Los Angeles vs. Austin (San Bernardino, Burbank: movies, living in, cost of)

[izzyjo]

Alright, this is my first post.

1. How gay friendly is Los Angeles?
2. Is Up Land a good place to live?

We are actors...I know you have a lot of us there but how does it compare to Austin, TX? We are from South Tx actually and we moved to Austin because we heard the Entertainment business was growing there. All we're finding is extra work, really. Movies are being filmed here but they already come with the cast! So, we are thinking of moving to L.A. Maybe living in Up Land, or Burbank. We like change a lot and we're really excited about moving. We will need to find good paying jobs because I know the cost of living is much higher there.

Any other type of advice the we should know before moving to L.A. would be awesome.

Thanks guys!!

Izzy

[Cubancoffee]

1) LA is as gay friendly as it gets. West Hollywood, for example, is well known as a gay enclave. As far as comparing LA to Austin, LA is about 10 times as big and has a lot of big-city problems that Austin doesn't, though last time I was there the traffic was about as bad there as it is here.
2) Curious why you would consider Upland, which is in San Bernardino County and, for as far as it is from Hollywood, might as well be in Waco. Burbank would put you much closer to some of the major studios.

[KimK]

Austin is "small town" compared to L.A. Traffic is bad in both places but at least in Austin its about a fifteen mile stretch north to south. In L.A. its about 1500 miles going in every direction. Nothing like taking four hours to get from Culver City over to North Hollywood. I also find it odd you would mention Upland. I would stick to Burbank or Culver City or West Hollywood or even North Hollywood. There are plenty of actors there. The competition for those jobs is so extreme and so over the top that Austin seems doable in comparison.

[izzyjo]

I mention upland 'cuz my boyfriend was told to check that city out. But I would rather live in Burbank. My job is located in Burbank so there is no questions about that. I was just wondering about Uplane.

Austin has a good market for actors who plan on doing extra work and Department of Transportation Commercials. There is also a lot of student film projects but they do not pay you...you gain experiance but that's as much as you get. We don't plan on just doing extra work and student films. Competition is harsh, we know, but there's also more oppurtunities in L.A. than in Austin.

We've also lived in Laredo, TX and traffic there is just bad, bad, bad! Laredo is the 1st fastest growing city in the U.S. and the infrustructre is really bad too. I think we can handle the traffic. I just hope the city keeps us busy with auditions of all sorts. I'm hopeing there are more than 2 audtions per week.

I also hear that people in L.A. are a bit rude. Not rude but just too busy to stop and be nice...but every city has nice and bad people so we're not worried about that. Ummm...what else? If I think of anymore questions I'll come back.

Thanks so much guys!! You'll been a bunch of helps.

[Cubancoffee]

I've lived in Miami, Phoenix, Atlanta, Houston and Tulsa and I'd say people here in LA are as friendly as they are anywhere, and nicer than in many places. But you *are* expected to conduct yourself as if you're living in a big city where people have things to do and places to go.

[Sorcerer68]

You're comparing a town to a big city. Austin has the attributes of a town with some tall buildings in the center and L.A. is a huge metropolis. Being a big city, things move faster here and life is completely different. I just moved back from the boonies and find L.A. much friendlier. . Austin is ok, not my cup of tea but I can see why many love it. It's too small, too hot and too Texas for me.

Ask yourself if you're ready for big city life. You might not be. I wouldn't live anywhere else. As far as the gay friendly factor, L.A. is light years more gay friendly than ANYWHERE in Texas (ducks flying objects). Yes, I speak from personal experience. Austin and L.A. can't be compared because they aren't in the same class.

If you want to be an actor and are serious about your career, L.A. is the place to come...just like New York is the place to go for a career in fashion. Best locales for actors are Burbank, Studio City and Hollywood.

If you've never spent time here, I guarantee some culture shock. You also might absolutely love it.

Is Upland a good place to live? With your first question being about being gay friendly and you want to be an actor...NO!