E Peña: Screenwriter and actor in Atlanta, Georgia.

Where’s all my Atlanta actors at?!? Who’s ready to get back to work!!

Where’s all my Atlanta, actors at?!? Cant wait to get back to work!!

Keep Submitting Yourself. When you have an agent, it’s easy to let this part fall to the wayside. But to keep your audition numbers up, you want to make sure you’re an active participant.

Keep searching through Actors Access, Backstage, and other casting platforms.

If you do voiceover work or audiobook narration, look for platforms where you can put up your profile and demo tracks. Remember, your agent has many actors on the roster, and no one knows your work better than you. You might find a gig that would otherwise be missed or passed over.

Communicate With Your Talent Representative.

Even though you’re submitting for and possibly booking projects on your own, remember that you and your agent are always a team. Be open and communicative about the projects you might be booking. Have your agent look over any contracts before you sign them.

For one thing, they may be able to help you negotiate better terms.

For another, you don’t want to lock yourself into a project that pays pennies without letting your agent know, only to have them submit you for better-paying work that conflicts. Make sure you’re both on the same page about when and where you’re submitting.

Remember to Factor in Fees.

When looking at rates for projects you’re submitting to, remember to mentally factor in rep splits and other expenses when you’re determining whether something is worth it.

Sometimes these can be negotiated, but it’s important to keep in mind. If you’re auditioning for an audiobook, unless you have a home studio, remember you’ll have to factor in studio rates, and possibly hire an editor.

Don’t say yes to something without considering what it might cost you.

#actor #audition #agent #manager #selftape

In the world of auditioning, no news is often the only news:

If you don’t hear back, it means they went with someone else. While it would be great to receive closure via direct rejection, casting directors may not have the bandwidth to notify every auditioner who didn’t get a callback or book the part.

They are also not in a position to disclose why a role went to one performer over another.

“Casting has huge amounts of work and time is tight,” casting director Louise Collins says. “So please don’t be disheartened if you don’t receive feedback.” The best way to cope with rejection is to try to reframe the feeling of rejection and the act of auditioning itself. Rejection is unavoidable, and it will most likely be frequent. With this in mind, consider setting a rejection quota for yourself.

Acting coach and Evolving Artist creator Teri Wade’s quota method flips the script, turning rejection from a fear into a goal. “I suggest giving yourself a numerical quota, such as getting rejected 30 times per month, or 10 times per week, and recording your points,” she says. “When the goal becomes meeting your quota, you stay motivated and you keep going.”

Also, remember that by getting through the door and in front of the casting directors, you have already been given the chance to perform. Make the most of it. “Treat an audition as a chance to practice and gain a new experience,” actor Joanna Pickering says.

Think of Cassie’s iconic “The Music and the Mirror” moment in “A Chorus Line.” She starts off by pleading to director-choreographer Zach for the chance to dance, but soon enough she’s not asking for permission to perform; she’s giving him an unforgettable, powerhouse demonstration of her technique. It’s her audition, but it’s still very much a performance.

These steps help actors achieve a state that actor Douglas Taurel refers to as thinking extraordinarily, or “the ability to experience failure and have the discipline to ignore it, move on, and immediately focus on the next audition or performance.”

- Backstage

#audition #actor #script #film #tv