From the Midwest to Hollywood

So far, I have on three occasions been required to kiss girls as part of my job. On the first occasion, I auditioned to play Will in a scene from Good Will Hunting. In the scene, Will and Skylar wake up in bed next to eachother.

The actress who played “Skylar” and I approached the scene in as professional a way as possible. An acting teacher told me that actors should always discuss beforehand what our physical boundaries are. This scene involved intense emotions and physical contact, so I told her I would be pretty comfortable with whatever she felt was natural in the scene. I think she figured out I was not some sort of weirdo, and she gave me the same liberty.

When it was our turn to audition, we really pressed into the emotions appropriate to the scene. We of course did our best to emote the lines, but she also wrapped her leg around me, and we kissed in an almost violent way. At the end of the scene we broke apart, and the directors gave us their feedback. Then we did the scene again.

When the audition ended, I thought to myself, “only in this business!” and called my friend Jason to tell him about the experience.

The girl who played Skylar was the most attractive girl I have met since I got to LA. I have since wished I had her number, but it turns out that, when you meet someone for only a few minutes, even if you kiss, you don’t necessarily feel justified in asking for someone’s number.