Casting -- Last minute advice

for me the most important ting to look for is how well an actor is able to internalize your direction. so if you like someone, change their intention for the scene they are reading to see how they respond. you'll be surprised how many actors struggle with doing a scene more than one way.

second... cast the best actor, not the person who looks the most like how you imagine the character.
 
Consider some of the following:

- If you wish to avoid hiring prima donnas, casting begins in the front room. How the actors treat your casting assistant says a lot about how they'll behave on set. When they step into the actual casting room they are on stage the WHOLE time, not just when they're performing your scene. Use your front room wisely...have your casting assistant take notes on how the actors treat other actors as well as any of your staff.

- You must have call backs and you should have at least a day of downtown between your first round of auditions and any call backs. Your first round of auditions is simply to narrow the field. If you can tell an actor can act, let them know they'll be called in for call backs and get them out of the room quickly...you'll be focusing on them later. What you want is to reduce the vast number of actors to a manageable number of skilled professionals. For my last short I had over 250 actors audition for 3 roles...and that was after we reduced the thousands of head shots and reels we received! I find it easier to concentrate on one facet at a time...round one's main goal is "Can they act, can they take direction or are they simply a pretty face?" I can determine that in under 3 minutes, and I spend the least amount of time with the actor who can act because I'll be seeing them again in 2 days.

- Write a "Director's Manifesto" that explains what your movie is about, how you approach making movies, what you're looking for in actors and why they should be in your project. Auditions is a TWO WAY street...great actors are sizing you up as well. I wrote a director's manifesto and had laminated copies available in the front room. Several actors said it was the best thing they'd ever seen, particularly when they read my diatribe about how I hate "WB style casting." I spoke a bit about my understanding of their craft. I made it clear that I'd be judging them on their ability to be honest within the fictional setting of my script. I spoke about my obsession with Meisner. And I spoke about how damn hard it is to audition...many actors said it was one of the most comfortable auditions they've ever been to.

- Make sure your actors have access to the sides at least 1 week in advance. The more time they have with your material the better they'll be prepared.

- Deliberately take your best actors and have them serve as the readers in other scenes. This will give you a chance to test their range.

- Go out of your way to make the actors feel comfortable and safe. Auditioning isn't about being in control. Many directors, casting agents and producers abuse the process and use it as an opportunity to have a power trip. What a stupid waste of time...and what proof of terrible insecurity. You are already in charge! Use that power to make people feel comfortable. You'll be rewarded with better performances and actors who will follow you anywhere.

- Don't take notes while they're performing. Watch everything they do. If you must write something down, figure out a simple numerical code system or have a cheat sheet with columns and areas you are rating them in. If you look down to write you may miss the best moments of their audition.

- It is inevitable that you'll have a physical type in mind for any given role...but don't underestimate an actor's ability to transform themselves physically. Ross Marquand auditioned for the leading man/protagonist role in my last short, Saturday Night Special. His head shot made him look like a boy scout. Physically, he looked like the boy next door. But, he had a menacing arrogance to his performance that was exactly what I needed for the project's antagonist, a cold meth-dealing sociopath. I sat him down after I auditioned him for the protagonist and said "How far are you willing to go to transform yourself physically? You play this role wonderfully, but the way you look right now is wrong for the role." He made it clear he enjoyed the process of designing a character's look and would do whatever it took to transform himself. I gave him the role on that condition. We then spent time designing the character's hair color, facial hair, scars, tattoos, and attire. By the time we were done he was completely transformed. Many actors had auditioned who naturally looked as menacing, but not one of them was the same caliber of actor. It's far better to cast for skill and spend the time transforming the look of your actor than it is to cast for looks and push them to deliver a better performance.

- Lastly, don't see more than 45 people a day. You'll burn out and they'll blur together.
 
Prodigi Pictures said:
- Go out of your way to make the actors feel comfortable and safe. Auditioning isn't about being in control. Many directors, casting agents and producers abuse the process and use it as an opportunity to have a power trip. What a stupid waste of time...and what proof of terrible insecurity. You are already in charge! Use that power to make people feel comfortable. You'll be rewarded with better performances and actors who will follow you anywhere.
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my casting director told me some stories about a "name" director she'd worked with (who shall remain nameless here) whose entire casting process was a power trip. he would verbally berate bad perfomrnaces and his big schtick was this: whenever an actor came in that didn't look like their headshot he'd interrupt their read by holding up the 8x10 saying, "where's this person? this is who we wanted! get outta here!" needless to say, this guy was a class act.
 
Wait!!! One more thing, always cast understudies. And only cast real actors or people who're committed to acting. DO NOT cast people who do it as something on the side unless it's a very short scene. Most non-actors (people not really trying to be actors) will flake. Actors can be flaky but real actors stick with it if they say their in.

I had a chick flake on me the day of the first scene. It was between her and my leading lady (a professional actress mind you). I couldn't believe it. The night before the shoot she was all excited and promised she'd be there and ready and loved the scene etc then she didn't show and wouldn't return my calls, leaving me and a very serious actress high and dry.

But I believe everything happens for a reason, we ended up with a girl who totally worked the role better than I had imagined. She was foreign and her personality was both sweet and tough. In the movie she played a badgirl and I was surprised at how she nailed it. Between the editing their chemistry, they kept a potentially boring dialog scene lively.

-Nate
 
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MY BEST ADVICE IS TO MAKE SURE YOU GIVE THEM GREAT SIDES AND INSURE THAT THEY HAVE ENOUGH TIME WITH YOU...SOME PEOPLE MAY NOT AUDITION AS WELL AS THEY MIGHT...i AM WITH ZAK ABOUT GETTING THE BEST ACTOR/ACTRESS...THAT IS FAR MORE IMPORTANT THAN ANYTHING ELSE. GO FOR EXPEREIENCE...TAPE ALL AUDITIONS...SOMETIMES THEY LOOK BETTER/WORSE ON TAPE...AND LASTLY TALK EXTENSIVELY WITH THE NARROWED DOWN LIST...GET A TEAM PLAYER...AN OVER USED TERM BUT MAKES ALL THE DIFFERENCE WHEN THINGS GO WRONG...AND THEY WILL GO WRONG...A HAPPY TEAM IS BETTER THAN ONE GOOD ACTOR...


GOOD LUCK,

STAN HARRINGTON,
WWW.XRISTOSPRODUCTIONS.COM
WWW.IGFDB.COM
 
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