UPCOMING AUDITIONS

FILM/COMMERCIALS


ACTORS NEEDED: SENIORS & KIDS!! (CLEVELAND)

Marcy Ronen Casting is seeking the following talent for a NON UNION, PAID commercial. If you would like to audition, please send an e-mail to marcyronen@gmail.com with your photo and contact information (small jpg files only please).

SPOT # 1 – (No dialogue)

1. Grandfather: Male, 60’s, salt of the earth. Fit. Healthy
looking. Will be driving a soapbox derby car in spot. Must not
weigh more than 160 pounds.
2. Grandson: Male, 8 to 10 years old. Builds soapbox car with
grandfather and runs along side while he drives down a hill.

SPOT # 2 – (Has dialogue)

1. Mother: Female, mid 60’s, fit, healthy looking.
2. Daughter: Female, 40’s.
3. Pilot: Male, 40’s, flight instructor, commercial pilot type.

SPOT # 3 - (No dialogue)

1. Husband: Male, 60’s, fit, healthy looking. Will need to either
ride arollercoaster or a jet ski, so must be capable and OK with that.
2. Wife: Female, 60’s, fit, healthy looking. Will need to either
ride a rollercoaster or a jet ski, so must be capable and OK with that.
3. Grandfather: Male, 60’s, fit, healthy looking. Will have to hold
and interact with a boa constrictor, so must be OK with that.
4. Grandson: Male, 10-15 years old. Will have to hold and interact
with a boa constrictor, so must be OK with that.
5. Grandma: Female, 60’s, fit, healthy looking. Will need to ride a
tandem bike, so must be capable and OK with that.
6. Granddaughter: Female, 7-11 years old, maybe a tomboy but not
necessary. Will need to ride a tandem bike, so must be capable and OK with
that.

STAGE


 Theatre Roundtable: Unified Auditions - Columbus, OH

2012 Unified Auditions will be held on Saturday, October 6, 2012, 

beginning at 10am

Location: Columbus Performing Arts Center, 549 Franklin Avenue, Columbus, OH 43215

Registration is required to audition. For complete details, go to 
http://www.theatre-roundtable.org/unifiedauditions/


Dublin Haunted Attraction to Host Auditions for 120 Seasonal Jobs

The Scare-A-Torium Haunted Attraction (Dublin, Ohio) will hire 120 performers; actors, makeup artists and other assistants to fill seasonal positions from September to November 2012. Acting, makeup and costuming experience is preferred in addition to applicants with Halloween/Haunted House industry interests. Applicants must be at least 18 years old; free monster training opportunities are offered for recruits.

Auditions and interviews will be held the following dates/times:
2-5 pm Saturday 9/8/2012
4-7 pm Sunday 9/9/2012
4-6 pm Sunday 9/16/2012
Auditions will be held at the Scare-A-Torium located in the Dublin Village Center at 6765 Dublin Center Drive, Dublin, Ohio 43017. Email Info@ScareATorium.com; visit www.ColumbusHauntedHouse.com or call 614-433-9343 for additional information.

About the Scare-A-Torium: The Scare-A-Torium is Central Ohio's largest (and scariest) Haunted Attraction featuring 2 indoor Haunted Houses; open on select dates from September through November in 2012.

MARKETING TIPS FOR ACTORS – HOW TO WIN THAT ROLE! BE THE SOLUTION! by GWYN GILLISS

To combat nerves, prep professionally and ace an audition there are many techniques that work:

1. Exercising- aerobics, running, yoga
2. Positive affirmations
3. Focusing on the character you are about to portray- i.e., Be “Blanche Dubois” on the bus or in the car driving to the audition
4. Meditating to become totally centered
5. Warming up your voice and body just before entering

These techniques focus on YOU and solve your problem of handling the audition. But the best technique of all?

Understand the person for whom you are auditioning, the Casting Director.. Solve HER problem.

Sometimes when auditioning for Prime Time roles you might “go to Producers”  – All 10 or 12 of them: the coordinating, supervising and Executive Producers as well as a string of Associate Producers, assistant Producers and of course, the Head writer of the series, the “Creator” or the Director- Creator, a few “Executives with titles like East Coast VP or West Coast Prime Time VP and their assistants. Solve THEIR problem.
If you’re auditioning for a commercial you might also see the client from the corporate office sitting in the corner- rare but possible- or in the Control room watching. And WHAT are all these folks thinking? Are they thinking about Your talent? Your looks? Your personality? Your Audition? Sort of.

But mostly they are operating from a place of FEAR. They’re thinking about how they’re going to keep their job and make this project a hit.

“Is this actress going to be THE ONE? The one who will star in my Prime Time Series, Film or Commercial and make it soar?”

Everyone is full of fear. Casting Directors most definitely are on a treadmill with little time, a lot of nerves and anxiety trying to please their boss, the Producer, Client or Network.They have to find the right actors or not work again for that boss. The Producers are nervous because if they choose the wrong talent the show will fail and they will lose their edge at their Network. The Writer is scared because whether it is her first script or 20th
it needs to be successful so she will work again in the next few years.”You are only as good as your last credit” is absolutely true.  The committee of 15 or so – associate, assistant and other producers all are vying for a position at the table- meaning if they vote on the wrong actor they lose status and possibly their job…or gain status and the power to produce their own series.

Everyone is frightened that the wrong choice will destroy their career- tons of money (millions) and lots of jobs are at stake for a new series or a network commercial. In the midst of this angst and chaos, you arrive with your own fear, doubt and nerves….Will they like me? Am I talented enough? Did I make the right acting choice?”

Re-think this. Instead of making it about YOU and how well you can audition, make it about THEM. SOLVE THEIR PROBLEM. Help them. Calm them. Charm them.This is where psychology outweighs talent and all the training in the world.

ALLEVIATE the FEAR. You are the happy voice of success.“I will solve your problem. Choose me and we BOTH will win! I will star in your series and it will be a BIG, FAT SUCCESS!!!

So your acting job – besides playing the script they wrote -is the script YOU write. (well, your subtext), “I’m going to make you successful…I will make you $$$MONEY…We are going to WIN an EMMY,the OSCAR,the TONY together!!!”

Become the solution to their problem not another problem. And while you are focusing on helping them you actually will do a far more brilliant audition. Try it! It works. Trust me, I know!

Advanced Marketing Techniques for Actors

The headshot (an 8 x 10 photograph of an actor), cover letter (a brief letter introducing an actor) and résumé (a listing of training and experience in the performing arts) are the traditional tools that actors use to market themselves. Actors send them to casting directors, talent agents and other industry professionals in an effort to obtain work and representation.

    But these tools are not the only tools at an actor’s disposal. Sophisticated actors know that there are many other tools an actor can use to get his face, name and talents in front of decision-makers. Sophisticated actors use an array of postcards, business cards, thank-you notes, greeting cards, and performance invitations to sell themselves to directors, producers and agents.

 

Actor Postcards

   Postcards, small and inexpensive pieces of mailing, are a great way for actors to keep in touch with casting directors. Postcards can also be sent as thank-you notes. Actors can put their headshots and contact information on these postcards. Later, if a casting director is auditioning actors for an upcoming movie, the postcard may help the actor gain consideration for an audition.

Business Cards

    Actors can use their headshots to produce business cards. An actor's business card is similar to a traditional business card, except that an actor’s business card will contain the actor's headshot and contact information (or the contact information of his or her agency).

   Actors can use their business cards to market themselves. Instead of carrying around a bunch of 8x10 headshots, actors can carry their business cards in their wallets and pocketbooks. They can then pass out these business cards to network with industry professionals or other actors.

Thank-You Notes

    A thank-you note is a note of thanks that an actor sends to a casting director, perhaps thanking him for the opportunity to audition. Actors usually send thank-you notes in the form of a postcard. The postcard contains the actor's headshot and contact information (or his agent's contact information). Thank you notes are a great way for an actor to establish a relationship with a casting director, increasing the actor's chances of getting more auditions and future consideration for acting roles.

Greeting Cards

    Greeting cards are tools that sophisticated actors use to maintain relationships with casting directors and other decision-makers. When important holidays come around, such as Christmas or Thanksgiving, an actor can send a greeting card. The greeting card might contain a “happy holiday” message along with a more personal message, such as “Thanks for giving me the chance to audition last month”. It’s a great way to use the holidays as an excuse to contact decision-makers without being a pest about it.

Performance Invitations

     When an actor is performing in a play or film, it may be a good idea to let directors and producers know about it. This way, the actor essentially gets a “free” audition, using that performance as a way to get directors and producers interested in the actor. Therefore, the actor might send an invitation to decision-makers, identifying when and where a performance might take place.

    To be sure, traditional forms of marketing are always the most effective way for an actor to get noticed. But sophisticated actors know that you must use every available resource—greeting cards, thank-you notes, business cards, postcards, invitations—and other tools to give yourself that extra edge.

5 REASON WHY CASTING DIRECTORS ARE NOT NOTICING YOU.

As an up and coming actor, it is always in your best interest to catch the attention of casting directors when applying to casting calls, but how do you get them to notice you ? Below is a list of things that you might not being doing.

Your presentation is amateurish

Your presentation or self image is not up to standard. You don’t have professional pictures or you are lacking a well written CV. Yes these are things that you need to perfect in the best way possible before getting an audition.

You may have great experience from theater, film and TV, but your CV might not articulate that in a clear and concise manner. Your pictures are probably ok, but don’t show you in the best light.Don’t forget the first thing a casting director sees in his/her email is your image attachments. Get great photos, and you will immediately draw attention.

You have no credits

It is a turn off for any casting director looking for an actor to play a supporting or main role in a film when you have little or no experience. You can’t expect miracles when applying for super hard to get roles. Other actors with credits will be given preference.

What can you do?

Focus on indie or no budget productions. A student short film can go on to win Oscars if it is a fantastic project so never underestimate a small role in a well planned film. You may also want to apply for very small parts, or walk on roles in indie feature films to get yourself some credits that are respectable.

You have loads of extra work only

Being a background artist has its rewards, but if you have spent the last 5 years doing extra work only, a casting director wont find that too exciting when choosing you for a role in a film

How to solve the situation?

Firstly, being cast as an extra is fairly easy as you have no on screen lines, nor do you get noticed. You may want to apply for a walk on role, or a minor part in film to get an additional credit. Even performing at a theatre play in a small role can benefit your experience and your chances to get an audition for a minor role.

The films you acted in went nowhere

Sometimes you have to be honest. Did you act in a short film that went nowhere? Did that indie feature fail to sell a single DVD? You may have some great experience, but if you are applying for a small role on a big production, and the casting director has never heard of that movie, chances are, you have less of a chance.

How do you change that?

Your skills as an actor may be at a turning point, and you can really play a strong character but in order to get on a bigger productions you need a recognizable credit. Sure, you might say that’s impossible if no one gives you the chance to get on a big production in the first place, but a successful short or indie feature can work miracles.

Choose the projects you work on very carefully. Do research into the director, and the other actors if you know about them. Find out more about the production, what they have done before and the overall reputation. The film may sound great and you love the character description, but if the director has no experience, no track record, and a plastic leather jacket, you need to look harder.

You have no connections

Lets face it, the film industry is all about who you know. Some terrible actors get roles in movies because they know the producer, director or main actor. If you have no connections, no friends in the industry, it is 90% likely that you will fail, even with exceptional talent.

How to get connections?

First, change your perception of networking. You don’t need to make it a chore, but discover other people in the industry. Find film directors, make friends in different parts of the industry. Meet other actors, and get to know their routine, and why they are successful. Don’t be afraid to ask questions, and be persistent. You can contact anyone in the world with the internet, so don’t be afraid to. After all, being an actor, is also being a great communicator (Off and on the set).

CASTING DIRECTORS IN PITTSBURGH

DONNA BELAJAC CASTING - http://www.donnabelajaccasting.com

Donna launched her own company  in 1982. Her early and ongoing industry leadership and her company’s unmatched longevity and experience have made Donna Belajac arguably the most familiar name in Pittsburgh’s casting and talent arena — and one of the most respected. A long time member of the prestigious Casting Society of America, Donna received the 2008 Opal Award from Women in Film and Media of Pittsburgh for her career-long contributions to the local film and television industry.

Recent credits include:
“STILL I RISE” Daniel Barnz Walden Media
“SUPER 8” J. J. Abrams Paramount
“ABDUCTION”     John Singleton Lionsgate
“I AM NUMBER 4”     D. J. Caruso Dreamworks
“UNSTOPPABLE” Tony Scott Twentieth Century Fox
“THE NEXT THREE DAYS”   Paul Haggis Lionsgate
“LOVE AND OTHER DRUGS”   Ed Zwick Twentieth Century Fox
 “WARRIOR”   Gavin O’Connor Lionsgate
“IN NORTHWOOD” D.W. Brown Mike Wittlin Productions
“MY BLOODY VALENTINE 3-D” Patrick Lussier Lionsgate
”SHE’S OUT OF MY LEAGUE”   Jim Field Smith Dreamworks
‘FEAST OF THE SEVEN FISHES”   Bob Tinnell Allegheny Image Factory
“HOMECOMING” Morgan J. Freeman Paper Street Films
“SMART PEOPLE” Noam Murro Groundswell Films

NANCY MOSSER CASTING - http://www.mossercasting.com/

Since 1990, Nancy Mosser Casting has been Western Pennsylvania’s Emmy award winning casting company. We specialize in the casting of actors and extras for film, television, commercials, voiceovers, corporate videos and promotional events. We pride ourselves on being the only casting company in PIttsburgh that successfully casts both speaking and extras roles on feature films.

Recent credits include: SUPAH NINJAS - Nickelodeon
OUT OF THE FURNACE -  Relativity Media
JACK REACHER - Paramount
ELIXIR (Working Title) - ABC Family/Disney
THE DARK KNIGHT RISES - Warner Brothers
PERKS OF BEING A WALLFLOWER - Summit Entertainment
LOCKE AND KEY "Pilot" - 20th Century Fox
ONE FOR THE MONEY - Lakeshore Entertainment
MAFIA -  Island Studios
THE SIBLING - Levine Pictures
RIDDLE - The Weinstein Company
THE NEXT THREE DAYS – Lionsgate
LOVE AND OTHER DRUGS – 20th Century Fox
JUSTIFIED “Pilot” – Sony Pictures/FX

CASTING DIRECTORS DETRIOT

POUND AND MOONEY CASTING - http://www.poundmooneycasting.com/

JANET POUND
There’s no teacher like experience and my thirty years in the business have taught me well. I started out as a SAG actress working in commercials and industrial films, then I worked behind the camera as a talent agent. Seeing so many sides of the business has been a great benefit when it comes to casting. As a produced playwright with strong ties to the local theatre community, I have first-hand knowledge of our actors and am always on the lookout for new talent.

KATHY MOONEYStarting at an ad agency, I soon realized I was drawn to the production side of the business. I worked through IATSE for many years before working as a SAG/AFTRA franchised talent agent. All this experience has given me a special understanding and insight that has tremendously helped when casting. POUND & MOONEY tries to make casting one of the most stress free and rewarding parts of the filmmaking process. I'm inspired by my love of the industry and Janet and I, although an odd couple, have proven to be a perfect match.

Recent credits include:

Jimmy Picard, Sparkle, Have A Little Faith, HBO Hung
Ides Of March, Freaky Deaky, Shiphunt, Last Man Standing
The Double, Harold & Kumar Christmas, Salvation Boulevard
Hostel 3, S.W.A.T. Fire Fight, Cedar Rapids, Red Dawn

CASTING DIRECTORS IN CLEVELAND

MARCY RONIN CASTING - http://marcyronencasting.com/home


Casting commercials and films in Cleveland, Ohio and through out the region including Columbus and surrounding areas.

Commercials include Nike, Comcast, Ohio Lottery, State Farm, Humility of Mary Hospital System, Vitamin Water, University Hospitals, Summa, Cub Cadet, Hot Pockets, Nesquick, McDonald's and many more.

Regional casting for films include American Splendor, The Soloist, Miracle Dogs, Christmas at Maxwell's and Proximity.

LILIAN PYLES CASTING - http://www.facebook.com/lillian.pylescasting

CRAFT NOTES by Ed Hooks

"PRESENCE"

Suppose you are portraying a character that has a lot of self-doubt. Like, for instance, Blanche Dubois in Tennessee Williams’ “A Streetcar Named Desire” or Martin in Sam Shepard’s “Fool for Love”. You know from your study of psychology that anxiety presents itself as a high and heady power center. Blanche is already on the verge of a nervous breakdown when she makes her entrance in the first act. Anxiety expresses itself as tension, and tension makes you feel light, not heavy. Confidence, by contrast, manifests itself as a feeling of relaxation, which you experience as weight. Stanley is confident and therefore has a lot of weight. Blanche is bird-like.

The question one of my students put to me recently is how it is possible to play – with confidence and weight – a character that is inherently anxious, tense and light. “Isn’t that,” the actor wanted to know, “a contradiction?” “How can you be light as the character while feeling the weight of confidence as an actor at the same time?”

This is actually a very good question that must be answered in two parts. Part One has to do with an actor’s role vis-à-vis the audience; Part Two has to do with characterization.

If I asked you to walk across the stage like a regular person, someone like your own self in real life, could you do it? Good. Now, suppose I ask you to walk across the stage like a professional actor. Would there be a discernable difference? Probably not. Now suppose I ask you to walk across the stage like Blanche Dubois. Blanche is not comfortable in her skin, but you the actor are. In other words, you have weight, but the character you are playing does not. Indeed, Blanche seems frequently on the verge of taking flight. But here is the key: It takes the confidence (weight) of a good actor in order to portray this characteristic of Blanche’s personality. If you are yourself unsure of your footing on stage, your interpretation of Blanche will make the audience nervous. It will make it more difficult for them to willingly suspend their disbelief (Samuel Taylor Coleridge, 1817).

Regardless of the role you are playing, you are first and foremost an actor. The audience expects you to lead them. They did their part by showing up tonight. If you are not confident in your ability to lead, the audience will feel cheated, uneasy, worried for you as a person. They will not be able to get past you and into Blanche. Have you ever seen a nervous actor on stage with a teacup and saucer, with her hands trembling so that the liquid almost spills out?

The actor who asked me the question in the first place is relatively new to her craft. And she is worried a lot about being truthful and honest. Blanche is a nervous wreck and so, for this actor, the correct portrayal was to be a nervous wreck. The problem, of course, was that she appeared to have no weight – i.e. no confidence – on stage as an actress when all we saw was Blanche’s tension. All that honesty and truthfulness, although appropriate for Blanche, was only succeeding in making me nervous for her as an actress as I watched. Before anything, it is the actor’s job to let the audience know it is in good and confident hands, that the actor knows his job. Recently, I read a review of the all-black “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof”, now playing on Broadway. Anika Noni Rose is playing Maggie “the Cat”. I imagine she is quite good, but all the reviewer had to say was that she was “pushing too hard” at the role. In other words, the actress herself was coming off as lightweight, while playing a character that oozes sexual confidence.

 

There is a wonderful book by British writer/director Patrick Tucker, Secrets of Screen Acting, in which he speculates why it is that such a large number of Best Actor and Best Actress Academy Awards are won by British actors. This very year, for example, Daniel Day Lewis won Best Actor and Marion Cotillard won Best Actress. Both are British. Tucker muses about the difference in training between British actors and Americans and, somewhat with tongue somewhat in cheek, he observes that American actors are really too obsessed with being honest in their acting. He pointed out that British actors don’t worry about that; they only want to APPEAR that they are being honest. In other words, the British may be more aware of what the camera (i.e. the audience) is seeing. Acting is, after all, pretending. The British-trained actor perhaps – according to Mister Tucker – has a somewhat stronger grasp of that distinction than American actors with all of their Strasberg Method and Meisner Technique. Whether he is correct or not is almost beside the point. It is necessary for an actor to know he is acting. Theatrical reality is not the same thing as regular reality. I have myself sat in classes and heard reputable acting teachers advise that, when acting is “right”, the actor becomes unaware of the audience. That, forgive my French, is hooey. An actor never is unaware of the audience. Stanislavsky never advocated oblivion! The audience is the reason the actor showed up at the theatre in the first place!

“If I am totally in the moment”, goes the argument, “I will not be aware of the audience.” That’s fine except that being totally “in the moment” is an ideal that is not achievable. If you were actually to get “in the moment”, you might just wander off stage. Acting is a discipline, and the actor is in control. The audience does not show up to see you be “in the moment.” They care about the story and the characters, not “the moment.”
Put in a more practical way, I often advise new actors to avoid physically leaning forward from the waist in order to emphasize their lines. If you go to any high school production, you’ll see the actors on stage bending from the waist all night. If you go to a Broadway show, you will rarely see it. Professional actors learn the power of weight; they learn not to chase the audience, but to bring the audience to them.

Regardless of the kind of character you are playing, the audience expects you to be confident of yourself as a leader. Actors are shamans. Truthfulness is nice, but it is only part of the successful theatrical transaction.

BOOK OF THE MONTH

Backstage Guide to Casting Directors: "Who They Are, How They Work, What They Look for in Actors"

There is a wealth of inside information to be gleaned from talking to casting directors, and in this brand-new second edition of The Back Stage Guide to Casting Directors, author Hettie Lynne Hurtes offers first-hand profiles with more than fifty people in the business in Los Angeles and New York City. They reveal their thinking and convey expert advice on how to get in the door prepare effectively for readings, and show good audition behavior.

With a contact list of casting directors around the nation, and full of engaging stories about casting coups and actors fateful auditions, The Back Stage Guide to Casting Directors is a solid resource whether you're just starting out or steadily employed as an actor or a casting director.