I'm wondering...

vnguyen972

vnguyen972

Well-known member
.. about an actor commitment. So lets say I'm doing a low budget shoot then going through an audition process and then found this one great actor and he seems to be excited about the project and all and his schedule seems to open on the schedule I set for shooting so everything went great, but then after a while when we got closer to the shooting date, he also said that though he's available on the shooting date but if there's another job coming by and happens to be on the same date, he would take it instead. Now, I know I should be understanding because obviously I guess I'm not paying him enough but what I'm wondering about the actor commitment... once you're signed on, would it be ok to back out because there's a better paid job? what usually do poor filmmakers do in this case? should I keep my fingers crossed and hope there isn't any better coming up for him? or should I recast? I probably will recast but I wanted to hear everyone's thought on the matter.
 
I would tell him point blank that in all fairness to the project and everyone involved, you need a firm commitment from him. If he can't give you that, you're disappointed because he would be great in the role and very sorry but you'll have to cast someone else.
 
Yeah I agree. As an actor, even in non-paying gigs, you have to commit. The prospect of hosing everyone else in the cast and crew at the last minute is just not acceptable. So you either say yes, and show up no matter what (aside from a genuine emergency, and another job is not that), or you say no. The only exception would be if you hear of the other job early enough that you're not totally hosing everyone. IMHO, that would be several days ahead of the shoot at a minimum, and only for a *really* important other job. Even that is pushing it. Anything else is just unprofessional, even though it's not a paying job.
 
vnguyen972 said:
.. about an actor commitment. So lets say I'm doing a low budget shoot then going through an audition process and then found this one great actor and he seems to be excited about the project and all and his schedule seems to open on the schedule I set for shooting so everything went great, but then after a while when we got closer to the shooting date, he also said that though he's available on the shooting date but if there's another job coming by and happens to be on the same date, he would take it instead. Now, I know I should be understanding because obviously I guess I'm not paying him enough but what I'm wondering about the actor commitment... once you're signed on, would it be ok to back out because there's a better paid job? what usually do poor filmmakers do in this case? should I keep my fingers crossed and hope there isn't any better coming up for him? or should I recast? I probably will recast but I wanted to hear everyone's thought on the matter.
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:shocked: What?! Actors need to commit. Period. Rather you're paying them in pizza for paying them $5,000,000. Leaving everyone hanging at the last minute because you got a paid gig is simply unacceptable. He may be a great actor but he doesn't seem too professional. If this guy can't commit for the full term of the project, do yourself a huge favor and find someone who can.
 
I know others would say recast, however I know of some actor friends who are on television shows and who have been in larger Hollywood projects who have said the same thing to a number of independent filmmakers I know, including myself. So I think it just depends on who the actors is, how talented they are and how bad you want them in the project. If they are worth it, I would realign my entire shoot schedule if it came to that just to keep them in and shoot it with them.

I think some of the better known actors will often say that because they are actively looking for and pursing some of the top gigs out there and are constantly waiting on call backs or to hear if they got a part. They tell you that as a courtesy, to say if I land that one big role or something comes up, I'll have to take it if it falls on the same day. In my personal opinion, I don't find it to be an insult or a lack of commitment or anything negative at all but more as a positive thing and fairly common with more well known/active actors. They are actively out there pursuing gigs and are trying to make a living off their acting. They are professionals who at the same time are interested in getting involved in independent low budget projects.

I think in the end, it would be great if they did land some really nice role and got more exposure. However the odds of it having a shoot schedule around the same time period as yours is extremely rare and furthermore they'd likely get notice well in advance to the point where they could tell you well in advance to reschedule everything. In that situation, you still have them in your project and shoot with them when they are available.

Just my thoughts, however it looks like you made your decision and it sounds like you found someone better suited for the role either way.
 
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I agreed and that makes sense too... and I understand that as well. Like you said, if I must have him/her, yeah I would definitely reschedule to accommodate that. My decision was made base on everyone's interests which prevents any issue down the road.
 
rsbush said:
I would tell him point blank that in all fairness to the project and everyone involved, you need a firm commitment from him. If he can't give you that, you're disappointed because he would be great in the role and very sorry but you'll have to cast someone else.
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Perfect.
 
And yeah to the other posters too, if this actor is gonna Make the movie then yeah you reschedule. If it's Joe Schmoe who happens to be good, there might be another one around willing to stick it out. Go with your gut.
 
It's hard enough to align everyone's schedules especially if you have crew (who are often working professionals who may or may not be doing your gig for free, depending on what you;ve worked out), and other actors to consider. Actors need to commit period, especially since you as the low budget producer have to do so much more juggling to make everything work at the right time. Locations, crew, actors... weather... sometimes they can't be delayed because one actor has another gig somewhere else.

I've bent over backwards to accomodate actors before in the same instance and they ended up rushing through the day just to get off to another gig they had booked on the same bloody day. Not good. Screw that. Everyone else has commited and are willing to do their part and it's going to cost you more in the long run.

It's not worth it. Recast.
 
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