the business, we created Shannon and Bloom and we've been really lucky to work with some absolutely glorious people and still do every day which we're so grateful for. But we both come from performing backgrounds, we're both trained actors and I think in so many ways that's been what's made us successful.We've really enjoyed putting what we've learnt in our training and applying that to the clients that we work with and then also having the understanding of both sides as well. But you know, we started the business, every single day is just unbelievable, we love our job, we just say - Lauren, don't we say all the time how much we love - Absolutely we love - love my life! We love it. We love it. We love our life and we always just say we're so lucky to do something that we really enjoy. But yeah, the beauty of it is that Lauren is just such a people person and she is - everyone loves her, she can really - she can sell ice to a snowman! Which is brilliant for me, I'm like can you call them and just persuade them and she's like "Yeah, no problem." Done. And then I'm more like the tech side of things so together it works really beautifully.
What Advice Would You Give Your Younger Self?
I would say, Rosie, hun, sweetheart - know what you want and know what you need from your relationship with your agent as well. I think it's really important. I was really lucky, I was signed to a fantastic agency and then when I created Shannon and Bloom with Lauren we spoke about what was really important for us and communication id the main thing for us. We want people to be able to, if they need to, pick up the phone to have a chat to us, we want them too...we have WhatsApp groups with everyone, every single client has a group so if one of us is busy or in a meeting the other one can get back to them.So communication's really important to us and I really wish that when I graduated I thought about being confident enough to communicate with my agent. I think that's just really important. I let myself feel small when I should have known what I wanted and who I was. And also with that in mind casting as well. I needed to know what my casting was and - not put myself in a box - but know where I excelled. And I feel like now that I'm on the other side of things I can see it for other people. It's always hard for yourself, but that's why you need to be confident enough to say to your agent, "Where do you see me?" You know, "What do I need to work on, what skillsets do I need?" You know, if you're someone who really looks and enjoys doing kind of action films we need to work on like the stunt credits or we ned to work on just going on a combat course. Or whether you love working with accents? Really push yourself in that, get an accent coach or even do it by yourself on YouTube but really apply yourself and get that accent reel done. So basically, just applying yourself in the area in which you think you'll excel, basically.
How Should Actors Navigate Tough Times?
Yeah, it is. The bottom line is it is really tough. And there are a lot of people who want to make it. If we're talking about actors particularly, lots of people want to. There are thousands of unrepresented actors as well, so there's loads of people from different angles of the industry trying to make it. And what you really need to think about is what makes you special. That's not going anywhere. You are completely different to everyone else in, you know, whether it's your looks or your talent or your skillset or your personality - everything. No-one is you hold onto that in the rough times and excel in that in the great times. You just gotta keep going and if you feel your motivation fading on you, that's also ok. You know, no-one can be motivated all the time. But just do what you can with what you've got, basically.
