Charging actors to audition? Is this a common practice?

:-)

Yeah, the guy in the grocery store was like: "You again?" when I came around to get the second batch of 25 cucumbers. No seriously, you should always go for bananas.

By the way, we did in fact see a lot of guys as well, but for some reason you never get as many male actors for auditions as female.
 
lhmaloney said:
I am gearing up for my first independent feature. Recently we have got alot of promotion for our open auditions and we are expecting possibly over 300 people to audition. Some of my producers suggested that do to the magnitude of auditions we would experience that day, that we charge people I guess a fee to audition, to cover the new expenses we are about to experience for the audition. Before you guess its not alot, they're suggesting a price under $10 dollars. I do not agree with this, primarily because I have never heard of anyone do this except for under shady pretenses, so does anyone have any experience or thoughts on people charging for auditions.
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I think the word in Spanish is "Goofisimo."
 
Charge actors? This is the stupidest thing of which i have ever heard. I for one would never attend and audition in which i must first pay. Having auditioned for large hollywood features, i have never once paid for any audition, so there isn't anything that is down the ladder that would deserve any kind of cover fee in which to audition. Don't do it, no one will show. At least no one who knows a thing or two about the business.
 
Tell your producers they are out of their minds. You and your producers should narrow the field of the auditions from the actors reels, head shots and resumes which would trim down the amount of auditions you have. These are obviously piss poor producers who don't understand respect and humanity. You sure you want to work with them?
 
I will never attend ANY audition where I have to pay for the CHANCE to get a role in the film. I would also make sure every actor and actress I knew stayed far and away from any such "production". it's just that simple. the thought of having to pay for an audition makes me wonder if it's not just a scheme to play on the aspirations of those who want to be in a film and any actor who's been on any kind of a set would or should automatically dismiss this "audition" as such. when you consider that with most low-buget, no budget micro budget films an independent actor will pay for thier own food, gas ( and a lot of times provide thier own wardrobe) it's INSANE to even concieve of making them pay to audition... this particular thead makes my blood boil as an actor so I'll stop now before I go further and say something I regret...lol.
 
5... maybe 6 would show up out of the 300 if you charged people.

your producers are getting greedy... but they also make a point... 300 people paying 5 bucks each is pretty decent money... to bad it's not an amusement park lol
 
no charge up front, send a bill to those you don't cast hahahahahas

"sorry, you weren't good enough to be in my film, enclosed please find a bill for $20.00 US for waisting my time on you, please feel free to pay by cash, or paypal, I'm sorry we do not except checks, thank you, J Miller Producer of the up coming film, (you just got bent over and pumped in the back of a volcewagon)"
 
PK...going to say this once more because I can't get over the fact you are all even still talking about charging actors to audition OR to get the part. and this time just to make sure it is 'heard i will use all capitals...

IT IT ILLEGAL TO CHARGE PEOPLE TO INTERVIEW/AUDITION FOR A JOB UNLESS YOU ARE A LEGAL JOB EMPLOYMENT AGENCY WITH PAID JOBS WAITING.

NOT LEGAL....NOT LEGAL. PERIOD.

if any of you charge actors to read or to hire them i personally hope you get caught because it is against FEDERAL law. enjoy those charges!

sorry to sound harsh but the fact this is still being debated upsets me to no end. it is not just illegal but it is not moral either!

as for charging them to give them a copy of their audition...are ANY of you out there even aware that the best casting directors will not even look at those as 'reels' and toss them out? so if the actor pays for a copy they can't use it for most work that would pay them anyway.

i have worked as a paid actor for over 30 years between stage, film, tv and voice work. i will do a low budget and no budget now and then myself but if any actor i trained told me someone charged them to audition...i would turn the culprit in myself!

Michele
 
I personally charge all my actors upfront 100 dollars to even be in my film.
That way I make lots of moneies!!
 
sean90291 said:
Please don't do it. Actors already do so much for you by simply showing up to an audition, with very little chance of getting the role (because only one person is cast for the part, and everyone else just showed up out of a passion to continue their art). Do NOT exploit that generosity. As a filmmaker, you're an artist. You should respect the time another artist donates to you by coming to the audition. Charging actors is not something a legitimate film would ever do. In fact it's downright sleazy. If anything, we filmmakers should pay the actors for showing up. I wish I could. I really do.
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I agree. If it was in the budget it would be nice to pay them something for their gas, at least, but unfortunately it's just not possible to set aside that much money usually to pay tons of people.

But making them pay you?! LOL, no way, it's so awesome they're passionate enough to apply for a job where they know they have little chance of landing it, and often for pay that's just so-so.
 
Evan S said:
I personally charge all my actors upfront 100 dollars to even be in my film.
That way I make lots of moneies!!
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I actually joked about something like this with my business partner, though. I said, "You know, for all of the kids who come down here every year trying to make it in film school or as actors and actresses, I swear, you could put together a professional production and just charge by position. Grips pay $100/day, DP pays $300/day, director pays $500/day, and so forth, and hey they get to add this great thing to their resume / reel, and really what's the difference between that and film school? Film school you get raped, too, $30,000 a year or more often times, and you don't get as many credits as you'd get just doing this." Seriously, that's real film school, you get a bunch of credits to your reel and we just install some supervisory positions to make sure the projects turn out at least fairly good, so they can compete in some film festivals, win some awards, etc. and everyone pads their resumes for cheaper than film school. People are so desperate to show off their skills and build those resumes and learn, they seem to think it's way different at film school than it would be in my system, but in reality, they're deluding themselves. Both ways are pretty much just charging you for the same thing in different ways.
 
As far as auditions, in Canada, at least, ACTRA requires that after the second/third audition you have to pay the actor, and I believe AFTRA has a similar policy. It is a very bad idea to try to tangle with ACTRA/AFTRA.
 
funny idea. imagine auditioning for a talent search and be charged only to be ridiculed by simon cowell. that is bloody horrendous :angry:
 
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