Finding Actors....

Yeah I agree, and maybe acting in a class should be required at least once for all directors, like police with stun guns, they have to be stung once themselves so they know how it feels before they are issued one.

But also I think there are some director's that would rather shoot themselves than act and a lot of great directors who have never acted. So I think that people can get a lot of benefit from observing and understanding the acting process even if they don't do it themselves.

tommyinla said:
... what KILLS a production is poor acting ...
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Yes. You can have a low fi image, poor lighting, and only passable (though not bad sound), and acting can either make a technically imperfect piece great or a technically excellent piece unwatchable.

I attended a short filmmakers panel hosted by Roman Jaquez through Indie Club, and the panelist, who had had shorts at Sundance, etc. all said that you can have an out of focus shot, but you cannot, absolutely not, have bad acting.
 
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tommyinla said:
...which is what baffles me about dvxuser. 98% of the people on this forum only focus on the technical stuff and not on the acting... and what KILLS a production is poor acting. Most people here aren't actors and it's painfully obvious. If you really want to be a filmmaker, focus on the acting... take acting classes yourself - and I don't mean to help run the camera. Take the classes to learn how to act and try and learn different techniques. Become an actor's director. If you're focused on the performances from your actors and know how to communicate what you're looking to get from them, it's obvious and actors will (usually) respect you more. It can only help.
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So true dude, so so true.
 
Thanks for all the replys.

Two quick question:

1) I am filming a really, really short scripts and holding auditions for the roles. Should I e-mail them the script so they can practice for the auditions or no? What should I give them?

2) Where do you guys hold auditions. What are the prices do you have to pay?
 
It's customary to provide the actor with "sides" before the audition.

Providing the whole script is for a different purpose - so the actor can evaluate if they want to do it or not, or for large roles, so they can study the character for the audition.

So you should just provide the sections you want them to read. If your whole script is one or two pages long and their part is on both pages then it doesn't make much difference I guess. But the purpose in providing just what you want to see them read is so they know exactly what you want to see and to keep it to a manageable amount of preparation.

I know it is a short script, but for preliminary auditions you would not ask them to do more than a page or two. So just send them exactly whatever you want them to read and (ideally) mark it with two hash marks where they should start and two hash marks where they should end.

Refer to it as "sides" in the email and you will seem cool.

"Here are the sides for the audition. I'll be reading you for such and such character."

If you have auditions for a commercial, then you call the sides "copy". So if this is for an Adfest entry, then call it "copy".

The term "sides" comes from Elizabethan times when there was printing, but no Kinko's or Email. It would not be feasable to run a printing press for 30 copies or so for a company doing one of Shakespeare's plays, so while there was a master copy, some poor dude had to hand copy the necessary portions of the script for each actor. Since this was a pain, only one "side" of the dialogue would be copied for each actor and only for the parts they were in. Because it was only one "side" of the conversation, the copies were called "sides".

Today it is of course easier to not separate out the dialogue, and having the other actors dialogue and the stage directions or actions, etc. is, in fact, helpful.
 
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Where to have auditions.

Anywhere you can. Your garage or apartment will do unless you are concerned with a bunch of crazy actors knowing where you live.

Film auditions are held in board rooms, rehearsal rooms, studios, hotel rooms, and apartments and the actors are sometimes uncomfortably close to the auditors.

If you can rent a rehearsal studio ($8 - $50 /hour depending on where you are, size, location, and amenities) then you may add an air legitimacy to your production.

The big factors are as follows
- people feel safe
- depending on how many people you are seeing and when they are showing up, that you can organize the flow of traffic - if you are seeing one person every half hour you may not need help, but even if you always stop five minutes early, the next person may show up as much as an hour early and ring your bell during the current audition or have no place to hang out during someone else's audition except in the room. So just something to think about. If you don't have a helper, have a sign in sheet and a sign that says, "sign in". (you'll want the sign in sheet anyway - leave spacs for name, email, phone.
- TAPE, you need enough space to get a medium shot. TAPE your auditions and review them later. A person can seem tiny and uninteresting in person, and then on tape seem like movie star. So review the tape before you make decisions. Before they audition, have them say their name and phone number (if they have agents, they will say their name and agency affiliation). This way if you lose your paperwork but love their audition, you can still find them. This is called "slating" and actors with experience will do it without you asking for it.

But avoid spending money on a space if you can. Ask to use the gym at your local church or something. If you spend money, make it for water bottles in the audition room or waiting area - another touch that will make you seem like you have your stuff together.
 
I'm gonna part with Jack on this one. I would never ever ever audition in my apartment. EVER. To me, nothing makes me look less professional. When I was an actor, I would never even bother going to something like that. To me it's ALWAYS worth the money to rent a space if you cannot get some neutral space like a church basement for free. But I think it's important that the space be neutral.

If it's an actor I know and have worked with, I may use my apartment to read them for the role, and see if they are right for it. But never with people I don't know.
 
Yeah I tend to agree with you actually.

I have auditioned actors at my apartment, but only twice (as in for two actors) and only after an initial meeting somewhere else.

I've always felt too sketchy to ask people to audition at my apartment. But I really don't audition people. My films are small enough and are usually cast from people I already know.

Also, you and I have work we can show people online, so even if it's in an apartment they know we are more legit.

But if I was seeing strangers cold, then yeah a church basement or anything would be better than your apartment.

But I think you should spend very little money if any on it.
 
youngfilmmaker said:
One more quick thing. Is there a bad side with e-mailing everyone the script?
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There's always the potential that they could email it to someone else who sends it to someone else .........
I'm strange and probably this is not the norm but I like to go print my script out (Kinko's) and have them bind it ($2.00 per script) and give the actors the script this way. I know it looks more professional then having them print out 30 pages on dime. Since I'm not paying I tend to pay for these types of things.

Funny thing is I just finished casting another 30 minute short and we did the initial castings at a rehersal place in my area (Burbank). But I did the callbacks at my house because I had already met these people once - they've all checked out my website to see clips of my work and it was much easier to film the audition at home.
 
i'm at the LA Center Studios (and coincidentally, in the middle of casting) and the giant conference rooms here rent out for $200/day. which i've negotiated down to half that.
 
This post has evolved into something different now, but I had a lot of luck finding actors through local community theaters. Watch a show or two and you might get a chance to hand pick the good performers. Of course, their level of dedication will vary, but who knows...you might find a gem in there.

But be aware that these actors may be theatre-trained, and may not necessarily understand the nuances of performing for the screen.
 
I want to thank for everyones help. The auditions are on monday the 6th and I am really excited. I got 15 actors trying out for the role and I got the auditions room set up and ready at this conference place. I want to thank everyone for their input in this discussion.

Does anyone have any pointers?

Do you guys have someone to greet them? Do you guys make them sign releases? Also the actors know that there is no pay should I make them sign something?
 
youngfilmmaker said:
I want to thank for everyones help. The auditions are on monday the 6th and I am really excited. I got 15 actors trying out for the role and I got the auditions room set up and ready at this conference place. I want to thank everyone for their input in this discussion.

Does anyone have any pointers?

Do you guys have someone to greet them?
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Ideally. If not have a sign in sheet with several pencils in a waiting area. Then you can come out and look at the sheet and ask for them by name. Also on this sheet ask for their email and phone number. It will be on their resume (if they have one) but now you have it in a list ordered by the way you saw / taped them and you have it as a backup copy if you lose their resume.

youngfilmmaker said:
Do you guys make them sign releases?
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No that's for once you want to cast them. Then it is recommended that you do (although I have never done it). Go to sonnyboo.com for templates to download once you get to that point.

It would be weird to sign a release for an audition since theoretically the only use of the tape would be for you to review in private or with other people making the film with you.

If you want to use the auditions in BTS or something get seperate permission from them, and again, do it after you've cast them.

youngfilmmaker said:
Also the actors know that there is no pay should I make them sign something?
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Again, not now, use the templates at Sonnyboo when you are ready to offer someone a part.

You can bring it up in the audition. It's not a bad idea to try and talk people out of working with you a bit. "You know there is no money. We go dutch for craft services. We will be 100 miles from the nearest bathroom and we will be shooting the bikini scene in thirty below weather. We have no permits and insurance and may get shut down by the police and I have never made a movie before." I'm exagerating a bit, but if you tell them that this is a bare bones guerilla experience and, assuming they had a good audition, if they are still enthusiastic, those are the ones you want to consider seriously. If they act like they are doing you a favor already, then be wary.
 
Jack thanks for the response thorough this whole discussion.


Has anyone had any bad experience with not having a greeter?

What do you think I might have problems with?
 
you will be OK without help out front ... it's ideal but not essential

you probably won't have a problem, it can just make people feel less nervous that someone knows they are there and that they are in fact in the right place, it can also help things stay organized, but it is not such a big deal, especially since you are seeing 20 or 30 people rather than a couple of hundred or something.
 
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