What is a Casting Director by Bettye Zoller voice over coach

A casting director is a person who casts voices (and on-camera actors) for projects in all areas of broadcast and show business. The casting director is paid for his/her work either by the workday, by the �head� (per-actor seen), or by the project. Some casting directors are members of the CSA (Casting Society of America). Others choose not to join this professional organization. The CSA is, however, a licensing agency that shows professional status and supposedly proves a casting director�s expertise level. This cannot be proven, however, as fact. Many excellent casting directors are not CSA members.

A casting director should never charge a talent/actor for seeing him or her. Run (don�t walk) if a casting director ever asks you for a fee! A casting director is not supposed to present workshops or teach because this might be a conflict of interests, suggesting favoritism for students, and one might suspect that an actor would �butter up� the CD by enrolling in lessons or workshops hoping to get seen and cast easier. However, in just about every region of the U.S., casting directors are teaching and presenting workshops. Most use a disclaimer on fliers and literature claiming no favoritism will be shown to students, but still, this practice is not free of suspicion in most minds.

Some broadcast-theatrical-TV agents act, at least now and then, as casting directors. You may be asked to record a voice audition at your agent�s offices. Some agents have video studios too and videotape auditions for clients. It is not known whether agents receive a �casting director� fee for this service or not, but one might suspect this is the case in some instances.

At any rate, if your agent asks you for an audition, either in his/her offices or by MP3 attached to an email, you�ll want to comply. After all, if you want to be �in the running� for a particular job, you have to audition when asked to do so. �You have to bet to win...�

AFTRA and SAG have rules about auditioning. In a union state, one major rule is this: If an agent or casting director keeps a talent longer than ninety minutes waiting to audition, that talent should receive a payment. In LA and NYC, for the most part, this rule is observed. The rule is kept in many other areas of the U.S. Unfortunately, as with many other practices in a �right to work for nothing� state (a non-union state) when a talent auditions, there are seldom if ever paid to do so. No matter how long one spends waiting, no money changes hands.

I, for one, have my own �rules� about auditioning:

1. I refuse to attend or to audition at �cattle calls.� If I suspect an audition is a �crap shoot with hundreds of actors invited to read for one role,� I decline. If I arrive at an audition to find crowded parking lots and long lines, I simply drive on, happy not to waste my valuable day!
2. I stay at an audition, waiting to be seen, only as long as I believe is �fair.� Then, I notify my agent, by phone, of my decision to abort the audition for myself. I also report disorganization. I also inform the casting director or an assistant of my decision to leave due to my professional obligations.
3. I carefully evaluate the project I am asked to audition for. Why should I spend time and gasoline auditioning for a project that does not offer that much pay or that I�m truly probably ill-suited for?
4. I evaluate how far I have to drive and how difficult traffic or parking might be to attend an audition. Again, see #3 above. If the audition is important, I�ll brave just about anything to get seen.
5. Your agent (s) should be sending you auditions regularly. If they are not, talk with the agent (s) as to why you�re not being thought of more often! And keep your ears open. Talk with other talents in your area about what they�ve auditioned for. This is often a clue when you�re being �left out.�
6. Yes, it�s true, sometimes agents play �favorites.� At other times, you�re simply forgotten. Stay alert to this situation. Not all agents fall victim to these maladies, but some do.
7. Make sure major CDs in your region (and in every city where you�re signed with an agent) have your materials�photos and audios. After all, why would a CD ask your agent for you to audition if that CD didn�t know you existed? Yes, CDs do like receiving professional quality materials from actors and yes, CDs keep these materials to refer to as the need arises.
8. You�ll also want to make certain production companies and producers have your materials so they know of your existence. Do your self-promotion!!

With auditions on www.voice123.com no casting director need be involved! You audition from your computer saving time, gasoline, and hassle. That�s great!

By: Bettye Zoller
http://bettyepiercezoller.voice123.com
http://www.voicesvoices.com