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It is tempting to dismiss the person you meet first in a casting experience, the casting assistant.  That is the hard working person who keeps the office running and can be responsible for answering your questions about a role you are auditioning for, as well as rescheduling an appointment if you call in and are running late.  The casting assistant is the back bone of the casting office as well as your direct link to the casting director or casting executive.

Also keep in mind that the casting assistant will likely be the casting director next year, so get to know them by name, be polite and appreciative, and don’t blow future auditions by miscalculating the value of the assistant and their access to the casting director on your behalf.  If you mistreat them, make no mistake, that information will get to the casting director, and no matter how well you auditioned, that will be considered in hiring you or calling you in for future roles. Read the rest of this entry »

Having a Hard Day?

Someone took your parking spot and you were late to an audition.  (been there, as you know)  You didn’t pack a suit in your car when you left for your commercial audition in a polo shirt and jeans this morning…and you got a call and your agent said, “Suit!!”  You haven’t eaten since coffee and a yogurt at breakfast and you’re a little dizzy, but late for your next appointment and can’t squeeze in even a drive through.  You need gas, and you’re stuck on the freeway in a traffic jam, and need to get to class and there’s just no chance of it!

There are two things that can add a little perspective back to “one of  those days” as an actor.  First of all, find ways to manage your world.  Pack a suit, a pair of jeans and a plain shirt/top, tennis shoes, dress shoes, socks/stockings, and a warm up suit or sweats into the trunk of your car.  If the climate allows, pack some water, and a couple of power/granola bars as well.  Leave your house ready for a long day if that is your world.  If you need to get to work after a day of appointments, throw in your work stuff too so you don’t have to go home if you don’t have time.  Try to live a simplified life…no pets, or someone who can take care of them if you’re in a jam (and this from a consummate animal lover, who stresses more about the animals if I’m late as I do about myself).  Try to embrace what structure you can build into a routine.  Prepare early.  Learn lines for scene work in class, work on your sides for tomorrow’s auditions, and don’t leave it till later.  Be sure that later will mean you’re late.

And secondly, find something outside of acting to keep you grounded.  A sport, a hobby, a charity, and activity, a class not related to the industry, all of these are places to start to become an interesting, well-rounded person.  It will even give you something to talk about at your next general interview!

Go Get ‘Em,
Beth