We had the good fortune of connecting with Ray Buffer and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Ray, how do you think about risk?
Nothing ventured, nothing gained. You have to play to win. Recently I attended a workshop for actors to prepare for guest starring roles in procedural dramas, and I felt underprepared when it came time to give my performance. I was tempted to come up with an excuse as to why I couldn’t attend that workshop, in order to avoid risk. I opted to embrace the risk, and even though I was underprepared, I also avoided the temptation to create crutches by placing bits of dialogue on paper off camera to glance at. I went in to the challenge with my entirety and allowed myself to be vulnerable. I was able to perform the piece three times, each time improving. I learned some lessons from the repetition and the coaching I received – and most importantly, I did not feel like I took an “easy way out”. I avoided adding a burden to my soul.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I believe an actor has to behave well. The job is one of relationships. Someone may be right for a part but if they can’t work professionally and get along with different personalities (and there are many in film production) then they may not work much. In my 20’s I began working professionally as a character actor – much of the time playing roles that were twice or three times my age. Now that I am actually middle-aged, I have accrued a few decades of experience playing the age that I currently am! I have grown into myself. My philosophy to success is to put yourself out there unabashedly. The more irons you can have in the fire – the better your chances.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
La Brea Tar Pits, Griffith Observatory, Knotts Berry Farm, Hike to the “Hollywood” Sign, Brunch at Portuguese Bend Distilling, The Magic Castle, The Cicada Club, See a show at Sacred Fools Theatre Company, Cinespia at Hollywood Forever Cemetery, Tacos from a ANY taco truck, Pink’s Hot Dogs, Universal City Walk, Antique shops in the City of Orange, A daytrip to Solvang.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My manager, Nancy Clayton of Clayton Music Management and My Acting Coach, Lisa Zambetti

Website: http://raybuffer.com

Instagram: therealraybuffer

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/raybuffer

Twitter: https://twitter.com/raybuffer?lang=en

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/therealraybuffer/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/raybuffer/videos

Other: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1338528/

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