Model for Vogue!

Vogue and a major automobile brand are looking for a model to star in an upcoming commercial. Accelerate your career – submit today!

Work Location: Los Angeles, CA

Submission deadline: April 26, 2024

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Star in Goose Creek Commercial!

Light up the screen! Goose Creek Candle is seeking talent to star in their next commercial. Submit today!

Work Location: Los Angeles, CA

Submission deadline: April 26, 2024

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Join badboyboards’ Shoot!

Get on board with badboyboards! They’re seeking talent to feature in their upcoming photoshoot. Show off your cooking skills and submit today!

Work Location: Los Angeles, CA

Submission deadline: April 26, 2024

Register to submit, or if you already have an account, log in to submit.

You can find these roles and many more on Casting Networks! Sign up now to find your next role.

The post What’s Casting: Vogue Commercial with Major Auto Brand, Goose Creek Candle, badboyboards first appeared on Casting Networks.

The post What’s Casting: Vogue Commercial with Major Auto Brand, Goose Creek Candle, badboyboards appeared first on Casting Networks.

Furthermore, Papsidera’s collaboration with Taylor Sheridan on his “Taylorverse” introduced audiences to several new franchise shows last year that he cast, including 1923, Lawman: Bass Reeves and Special Ops: Lioness.

In addition to these successes, Papsidera cast the Apple TV+ miniseries Lessons in Chemistry. The historical drama stars Brie Larson as a chemist who becomes a cooking show host, leveraging her scientific expertise to enlighten her primarily housewife audience on scientific principles.

In an interview with Casting Networks, Papsidera provided insights into the unique challenges of bringing the show to life, and his experience attending the SAG Awards for the first time earlier this year.

Were any actors already attached to the project when you came on board to cast?

Brie was already attached. She was a producer and had worked in developing the piece. Hannah Fidell, the original showrunner, called me and asked, in conjunction with Apple, if I would be interested. Hannah and I got off to a great start. I had seen the show she did with Kate Mara and Nick Robinson, A Teacher, so we talked about that when I first met her. I found out later she is friends with Jason Reitman, who I’m friends with and work with a lot (Author’s note: Papsidera cast the filmmaker’s Ghostbusters: Afterlife and its sequel, Frozen Empire.)

Were there any special requirements for casting this show?

We wanted to capture the time period in the right way to make it as authentic as we could to that world – in which women were second-class citizens in many ways. We needed it to come through authentically rather than cartoony or over the top because the show was also mixing humor with very serious subjects. I knew going in that it would be a mix of comedy and tragic things, but also with a very female-driven point of view. We wanted women to look like women, not just beauty queens. We wanted men to feel like they were from the 50s and represent that in the right way. Those were the biggest things we talked about.

Photo courtesy of Apple TV+.

How do you accomplish that in terms of look and voice?

It’s subtle. It’s about vocal style and diction. The English language has been trashed over the years, so it’s very different now how someone speaks – in terms of what they say and how they say it – than it used to be in the 50s. During the audition, we had people with a perfect look but not the perfect tone. Others had the tone but looked too contemporary. We’d go back and ask them to do something with their hair, like pull it back, for instance, to try and fit those pieces together. Because some people can get the tone and presentation, and some need a little adjusting.

Shouldn’t casting directors be able to see past hair and presentation?

Yes, we do see it. That’s why we’re asking actors to make that adjustment. It’s not for us. It’s for executives and producers and directors. I’m working on something now where the person said to me, yeah, ‘He’s a good actor, but in that picture, his hair’s not quite right.’ I was like, you’re going to talk about somebody’s hairdo from a resume standpoint, as opposed to the role we’re talking about? Sometimes you have to help those people see the actors in the light that they are looking for. It’s a reality that we deal with all the time.

With Lessons in Chemistry, what were you looking for in terms of look?

Certainly, there was more softness back then. The look of the 1950s was not rail thin and lip injections, you know what I mean? You have to pay attention to those things. Women had curves, and men didn’t have their teeth perfectly capped or their hair filled in.

Photo courtesy of Apple TV+.

But many actors – and in today’s culture – do have lip injections and filled-in hair because we live in a culture where that’s very prevalent right now. It’s also associated with youthfulness – and actors usually want to look as young as long as possible to extend their careers.

At the end of the day, you have to be a human being and do what you want to do as a human. That’s more important than what you do in life for a career to make money. Just be mindful of the fact it is going to inhibit you at times. However, it also depends on the piece you’re working on, and how important it is or isn’t. Not for every character, but if there’s nudity for women (on period projects), you can’t have augmentations because people will be like, ‘That’s not true to the time.’ All those things come into play.

Unfortunately, I think women are subjected to (scrutiny) more. Part of that is the male gaze and that whole mindset. It can be a hard line for actors to do what’s right for their career and what’s right to make themselves look beautiful and youthful and not surgery themselves out of a job.

Let’s talk about how some of the supporting characters were cast.

Stephanie Koenig, who played Fran, I had known her and thought she was a fabulous actress. My associate, Jennifer Cram, who I’ve worked with on and off for 19 years, wrote and directed her own film [Sick Girl], and Stephanie was in it. I produced it, so we knew what Stephanie could do. She’s one of those actresses who got the tone, look, and style all at once. The [showrunners and studio] didn’t even know what she had done. They just were blown away by her audition. We weren’t bound to have a name for every character so we opened the doors and had people read to find the most realistic people that we could set this world.

Aja Naomi King, [who played Harriet Sloan,] was brilliant in her audition. She was such a force. She and Patrick Walker, [who plays Reverend Wakely,] through their performances and auditions, acted their way into elevated writing because the writers started to write towards them, and beefed up that storyline during the process because it wasn’t there initially. The writing was enhanced by their casting.

Kevin Sussman, [who played the cooking show producer Walter Pine], I’ve known for years and always loved his work. I honestly thought on some level, the producers would be drawn to a big name for that role. But Kevin read, they watched his tape, and they said, he’s perfect.

Photo courtesy of Apple TV+.

Speaking of bigger names, how did Lewis Pullman come aboard as the Brie’s leading man?

He was coming off Top Gun: Maverick. He had other stuff that he was about to go to, but we made the schedule work. I was thrilled because not only does he read incredibly intelligent, but he has a real sense of humor and can do physically comedic stuff. I was thrilled that we got Lewis and I thought he and Brie had an amazing chemistry.

You were invited to attend the SAG awards for the first time in your career this past February because of Oppenheimer, which you cast. The room must have been filled with actors who have auditioned for you over the years. Any memorable encounters?

The SAG Awards were a lovely experience because I got to see so many actors that I don’t get to see on a regular basis because they’ve all become big stars! I congratulated Margot Robbie, and she said, ‘It’s all because of you.’

What did she mean by that?

I was her first meeting when she came to the United States from Australia. I flipped for her. I happened to be doing the remake of Charlie’s Angels, the television series. I immediately got Margot into that, and she tested. The studio was like, “We don’t really see it.” I’m like, “What?” A week later, she was cast in [the short-lived ABC series] Pan Am, and that was her first big project in the States.

Casting directors use Casting Networks every day to discover people like you. Sign up or log in today to get one step closer to your next role.

You may also like:

• Remember, Acting is a Job, Part 1: Who You Are vs. What You Are
• Success Story: How Ansley Moncoeur’s Interaction With Michael Cera Led to an Upgrade and SAG Voucher on the Set of ‘Life & Beth’
• ‘The Girls on the Bus’ Star PJ Sosko Talks Learning from Masters to Portray Literary, Journalist Icons Earnest Hemingway and Hunter S. Thompson

The post Legendary Casting Director John Papsidera Talks ‘Lessons in Chemistry’ and More first appeared on Casting Networks.

The post Legendary Casting Director John Papsidera Talks ‘Lessons in Chemistry’ and More appeared first on Casting Networks.

The first problem with tying your identity to your career is that it creates an imbalanced power dynamic. If others hold the keys to your identity you are not in the driver’s seat. The roles you get will always feel like a reflection of your worth. You will end up pushing yourself past your boundaries (if you set any at all) in pursuit of the idealized career you’ve created in your head.

This attitude encourages and enables the abuse of that dynamic. If you are not treating acting like a job, it creates an environment where you’re more likely to agree to work for free, overlook toxic work practices and even agree to do physically dangerous things for the sake of the art. You will be less likely to speak up. Unfortunately, many a director and artistic directors out there are keenly aware of this dynamic and will push actors far past the bounds of professionalism because they know how terrified actors are of losing any opportunity.

There can be no work/life balance when your work defines your life. Every dip in your career will dominate the rest of your life, putting a strain on relationships and a lens through which you interpret all outside experiences. There have been times in my career where I would have thought Fine. I don’t need anything else but this work. It’s the most important thing to me. But there has to be more. You cannot bring your best self to work onset or on stage if you are not investing in your life outside of acting.

Furthermore, if you take everything as a reflection of yourself it puts your self-esteem in a very precarious position. The rejections will feel like measures of your worth instead of part of the numbers game. Your resiliency will suffer. It puts you at risk of becoming jaded, bitter, or reluctant to take artistic risks for fear of failure.

Aside from your mental health, the more you are wrapping up your sense of self with your success as an actor, the less you will be able to be a supportive cast mate. If you’re in it for you, you have a skewed view of the project, and the work will suffer.

For example. I recently auditioned for a show I knew I was too emotionally invested in. While I booked the show, it was an ensemble track I didn’t feel as confident in, and none of the roles I was hoping for. If I had taken that personally, it would have been easy to say, “Well if I didn’t get exactly what I wanted, I won’t be part of it at all.”

But you know what? It was a job. I needed the money. I liked the people attached to the project. Parts of it were outside my comfort zone, but it started looking like an opportunity to learn. Separating my sense of worth from the casting let me enter into the project with genuine excitement, curiosity and drive to do my best. And the paycheck allowed me to sign up for training I wouldn’t have been able to afford otherwise.

That’s the counterintuitive part of this equation. If you don’t pour all of yourself into your career, you’ll have the clarity and energy to accept more opportunities.

Casting directors use Casting Networks every day to discover people like you. Sign up or log in today to get one step closer to your next role.

You may also like:

• ‘The Girls on the Bus’ Star PJ Sosko Talks Learning from Masters to Portray Literary, Journalist Icons Earnest Hemingway and Hunter S. Thompson
• The Art of Silent Expression: Acting Without Words
• Fight Director Benedetto Robinson Gets into the Nitty Gritty of Fight Choreography, What it Means to Be an Actor Combatant

The post Remember, Acting is a Job, Part 1: Who You Are vs. What You Are first appeared on Casting Networks.

The post Remember, Acting is a Job, Part 1: Who You Are vs. What You Are appeared first on Casting Networks.

How did you decide to become an actor?

It was kind of by accident. I was at a party and I stepped outside to get some fresh air. Then I noticed people coming off [these] huge Megabuses or Greyhound buses, and they were all dressed in 60s, 50s attire. I asked one of them, “What are you guys dressed up for?” He told me [it was] background acting for The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. I was asking him [questions] like, “Hey, how do you get started?” He told me about a few websites, and from then on I was like, “Oh, this is something I could really see myself doing.”

How did you first discover Casting Networks?

I think that was the first website that [the background actor] told me about. He told me, “Casting Networks is really good. They have a variety [of acting jobs] from commercials to student projects to film.” I was like, “Wow, this sounds like it’s a real official big-time thing. Let me sign up for this.”

Tell me about your experience booking Life & Beth on Casting Networks.

I signed up for the emails from Casting Networks for when new opportunities came up, and I noticed Life & Beth. I see advertising for the show everywhere in NYC. The role was something I was already doing at that time which was “kitchen staff.” They did ask to see if we had the uniform already (black pants and shoes) while they provided the chef shirt and apron. I was just getting off a shift looking at the reference picture knowing that’s exactly what I had on that day.

I submitted [on Monday] and got an email from production with call time on Thursday, so it didn’t take long at all.

Photo courtesy of Ansley Moncoeur.

What was the on-set experience like? How did you end up getting upgraded and getting a SAG voucher out of it?

It was interesting. The role was a restaurant worker. I’ve always been in restaurants doing serving, catering, stuff like that, so it didn’t seem like anything out of the ordinary. I was surprised because only three of us got cast for it.

When they were about to place us on-set, they came to all three of us like we were in a huddle or something and they said, “Okay guys, I need to know who knows how to pour water.” I’m like, “Wait, is this a joke?” All three of us looked so confused and for some reason no one would say, “Yeah, I know how to pour water,” so I did. They said, “All right, cool. You’re going to be the one that pours water for Michael Cera.” So I’m like, “All right, cool. I’m going to get some face time.” That’s all I cared about.

While everything is going on, I’m with the pitcher. I pour the water and then Michael Cera says, “Hi” to me. Naturally, as a human being, I say, “Hi” back. They cut and it was like, “Okay, background, we don’t want you to talk. Sorry about that, it’s just a silent role.” Then here goes Michael like, “Oh, no, I actually want to have a conversation with him. I want to talk to him while he’s pouring the water. I want to make it seem like I knew him from before.” The director was like, “All right, let’s get him a mic. Let’s mic him up.” I’m like, “Oh my goodness. I actually have a speaking line in this.” You get humbled by the smallest things.

Amy Schumer, who also stars on [Life & Beth], was also like, “Yeah, I feel like it should be mutual. It should be like a thing that he just comes [to the restaurant]. And he comes here often, so he should know the waiters that are here.”

Amy Schumer and Michael Cera both agreed, and then all these people [came] with microphones and paperwork that I had to fill out. It’s so much paperwork when you get upgraded.

The whole upgrading itself is going from just sitting in a regular holding [area] and now they have you sitting with the stars. I’m sitting right next to Michael Cera. I’m sitting right next to Amy Schumer and we’re having a regular conversation talking about how [Michael] should try Audible for the first time.

The whole process was like the earth just cracked open. At a certain point, I didn’t know how big of a moment this was until everybody started congratulating me. This is the thing that people actually strive for and luckily enough, through Casting Networks, I was able to get it. I owe the biggest thanks to Casting Networks for this.

Photo courtesy of Ansley Moncoeur.

What would you say can help somebody succeed on Casting Networks?

Persistence, and making sure that you give [casting directors] exactly what they ask for. Casting Networks makes it so easy to upload anything. It’s pretty basic stuff that directors look for, and as long as you can give it to them, you’ll be set. As long as you can fit the requirements that’s asked of you, you’re going to get there.

What are some audition tips that you might be able to share?

Get something with lighting. If you don’t have good natural light, then I would suggest you buy one of those ring lights or go to a well-lit area. Be confident in what you’re doing, because I feel like [casting directors] could pick up on that. And take it seriously. There [are] certain things you can do off-camera to practice, but when you’re sending in something, make sure that you give it all you can. I feel like the [casting] directors would understand that, they will see it, they’ll understand and they’ll definitely take it into consideration.

What are some other successes and high-profile jobs you’ve booked off of Casting Networks?

I did a photo shoot. It was a commercial shoot for Coca-Cola. That was pretty dope, because I didn’t expect it. I mean, first they don’t tell you exactly what you’re going in for. They told me to bring different clothes, and that shoot was amazing. It was a billboard shoot. To have that opportunity to work with so many good people knowing that it just comes from a click of a button…[I wonder] how many opportunities are actually there waiting for people.

Coca-Cola’s one. I got a few more good background acting roles from Casting Networks, and a few commercials. I got some modeling opportunities from there. Casting Networks actually has staffing agencies, so if you want to do catering or serving, they have that as well. That surprised me.

They look for model servers, or model staff. They want to see that you can model or have the look of a model, but are still able to serve cocktails and stuff like that, so that definitely does help. I’ve gotten a few [jobs] from there too, thanks [to] Casting Networks.

Casting directors use Casting Networks every day to discover people like you. Sign up or log in today to get one step closer to your next role.

You may also like:

• ‘The Girls on the Bus’ Star PJ Sosko Talks Learning from Masters to Portray Literary, Journalist Icons Earnest Hemingway and Hunter S. Thompson
• The Art of Silent Expression: Acting Without Words
• Fight Director Benedetto Robinson Gets into the Nitty Gritty of Fight Choreography, What it Means to Be an Actor Combatant

The post Success Story: How Ansley Moncoeur’s Interaction With Michael Cera Led to an Upgrade and SAG Voucher on the Set of ‘Life & Beth’ first appeared on Casting Networks.

The post Success Story: How Ansley Moncoeur’s Interaction With Michael Cera Led to an Upgrade and SAG Voucher on the Set of ‘Life & Beth’ appeared first on Casting Networks.

On the MAX series The Girls on the Bus, he has been cast as the ghost of legendary gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson. It’s the first major streaming role for the actor, whose work on the show is earning kudos, even among a stellar cast that includes Melissa Benoist, Carla Gugino, Griffin Dunne and plenty more.

PJ and I have known each other for more than a quarter century. We bartended together when times were tougher and have seen and read each other’s work over and over again through the years. Seeing his success now is especially gratifying, considering how many times I watched him in less than stellar Off-Off-Off Broadway fare in which he was by far the best part. He was at home in Tulsa, Oklahoma, in between acting gigs, when we spoke. It was the first time he’d been interviewed in years, and the first time I’d interviewed a good friend, so strap yourself in. We cover a lot of ground.

Do you remember how we met?

You walked into Exile, that bar on West 70th, when I was just starting.

I think it was the winter of 1998. I had made Two Ninas, my first movie, but it hadn’t hit festivals yet.

I remember you gave me a VHS tape of it.

When we started talking, I said, “Are you a good actor?” And you looked at me dead in the eye and said, “Yeah, I’m really good.” I remember thinking, “I believe this guy.” You looked at me and said, “Are you a good writer?” And I said, “I’m awesome.”

(Laughs) That was the beginning of our friendship! That we both owned it. You want to keep some humility, but knowing you can back it up and jam with anyone is the key. I think we saw that in each other. Now, I’m working with people that I’ve admired, Carla Gugino and Jackie Earle Haley, and with them, it’s instant. We’re playing.

In all of the years we’ve been friends, I don’t think I’ve ever asked you this question: how did you get into acting in the first place?

I was a nationally-ranked cross-country runner. I did the National Junior Olympics my senior year of high school, I was kicking ass, getting all the records, blah, blah, blah. I went to the University of Rochester on a scholarship. The coach turned out to be a dick, and after I missed a practice, benched me. So I quit.

Photo by Brette Taylor, courtesy of PJ Sosko.

You really quit?

My parents were pissed. And that happened right as a guy from the Royal Shakespeare Company named Mervyn Willis was taking over the theater program, ultimately to get his green card. I started getting cast because I was the only one who was comfortable on stage. I liked getting in front of people. I was a bit of a class clown, but I didn’t know that this would turn into a career.

One of the things I’ve always admired about you, and I think that this has always been a cornerstone of our friendship, is we’re both lifers. There was never a moment when it occurred to either of us to say, I can’t do this anymore. How did you get through the dark times?

If I didn’t have people say to me, “Hey, you have something special,” I don’t know that I would have. I put the work in. The craft is important to me. That’s always been part of it for us both. We bust our ass. There are a lot of steps along the way where you can get lazy, but for me, voiceovers happened, which was lucky. Many people enter the voiceover world and stop acting, but that allowed me to be patient. I could do the Off-Broadway show that you don’t get paid that much, but I do it because I’m the lead. I could go away for a week to do a developmental thing. It allowed me some freedom to do whatever I wanted. My side job was the job.

While most actors are losing time working on acting while they’re doing their side job, you’re only continuing to hone it?

Right. And since I was constantly working, I didn’t bring any less of what I do with a role to a short film than I do to a feature. It’s really hard work.

That was our long-running joke. I saw you in, like, a couple dozen theatrical things, and it was always, “I hated the show, but you were great in it.” The work was always stellar.

At some point, that starts to become a world that no longer satisfies you as an artist. It was something that would come out of our conversations. I was always trying to make sure that everybody was bringing their A-game because I’m going to bring a level to this. What I learned to do was to start throwing my two cents in because I’m realizing that they’re not matching what I’m bringing.

I was listening to Ethan Hawke, who was on Marc Maron’s podcast, and he said he can’t approach a role now not like a filmmaker, and that’s me, too. I’ve done too much, and seen too many things go wrong. Now, I approach every job as a producer, because I’ve done all those things. This HBO show was the first time for me to work with a huge machine, so it was a new experience about how to collaborate.

Photo courtesy of PJ Sosko.

How did that work, then? You’re used to being a big fish in a small pond, and now it’s the opposite.

I think it’s important for them to allow the actor, when you’re working with a certain talent, to let me surprise you on the creative side, and bring ideas to the table. My point of view is worthy interesting, valid and unique, and that’s something that I don’t take away. I’ve lived a very full life. The good, the bad, the ups, the downs, I’ve gone to the extremes. But I put everything I had into this character while I was there for eight months.

Well, let’s talk about this. Because as you said, this is the first time you’re walking into a real machine. This is big time. You’ve survived in a way that 99% of actors don’t, and now you’re doing it as a character who is a well-known part of the Zeitgeist.

I’ve played real people before. Remember, I played Hemingway …

That’s where you met Marta.

That’s where I met my wife. There’s no way I should’ve been playing him. I’m about 100 pounds too light and six inches too short, but it was about technique. I know how to make myself bigger. I know those things. I learned them from masters along the way because I never stopped learning. In the film, there are lots of tools that you can use from your theater experience if you’re crafty with it and if you realize that you just gotta turn the volume down on it, but filling the frame, sometimes people don’t think about how you fill a stage is the same as the frame.

That’s a terrific answer to a question I didn’t ask.

(Laughs) Sorry. Hunter S. Thompson. HBO.

I was up for a part in the Scorsese movie, Killers of the Flower Moon, which was shooting down here. Then I got an offer for the lead in an indie film from a couple of producers I’d worked with before. I asked the Scorsese people and they hadn’t made a decision, so I took the indie. In the hiatuses, I shot some other stuff, and while I was shooting this other low-budget thing, I got the audition for an HBO show for a recurring character named Hunter S. Thompson.

I had no time to prepare this, but I found one video that I connect with, but because of working on Hemingway and these other real guys, it gave me a shorthand to how he spoke. I did one take of the self-tape and sent it in, and Marta said, “If they don’t hire you, they’re stupid.” Two days later, I’m on hold. One day after, it’s mine.

I got like, a month of prep time, which I never had in New York without my wife and kid, so I did a real deep dive and just started memorizing all these quotes of his, just beautiful stuff that wasn’t well known. I was an advocate for the character and let it fly. I would talk to the directors or Melissa about how there was room for something here or there, but it’s rarefied air.

I wonder how many actors would feel comfortable enough to go in like that.

I came in and did an episode of a popular network drama during all this as well. The season three finale was great. We banged out almost an entire episode in like a day. And then they wrote the character back into this season. I wasn’t expecting that. I thought I was just going to be a robber of the week.

I have to think part of that is because of the choices I made. The availability. The consistency that I brought. They didn’t have to write him back on, but even though I wasn’t necessarily comfortable with the process, I couldn’t stop my creativity from coming out. And now I’ve earned my spot. I know what I’m doing. Each time that I get a chance to work with these geniuses, these people who I’ve watched over the years, I’m humming along with them, and that’s it. To gain more of that experience gives me confidence.

Photo by Colin Key, courtesy of PJ Sosko.

A lot of actors are on this site, and I imagine a good number of them are struggling. As someone who struggled for a long time and is finally getting his shot, what advice would you give to that person reading this?

What are you doing about it? Are you sitting there and complaining? Are you happy with your auditions? If you’re not, have you taken a class recently? You’re always learning. In this career, if you think you know it all, that’s a foolish thought. There’s always someone to learn from, there’s always a moment that you can figure out from somebody else’s work, or share a director’s note that landed on you.

If you’re a lifer, you just have to keep creating. Are you doing the work? Your body is your instrument, and you have to keep making it better. You have to keep adapting. I found collaborators and they helped make me better. Find other artists and create together. Don’t sit at home and say, Why am I not getting anything? Go out and make shit. Shoot something in the park with two people. Find people you can work with and do it. You’re gonna fail sometimes but keep doing it. That’s what I did, and here I am.

Casting directors use Casting Networks every day to discover people like you. Sign up or log in today to get one step closer to your next role.

You may also like:

• ‘The Girls on the Bus’ Star PJ Sosko Talks Learning from Masters to Portray Literary, Journalist Icons Earnest Hemingway and Hunter S. Thompson
• The Art of Silent Expression: Acting Without Words
• Fight Director Benedetto Robinson Gets into the Nitty Gritty of Fight Choreography, What it Means to Be an Actor Combatant

The post ‘The Girls on the Bus’ Star PJ Sosko Talks Learning from Masters to Portray Icons Ernest Hemingway and Hunter S. Thompson first appeared on Casting Networks.

The post ‘The Girls on the Bus’ Star PJ Sosko Talks Learning from Masters to Portray Icons Ernest Hemingway and Hunter S. Thompson appeared first on Casting Networks.

Before 2020, most voice actors relied on their local recording studios as the place to get their work done. Once the world began to lock down, studios shut down, and voice actors who already had home recording studios began getting the lion’s share of the work. With no end to the pandemic in sight, voice actors who didn’t have home recording studios adapted.

Now, it’s standard to have a home recording studio, as most of the work is done from voice actors’ personal booths. If you’re new to voiceover, setting up a home recording studio can seem like a daunting and expensive task.

If money and space aren’t concerns, you can always invest in home booths, such as a WhisperRoom or Studiobricks and be set, but if that is out of reach, there are plenty of budget-friendly and creative ways to build your home studio.

A very important tip for new and aspiring voice actors: your home studio should come before buying your gear and after your training. For more steps to navigate your voiceover career, check out Casting Networks’ Guide To Getting Started as a Voice Actor.

Here’s a quick rundown of what you need to know when it comes to building your booth:

Finding the Right Space for Your Home Studio

Your home recording studio starts with finding the proper space to sound treat it to get the least amount of noise when recording. Spaces can range from a carpeted room with no windows to a walk-in closet. Find the quietest place you can and start mapping out your booth.

A Note About Soundproofing

Soundproofing does not exist. Sound engineers hate this term for that reason. Soundproofing means you are eliminating all sound, which is impossible. Even the quietest professional recording studio will always have some sound waves bouncing off the walls.

The term you want to use is sound treating, which is the art of making your space as quiet as possible so that you can deliver a broadcast-ready voiceover recording.

How to Sound Treat Your Home Recording Studio

To treat the sound of your home voiceover booth construction site, you’ll want to grab materials to help absorb the sound so that less can reverberate around the walls of the booth. You’ll want to cover every surface—mainly the floor, walls, ceiling, corners and door.

Materials you’ll need to use are acoustic foam panels to cover your walls, ceiling and corners (corner wedges are called bass traps) to pad out your space. Heavy moving blankets can help with door frames and provide an extra layer of coverage. This combination works best for walk-in closets, where clothes on hangers can also help with sound absorption.

Larger spaces can use sound-absorbing panels instead of, or in tandem with acoustic foam panels. To cover the floors in both situations, carpeting, such as a shag rug, will do the trick.

Another option for larger spaces is to build a booth with PVC pipes, clamps and heavy moving blankets (voiceover legend Dee Bradley Baker has an extensive guide on building out a PVC booth).

For voice actors looking to start their journey, a home recording studio is essential for your career. When it comes to building it out, several options can work depending on your space, ranging from a walk-in closet booth to a PVC pipe booth.

Here’s a quick list of the items you’ll need to build out and sound treat your home studio:

• Acoustic foam panels or sound-absorbing panels for larger spaces
• Bass traps for corners
• Heavy moving blankets
• Carpeting, such as a shag rug
• PVC pipes (for larger spaces)

If you’re unsure of which home studio setup works best for you or how it’s going, ask a sound engineer. Many offer their services to help voice actors with their setup.

Voice acting casting calls and auditions are added to Casting Networks daily. Get in your booth and start auditioning today!

Casting directors use Casting Networks every day to discover people like you. Sign up or log in today to get one step closer to your next role.

You may also like:

• The Art of Silent Expression: Acting Without Words
• Fight Director Benedetto Robinson Gets into the Nitty Gritty of Fight Choreography, What it Means to Be an Actor Combatant
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The post Home Studio Building Essentials for Voice Actors Everywhere first appeared on Casting Networks.

The post Home Studio Building Essentials for Voice Actors Everywhere appeared first on Casting Networks.

The Power of Silence in Acting

Quietness should not be mistaken for a lack of connection; rather, it serves as an alternative means of connection. Regarding performance, silence can carry more weight than spoken language. It enables actors to communicate the complexity of their characters’ feelings, ideas and motivations through gestures, posture and eye contact. Through silence, a sense of unease can be built, secrets can be unveiled and compassion can be stirred in manners that words may struggle to achieve.

Techniques for Mastering Silent Expression

Observation and Imitation

One of the first steps in mastering silent expression is to observe people in real life. Notice how they communicate without speaking, how their emotions are reflected in their facial expressions and body language. Imitate these observations in front of a mirror or record yourself to analyze and improve.

Physical Awareness and Control

Mastering silent acting demands a keen sense of physical mindfulness and mastery. Engage in various body control practices like yoga, dance or mime to refine your skills. These pursuits will enable you to communicate emotions and intentions through gestures and movements.

Facial Expressions

The face is a powerful tool for silent expression. Enhance your ability to convey a spectrum of emotions like happiness, sorrow, rage, astonishment and more through deliberate practice in front of a mirror. Pay close attention to the eyes, eyebrows, lips and forehead to master the art of expressing various feelings without uttering a single word.

Eye Contact

It’s commonly believed that the eyes serve as a gateway to one’s innermost self. In silent performance, establishing and sustaining eye contact with your fellow actor or spectators can establish a profound bond and communicate a wide range of feelings. By mastering the art of maintaining eye contact, one can effectively convey sentiments such as affection, animosity, apprehension or resolve.

Subtext and Inner Monologue

Understanding the subtext of a scene or character is crucial in silent acting. Develop an inner monologue for your character, even if you’re not speaking. This will help you stay in character and convey the right emotions through your non-verbal cues.

Breathing Techniques

Your breathing pattern can greatly influence your ability to express emotions silently. Practice different breathing techniques to convey calmness, anxiety, anger or sadness. Controlled breathing can also help you maintain focus and presence on stage.

The Impact of Silent Expression

On the Actor

Actors who have mastered the art of silent expression are able to delve into the intricacies of their craft. This skill compels them to communicate intricate emotions and stories without the use of words, prompting them to gain a profound insight into their characters and the narrative. Additionally, it broadens their capabilities as artists, allowing them to embrace diverse roles and excel in various genres of theater or cinema.

On the Audience

For the audience, silent expression can create a more immersive experience. This skill compels actors to communicate intricate emotions and stories without the use of words, prompting them to gain a profound insight into their characters and the narrative.

Mastering the skill of conveying emotions without words demands a profound comprehension of the role, adeptness in managing and shaping one’s body language, and a powerful bond with the spectators. As the legendary actor Charlie Chaplin once said, “Words are cheap. The biggest thing you can say is ‘elephant’.” Sometimes it’s the silent moments that speak the loudest.

Casting directors use Casting Networks every day to discover people like you. Sign up or log in today to get one step closer to your next role.

You may also like:

• Fincannon & Associates’ Kimberly Wistedt, CSA Talks Casting Netflix’s ‘Outer Banks’ and Atlanta’s Amazing Brunches
• Fincannon & Associates’ Kimberly Wistedt, CSA Talks Casting Netflix’s ‘Outer Banks’ and Atlanta’s Amazing Brunches
• What’s Casting: Frankincense & Myrrh, Tech Brand Campaign, Major Skincare Brand Commercial

The post The Art of Silent Expression: Acting Without Words first appeared on Casting Networks.

The post The Art of Silent Expression: Acting Without Words appeared first on Casting Networks.

Most recently, his work as fight director in the ASC’s Romeo and Juliet was a triumph of storytelling, and he was gracious enough to offer his expertise and insight to those interested in combat for film and stage, fight choreography and what it means to be an actor combatant.

What drew you to stage combat? Give us a brief history.

When I was like fifteen, my mother was volunteering at the Children’s Theatre of Maine and they had this partnership with this theatre called Acorn that specialized in Shakespeare and I started taking classes with them because I liked acting a lot. And one of their classes was this rudimentary stage combat class…and I learned a lot about myself, and a lot about acting and I sort of found the things that I enjoyed to do as a physical human being…This was a good way to exercise that I didn’t hate or didn’t hate myself doing. I started there and then I didn’t do it for years.

In my junior year of college, we had to take a stage combat class. Every one of my classmates was like “Ugh, this is so dumb.” I loved it. My teacher happened to be a certified teacher with the Society of American Fight Directors. I sort of apprenticed with this guy, his name is Jeff Jones. He still lives and works outside of Raleigh North Carolina. Through him, I got introduced to what it is to do this professionally.

Talk about being an actor combatant. What opportunities has it opened in your career?

Before I answer that directly, I’ll talk a little bit about why it is that I’ve decided to continue doing this. Because we live in a society now [where] a lot of our entertainment comes from the consumption and digestion of dramatized violence. This is something that I learned from a very dear friend of mine, Jake Guinn: it is very important that we take responsibility for the images of violence that we depict.

Because in a society like ours in Western society, which is simultaneously so divorced from and so intricately bound up in violence, in the news and the media, I think there’s a very real danger of treating violence as something that is fine, that is able to be, you know, trivialized. The violence in the real world is anything but that…and so, the work of an actor combatant and fight choreographer is to responsibly present violence in a way that serves the story and serves, perhaps the digestion and deconstruction of what we think of as entertaining violence. And look at the cost and result of that in a way that is palatable because it is through theatre or film, but is nevertheless treating it with the respect that it requires.

Now what that looks like in the day-to-day as a fight choreographer, as an actor who performs fighting is…sometimes you’ll be on a job and everyone in the room is like “well, we don’t need a fight choreographer”…and then it becomes your job to advocate for the presence of one. Because it can be, actually, really dangerous.

One of the worst injuries I’ve ever heard tell of happened in a stage combat class where they were using blunt swords…and these two young actors were doing their choreography very quickly…and their teacher was like “OK you guys need to slow down and continue to be aware of the danger of this” and they were like “Oh, it’s blunt, it’s not going to hurt us”…they were going fast and one actor slipped the tip of his blunt sword into the nostril of the other and pierced his brain.

He’s still alive. But that’s a really horrifying injury….and so, it’s important to remind every room that you’re in that there is a need for someone to run this safely. And when the time comes, if you should be so fortunate to be that person in the room, it becomes your responsibility to facilitate that safety and to do it in a way that remains thrilling and in service to the story and respectful of the stakes of the violence. And that’s a complicated puzzle that I really like to try and solve.

You recently choreographed fights for Romeo and Juliet. How did you use combat to support and support the story?

So, this is a thing that I see a lot…oftentimes I will see a period piece…where the action of the story is halted and space is given for this third party thing that is the sword fight, that has nothing to do with anything else, that is super flashy and fun–and that is done and we go back to the story. And I didn’t want to do that.

It comes down to the title of fight director. I think people often put a lot of emphasis on fighting and not a lot of emphasis on the director. To me, it is just as important for a fight director to read and digest and become intimately acquainted with the script and the story as a whole as it is for the director, or an actor in the piece. The violence–it is irresponsible to present violence that does not have any bearing on the story.

In Romeo and Juliet, a couple of things stuck out to me. There’s this big fight in the beginning…where all these teens fight in the street with swords and nobody gets hurt, and it gets broken up by the royalty, right? You’ve got a bunch of people with lethal weapons not hurting each other…ain’t none of them want to be fighting and hurting each other. There’s got to be an element of posturing in that…So there’s this idea that this fighting is about social status, until something shifts and it becomes something much more serious and sinister.

What are some general misconceptions about stage combat?

The biggest one I run into in the room…is that, and I don’t know why this is, because when you rehearse a play you take a lot of time to do a dance number…a lot of time to stage a scene, but when it comes to fight choreography many directors are like “OK, you have 15 minutes to do this whole extended sword fight.”

The amount of time that you’re given in the room to present something that needs to be really really sharp and well-rehearsed is very very small.

I would encourage folks in the industry who are not fighting professionals to liken the time that it takes to create an involved piece of fight choreography to the time it takes to choreograph a very involved, company-wide dance number.

Where would you like to see the industry grow when it comes to fighting chores?

I would like to see it move in a direction that is less I hate to say self-serving and self-showcasing–I would like to see it move…more into a space where it is cohesive with the storytelling of the piece…. In the theatre, there is a strong risk for it to become about an individual’s ego…The product inevitably suffers….We tell these stories to turn a lens of reflection on the human experience. And if that is not the aim…then what are we doing here?

What’s something you wish you had been told earlier in your combat career?

Everything is always a process…whatever it is you do there’s a point in your education, usually relatively early where you’re like… ‘I know everything about this, I’m so good at this.’ And usually, that’s where you stop.

You have to keep learning. The minute that you stop becoming a student…and start becoming someone who claims authority over it…that is the minute you become unsafe in the room. If you are unable to keep that learner’s spirit you’re going to hurt someone.

If [combat and choreo] is something that you’re interested in as an actor… it has opened many doors for me in my career as an actor. It’s a way into a certain niche of what we do. Because it does require a skillset.

To find out more about Benedetto Robinson, visit his Instagram or check out his website at benedettorobinson.com

Casting directors use Casting Networks every day to discover people like you. Sign up or log in today to get one step closer to your next role.

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The post Fight Director Benedetto Robinson Gets into the Nitty Gritty of Fight Choreography, What it Means to Be an Actor Combatant first appeared on Casting Networks.

The post Fight Director Benedetto Robinson Gets into the Nitty Gritty of Fight Choreography, What it Means to Be an Actor Combatant appeared first on Casting Networks.

Fast forward to 2024, where she’s been crushing it with Fincannon & Associates for over a decade, while watching her home city blossom into a thriving production hub. The casting director took time out to discuss casting Netflix’s hit show Outer Banks top to bottom, her time in New York and of course, all things Atlanta.

Congratulations on the well-deserved Oscar category being added for casting. What did that feel like for you and your peers to finally get recognition from the Academy, and what was going through your mind when you got the news?

It’s been something that we’ve been seeking for quite some time. I think it was just difficult for us to understand why television was recognized and features weren’t. I feel like we’re moving ahead, moving forward, where casting is very much on the map. I think it’s something that now people talk about more than they used to. [With] all the work that we do with features, I’m glad that people are recognizing the collaboration and our hard work, and it feels like we’re really moving into a great space with casting.

You started in stage management at the University of Florida. How did that pull you into the casting world?

At that time in my life, I don’t think I knew that casting was a trajectory I could follow, but I always loved actors. I loved being in the room with the director and the audition process and hearing his thoughts, and every time a new actor would come in and [I’d be] seeing their read and how it could fit, it just lit me up. I was talking to a director about that, and he was like, “Well, maybe you should consider casting.” He connected me with some people up in New York, and that’s how the ball started rolling.

How has the stage management experience helped you as a casting director in general?

I think it’s definitely helped with blocking out my time accordingly. I think it’s helped with juggling the personalities of everyone involved in the production. With stage management, you very much do the same thing. You are pulling all of the pieces together for the production, and it also has this family environment and you get that with each production that you work on. It’s just balancing all of the pieces of the puzzle of a production that you see in stage management as well as in casting, because there’s so many different facets. Not only schedules, but also content. It’s just really logistics, logistics, logistics.

I don’t think that a lot of people realize that with casting, that so much of it is “Can we actually get the actor there on that day to do what they need to do?” Of course, auditioning is very much the more fun part of finding that match—that marriage, so to speak—with what the creators seek and what you present to them.

Photo courtesy of Kimberly Wistedt, CSA.

What was it like working with Tara Rubin and Bernie Telsey? How do you think those experiences prepared you for working at Fincannon & Associates and shaped the way that you work now?

I think what was so amazing about being in New York and working for these names that had been in the business for so long, and for something as historic and rooted as theater and musicals and Broadway, nothing makes you feel richer in the history of your industry and in casting, and it’s really what lit the fire. They’re just so highly respected and I’m truly, so grateful for that experience.

The Fincannons have also been rooted in the industry since the early 1980s. It’s interesting how I found myself with a company that had the same incredible reputation and history in the business coming from Tara Rubin and Bernie Telsey’s office. It prepared me for the hustle. It prepared me for building my own reputation within these offices that have incredible reputations on their own. I think my time in New York really showed me that this path is what lights me up and is just a perfect marriage of what I think that I am meant to do in terms of my skill set.

What was it like casting Outer Banks?

Outer Banks is so wonderful for our office, because we’re usually relegated to regional casting due to the location-specific part of the show and our relationship with the Pate Brothers. They wanted it to be so truly of the Southeast and so truly of Carolina kids. That show is such a milestone for us as a regional office to do it from top to bottom.

What was really amazing about casting Outer Banks is finding, I guess you could say, no-name talent at the time and building them into this empire of global phenomenon status. I say kids, but they’re not quite kids—finding young adults really from this region and bringing this story to life because everyone believed that they were kids from the Outer Banks. I think the authenticity of all of that and our market has always succeeded in that age range [with] those kids.

How much more intensive is the process when you’re going top to bottom versus a handful of specific roles?

In terms of the difference, I would say obviously workload. You have so many more characters to pay attention to [and] it’s all coming from you. Everything from the series regulars down to the one-line day player.

It’s also a very schedule-specific show in that we deal with a lot of locations and for some reason, we also shoot during hurricane season. There’s a lot of shifting around [and] it’s action-packed, so there’s a lot of changes. It really is such a whirlwind of a show.

It’s lots of hard work, but I wouldn’t change it for the world because I just feel like it’s really put our market on the map. It validated our office as casting anywhere is casting everywhere. Similarly to the actors that we cast. Just because we’re not in New York or LA, we still do the damn thing. I think it’s brought a lot of pride to our office.

Kim Wistedt, CSA, Lisa Mae Fincannon and the cast of Outer Banks. Photo courtesy of Kimberly Wistedt, CSA.

What’s your experience been like, watching Atlanta blossom into the production powerhouse that it’s become, and how does that feel as an Atlanta native?

It’s so funny. I always thought that in order to pursue this path, I would have to settle in New York and LA. While those places are very sparkly and fun and certainly full of opportunity and history in the business, I just knew that neither one of those places could be somewhere that I could be long-term.

I have so much pride that I can be in a location where I have the same access to what drives me in terms of the projects and the stories, the studios and everyone involved. I can live in a place where I’m near family and friends, where it’s not this constant struggle to survive. I’m really thriving here. I do think that success is a multifaceted word. I think that of course, you can move to LA or New York and do everything that it takes for the business, but I think other parts of your life could suffer in that way.

I have so much pride for Atlanta, and it feels very kismet, I think, that it’s worked out this way for me and I’m grateful. I’d say over the past 10, 11 years here in the market, the way that it’s changed and grown, Atlanta is no longer a secondary location. It’s very much a primary location, and the market has become a lot more saturated.

In casting, what’s been so refreshing and so wonderful is just the caliber of the roles that we are looking for. We are very often working in tandem with the New York and LA offices that we work on with our series.

The trust that producers have in us and in our market, and in the talent that we bring has grown tremendously. We’ve gone from the one-line bellhop, on location, local talent to series regulars and major recurring guest stars. We still have a lot of work to do to sew up the gap there in treating Southeastern actors with just as much experience as an actor coming out of LA, but I think we’re really making a lot of headway. It’s been really cool to see that transition and for us to be just legitimized on all sides.

Atlanta is also a big food city. What’s your go-to local dish?

I wish I had some very classic Southern stance on this. We do have really, really amazing brunch places. There’s this place in Buckhead called Buttermilk Kitchen, and it is just like, everything that you could quintessentially want when you’re in a Southern town and you would want for breakfast, they have. It’s just impeccable. The wait is always outrageous.

I’d say Atlanta brunch is a total vibe, but also, cuisine that I really like is Mediterranean and Greek. I don’t know what it is about falafel, but I just love it. We have quite a handful of really amazing Mediterranean, Persian, Greek restaurants. There’s a place called Cafe Agora in Buckhead that I really love. Rumi’s Kitchen is amazing. There’s a new [Persian] restaurant called Yalda that has a couple of locations, [and] it’s really delicious.

Atlanta is incredibly diverse, [which] I don’t think a lot of people realize. I think I read a statistic one time that it was in the top five most culturally diverse cities in the U.S. It’s a really bustling city, but they say it’s the city in the forest.

I think that’s why Atlanta is so great for this industry and also for industry professionals, because you get the balance of city life, hustle and bustle, skyscrapers, restaurants, amazing hotels and experiences, concerts, the whole shebang. You also get a calming forest vibe. You get hikes. The Blue Ridge Mountains are just an hour away. You don’t really feel all-consumed by city life. Lots of beautiful, sprawling neighborhoods and homes and all four seasons. Who can’t love that?

What’s some audition advice you could share?

For me, there’s many things, and each casting person always has their do’s and don’ts. One that I go back to is reading as if you have the role. I think it strips away this level of desperation of like, “Oh my gosh, I just want this role so bad.” Believe it or not, we can sense that energy on the other side. I think it also creates this level of play where you don’t feel like you have to marry yourself to some expectation like, “Is this what they need? Is this what they want to see?”

It allows you this room for discovery, for truly listening. I always like to say, “Pretend as if you have it and you’re on-set and you’re doing the thing.” I always like to say to find your environment and your business in the scene. I think that pretending that you have it and you’re on-set helps inform that as well, because you can see where you are [in that] place in time. Also, I love little tidbits, just imagining your head space in the moment before this scene happens.

Overall, just do it as if you have it, and it’s really incredible to see how much more fun it is for us to watch, and just how much more magic happens from the moment you press play.

Casting directors use Casting Networks every day to discover people like you. Sign up or log in today to get one step closer to your next role.

You may also like:

• What’s Casting: Frankincense & Myrrh, Tech Brand Campaign, Major Skincare Brand Commercial
• Cristiana Dell’Anna Shares How Martin Scorsese and Three Self Tapes Helped Her Land the Starring Role in ‘Cabrini’
• Success Story: How Stephen Pollak Uses Role Tracker to A/B Test His Casting Networks Wins

The post Fincannon & Associates’ Kimberly Wistedt, CSA Talks Casting Netflix’s ‘Outer Banks’ and Atlanta’s Amazing Brunches first appeared on Casting Networks.

The post Fincannon & Associates’ Kimberly Wistedt, CSA Talks Casting Netflix’s ‘Outer Banks’ and Atlanta’s Amazing Brunches appeared first on Casting Networks.

Star in Frankincense & Myrrh’s Commercial!

Frankincense & Myrrh is seeking talent to star in their commercial. Submit today!

Work Location: San Diego, CA

Submission deadline: April 19, 2024

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Model for a Tech Brand’s Campaign!

A tech brand is seeking talent to star in their new campaign. Get plugged in and submit now!

Work Location: Miami, FL

Submission deadline: April 20, 2024

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Shine in Skincare Brand’s Ad!

Join a major skincare brand’s new commercial! Don’t miss your chance to shine in front of the camera. Submit today and secure your opportunity.

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Submission deadline: April 26, 2024

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The post What’s Casting: Frankincense & Myrrh, Tech Brand Campaign, Major Skincare Brand Commercial first appeared on Casting Networks.

The post What’s Casting: Frankincense & Myrrh, Tech Brand Campaign, Major Skincare Brand Commercial appeared first on Casting Networks.