Casting and schedules

[Gohanto]

I'm doing my first casting call in about a week now and I was curious how you work out your filming dates with the cast.
Do you set your dates and times for filming before the casting call? Or would emailing them a few possible dates and then getting feedback to find what works for everyone be better?
I'm still in college so most people's schedules are all over the place.

 

[Jim Brennan]

I usually provide them with a blank calendar of my prospective shooting dates at the call and have them fill it out while they are waiting.

It's important to have them note whether the times they are putting down are those that they are AVAILABLE, or those that they are UNAVAILABLE.

The actual scheduling is another story.

 

[Ozhair]

Oh yeah, welcome to my nightmare rogar-BlackEye(DBG

I'm nearing completion on my low/no budget feature, and scheduling has been all sorts of fun (not).

I put a piece up on my website a little while back about how this went.

http://www.caliburnproductions.com/Diary07.html

Jim's idea is the best way to approach it, but in the end the actual scheduling, especially on something that takes as long to shoot as a feature, is all about compromise and concession.

Have fun,
Pat

 

[FilmBoy77]

i'm working on my first feature too and in the casting stages. i casted two weeks ago and only found 1 good match for one of the roles. i'm doing another casting this weekend. i basically:

- posted on the acting websites (mandy.com, craigslist.com, etc) what roles i'm looking for with the date i am looking to do casting auditions

- receive headshots and only responded to those i am interested in

- set up an undisclosed web page on my website where i send selected actors to where they can download the sides, read character bios, get directions to audition, etc

i only ask the ones who do well in audition what days they are available to film and tell them the days we'll probably be shooting. they can make adjustments sometimes if they really want to do it.

it worked out great on my short film. with this feature it's taking a lot longer to find the right fit.

 

[Jim Brennan]

Agents can save you a lot of time. They can be a pain in the ass, but if you make the time to meet them and make a good impression they will often help you out, even for a low-budget gig. Most of them know that their actors will take roles in underfunded projects. The good agents also know that the next great filmmaker (or atleast funded union shoot) could come from anywhere.

The last casting we had we contacted 4 agencies with a synopsis, list of characters, possible shoot dates and casting dates. The one faux pas we made was to include an open call on the same day. Anyway, we filled the day and found a bunch of very skilled actors that we would not have otherwise found. We also found a couple of agents that we started developing relationships with, which should help for future projects.