Tag Archives: casting director

109 Scenes, 14 Locations, 17 Actors.

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I am finally making a feature film. Since I got my first camera when I was 14 I reckon I am slacking a bit. We have 109 Scenes, 14 Locations and 17 actors so far. It is a mammoth task which started today. We had a brilliant days filming and got quite a few scenes.


Prose & Cons came about when Richard Wright saw me tweet that I wanted to make a film with strong female characters. He handed me a 39 page script that he had written and told me to write the rest. I did. Richard was initially the director of Prose & Cons but we had some artistic differences and he has now left, proving that people can have artistic differences and remain friends afterwards. Richard is now a brilliant comedian making his way around the London circuit.

I am now directing the film with Steve McAleavy. Steve was originally the producer and DOP but his passion made it impossible for him to not direct with me. Steve is still DOP and producer.

Just before I wrote this I worked out the schedule for the film. Sorted out what scenes were filmed, what actors were needed and what props were needed. It is using all of the skills I have acquired during my decade long career.

I also cast the film. Needless to say it is a labour of love and a passion project. I have been turning down work and putting my time and effort into this film and so has Steve. We want to make the best film possible.

We previously did a night shoot in Hayes FM with the lovely Becky Talbot. We have a great cast, the best equipment and, finger’s crossed, it should all go well.

I will keep blogging about the making of the film. In the meantime, check out the trailer below.

"It's the Audition, Stupid!" Book Review and Interview with the Author.

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“It’s the Audition, Stupid!”

It’s a brave opening gambit; a book that insults without giving you a chance to buy it a drink first. But if that upsets you then you’d better grow some thicker skin because Brendan McNamara’s 2011 book about casting doesn’t shy from delivering a few home truths.

And quite right too.

If you purchase the book then you probably are, or are intending to be, an actor. Good luck.

It’s a cruel and unforgiving career and, while the book gives invaluable advice on casting, the real value of “It’s the Audition, Stupid!” comes from its realism – a realism which newcomers to the industry would do well to embrace.

The book itself discusses the intricacies of the casting process in refreshing detail. As an actor popping in and out of castings, which may, on occasion, only last 2-3 minutes, it seems a very arbitrary and mysterious process.

Casting directors too can seem a mysterious and distant bunch, with many actors sending off CV after CV and never hearing a word back. Brendan McNamara’s book does a great job in explaining the casting process and humanising casting directors.

Much of the advice given by the book seems, in retrospect, to be common sense – but it’s amazing how un-common common sense can be. The advice is frank, clear and given with tremendous goodwill.

The book is not just about improving actors’ attitudes towards auditions, it covers everything from drama school training to how to approach the right people. It also talks over the differences between auditioning for stage and screen work and the gulf between the two.

It’s a fascinating and valuable read, and if you’re an actor, it may just become your new best friend.

I had the pleasure of chatting with Brendan himself recently. You can find a copy of the interview below.

“It’s the Audition, Stupid!” is available now in paperback. You can find out more at www.pinterandmartin.com or buy a copy of the Kindle e-book version at Amazon. It’s the Audition, Stupid!: The actor’s essential guide to surviving the casting and getting the part

Tim Austin is a stage and screen actor based in the UK. You can read more about him at www.tim-austin.co.uk

 …

Frost Mag;

Hello Brendan. You started off as an actor – a pretty successful one too. What was it about casting directing that made you move away from the acting? And would you go back to acting full time?

Brendan;

I don’t think I’d ever act again. I was very confident as a child, I was quite quirky,… [but] I didn’t have a craft and the more I see great actors, I see a craft.

I’d no time for doing accents, which was very limiting. I was cast as a West of Ireland “cheeky chapy” and that was the extent of it, and that bored me senseless. A career of that wouldn’t’ve made me happy.

I got into casting because it started as a part time job when I was trying to pick up auditions and just became an obsession and love, basically.

Frost Mag;

Have you kept the same contacts from your acting and has that helped you in your casting?

Brendan;

Not really. A lot of contacts would’ve been in Dublin. If what you’re alluding to is “Are contacts important?” then yes. In every regard. Networking and contacts are, for an actor especially, or any industry professional, immense. You’ve got to have them.

Actors have to be pro-active. They should go to festivals, they should go to screenings and opening nights and everything because you don’t know who you’ll meet and it can help.

Frost Mag;

Do you feel that your past as an actor has given you an advantage as a Casting director? Does it, perhaps, give you an edge?

Brendan;

I think its definitely had an impact, I don’t know about giving me an edge, but it certainly helps me when I work with actors.

Essentially my job is to get the best performance from actors when they come to audition for me. The fact that I relish reading in with actors and do my best to give them something when reading opposite helps the actor and helps me.

Frost Mag;

Having spoken to fellow actors at castings and networking events, I’ve found that many of them consider casting to be a tad, if I may say, “elitist”. By that I mean, only interested in graduates of certain schools and certain universities. I don’t know if that’s true. I personally react a little against that.

Brendan;

I think that’s rubbish. I mean there might be casting directors who favour those schools and obviously I can’t speak for everyone but in my own terms, I have never brought someone in because they went to those schools. To be honest, I don’t even look for that any more.

I like nothing better than bringing in someone new. Who isn’t even based in London, who doesn’t even have an agent, who I’ve seen in something, I like their CV or I’ve spoken to or met them.

There’s so many myths about casting directors out there, made up by people; drama schools or people who just aren’t getting work. You have to realise – my job is very simple; I bring in the best people to make me look good because if I can bring in the best people and they all do great auditions then I look brilliant.

If you come in as an actor and don’t do a god job, I look bad. My job is to make you do a good job. Every actor that comes in I want them to be brilliant, I want them to be prepared, I want them to the best they can do because they make me look brilliant.

All these myths about a casting director being obstructive or getting in the way is rubbish.

Frost Mag;

What is it in a showreel that really jumps out at you, or is that different for every project that you’re casting?

Brendan;

Sometimes I don’t need to refer to it because I’ve seen the work that the actor has done or I’ve met the actor.

I sometimes have to refer to a showreel to check someone’s physicality or their accent or if I’m unsure how they look in their photo. But obviously if you’ve got a reel that has a great performance on it that’s what I’m going to tune into as well.

I don’t think there’s one thing. It could be anything; it could be a flash of the eyes.

For us it’s a reference or it’s something that I could send to a director and say “I like the look of this person, what do you think?” So if the work on it is strong or a good representation of the actor then it’s a very useful tool, basically.

“It’s the Audition, Stupid!” is available now in paperback. You can find out more at www.pinterandmartin.com or buy a copy of the Kindle e-book version at It’s the Audition, Stupid!: The actor’s essential guide to surviving the casting and getting the part
Tim Austin is a stage and screen actor based in the UK. You can read more about him at www.tim-austin.co.uk

 

Prose & Cons Casting and Update

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Prose & Cons update….

So, we are on IMDB! http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2014324/ We are really excited now. We are tweaking the script, casting actors, getting ready for a funding blitz. )If you would like to become a producer contact us at frostmagazine@gmail.com)

Lots of people have asked me about casting, and hundreds of people have already applied. I have put a few of the characters we are casting below, but there is more. Feel free to apply, and if you are a filmmaker or actor who has something worthy of being in our film section then email frostmagazine@gmail.com.

The film has no funding at the moment so it is completely a collaboration. No one is getting paid anything, however, if we get funding; you will be paid. I know its annoying but Richard and I are not rich so we can’t fund our own projects.

Thank you!

Company: Run Pictures Film Company

Production Name: Prose and Cons

Production Type: Film (Feature)

Location: London

Salary: Pay depends on whether we get funding!

Production Details: We are doing a feature film, http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2014324/ It will be entered into festivals. We are trying to get funding but if we don’t we will be making it for no money, no one will be paid, we have cameras and location, etc, all for free.

We understand if this is not for you, but please realise that if we don get funding, it is not just the actors not getting paid.

Paula: female, artistic, good at writing poetry, agoraphobic, anti-social, melancholic, slightly unstable, has to be okay with not showering everyday and looking a bit dishevelled. We are flexible on age. Gender; female Min Age 29 Max Age 40

Spud: Sarah’s best friend: Description25-35, must be able to drive a car. No exceptions.

Spud (not her real name, she loves potatoes) is a screenwriter about to make it big and go to Hollywood. She is best friends with Sarah. Spud has an on/off thing with Jamie.

Jamie: Male, 25-39, eccentric, slightly dim but warm and loving. Terminally unemployed. Loves Spud.

Two Dog Walker: We need two dog walkers with good comedy reactions for one day filming. Any gender.

Sarah’s Publisher; any gender. 35-45. Literary agent. A little heartless.

George White; Male, 45-55, TV presenter, think Philip Scofield but arrogant. Or any American TV anchor.

Anna Whiteman ; 25-35, Female. TV Anchor/presenter. Presents own TV show with Matt. 25-35.

We have more roles to cast but that’s it for now.

Bridesmaids Review: Is The Tide Turning For Women In Film?

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Women in films used to be sassy, brilliant, full of quips, But somewhere along the way, we lost it all. Rosalind Russell was replaced with Shannon Elizabeth (The actress in American Pie, who was there to be a sex object and show her breasts), and Katherine Hepburn, replaced by, oh, all those actresses in those dire 1980’s films, too many to name, who were there solely to take their clothes off.

Some people think the film Bridesmaids is ‘ground-breaking’. It is, because Bridesmaids just became a Box Office hit, taking a smidge below $150 million – so far. It was a mainstream comedy written by women, starring women, about women, which won in the only way Hollywood recognises, by making money.

Helen Mirren once said that Hollywood wasn’t sexist, it just made films that people wanted to see. Young men go to the cinema more often and go to see films they liked. Women will only see more films with women if they go out and see them. Vote with your purses!

Bridesmaids is funny, it has wowed critics and audiences alike and it breaks even more boundaries, the actresses are (shock, horror!) not all 21 and a size zero. Some of them are in their 30s and are beautifully curvy. There is nothing wrong with being thin (I have been discriminated against for being thin, so I know it works both ways), I am just sick of my friends thinking they are fat when they are not.

Zoe Williams said this film was more feminist that Thelma and Louise and urged everyone to go and see it.  I am doing the same. Salon’s Mary Elizabeth Williams went even further, saying the film is ‘your first black president of female-driven comedies’.

It is ironic that as women have progressed, on screen we’ve only gone backwards. As an actress, I know more than most about what people cast and what they want. Women have to be between a size 8-12. Size 12 being a grey area, it hurts an actress to be more than a size 10. I was told by one casting director than anything above a size 10 meant ‘character actor’.

Some people have attacked Bridesmaids for not being ‘feminine’. Do they ever attack men for not being ‘gentlemen’?  I think not. Women have to be celebrated, we have to have our stories told and not just as naked, skinny, 21-year-olds. I will soon be making my own movie about women and their lives, and I thank Bridesmaids for clearing the way.

1.Bridesmaids
2.Production year: 2011
3.Country: USA
4.Cert (UK): 15
5.Runtime: 125 mins
6.Directors: Paul Feig
7.Cast: Chris O’Dowd, Ellie Kemper, Jill Clayburgh, Jon Hamm, Kristen Wiig, Matt Lucas, Maya Rudolph, Melissa McCarthy, Rose Byrne, Terry Crews, Wendi McLendon-Covey

Click and Submit Services for UK Actors {The Film Set}

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We’re constantly being told that 90% of an actors job is looking for work. While that’s a massive sweeping generalisation, it is in most ways true. Some of that 90% counts for marketing yourself and going towards making you a more appealing “brand” (so I’m counting going to the gym as work…certainly feels like it). A large proportion of the active looking for work involves click and submit websites. All of these suit different Actors at different stages in their careers but are valid in their own ways…but here’s what we’ve found out.

Starnow

{ Genevieve } Suits people beginning their career or with a really unusual look. Starnow doesn’t have any minimum requirements to join and because of this, there are always loads of people willing to work for free on the site trying to gain experience. It attracts low budget productions or small independant production companies trying to maximise their margins. There’s a huge number of irrelevant jobs on there but it’s usually the first point of call for producers looking for people with very unusual (character) or glamour model looks.

Occasionally there’s a gem of a job in amongst the hubub and I’ve been told that producers post jobs on there because they like the easy user interface.

{ Catherine }  I have been on Star Now for years and people wonder why sometimes as I am no longer a beginner. The answer is above. Occasionally, it has a gem of a job. In my case, a Placebo musiv video I did that has had millions of views. I get recognised a lot from it.

£35.94 for 6 Months

Shooting People

{ Catherine } Shooting people is amazing. Relatively cheap, a hubbub of film making. A lot of the castings are unpaid but you will be in contact with the next Spielberg or Scorsese. It has a good community and some good castings. You can also put up your showreel and films and share with other film makers. Well worth it and affordable. They also do monthly meet ups.

£30 per year

Spotlight

{ Genevieve } The huge majority of professional Actors are on Spotlight’s database. Your page can be viewed by anyone you give the link to or by casting professionals. It’s also published in book form yearly. The book deadline is such a massive event that photographers create special discounts before the deadline to give themselves a competitive edge. The criteria for being listed on the database are fairly strict, it’s limited to professionaly trained or experienced performers. If you have have an agent on your Spotlight profile you won’t even need to submit yourself for breakdowns. They already do that for you. A chat recently with someone in the Spotlight offices recently revealed that unrepresented actors only get 5% of the breakdowns sent. A represented actor will get an additional 75% of the breakdowns sent and there are a few Producers or Casting Directors that prefer to work with Agencies they have established a business relationship with so they choose who to send their breakdowns to…you might think this is unfair considering all the Performers pay the same subscription rate but this selectiveness ensures Spotlight retains the custom of the most productive Casting professionals. Casting professionals pay a subscription too and it’s this level of flexibility and vetting that means Spotlight breakdowns are always from the higher end of the market. If you don’t have an agent then Spotlight can act as a forwarding service for you, giving you some distance from crazed fans. Having a Spotlight card also gets you discounts from a number if retailers and services.

{ Catherine } Spotlight is invaluable. If you are not in it, you are invisible.

Cost varies depending on what time of year you join and what book you want to be listed in but roughly around £177 for one year for Actors and Actresses.

PCR – Production and Casting Report

{ Catherine } Every actor has had PCR at some point in their life. It used to have the hold of Spotlight and be essential. A rite of passage. Again, your agent will get this. It is posted to you and then you post off your CV and headshot or email. Depending on the casting directors preference. It comes on red paper and a lot of the castings will not be happening for a while. It is great for building up contacts. If you can afford it, get it.

£22.46 per month

Casting Call Pro

{ Genevieve } Easy to use website for Actors where you can have your profile online and submit yourself to acting jobs. The membership options are clear and upfront. It’s free to have a profile on the site and apply to unpaid jobs. To register on the site you need to have professional experience or training. Premium membership will allow you to apply for paid jobs, have more photos online and more attachments (Showreels, voicereels etc.) The database is searchable and employers do and will search for you. You can chose to be listed in Google searches or hidden from it and they provides statistics so you can see who’s searching for you online and viewed your profile. There’s a huge mix of jobs on the site, mainly as it’s free to post a casting call and easy to use.

The site also has a huge resource section with details of agents, photographers and services and makes it really easy to find a headshot photographer you like by automatically linking actors headshots with the photographers profile page. There’s an active forum which makes you feel like part of a community, constantly looking for work can be a bit isolating. The yearly socials are good fun and the team behind the website are really friendly.

{ Catherine } Been on it since the beginning. Good for a sense of community and gets good castings.

£117.50 a year for premium membership, free for basic membership.

CastWeb

{ Catherine } Castweb is different from the other services as you get emails about castings,’breakdowns as we call them, and then email the casting director your CV and headshot. It is mostly for agents but I have had a lot of luck with it. It is quite expensive. However, one good job will pay that off. If you can afford it, get it. Your agent will already have it. So ask them if it is needed if money is very short.

£139.95 for 12 Months

Mandy.com

{ Genevieve } A TV and Film production website with a casting section. Free to register as an Actor and upload your photo and CV and also to apply to all the casting calls. Anyone can register but there are few paid opportunities. Fantastic if you are looking to build a showreel. The profile’s arn’t searchable but it’s really easy to submit your details to a job if you’re interested in it.

{ Catherine } Definitely worth it. Free and has the occasional amazing job.

Free

Talent Circle

{ Genevieve } Another free site that allows you to submit yourself for jobs. The site mainly has unpaid student productions of the odd researcher looking for something obscure and has already tried everywhere else. You can choose to receive notifications of new jobs daily via email which makes it really easy to stay on the ball. Sadly though it never saves any of your details which makes applying for jobs an enormous chore. When you’re applying for hundreds of jobs a week you want it to be as painless as possible. However…it is free.

{ Catherine } Also worth it if you have the time. At the beginning of my career I got some very good jobs from it.

Free

Gumtree/Craigslist/Buying a role on eBay…Don’t do it kids.

Ciao for now! Genevieve and Catherine

If you have a topic you’d like covered or something to contribute then send it to info@frostmagazine.com.

Advice Blogs for Actors {The Film Set | Genevieve Sibayan}

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Like every actor out there, I have a stack of books sitting on a shelf gathering dust becoming more and more irrelevant by the minute. There are some good informative books, but they’re becoming the exception rather than the norm. Sometimes I look at my stack of irrelevant books and resent them for costing me (taunting me with their perfect spines) especially as there is so much fantastic advice and information out there on the internet. Here’s a few below, these are just the ones I subscribe to so there may be tons more. Let me know if you find any.

 

Bonnie Gilespie’s Blog – The Actor’s Voice

There is so much amazing info here, all for free. Everything here is positive, inspiring and useful. Casting Director Bonnie Gilespie has clearly put a lot of time into this column on Showfax and even though she’s US based, it’s relevant internationally.

rss feed: http://more.showfax.com/columns/avoice/index.xml

The Actor’s Voice – POV

Showfax, wiz all zis information your are really spoiling uz. This time it’s Bonnie Gilespie and friends. Friends being people in the biz, and there’s quite a few. By a few I mean tons.

rss feed: http://more.showfax.com/plus/pov/index.xml

The Casting Corner

Another column on Showfax, this time from Casting Director Mark Sikes. Mark posts some great advice on a weekly basis…he’s there every week.

rss feed: http://more.showfax.com/columns/corner/index.xml

The Actor Cast Blog

Yet more great advice. ActorCast is a US based web service allowing Actors to submit directly to Casting Directors existing services. Their blog has articles, How to guides, Q&A’s and Open calls.

rss feed: http://actorcastblog.com/blog/?feed=rss2

Backstage Magazine

A US trade journal for Actors proving just how much of an industry this actually is. They have a regular advice column.

rss: http://feeds.feedburner.com/Backstage-Columns

Playbills vs. Paying Bills

Advice and insight from three actors from across the pond. Ben Whitehair, Joe Von Bokern and Emily Beuchat share their stories, resources, recommendations and stuff from their respective acting scenes in LA, Chicago and New York. Read it, you will be entertained and you will learn things!

rss feed: http://playbillsvspayingbills.com/?feed=rss2

The Film Set – Frost Magazine

Brought to you by a couple of London actresses…Catherine Balavage and Genevieve Sibayan. Ok! ok, you caught me, this suggestion’s a little biased but we do have some interviews with fantastic casting directors and people involved in Film and TV.

rss: http://feeds.feedburner.com/FrostMagazineTheFilmSet

Know any more blogs that I’ve missed out? Leave me a comment below and I’ll update the post.

Update:

Minimum Wage Actors [Thanks Pete Jenkinson for this one]

News about National Minimum Wage stories affecting or having affected Actors and Performers.

rss: http://actorsminimumwage.wordpress.com/feed/


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Genevieve Sibayan is a London based Actress, you can find Genevieve’s blog here and get updates by clicking on her rss feed. If you’d like to subscribe to The Film Set on Frost Magazine then click here.

Richard Evans CDG: Casting director interview {The Film Set}

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1) How did you get into casting?
I worked as assistant to two casting directors, but I’d always had a casting director’s brain (I used to read Spotlight in the local library from the age of 8, which, although it sounds sad, completely fascinated me!). I started on my own in 1989, as the first freelance casting director to specialise in theatre – in those days, the vast majority of theatre casting was done by artistic directors and their secretaries, and was not considered worthy of specialised casting knowledge (the only people who cast for theatre worked in the casting departments of the major companies, such as the RSC and The National Theatre, and the only other freelancer was Leonie Cosman who did many of the West End musicals). While many film and TV casters initially treated theatre with disdain, viewpoints changed remarkably quickly, so I, in turn, diversified, but theatre is still my favourite medium.

2) Favourite film you have cast?
I’ve cast relatively few films, as it’s not really a medium that I’ve pushed to work in. I am, however, extremely proud of most of the projects I’ve cast, for a multitude of reasons.

3) What do you love about your job?
Getting it right! Leaving a casting where we have first, second, third… even eighth choices for each character makes me walk on air. I always strive for absolute perfection and sweat blood over everything I do, so when everything falls into place it makes it all worthwhile. My absolute favourite thing is giving someone their first job out of drama school and then seeing them progress to bigger and better things – it doesn’t often happen, as there aren’t always suitable roles on my desk at the right time, but it’s amazing when it does.

4) Advice for actors?
Buy my book!… no, seriously… BUY MY BOOK! Where do I start?! Be honest about your capabilities and what you’ve done. We are in a small business, which gets smaller the longer you are in it, so any fibs will surely be found out. Prepare everything thoroughly, know as much as you can about the projects you’re up for and the industry you’re in. Be prepared for anything, and, above all, enjoy whatever you do – if you don’t, others won’t. I could go on, but there’s lots of other advice, tips and resources at my website.

5) Who is your inspiration?
Anyone who knows what they want and goes for it wholeheartedly… especially if they have overcome adversity to do so.

6) What’s next?
I’m currently in discussions to cast a new musical, which it’s hoped will tour the UK in early 2011, and I’m told that a corporate video has had its budget approved, six months after I was first called about it. My policy is to always believe that a project is only definite after it has happened and the cheque has cleared. People are being far more cautious at the moment, due to the recession, but the great thing about our Industry is you never know when the phone will ring and your luck will change – even after all these years, I am frequently surprised when it happens to me.

7) Tell me about your book.
AUDITIONS: A PRACTICAL GUIDE is, I’m told, just that. I wanted to write a book that is an easy and amusing read and would be useful and pertinent to every performer, from those considering training or starting a career in performing arts to the most experienced actors who want to brush up their skills and learn new techniques. The reaction has been phenomenally positive, even from people who have been in the Industry for decades and are notoriously harsh critics (I’m still waiting for someone to contact me and say ‘I didn’t like your book because…’, which would actually be quite refreshing, silly though that may sound). The book covers many different genres and takes the reader through the audition process step by step. Writing this book was a long-held ambition – I first thought of writing it back in 1993 – and was a huge learning curve, taking over 4 years from conception to publication. I wanted to write it partly as I was frustrated at the amount of performers who unwittingly lose jobs by auditioning badly and, on a more selfish note, because I wanted to prove to myself that I could write a book and get it published. It is without doubt the proudest achievement of my life… so far!

8 ) What is your background?
I was an actor for 10 years, which I believe has stood me in excellent stead to work in casting, as, having seen things from both sides of the audition table, I am able to appreciate everyone’s point of view and, hopefully get the best out of performers when auditioning.

9) What does your average day consist of?
There’s really no such thing as an average day, every day is different and that’s the way I like it. I’m usually at my desk by around 10am, replying to emails that have come in overnight and ploughing through my daily to do list. Some days are frantic, others very quiet, there’s no pattern. I go to the theatre to keep abreast of actors’ work at least 3 or 4 nights a week and may then return to my desk afterwards to catch up, especially if I’m dealing with agents and producers in America.

10) Favourite actors?
My favourite actors are mainly those that I like as people as well as for their skill as performers. There are many, and most aren’t the least bit famous or even yet in the public eye, so I’ll spare their blushes by mentioning them and having you saying ‘Who?!’ Those you may have heard of include: Douglas Hodge who is terrific and starting to be given the recognition he deserves, having been awarded best actor on both sides of the Atlantic for his astounding performance as Albin in La Cage Aux Folles. Samantha Morton always gives wonderfully naturalistic performances; Daniel Radcliffe is really proving himself to be a great actor (he’s also not a bad magician in real life!); Sheridan Smith has been excellent in everything I’ve see her do; Julie Walters is far more versatile than most people ever see, and Alec McCowen is doubtless the most underrated actor of his generation, if not all time.

11) What is the hardest part of the job?
Getting performers to prepare adequately for auditions and recalls, especially when they’ve been sent sides or songs to learn… and also getting some companies to pay my invoices on time!

Buy Richards book on Amazon or visit his web site.

Main picture credit Ethel Davies.

Casting Call Pro Interview. Advice for actors and businesspeople.

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Catherine Balavage interviews Simon Dale from Casting Call Pro.

1) What was the idea behind the business?
We’d worked together in online recruitment for the film & tv industry for four years, working at The Production Base, a service for all those behind the camera (e.g. editors, camera operators, sound recordists, runners etc.), so we knew the industry. Chris’s sister was graduating from Mountview and was paying substantial subscriptions to a number of casting breakdown services. We realised that with our background and technical expertise this was an arena we could enter.
2) How did you make it a success
Crucially, we wanted to offer members more than a simple directory listing. With this in mind we built community elements in addition to the casting breakdowns – we wanted to bring the actors tools to help develop their career. Hence the directories of agencies, photographers, theatres, schools… and the community aspect to the site. Individuals, schools and companies are now using it to track and stay in touch with friends, alumni and old colleagues. We also offered a very different model to the other services out there in that we offer a completely free profile listing in the directory – which has helped us grow to our current size of 25,000+ members. We do have a premium subscription, but the profile listing is entirely free.
3) What mistakes do actors make?
Some have an inflated sense of their ‘right to perform’, perhaps down to ego, perhaps thinking that the mere fact of undergoing training entitles them to a lifetime of work. The harsh reality is that it’s a very competitive field whose daily currency is rejection. It’s hard to be seen for parts, harder still to be cast – that’s simple mathematics, there will always be a huge number of people up for the same part, many of whom will be talented. And so often (especially for commercials) it’s less about the depth of the acting talent and more about the surface look.
We hear about actors who breeze into an audition having done no preparation, no background research, not even having learned the lines they’ve been given. Sure, there will always be stories about people who stroll in, shoot from the hip and land the role. But you’re taking a huge risk if that’s your general modus operandi.
4) What advice can you give to actors?
Be proactive – don’t expect work to come to you. Try and find an agent if you don’t already have one. Network with people, attend industry events. Go to as many auditions as you can – it will help your technique and even if you’re not cast you are still in front of the casting directors. I have a friend who was up for a part two years ago – she didn’t get it, but the Casting Director contacted her eighteen months later with a role she thought she’d be perfect for. Difficult as it is, try and remain positive. Rejection day in day out is, inevitably, going to wear you down at some stage. Remember that you’ve chosen to enter an incredibly difficult profession, and that you might not be landing the roles may not be down to your acting talent. Keep the faith!
5) What advice can you give to other businesspeople?
Plan ahead. And plan ahead some more. Prepare your budget, make realistic forecasts. Bed yourself down for some lean times at the outset. We left well paid jobs to set up Casting Call Pro. We took huge risks and made personal sacrifices. We worked without salary and had to put in an awful lot of time and effort, not knowing if, further down the line, we would have a successful service (though of course we believed that we would, or we wouldn’t have taken the risks!). Look at the business holistically. As you grow, operating a business becomes so much more than running the core service that you set out with. You’ll need to learn about finances, PAYE, VAT, Corporation Tax… you’ll be interviewing and employing staff, running an office – all the while trying to run and expand your original business idea. For small companies (less than twenty employees) it probably won’t be feasible or necessary for you to hire HR staff or in-house accountants and lawyers – so you’ll be wearing many hats, office manager, bookkeeper, HR…
It’s likely that at some point in the first two years you will hit a low – financially or emotionally. You’re putting in all the work but not seeing the returns. These are absolutely pivotal times – most businesses fold within the first two years. If you retain your belief then you might turn the corner. We had to get different jobs to pay the bills, but we didn’t give up. And then we turned the corner and have never looked back.
6) What it the best thing an actor can do for their career?
Find an agent. Be proactive in trying to independently find and put themselves up for auditions (though do keep your agent informed). Train. See as much theatre, film and television as possible. Periodically reassess their career and drive – and, if necessary, give themselves a metaphoric shot in the arm to keep their spirits up. (Remember all the positives, your ambition, your passion – those things that first inspired you to get into acting.

7) What is the funniest casting you have ever had?
Among the strangest we’ve had are requests for actors to play pranks on bosses and ex-partners, as well as a over-zealous salesman who was offering an all-expenses-paid trip to Helsinki for anyone who was willing to impersonate his CEO at a client meeting the the real CEO couldn’t attend.
8 ) What do you thing of actor’s paying for casting director workshops?
It’s entirely up to the individual. Sessions with CDs seem to be on the increase. Research the company providing them, and the CD(s) themselves. What have they cast? These seminars and workshops can vary enormously – some being straightforward talks, panel discussions, Q&A, and even interactive sessions at which the actors perform a piece and receive feedback from the CDs. As with all these things (casting services included), ask friends and peers – what do others think of them?

9)  What is next for Casting Call Pro?
As ever, we’ll keep developing the service, building new features and adding new tools to try and help the actor and to better our service. Already we have expanded out from actors to create allied sites for dancers, stage crew, film crew etc. Watch this space!

Casting Call Pro is an excellent website for actors. Both of Frost Magazines editor are on it. To find out more and to join follow the link http://www.uk.castingcallpro.com/