Tag Archives: agent

Red Flags

19 Jan

Red FlagsActing in LA can get overwhelming. How do you know what’s legit? What’s not? What to be wary of? What to avoid? Here are some basic Red Flags I’ve either experienced or heard of:

  • casting notices that state “nudity” “partial nudity” or “sexual situations”
  • scams like exploretalent, barbazon, etc
  • anything posted on CL (not that all casting notices on CL are red flags, just proceed with caution)
  • auditions NOT held at a legitimate casting site or theater (no private homes or apartments!)
  • an agent who tells you he’ll sign you, as long as you use HIS specific list of photographers for new headshots
  • an agent or manager you’ve never heard of and cannot be found anywhere on the web or through actor friends

SCAMMY ONES TO DEFINITELY AVOID!
-Exploretalent.com
-Onesourcetalent.com
-Instantcast.com
-Talenthunter.com
-Talent6.com
-Talentjug.com

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What are your Red Flags?

Casting Site Tips to Remember

12 Jan

The convenience of online casting websites is amazing, but that also means anyone can sign up. Here are a few important reminders to make the most of your use on these Casting Sites:

Headshots

  • make sure your uploaded headshot looks as good thumbnail size and will stand out in a crowd
  • have more than one “look” so you can choose accordingly, based on the role you are submitting for

Submissions

  • even if you have an agent (commercial, theatrical or both), continue to submit yourself
  • submit daily and as early as possible (casting directors can get thousands of submissions for one role in one day so make sure you are one of the first to be seen)
  • even if you don’t match the character description perfectly, submit anyway! (who knows, you may be just the actor they were looking for but just didn’t know it)
  • however, if you’re totally wrong for the part do not waste your or the casting director’s time in submitting

Resume

  • remember to keep your online resume updated (I tend to forget! maybe you want to set yourself reminders once a month on your calendar or phone)

Clips

  • upload clips from your reel (even better if you can have different clips to showcase different skills, like comedy, drama, improv, etc so you have choices when CD’s ask for a clip)