What Actors Need To Know About Casting Directors
As an actor, I know casting directors can seem like the gatekeepers to all of your dreams. They are these intimidating creatures who can “make or break” you. In truth, they too, just have a job to do and that job is to find the best actor for the role. Most of them got into being a casting director because they love working with actors. They want you to succeed because when you succeed, they succeed.
Whether you go to an “in person” audition, audition with a self-tape, or over a live casting system like actors’ access’s eco cast, it doesn’t matter. You should approach the audition as if you already have the job. In essence, you do! They have requested to see you. So go, have fun, take chances and show them what you can do. You may or may not win the role but you just might “win the room” which is even more important.
When you win the room, you’ve connected with a casting director, show them who you are and what you’re capable of. You’ve impressed them. So you can be sure when the right role comes up they are going to call you in again.
“Well, I’m a great actor,” you think, “Why don’t they cast me?” There are several reasons why you may not get the role. Before you can get the role, you need to get an audition. The casting director can’t have you read for something if they don’t know who you are.
Things to Keep in Mind
- You may not be on a particular casting director’s radar. That is a problem you will need to approach and fix with as much creativity as you bring to your acting roles.
- You may be the most talented actor of the bunch but your essence is wrong for the role. If the casting director is looking for someone with a naive presence but you come across as streetwise, that’s obviously not going to work. That doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong with you, it just means you’re not right for a particular character. It also means you should know your type and first concentrate on getting known for that.
- It might be political. Meaning, one of the final decision makers like the producer or the director might already have someone in mind for the role. Maybe she owes someone a favor. Maybe she wants to cast her boyfriend, son, or sister… who knows?
- You may be the wrong height or hair color, or maybe you don’t have the “right chemistry” with the lead actor... The point is, it’s beyond your control and there’s no point wasting your time, energy, and emotions on something that you won’t be able to change. Instead, you should concentrate on the things that you do have control over.
Because the mind of a casting director can seem so elusive, I’m going to be doing a series of interviews with casting directors all around the world. I think it will be interesting to see what they have in common and what is specific to their particular market and taste. If you have any specific questions that you’d like me to ask please mention them in the comments below.
Break a leg!
