|
A Casting Director Talks about Why Actors get work and why they do not
|
|
|
 Posted 6:11 PM Nov. 13, 2012 A Casting Director Talks about Why Actors get work and why they do not
This is Brian
While talking about "Why some actors Book jobs and others do not" with a Local Casting Director I asked if they would write a Short piece and After Copyrighting it allow me to Publish it to the Local Acting community.
It covers just about everything from 1st contact - the headshot to the shoot day (Film, Video and TV) or show opening (Theatre). This Casting Director also Produces/Casts Plays and since My Personal Experience it 100 % Film, Video, TV and Radio - I asked that it be a Great Theatre Piece that also works in Film.
Remember Every casting office Follows that Casting Directors Rules - So ALL may not feel Exactly the same as this one BUT this is a VERY SUCCESSFUL Casting Director and This office uses THESE RULES EXACTLY.
I'm Reaching out to Other Casting directors (But in Segments not everything all at once - The 1st is Headshots because of the Importance)and Hoping that over the next few weeks you will have a better Idea of how our Local market works.
First off, being a professional actor is about reading, understanding what you're reading, INTERPRETING what you've read, being able to tell the story honestly, and -- MOST important -- being able to take direction (as well as rejection) from the director. If you can't do ALL these things, this is probably not the field for you.
ON HEADSHOTS The headshot is not a glamour or a vanity photograph. It's not meant to hide facial blemishes or wrinkles, nor it is meant to withstand the test of time.
The headshot is for 2 purposes:
1. To be so compelling that it makes a director call you in to meet with her / him.
2. So the director can remember you long after they've met you
Make certain your photograph is the BEST representation of you that you can get.
To that end, here are some simple rules that many actors for one reason or another ignore:
1. A standard professional headshot (i.e., a photo of the head) should cover the area from the shoulders to the top of the head. Only. No further. No "busty" shots for women, no "beefcake" / shirtless shots for men.
2. The camera picks up EVERYTHING. BE YOURSELF in your photograph.
3. No "over-the-shoulder" shots. Over-the-shoulder shots are old-time gimmicky "publicity" photos generally once ordered by agents for when their clients landed major multi-million dollar film or television deals. They are NOT the standard headshot.
4. No "angle" shots where you appear to be shot out of a canon from the bottom left corner of the photo and propelled into the upper right corner.
5. No glamour shots
6. No "full body" shots.
7. KEEP YOUR HANDS OFF AND AWAY FROM YOUR FACE. This includes your chin resting on your fist. ANY part of your face or neck that is hidden by the camera (i.e., a tilt of the head, positioning, odd lighting, shadow, etc.), or by the actor via his / her hands, fists, etc., makes a casting director wonder what you're hiding, i.e., surgical scars, a bad case of acne, etc., and you might not get called in.
8. No profile shots. Your headshot should be one where you're sitting facing front and looking DIRECTLY into the lens of the camera. No gimmicks. If a photographer wants to position you any other way, don't permit it. It's YOUR money and YOUR career ... not the photographer's.
9. No headshots with half (or more) of your face in shadow. While it may look dramatic, you're not auditioning for "Phantom of the Opera" and we'll be wondering what's wrong with that part of your face that we can't see in the photo.
10. Have 2 resume headshots: 1 for film / television / video, and another for professional theatre. Make certain the one is a standard resume headshot.
Composites (photos of you with multiple looks: i.e., one with a mustache, one clean-shaven; one with glasses, one without; one look surprised, one looking mellow; one eating a carrot, one NOT eating, etc.) may be acceptable for film and video (but you STILL need a good standard headshot), but they should NOT be sent to professional theatres. It's insulting to a professional theatre director having a modicum of creativity. We KNOW that you can put on and take off glasses, we assume you probably eat, we know what people look like when they're surprised, and we can certainly envision what you might look like clean-shaven if you have facial hair (or vice versa).
11. Background. The focus in a headshot should be on your FACE ... not on the background. Don't permit ANY "background" to compete for attention with your face. The current trendy background we're seeing in a lot of actors' photographs is bricks or stones. It seems 20% - 30% of actors have a brick or stone wall in back of them which makes us notice the BACKGROUND rather than the actor.
Trendy backgrounds also "date" a photograph. By the time the next trend is in -- perhaps within a few months to a year -- the trend is old hat, and it may be time for new photographs causing you to spend more money too soon.
12. What to wear: just like with the background, don't wear ANYTHING which competes for attention with your face. No loud prints. No stripes. No polka dots. Keep it solid and 1 color: a standard button-down shirt, a nice blouse, a turtle neck or mock turtle sweater, etc. Again: NOTHING is to detract from your face.
13. Touch ups: Unless it's to hide a blemish that just emerged the night before your photo shoot, anything other than VERY slight air-brushing shouldn't be done. Both film and theatre directors want to know and see how you look TODAY -- wrinkles, character lines, laugh lines, and all.
I once called in an actor based on his photo expecting to audition a 40 year old man. Instead, when he showed up, he was 65+ years old. When I questioned him, he said he hasn't had any new photos made in the past 20 - 25 years. It fueled my anger as he wasted my time ... and his. I also once called in an actor expecting to audition -- based on the photo he sent to me -- a young man of approximately 19 years of age. Instead, a 43 year old man showed up. Similarly, I had called in a "young" actress based on her photo who -- when she showed up -- wasn't so young: it turned out that she had every blemish and wrinkle erased from her headshot making her appear 20 years younger in her photograph than she actually was.
Remember: these are not "vanity" photos or yearbook photos. They're not being framed for your nightstand, or given out to the family.
14. If you lose 20 or more pounds, it's time for new photographs, as most people -- when they lose weight -- also lose in their face. If you permanently change your appearance (permanent hair color, new permanent hair style, etc.,), it's time for new photographs.
The basic rule of thumb: hold up your photograph next to your face while looking in the mirror. Does your photo look EXACTLY like YOU look TODAY? If not, it's time for new photos.
RESUMES The most important rule: don't lie. More and more film and theatre producers, directors, and casting directors are checking your credits IN ADVANCE of calling you in, as well as phoning your previous directors who you state you worked for. Just as with your regular day job, if you're caught lying on your resume, you'll either be fired, or not be hired ... and your lies will follow you.
IMPORTANT: If you've directed before, DO NOT state it on the resume you submit for acting roles. Under ANY conditions. A director looking at that will automatically think that you'll try to "direct" his / her production as well, or you'll tell the other actors what to do backstage if you disagree with the direction given you by the director (note: don't try it -- you'll be fired). Save your directing credits for your Directing resume; NEVER put it / them on your Acting resume. EVER.
Same goes for any type of modeling or promotionals (handing out free samples). This should NOT go on your acting resume.
Best to have 2 resumes: one for legitimate theatre, and another for film / TV / video, etc.
If you did the role of 'Julius Caesar' or 'James Tyrone, Sr.', etc., in high school or in college and you're a young actor in yours 20s, do NOT place these older roles on your resume for submission to professional theatres as you will NEVER be cast in them at a professional theatre. Professional theatres cast age-appropriately, and there's a lot to be said for age maturity of actor in older roles simply due to life experience.
Always put the medium you're submitting yourself for at the top of your resume in descending order. If you're submitting your photo and resume for a film role, make certain that the category of "FILM" or "FILM and TV" heads your resume. If you're submitting for a professional theatre, make certain "THEATRE" heads your listing.
READ -- and UNDERSTAND -- THE CASTING NOTICE If a casting notice calls for "Experienced professional male SAG actors in their 40s" and you're a young non-union woman in your 20s, please DO NOT SUBMIT YOURSELF. You'll look like an idiot: someone who can't read and / or understand what you read. Who wants to hire an actor and entrust them with a script for an expensive project when they've proven that they can't understand simple instructions?
READ and understand the casting notice BEFORE you submit your photograph and resume. NOTHING is more discouraging to a director or producer to have a call for a particular type, but receive submissions for the WRONG type.
Also -- try to be somewhat familiar with the project. Do some homework. If it's a known play that is being cast, read the play before submitting yourself. At the VERY least, research the cast breakdown: This is VERY easy to do online and is part of the actor's job.
Recently there was a casting notice placed for a very well-known, Pulitzer Prize-winning all-male play. More photos and resumes were received by the director from WOMEN than from MEN, all touting how perfect they'd be for the roles Note, though: unless special permission is granted by the playwright, or unless a play is in the public domain -- and normally this would mean anything written PRIOR to 1922 -- the names / roles, the gender, or the place of the play, etc. may NOT be changed.
If a casting notice calls for "Experienced FILM actors only" and you've never done a film in your life, don't apply. The same goes for STAGE actors. If the casting notice specifically goes out of its way to state "Experienced STAGE actors ONLY", and you're inexperienced, or you only have film or modeling credits, please don't apply.
Pay attention to the word "professional" (as in "professional" actor). In NYC, the word "professional" means UNION actors. Here in the D.C. area, it means any actor who has been paid for their work -- union or non-union.
In a casting notice put out by a professional film or theatre production company, "professional" does NOT mean "a state of mind" or the way in which you see yourself and / or behave. Despite the fact that YOU may see yourself as professional in thought, approach, and behavior, when a film or theatre production company states that it wants "professional actors", they want EXPERIENCED actors who have been paid for their work REGULARLY over a period of years, and who know what they're doing in front of the camera or on stage.
PROOFREAD before submitting your materials: make certain you're attaching a headshot AND your resume. You laugh. Several weeks ago I received someone's resume with no photo (despite the fact they said that one was attached), and from someone else: 4 different photos, but with no resume. And from yet another: 2 identical resumes ... with no photo.
COVER LETTERS Please do NOT address your cover letter to: "To Whom It May Concern." It's the actor's job to find OUT who it concerns. Read the company's website.
Similarly, don't start your letters: "Dear Theatre / Film Company," or "Hi, ABC!" (yes, we've actually seen that more often that you'll ever know), or worse: "Hi, My name is ..." We KNOW what your name is: you sign your letters with your name at the bottom, don't you? Don't EVER start a business cover letter to ANYONE by writing, "My name is ..." as your opening sentence. You're not SPEAKING to someone over the phone; you're WRITING to them. 80% of all cover letters we receive start their opening sentence with, "Hi, My name is ..."
PREPARE for your Interview and audition
Treat it like a regular job interview: prepare for it.
Read the company website; become familiar with the plays / films / productions it presents.
Read the reviews the company has received.
Read the play or the script you're being called in for and be prepared to discuss it with the director during your interview or audition.
I can't begin to relay the number of times I've asked actors during an interview, "What do you know about my company?" just to hear them tell me to my face, "Not much." I ask, "Didn't you read the website?" They'll say, "I didn't have the time." They didn't have the time to learn about my company, and yet they expect me to cast them and pay them? That won't happen.
WHAT ARE YOU WEARING FOR YOUR INTERVIEW AND / OR AUDITION / If you want to be seen as a professional actor, DRESS like one when you go to interview or audition for a role. Jeans, shorts, and sweats may be appropriate for college, for amateur productions, or for rehearsals once you get the job, but it shows open disregard and lack of respect to a producer or director in a casting position for a professional project during an interview or audition.
PROFESSIONAL BEHAVIOUR ON THE SET AND DURING REHEARSALS Please don't openly talk about the audition you just had, the call-back you were just on, or your next production within earshot of the director or producer while you're coming onto set or into the theatre getting ready to rehearse and / or perform the current production, or during a break. We don't want to hear that.
Our time and our energies are being spent on THIS production -- the one we're currently working on. It's all we think about. It's where our money is going at the moment. It's all time-consuming for us. From the inception through the entire duration of the project, it's our passion. To then hear actors casually talk about their recent auditions, call-backs, or future productions with other actors within earshot of us feels like a slap in the face ... that you can't WAIT to finish up OUR project so you can get on with the rest of your life.
We want OUR production to be just as important to YOU as it is to US.
Directors don't talk about their audition sessions and upcoming productions within earshot of other actors; similarly, the actor shouldn't do it in front of the director or producer. Doing otherwise makes us feel that you hold very little importance to our production, and we'll think twice before hiring or casting you again.
Also -- you've heard the expression, "Time is money." SOMEONE is paying for the studio, the rehearsal hall or facilities, or the theatre. RARELY are studios, theatres, and their respective rehearsal rooms or halls OWNED; they're generally rented. And the rent isn't cheap. In fact, it's very costly. Rentals are generally charged for BY THE HOUR which means: every MINUTE counts for us. The clock starts ticking at the top of the hour and continues ticking until the rehearsal or production is wrapped for the day / evening and EVERYONE has gone.
Being late for a rehearsal, a shoot, or your call is an unpardonable sin. NO director or producer wants to hear, "Traffic was a nightmare," or "The train broke down," etc. While we understand, if truth be known, we don't care. We CARE that we're paying a lot of money for rent and you're not there. NO ONE will ever fault you for being early. Late afternoons / early evenings on Fridays are particularly bear-ish around here ... especially coming out of Virginia (particularly Alexandria) into D.C. Allow for it. Start out early enough in advance so you're where you need to be AHEAD of time.
DON'T FLIP-FLOP Are you a professional actor, or are you an amateur?
Once you start working and getting PAID for your work REGULARLY, you shouldn't be going back to doing amateur / non-paid work. Doing so shows a director that you don't know WHAT you want ... and that you're RE-gressing from time to time as opposed to progressing. A professional company -- film or theatre -- only wants to hire or cast professional actors ... not amateurs.
It's also enough to really irritate a producer (the one who raises the money to pay for the project) as s/he will ask herself / himself: "Why am I paying this person? If s/he works for free for OTHERS, s/he can work for ME for free as well." VERY good point.
If you've made the decision to be a professional actor, once you're getting paid for your work regularly, move FORWARD; don't go back.
"FACEBOOK"ing directors, producers, and others
Do you have any idea how easy it is for someone to see -- legitimately, legally, non-invasively, and quite innocently -- the so-called "private" conversations you think you're having with your Facebook "friends" or in private blogs?
Don't diss directors, producers, other actors, bosses, etc. on the Internet ...
Several years ago I was looking for a choreographer to choreograph a silent 2 minute pas-de-deux in a dream-like sequence of a play I was going to be directing at the time. I met with and interviewed this individual and all seemed fine. A few days later when I was looking at my web-site statistics (similar to Google Analytics) -- which I do every day -- which show website owners the domains and IP addresses which visit your website, the number of pages that are viewed, points of entrance and exit, the times of visit, etc., -- all for legitimate marketing purposes -- a link showed up to another website address as having been on my company's website the previous day. I clicked on the link and was immediately taken to a blog. It turned out that the blog was written by this same individual -- the choreographer -- who stated in her blog to her close friends that she had embellished her resume in order to get the job; she didn't have the experience that she STATED to have. I then informed her that she no longer had the assignment.
Even Facebook itself cautions people in its Data Use Policy:
Facebook Pages are public pages.
Because pages are public, information you share with a Page is public information. This means, for example, that if you post a comment on a Page, that comment may be used by the Page owner off Facebook, and anyone can see it.
Always think before you post. Just like anything else you post on the web, information you share on Facebook can be copied or re-shared by anyone who can see it.
There is no privacy on the Internet. If you don't want the entire world knowing your business, don't post it on Facebook, in a private blog, or anywhere else on the Internet. If you want privacy, meet with your friends IN PERSON at your or their homes and TALK to them; don't commit it to writing.
BAILING ON A PROMISE / YOUR WORD / AGREEMENT / CONTRACT
Don't do it.
An agreement made by an actor to a director or producer to perform in a production is a CONTRACT. Period. IT DOESN'T HAVE TO BE IN WRITING. A legal contract consists of an OFFER and an ACCEPTANCE. So long as there is an OFFER of a role (made by the producer or director) and an ACCEPTANCE of a role (made by the actor), a contract has been made, and is legally binding and enforceable.
Your word (oral contract), your handshake (an obvious agreement / contract), your informal agreement in an email, or your formal signature (written contract), is GOLDEN.
GUARANTEED: if you bail on a theatre or a film or video project, or go back on your word to a director or a producer, it will be reported by the theatre / producer / director to other theatres, filmmakers, producers, directors, and occasionally to critics. And those in a hiring position will soon learn that you are not to be trusted.
You may feel you're getting away with it in the short term, BUT ... it WILL get around to other directors and producers, and critics in due time ... critics in theatre, in film, in TV, in radio, in newspapers, etc. Producers and directors talk to each other -- as well as to critics -- just like actors talk to one another. And we phone each other to ask what our experiences were with the actor. And we talk to critics. Recall that audition you went on where you weren't invited back to a call-back, or when you weren't cast after you gave that great audition, or when you weren't called in for a role you thought you were PERFECT for?
Unless you're a total screw-up on set or during rehearsals, we won't replace YOU if we find someone better than you after we cast you. Don't do it to US.
If -- for only 2 rare but EMERGENT reasons beyond your control: a day job transfer out of state, or a severe and prolonged illness requiring your immediate hospitalization -- you have to ask to be released from your contract or an oral commitment that you made, DON'T DO IT VIA EMAIL OR
VOICE MAIL Communicating with a director or producer like this shows nothing but cowardice on the actor's part, along with the prospect that in all probability you're lying. Show that you have backbone and decency, and do the right thing: meet in person with the individual who hired or who cast you, face them, and explain your circumstance. If it's utterly impossible for a face-to-face meeting (i.e., if you're living on opposite ends of the country), then at the VERY least, phone them and speak with them DIRECTLY (absolutely no cowardly voice mail messages or messages left with whoever answers the phone, etc.). You weren't hired or cast via an email; don't QUIT via an email.
The fact that you received a better offer or a larger role in another film or production, or you don't get along with one of the other actors, or you don't like the director, or you don't feel you're doing well in the role (let the director decide that ... not you), or you lost your day job, etc., is not sufficient reason to break your promise or your commitment and leave the entire production company in a lurch and threaten the continuity of the production. Other casting decisions may have been made based upon your commitment to the project. Costumes were made or purchased to your measurements. Press releases were written and sent to the press and to critics with your name on them.
In addition to the above, bailing on your word is morally and ethically wrong. It's a terrible way to treat people who placed their trust in you. And it's unprofessional. You made a promise to someone. Be a man / woman of your word. If you say you're going to do something for someone, follow through and do it.
MANAGERS and AGENTS An agent's job is to secure the actor work and ONLY gets paid if the ACTOR gets paid. A legitimate agent will NEVER ask you for money up front.
A casting director works FOR and gets paid BY the production company. They do not work for the actor.
A MANAGER manages the career and money of an actor. No local actor in the entire DC - Baltimore area needs to hire a manager. No local DC-area actor is that extraordinarily nationally / internationally successful and making that type of money (i.e., 6 figures or more annually) in the D.C. - Baltimore area whereby s/he requires a manager to manage his / her career and all their money ... and at an additional 15% over and above the 10% a legitimate agent charges. And YET ... there are a few "Managers" out there here in the D.C. area who sign up young, inexperienced, and very naive and unsuspecting actors and actresses. They have them sign 5 year exclusive air-tight contracts, telling them that they're in business to manage your career. They'll have you audition for them, and they'll say you're the next Brad Pitt and all you have to do is sign their contract and pay them up-front money for classes and photos. They'll then take 15% of any film, video, or theatre job secured over a 5 year period -- union OR non-union -- even if you got the role YOURSELF without any out-side assistance from them. They will also insist that THEIR management company's name and THEIR telephone number gets placed on your resume rather than YOURS. This, in turn will PREVENT directors and producers from ever being able to contact you.
THINK: Look at your resume and be completely 100% honest: does it look like the background of someone who is currently making hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars in this field annually? If not, you don't need a manager, nor would any reputable manager want to manage your career and your money unless you had an extremely lucrative career with matching earnings to manage.
Don't get caught up in the moment of praise for your work or your audition. Take the contract -- UN-SIGNED by you -- to a lawyer and have him / her read it FIRST. Best to pay $350 to a lawyer and be advised not to sign something, than to get caught up in the moment and sign away your professional career for the next 5 years.
As to agents, you should only deal with SAG or AFTRA signatory agents for SAG or AFTRA film, television, or video work -- even if you're not yet a member of SAG or AFTRA.
If in doubt that any agent is a signatory agent of SAG or AFTRA, phone your local SAG or AFTRA office first and check with them BEFORE you sign ANYTHING or agree to have them submit you for a job, or before agreeing to accept work. A SAG or AFTRA (or both) signatory agent has agreed to abide to the fair rules that the union has laid out in regard to working conditions and getting paid.
Do NOT work with or sign the contract of any NON-signatory agent.
WHAT NOT TO ASK Here are a few questions NOT to ask a producer or director during an interview or audition, and which will almost guarantee you'll not be cast:
1. "How much are you paying for this gig?"
When it comes time for the director or producer to decide who they want to cast, THEY (the producer or director) will broach the subject of remuneration. Asking about pay at your first audition or interview makes you sound like you're only interested in the money and not the project.
Similarly, never, Never, NEVER refer to the project as a "gig" when speaking to -- or in front of -- the director and producer. It's not a "gig" to US, but rather a very important artistic and financial project which we've put our hard-earned money into and which we hope will prove very successful. Using the word "gig" to us -- or around us -- cheapens the project, is insulting, and is very disrespectful.
An actress who I was very high on casting in a lead role a couple of years ago spoke to me about "all the similar gigs" she does. It put such a sour taste in my mouth, that I went ahead instead and cast an actress with much less experience but who had shown a lot more respect for the role and the project.
2. "What's your budget for the project?"
Don't EVER ask this ... simply because it's none of the actor's business. You don't need to know how much money we're spending; that's OUR business.
If you do your homework, if you read the company's website, if you look at production photos, if you see where the company's films are being distributed, if you see where the company performs (if it's a theatre company), if you really pay attention to their casting notices (i.e., a student film normally won't be paying anything, a low-budget film probably means lunch and / or dinner on the day of shoot and a copy of the film, a Union production will mean a lot more, etc.), you should be able to have a pretty good idea of what the budget is.
Years ago I was looking for a Brian Dennehy-type for a play I was casting at the time. He lived 70 miles away from the theatre, but wanted the role very badly and was willing to tackle the commute. I auditioned him and he was quite good. All was set (i.e., how much I would be paying him, his rehearsal dates, times, performance dates, etc.) until he phoned me the next day and asked, "I'm just curious: what's your budget for the play, and how much will you be spending on advertising?" That ended it for him.
3. "Who do you already have cast in the film / show?" and "Can I have a list of names of the actors? I might know some of them."
Again, this is none of the actor's business. If it's a big budget multi-million dollar film or play, chances are you'll already KNOW, as producers will announce the fact in the trades and in their casting notices as to who is starring in the production.
Don't EVER ask a director or producer who they already have cast and if you could see the cast list. No professional company worth their salt will EVER divulge this information to someone who they don't know and haven't even cast yet. You'll come across as ballsy as hell, and you'll risk not getting cast on account of it.
UNIONS (SAG, AFTRA, and AEA) and scabbing Unions are a lot easier to get into today than they were years ago. Back in the 1970s when I joined (all 3), you could only get in via a contract. No contract, no union membership for you.
Especially with Actors Equity Association (the professional stage actors' union), many considered it next to impossible. An actor / actress had only 2 ways of getting their Equity card back then:
1. Apprentice for an Equity company for 2 seasons (clean the toilet bowls, sweep and scrub the floors, sew some costumes, fetch props, and maybe do a walk-on at night). If the director or producer wanted you back for a 3rd season, they were then required to offer you an Equity contract the following season. Of course, they could always say they didn't need you back next season, and instead find another apprentice.
or
2. Outright hire a Non-Equity actor to an Equity contract. This was rare because back then, a producer was fined $1,000.00 for hiring a Non-Equity actor to an Equity contract, so ... the actor had to be EXCEPTIONAL for the producer to be willing to pay the $1,000 fine.
Unfortunately, an actor who was unable to break the Catch-22 cycle like all other actors were able to do (i.e., "You can't join the union without a contract, but you can't get a contract without being a member of the union") challenged it to the New York courts in the early - mid 1980s, and won. That's how the EMC -- Equity Membership Candidate -- program started and which perhaps made joining the union a little too easy, in that ANYONE can now become a member so long as they can get 50 work weeks of carrying a spear for $9 per hour or understudying Equity roles where the chances are greater that you'll be hit by an asteroid than actually performing the roles you're understudying, and having $1,100 in your bank account that you don't need, in order to pay the union initiation fee.
When you realize that a good portion of Equity theatres here in the D.C. / Baltimore area do their major lead casting in NYC or Chicago, and that there are more union members here, but a lot LESS union jobs to go around, and that unemployment is enormously high in this field even in the best of times, think twice before laying out that kind of money unless you know you're ready to tackle the BEST talent in the world in a cut-throat business, and leave D.C. for NYC.
Being a member of the union-- SAG, AFTRA, or AEA -- doesn't guarantee you work, NOR does it guarantee producers or directors a better quality of actor for them to hire and cast ... the way it once used to.
But if you read up on unionism and the A F of L / CIO (American Federation of Labor / Congress of Industrial Organization) you'll see where many people fought long and hard for the excellent working conditions and pay that are afforded to actors (and ALL union members) today.
To that end, if you DO become a union member, DON'T SCAB. DON'T work both sides of the fence whenever it's convenient for you (i.e., union vs. non-union) or you can't find union work. In the same manner that a truly professional actor should never flip-flop and go back to doing amateur films or amateur theatre once they've established themselves as a professional performer, a Union actor should NEVER scab on their union and fellow union members. Many people fought and died (literally) decades ago to win the great working conditions afforded to union workers today. When you carry your union cards, you should carry and show them proudly, and NEVER work in a Union film, a Union video production, or a Union theatrical stage production without a properly executed Union contract and without the full knowledge of the union. Not only could you be fined if a fellow union member reports you to the union for scabbing, but it's just plain wrong to do this.
No one is FORCING you to join the unions. But if you DO join, then follow the rules and do what's right.
THE DIRECTOR'S VISION AND PRODUCTION, AND WHAT WE WANT While the audience goes to the theatre to see the film or the play (or turns on the TV to watch the program) as well as the actors who perform in it, it is first and foremost ALWAYS the Director's production ... not the actors'. It's the Director's vision for the film, the play, or the video production that gets seen in its final form before an audience ... and it's why the actor was cast in the first place: because s/he fulfilled the director's vision of the character. Not all directors believe in or practice collaboration, and depending upon how heavily they may be invested in the production (i.e., if they were hired by the producer for 1 production / film, or if they're a permanent staple with the film company / production company), some are more "hands-on" than others. Some are more experienced than others and know exactly what they want; while others will allow the actor to experiment a little and try different things. Some are on a tight production schedule (i.e., "time is money"), while others (usually at the college theatre / film or amateur theatre / low budget film levels) have more freedom with their time.
One thing we ALL want, though, are actors who possess the following traits:
1. Superb acting ability
2. Competence. Actors who know what they're doing in front of a camera or on-stage. No director (except those at the educational level) has the time or money to TEACH an actor how to act on set or during rehearsals at the theatre. We'd have no reason to pay such an actor if we have to do their work for them.
3. Experience. Nothing can replace it.
4. Tremendous creativity
5. Readiness. Actors who come to readings and rehearsals prepared, and with ideas ... that they just don't sit around waiting to be told what to do
6. Intelligence and the ability to reason and figure things out on your own
7. A Sixth Sense. We love it when an actor knows exactly what we want before we even tell him / her and delivers it.
8. Flexibility
9. Dependability and reliability
10. A grounded personality and level head |
|
|