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If your idea of breaking into the acting business is to hang out at a shopping mall, look cool and hope some big-time Hollywood producer, director or agent will "notice" your excellent looks, your magnetic personality, and decide you are exactly the naturally-talented person they have been hoping to sign for their next multi-million dollar movie deal - then read no further. Head over to the mall and put your plan into action. Doggedly pursue your plan, week after week, month after month, year after year. Eventually you will come to realize that producers, directors and agents don't go to shopping malls to find talent. Perhaps you should try Plan B.
Plan B: Get a part in your school play or local community theatre; take an acting class at the community college; send your résumé and a school photo of yourself to addresses on a list of Hollywood agents you bought on the internet. Wait for the offers to roll in. Wait a few months. Send follow-up letters explaining you already sent your information and why haven't they written or called you? Wait a few more months. Send another letter. This time make the letter sound like you are annoyed. Insist they call you if they want the opportunity to make you a star. Eventually, when you receive no replies, you will realize this probably was not such a good plan. Move on to Plan C.
Plan C: Send desperate pleas of help to numerous on-line, actor Q&As. Something like:
"Hi, I'm a 19 year old HS grad with nearly zero experience, training or background in the field of acting or anything related. However, I have developed this extreme interest in it. One night....BAM!!! Just like that, I was inspired to act. I am now doing as much I can, which isn't much, to pursue this dream of becoming a 'celeb'. I really believe I have what it takes and can make it big. I know it will take much time, effort, hard work, luck, yadda-yadda but I know I can do it.
"Anyhoo, I wish I was in LA or New York or someplace where all the action is. If someone would just give me a chance, I have faith that I can pull it off. I just need someone to give me a start. I will do anything and everything possible to make my dream a reality." "Ple-e-e-e-ase help. You won't be sorry. Thanks for your time. I will be looking forward to your reply."
Eventually, after receiving a number of strange proposals from a number of strange people, you will discover this probably was not such a good plan. Move on to Plan D.
Plan D: Go to an audition for someplace like Jack Bob's Powerful World Wide Talent and Modeling Agency. Spend several hundred dollars for classes in "How to Eat On-camera", "How to Look Into a Camera", "How to Strike Silly Poses" and "How to Spend More Money With Us". Buy their cosmetics line. Purchase their $750 photo package. Spend several thousand dollars to attend their "Invitation Only" convention where "dozens of agents will be on hand" eagerly awaiting your wonderfulness.
Eventually, when you are no longer willing to write checks to them and they then suddenly decide you don't have what it takes, move on to Plan E.
Plan E: Learn how to break into the business the right way. Read on.
Casting is a Process
Casting roles for a professional production is a process that essentially requires casting people to:
- Read and analyze the script.
- Breakdown each speaking role into concise, descriptive profiles.
- Notify agents of the roles that need to be cast.
- Comb through files of actor pictures and résumés to find those actors who meet the breakdown descriptions and who have the training, talent, skills and appearance needed to fill each role.
- Contact available actors who meet the breakdown descriptions and arrange for auditions.
- Hold auditions, possibly taping each actor's performance for later review by the casting director, producer, director, and, as for a commercial, advertising agency people and their client representatives, or for a feature film, studio representatives.
- Review auditions.
- Notify actors who make it through the first round of auditions and arrange for "callback" auditions.
- Hold callback auditions, probably taping each actor's performance for later review by the casting director, producer, director, and, as for a commercial, advertising agency people and their client representatives, or for a feature film, studio representatives.
- Notify actors who make it through the first round of callbacks and arrange for another callback audition.
- Repeat the above process until all the speaking roles are cast to everyone's satisfaction.
As you see, this is a rather time consuming process. Agents, casting directors, directors and producers are busy people. Depending upon the project, the entire casting process for a commercial, film, play, video, etc. takes from a week up to a few months. With only a few days to a few weeks to complete the casting process for all the roles, it is no great surprise that casting people first turn to the actors whose work they already know and trust. It is faster and easier to call upon familiar actors, those who are tried and true, instead of spending many days and many long hours contacting and auditioning new actors whose work is unknown, who might turn out to be difficult to work with, or who might do or say something that creates problems for the casting people.
An Actor's Chance
Casting people like to work with actors whose work they already know. However, sometimes new actors do get a chance to audition for professional roles when:
- There are many roles to be cast
- Known actors are unavailable
- Known actors cost more than the part is budgeted for
- Known actors aren't right for a role
- A casting person feels a new face is needed for a role
- A casting person is impressed with a new actor's work, professionalism and personality and wants to give her/him an opportunity
- A new actor is recommended by someone whose judgment the casting person trusts
It is the above situations that give new actors a chance to get into the business. These opportunities happen quite often. How many actors do you see on TV or in films or commercials that you did not see a year or two ago? If you kept a list, you would find quite a few new faces popping up every year; in both starring and supporting roles.
It is your job as an actor to be ready when one of the above opportunities presents itself. This preparation involves the following:
- Find out who the important casting people are
- Establish relationships with these casting people
- Establish relationships with other people in the industry
- Develop those relationships
- Study and develop performance skills
- Develop a professional attitude
- Learn about the entertainment industry
- Don't give up
Succeeding in the acting business isn't something that just happens. It is the result of a process. It is the result of intelligent planning, preparation and persistence.
If there is acting work in your area, there are important casting people you need to know. The first thing you have to do is find them.
Your Contact File
To begin your search to find the important casting people, you must accomplish a little project. Purchase the following required items:
- (1) index card file box to fit several hundred 3" X 5" index cards.
- (1) bundle of 3" X 5" index cards (100 count or whatever they have)
- Some 3" X 5" tabbed index cards (they might come in the card file box)
These items will cost you only a few dollars. Get them. They are going to be your filing system to track of your contacts over the years. This is a simple, flexible, easy to update, expandable, portable, low-cost system that works.
On the outside of the box adhere a piece of tape or label and write the words Contact File on it.
Take one of the tabbed cards, and on the tab print Agents. On another tabbed card print Directors. On another tabbed card print CDs. On another tabbed card print Producers. On another tabbed card print Other Contacts.
Now take those cards and put them in your index card file box. Ta-Da-a-a-a-a-a-a-a! You have taken your first step toward breaking into the acting business!
Agents - Local
The next step is to fill in those index cards with information about talent agents. We will get into specifics about agents later. For now the next step is to get your local phone book - the business listings. Find the business listings for:
- Talent Agencies (or something similar)
- Modeling Agencies (or something similar)
In small cities, modeling agencies frequently handle acting talent too.
On your index cards, write down each agency listed (one card per listing). Write the agency name followed by the word Local. On the next line, write the phone number and on the next line write the address and zip code. In the upper right hand corner, write the date.
If you do not have any talent or modeling agencies listed, do not fret. You still will have lots to do.
When you are done writing down the information for each listing, place your "agent" cards in your card file behind the Agents tabbed index card.
What will you do next? Will you get on the phone and call the agencies? Will you run out and get headshots and mail them to the agencies? Will you cobble together some sort of résumé and mail it to the agencies? Will you make a video tape of all your performances and send it to the agencies?
NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! You will do nothing with the information. Not yet at least.
Agents - AFTRA
The next thing you will do is get on the internet. Go to this site: http://www.aftra.org
This is the homepage for AFTRA, an actor union. Navigate AFTRA's site until you find their list of "franchised" agents.
Find the link for the city or cities nearest to you. Click on it. You will be taken to a list of AFTRA, professional, franchised agents who do business within shootin' distance of where you live.
Write down on your index cards (one card per listing) the agency name followed by the letters AFTRA, phone number, address, zip code, fax number, whatever information is listed on the page for each agent/agency listing. Don't forget the date in the upper right hand corner.
You might find that one or more of the agencies listed on the AFTRA page are the same as one or more of your Local agent listings. Great!!! If that is the case, instead of creating a new card, just include the letters AFTRA after the Local designation on the existing card.
When you are done writing down the information for each listing, place your "agent" cards in your card file behind the Agents tabbed index card.
What will you do next? Will you get on the phone and call the agencies? Will you run out and get headshots and mail them to the agencies? Will you cobble together some sort of résumé and mail it to the agencies? Will you make a video tape of all your performances and send it to the agencies?
NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! You will do nothing with the information. Not yet at least.
What is AFTRA??? What is an AFTRA "Franchised" agent??? I'll get into that later.
Agents - SAG
The next thing you will do is get on the internet. Go to this site: http://www.sag.org
This is the homepage for SAG, another actor union. Navigate SAG's site until you find their list of "franchised" agents.
Find the link for the city or cities nearest to you. Click on it. You will be taken to a list of SAG, professional, franchised agents who do business within shootin' distance of where you live.
Write down on your index cards (one card per listing) the agency name followed by the letters SAG, phone number, address, zip code, fax number, whatever information is listed on the page for each agent/agency listing. Don't forget the date in the upper right-hand corner.
You might find that one or more of the agencies listed on the SAG page are the same as one or more of your Local agent or AFTRA listings. Great!!! If that is the case, instead of creating a new card, just include the letters SAG after the Local or AFTRA designation on the existing card.
When you are done writing down the information for each listing, place your "agent" cards in your card file behind the Agents tabbed index card.
What will you do next? Will you get on the phone and call the agencies? Will you run out and get headshots and mail them to the agencies? Will you cobble together some sort of résumé and mail it to the agencies? Will you make a video tape of all your performances and send it to the agencies?
NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO! You will do nothing with the information. Not yet at least.
What is SAG??? What is a SAG "Franchised" agent??? I'll get into that later.
Agents - Equity
The next thing you will do is get on the internet. Go to this site: http://www.actorsequity.org
This is the homepage for Equity (AEA), another actor union. Navigate AEA's site until you find their agent information page.
Currently, the AEA does not provide a list of franchised agents on their web site.
If you are unable to get on the internet to download the unions' franchised agents lists, you can write or call the AFTRA, SAG or AEA office nearest to you and request they send you their list. There will be a small fee for this. Pay it. It is worth it.
Agents - Other Sources
Although the AFTRA and SAG web sites provide names, addresses and phone numbers of the franchised agents, there is more information that you need to know about the agencies before contacting them. For instance, what kind of talent do they handle (adults, kids, teens, comedians, hand/body parts models, soaps, etc.) There are other resources available where you can get such information as well as information about other agents in the country.
The Ross Reports is one of these resources. This monthly publication is a treasure trove of information for anyone interested in film and television in California and NY (which probably means you). Each publication is filled with agent contact information, casting director contact information, studio casting contact information, network casting contact information, production facility information, information about films in preparation and development, interviews with casting people and a timely article about the entertainment industry.
If you live within a few hundred miles of LA, San Diego, San Francisco or NY, you need to get the Ross Reports and use it to fill out your agent contact cards.
If you live further than a few hundred miles away from LA, San Diego, San Francisco or NY, you should still get a copy of the Ross Reports and use it to start learning about the industry and about the casting people you someday hope to meet.
There are a number of ways to get the Ross Reports:
- Get a subscription
- Purchase single copies
- Same phone number as above. Ask them which issues they might suggest.
You can also find agents via the Association of Talent Agents: http://www.agentassociation.com. This association represents over 100 talent agents, mostly in California and New York (represented by the NATR, National Association of Talent Representatives.)
ATA's membership includes agencies of all sizes representing artists in motion pictures, stage, television, radio, commercials and literary work. ATA member agencies collectively employ an estimated one thousand talent agents.
Another source for locating agents is through local film commissions. You can search for local film commissions at the Association of Film Commissioners International web site: http://www.afci.org. Many film commissions maintain a "Production Guide" which lists local agents, casting direrctors and other industry professionals.
Other sources of agent information can be found in agent guides. There are a number of book-length guides published each year that list agent contact information for franchised and unfranchised agents. Many of these books list descriptions of the kind of actors and acting work the agents handle (voice-over, kids, teens, seniors, commercials, feature film, theatre, print, industrials, etc). They also usually contain articles about auditioning for agents, résumés, photographs, scams and other useful information. Even though you might have to spend $20 or so on an agent guide, it is well worth the money if you are serious about finding paying acting work.
Guides quickly become obsolete. Agents and agencies come and go, addresses change, phone numbers change, contact names change. So it is a good idea to use the most current guides you can find.
The easiest way to find current guides is to search at one of the on-line book stores. Use the key words "talent agents" for your search. Search through whatever titles are listed and write down the title, publisher and authors names and the publication date of the most current listings.
If you have the money, you can now purchase one or more of the guides at the on-line bookstore, or use your guide information and order one or more of the guides through your local bookstore.
If you do not have the money, then you can head over to your main library and see if the library has one of the guides or if they can get you a copy through the interlibrary loan program.
Chapters: One Two Three Four Five Six Seven Eight Nine
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