May 2021 - The Casting Director's Cut

Monday Myth Debunker – The Production Value in a Self Tape isn’t Important.

May 24, 2021 by Ramani Leah, CSA

Buckle up, today’s #mondaymythdebunker is a controversial one! Member the good old days when you’d walk into a casting office and the room was equipped with everything needed to achieve the perfectly recorded tape? Well (currently) we’ve traded in-person auditioning with self taping/virtual casting so in a sense, we’ve passed the producing torch to you. That’s right—in the land of self tapes 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚊𝚌𝚝𝚘𝚛, 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚍𝚒𝚛𝚎𝚌𝚝𝚘𝚛, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚙𝚛𝚘𝚍𝚞𝚌𝚎𝚛. 𝘎𝘶𝘭𝘱. We know it’s a lot. And we are …

Monday Myth Debunkers: An Unsolicited Self Tape is Better Than Nothing.

October 3, 2022May 17, 2021 by Ramani Leah, CSA

…is it though? 𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘥𝘰 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬?⁠ ⁠ An unsolicited self tape refers to a self-taped audition that is submitted to a casting office without that office actually requesting one. ⁠ ⁠ How do actors even get the information for an unsolicited self tape?⁠ ⁠ A couple of different ways. But usually it’s either:⁠ ⁠ ① Their agent sent them the instructions to tape without telling them it was unsolicited.⁠ ⁠ ② They got the information from a friend who …

Terminology Tuesday: Featured

October 3, 2022May 11, 2021 by Ramani Leah, CSA

There can sometimes be confusion around the term “featured” — especially when the word can be used in different scenarios. ⁠ ⁠ We see a lot of “featured” roles on resumes and we want to make sure actors know exactly what that means. ⁠ ⁠ Typically, a “featured” role pertains to a background role that may be in front of camera or non-verbally interacting with one of the lead actors. ⁠ ⁠ A featured role does not guarantee more money …

Monday Myth Debunkers: The More Headshots the Better.

October 3, 2022May 10, 2021 by Ramani Leah, CSA

Double-tap if you’ve ever been told you need more “looks” on your AA profile. ⁠ ⁠ When actors are feeling stuck, often their first thought is their headshots. ⁠ ⁠ But why is there so much 𝘄𝗲𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 put on an actor’s headshot?⁠ ⁠ Sure, it’s the first thing we see.⁠ ⁠ But is it ultimately the thing that gets an actor an audition—and most importantly, a booking?⁠ ⁠ 𝘗𝘳𝘰𝘣𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘺 𝘯𝘰𝘵.⁠ ⁠ When you’re feeling stuck and discouraged, remember that your …

Terminology Tuesday: Paid Ads

October 3, 2022May 4, 2021 by Ramani Leah, CSA

Another small (but notable) deal point your reps will negotiate for you on a movie deal has to do with paid ads. ⁠ ⁠ Paid ads refer to the way in which you are credited in advertising for a film: from movie posters to billboards, and more.⁠ ⁠ Actors can be billed either in the billing block or above the title & artwork. ⁠ ⁠ Most actors will receive credit in the billing block — the credits that appear in …