Why I Won't Post Your Workshop Notice (or Other Service Notice)

Why I Won’t Post Your Workshop Notice (or other service)

As you can imagine, with over 10,000 members on Southwest Casting, I get a lot of requests to post workshop notices, or notices for other industry-related services.

Here are some reasons why I will not post these notices:

1. Southwest Casting is not a community service. SWC was established for my casting work. It is how I make a living.

2. One of the reasons SWC is successful is that members do not receive a lot of spam. Hopefully, nothing I send out is considered spam. Since I rely on SWC as a business tool, it is important that members view every email from me as important and worth a look.

3. SWC was not created so YOU can make money off your workshops. I’ve worked very hard over the last 10 years building SWC into what it is today, a solid casting resource. There are plenty of other websites and email groups where you can post your workshop or services notice. I won’t cheapen mine by posting a lot of workshop notices. You may have noticed that I rarely even post notices of this kind for myself!

One acting instructor from Austin once wrote me “Why should I be a member of Southwest Casting? What’s in it for me?” because I wouldn’t post information on this particular instructor’s acting class information.

Thank to everyone who understands my position, and those that don’t, please try to understand.

Thank you for being a part of Southwest Casting.

Best,
Joe Grisaffi
www.southwestcasting.com
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0003784/

Things You Shouldn't Do

Hi Everyone

Last Thursday, May 28, there was an incident at Judge Alex that I'd like to share with you.

First off, you should know that I am responsible for filling the audience of the show, and part of my responsibility is keeping the audience costs under budget - a very tight budget at that. The show only allows me to pay XX amount of people, and if I go over that, I have to answer to the show's producers.

In the past, we have allowed "Specs" to show up on set. "Specs" are people who have not been booked and are speculating that someone will not show up. If there is a no-show, we will put on a spec if we don't have the number of people we need. Specs also risk not getting used. That's the chance you take when you spec (and not all sets in Houston will allow this, so I don't recommend it unless you know someone on the production.)

Well, Thursday we had a spec for the afternoon session. Sara nor myself could be there, so my friend Tiffany was at the studio to check people in and out. This person made Tiffany aware that he was there to spec. When check-in settled down, we had enough people for the afternoon session and told this person thank you, but we do not need him for the afternoon session and he was politely asked to leave. Tiffany then left the holding area.

That should have been the end of it.

After being told we were full and that he should leave, this person went to the audience coordinator (who assumes that if you are in the holding area, you are part of the audience) and told him "I'll be outside if you need me." He knew exactly what he was doing, and when it was time to load the next case, the coordinator went to get him and put him in the audience.

Once everyone was seated and the case was about to begin, Tiffany noticed this person sitting in the audience and let the audience coordinator know. It was too late to pull him out, so he got to sit in a couple of cases that afternoon.

I had the opportunity to call and check in, and I was alerted of this situation.

I went to the studio and between cases, pulled this gentleman out of the audience, thanked him for volunteering his time and dismissed him - letting him know he would not be invited to any more Southwest Casting jobs. I explained to him that I am responsible for the audience budget and if my assistants say we do not need him, he needs to respect their word and leave the premises.

Instead, he tried to sneak in and get paid for the afternoon, which would have put me over the allowed budget. Now he will no longer be asked to participate in anything we do.

Please think of the consequences if you are thinking of trying something sneaky on any set, or in any job situation.

Thank you,

Joe Grisaffi
www.southwestcasting.com

TXMPA

From Don Stokes and the TXMPA

I hope all of you are aware that the Governor signed our Moving Image Industry Incentive into law last Thursday. This gives us the enabling legislation to increase the scope of the production incentives offered by the State of Texas. We currently have $20 million in the State Budget and a request for an additional $40 million. It is important that we receive the additional $40 million to assure the success of our program. Below is the list of the appointees to the Conference Committee that will be voting on whether or not we will receive the additional funding. TXMPA is assembling a list of moving image businesses that are located in each of these Senator’s districts. We are looking for a list of constituents that will be asked to contact their Senator. If your business is located in any of these districts or if you know of a business in any of these districts, please contact me at dtokes@postasylum.com. We will provide additional information on the best method and message for contacting the Conferees so I will appreciate it if you wait to begin making contact. I need this information as soon as possible. Thanks.

The Senate conferees to HB 1.

Sen. Steve Ogden (Chair)
http://www.senate.state.tx.us/75r/senate/members/dist5/dist5.htm
Map:
http://www.senate.state.tx.us/Icons/Dist_Maps/Dist5_Map.pdf
Sen. Florence Shapiro (R – Plano)
http://www.senate.state.tx.us/75r/senate/members/dist8/dist8.htm
map:
http://www.senate.state.tx.us/Icons/Dist_Maps/Dist8_Map.pdf
Sen. Tommy Williams (R – The Woodlands)
http://www.senate.state.tx.us/75r/senate/members/dist4/dist4.htm
Map:
http://www.senate.state.tx.us/Icons/Dist_Maps/Dist4_Map.pdf
Sen. Royce West (D-Dallas)
http://www.senate.state.tx.us/75r/senate/members/dist23/dist23.htm
Map:
http://www.senate.state.tx.us/Icons/Dist_Maps/Dist23_Map.pdf
Sen. Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa (D- McAllen)
http://www.senate.state.tx.us/75r/senate/members/dist20/dist20.htm
Map:
http://www.senate.state.tx.us/Icons/Dist_Maps/Dist20_Map.pdf


Don Stokes

JUDGE ALEX Season 5/2009 Taping Schedule

Below is the Season 5/2009 Judge Alex taping schedule. Subject to change.

Typically, taping days are Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.

Feb 25, 26, 27
Mar 11, 12, 13
Mar 25, 26, 27
Apr 15, 16, 17
Apr 29, 30, May 1
May 13, 14, 15
June 11, 12

Look forward to seeing some of you there!

Joe G.
www.southwestcasting.com

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ICD-10 extras casting WEEK ONE information

[This information is for WEEK ONE of the ICD-10 filming, February 13-18 in Richmond/Rosenberg, TX.]

If you are interested in being an volunteer extra in the psychological thriller ICD-10 (working title), PLEASE READ THIS ENTIRE EMAIL.

To be considered, please fill out the form below and email it back to us at

southwestcasting@hotmail.com

along with a recent jpg photo, preferably around 250kb.

IN YOUR REPLY, PLEASE USE THE SUBJECT LINE

“ICD10 – WEEK ONE – YOUR NAME”

replacing YOUR NAME with your actual first and last name.

Please continue to read beyond the submission information to see what types we need for the first week.

Week ONE will be day shoots. You will need to resubmit for WEEK TWO when I release that information.

- - -

NAME:AGE RANGE: (If under 18, please give us your actual age and birthdate)HEIGHT:WEIGHT:HOME PHONE:CELL PHONE:EMAIL ADDRESS:ARE YOU AVAILABLE FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13?AVAILABLE SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 14?
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 15?
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 16?
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 17?
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 18?
[You will need to resubmit for WEEK TWO when I release that information]ANY TIME RESTRICTIONS?IN WHAT CITY DO YOU LIVE ?
- - -

Please send the above information back to us along with a recent jpg photo (no resumes necessary) at southwestcasting@hotmail.com

WEEK ONE CASTING NEEDS:

Fri February 13: Business men and women, high school students
Sat February 14: College students, power walkers
Sun February 15: MAYBE boys and girls age 7-8
Mon February 16: College students, bar patrons (ages 18 to 75)
Tues February 17: No extras needed
Wed February 18: Detective


Keep in mind that the filming days can run long, sometimes as long as 8-12 hours. Meals will be given to anyone asked to stay longer than 6 hours. Any day you are asked to participate, please eat before going to the set.

If you submit to us, please check your email regularly. We usually do not call due to time constraints. We try to work via email only.

Please note that extras for ICD-10 are volunteers and are not paid – but this is a great chance for use to get to add to your resume if you are new, or a good way for us to get to know you which is important when other commercial, movie and television projects come our way.

Week TWO information will be sent out in a few days. You may need to resubmit for week two.

Thank you!

Joe G.
www.SouthwestCasting.com

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HOW TO GET AN AGENT by Kerry Beyer

(Copyright 2009 Kerry Beyer. Posted with permission.)

How to Get an Agent!
by Kerry Beyer

There is only one thing that stands between you and fame and fortune! Bring on the house in the hills, the paparazzi, and free designer clothes... Undoubtedly, you are the greatest undiscovered talent, and anyone who fails to recognize this is clearly a moron. All the world is sure to adore you - stardom is yours... if you can just get an agent to represent you, right?

I have had a gazillion agents in my career - some of them great, some of them terrible, but all of them interested in one thing... 10% commission. After all, this is show-BUSINESS, not show-friends.

In Los Angeles it works like this: The career of an agent begins in the mailroom, slaving away for hours on end, doing jobs no one else wants to do, getting as much respect as a doormat, all on a pay scale that makes the guy who took your order in the drive-thru seem like Donald Trump.

From there you work your way up to another crap job, then another, and another, until you are lucky enough to be the assistant to some other assistant of someone with a slightly less crappy job.

If you’ve managed not to commit suicide, you might actually find your way to assistant Jr. Agent... then Jr. Agent... they maybe one day, you might actually become a real live, Hollywood agent, on the tenuous condition that you can actually pull in enough revenue to cover your salary, assistant’s salary, office expenses, and your lunches at the Ivy... all on 10% of what your clients make.

Most agents have to bill $5,000,000 a year in client salaries to break even in LA. Are you starting to get the picture?

In regional markets, it is very different... There is not the intense competition for agent positions, and the overhead is not nearly the same, but none the less, the agency must cover operating expenses.

I know, who cares, just get to the part where you tell me how to get an agent, right? Okay, okay, but it should be obvious by now... BE ABLE TO MAKE MONEY FOR YOUR AGENT!

Be marketable, well trained, professional, and dedicated. This is not a hobby for your agent, and neither should it be for you! Your agent has to look at you, and know how and where to sell you. You have to provide them with the best quality marketing materials as well - and I know I am biased here, but you cannot use the picture a friend took as your headshot.

Find a photographer who knows the business, creates an environment that you feel comfortable in, and has the skill and ability to capture that unique part of your personality that will set you apart! You have less than a second to make an impression on a casting director with your headshot - then it gets dumped in the trash.

Enough about the importance of photography, on to getting an agent. Send your headshot and resume with a BRIEF cover letter introducing yourself, stating your recent industry accomplishments, and request an interview. If you have a demo, send it in, or provide a link to YouTube, or wherever your demo is hosted. Follow up in 2 weeks with ONE phone call.

If you are turned down, thank them for their time, and ask if they wouldn’t mind discussing areas that you need to improve upon to be more marketable. They may suggest training, more experience, better marketing materials, etc., or you may simply not be what they need, as perhaps they represent a dozen other actors in your category.

Okay, say you get a call back with an interview time... prepare a comedic and dramatic monologue - under a minute each. Make sure your comedy is funny, and make sure your dramatic monologue doesn’t leave them wanting to slash their wrists. Good drama always has touches of comedy. Really, it’s okay to mix the two.

Before you start your monologue, ask the agent if they want you to give your read to them, or to a blank spot on the wall. Many times if you engage them directly during your monologue they will not feel free to take notes, or really observe your performance. So ask what they prefer.

Remember that this is an audition, and like all auditions, you have control over how you want to work. Agents and casting directors all want to find the next big thing - believe it or not, they want you to succeed. Do what you need to do to give a great performance. Stay tuned for my audition article to learn more.

Also be comfortable with cold reading. An agent may hand you commercial copy, or sides from a current TV series or movie, and give you five minutes to work it up.

Finally, an agent may ask you this seemingly simple question that strikes fear into the hearts of actors and trips many people up. “Tell me about yourself?”

“Ummm.... I don’t know?” is not a correct response. Neither is launching into a diatribe about how you are an ACTOR and how you LOVE ACTING, and how your whole life is based on ACTING, and how you’ve known since you were a small child that ACTING is what you want to do, and blah, blah, blah... And though I can hear the passion in your voice as you bare your soul, it is still nauseatingly boring and shallow, and highly unoriginal.

I mean, there are people out there dedicating their lives to finding a cure for cancer... and you want to dress up and play make believe for a living. These agents hear the same things over and over and over again... give them something fresh and intriguing. Surely you are passionate about something in your life that has nothing to do with the entertainment industry that you can talk about for 30 seconds to a minute when they ask you to tell them about yourself. If not, you are creative, make something up.

Most importantly, be yourself and have fun! Personality and professionalism are what sells in this industry, not prima donnas and drama queens! Hope this helps, and when you need great pics, think of Kerry Beyer Photography.

--Kerry
http://www.kerrybeyer.com/

BUSCH BEER print ad casting in HOUSTON

[This is a SouthwestCasting.com exclusive. Please do not post thiscasting notice on any other website or email group without our permission. Thank you.]

Southwest Casting is casting a print campaign for Busch Beer, shooting inHouston Thursday, January 22, 2009 (date subject to change).

We are looking for:
Rugged looking African American and Latino men, ages 30-40s.
Gritty, grungy construction worker types.

If you are not sure if you are gritty or grungy, please submit anyway!

This opportunity requires an audition. We are holding auditions Sunday 1/11 and Monday 1/12 (We may only see a very limited number of people on Monday, so hopefully candidates are available to audition on Sunday.)

There is pay for the selected talent. $650. Non-union.

This is a ONE-YEAR BUY, which means they can use the photos for one yearwithout additional pay to the talent. If client chooses to use the photos after the first year, and additional fee will be paid to the talent.The shoot is scheduled for Thursday January 11, 2009. We do not know howlong the shoot day will be, but we have been warned it could be as long as 12 hours.

If you are interested in being considered for this opportunity,please fill out and return the information below to southwestcasting@...

You MUST attach a recent JPG photo about 250kb in size (please ONLY JPG!)
Photos that are too large may not be looked at as they take too long to open.

Please take a moment to rename your picture files like this:
LAST NAME_FIRST NAME_HEIGHT_.jpg
(ie, SMITH_JOHN_5ft11.jpg)

Please use the subject line "BUSCH – YOUR NAME" replacing YOUR NAME with your actual first and last name.

Please cut and paste the information below into a clean email. Send your submission and RECENT JPG photo ASAP. We will be sending invitations via email all weekend, so please check your email frequently if you submit.

It is important that you submit the following information below exactly as it is shown. Incorrect submissions may be overlooked due to the number of submissions we expect over the weekend.

- - - - - - -NAME:
AGE RANGE:
HEIGHT:
WEIGHT:
HOME PHONE:
CELL PHONE:
EMAIL ADDRESS:
AGENT, IF ANY:
ARE YOU AVAILABLE TO AUDITION SUNDAY, JAN 11?
ARE YOU AVAILABLE TO AUDITION MONDAY, JAN 12?
ANY AUDITION TIME RESTRICTIONS?
AER YOU AVAILABLE **ALL DAY** THURSDAY, JAN 22?
WHAT CITY DO YOU LIVE IN?
DO YOU HAVE RELIABLE TRANSPORTATION?
HOW DID YOU FIND OUT ABOUT THIS CASTING (be specific)?
DO YOU KNOW THE PAY IS $650 PER SELECTED TALENT?
HAVE YOU EVER APPEARED IN ANY BEER OR BEVERAGE RELATED ADS?
- - - - - - - - -

Incorrect submissions may be overlooked. Please check your subject line and submission format!

IMPORTANT: If you have an exclusive contract with a licensed talent agency, please note your agent on the form above when returning your submission so that we can book you through your agent when necessary. It is very important that your agent have knowledge of everything you do as an actor to avoid any future product conflicts. It is important that you maintain a good working relationship with your agent.

Thank you!

Joe G.

www.southwestcasting.com

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