The Successful Talent: Tips for the Actor & Model

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

A NEW YEAR with new potential and new horizons!  The year 2012 will be every bit as exciting as you make it.  So dive in, invest in yourself, give back to your community, and celebrate the opportunities that remain unknown and will blossom within the next 12 months!

Be safe.  Be responsible.  Have fun!

Happy New Year from The Avenue Agency!

THE COMEDIC CD MATTHEW BARRY CONT

Matt continued, “I got to work with some phenomenal Directors…I was working for Tim Burton, I worked with Jerry Bruckheimer, Ridley and Tony Scott, Burton again and it was even more exciting.  I was building my career, building my reputation and building my resume.  In about four years, I broke off from Vickie and started a company with my former agent, Nancy Green-Keyes because we love each other madly and Lord knows, she puts up with me and I put up with her. She had seventeen years of being an agent breaking a lot of huge careers and it was my resume that got us in the door and her expertise dealing with agents.  I only had four years and she had way, way more than I did, so it made a terrific 'good cop, bad cop' kind of scene.”

Matt stated, “The one thing I’ve learned is that I love actors and I love talent.  There’s nothing in the world that makes me happier than to discover new talent.  You never know from where, from anywhere.  From San Francisco…from Australia.  A bunch of us top Casting Directors did a tour of Australia and we were all fawning over these three actors who are just going to blow up!  New York…anywhere!  I did a film; don’t hold it against me, Good Luck Chuck.  [laughter]  We all have rent to pay, right?  We needed a really, really, really large woman.  Our director wanted a 500 pound woman and so I found one on MySpace down in Texas, so you never ever know.  But the one thing I love is talented new people and thinking outside the box.  I think all Casting Directors are like that.  We want to find somebody fresh.  We always see the same people.  I know it’s hard sometimes.  It’s hard to get in, it’s hard to get an Agent, it’s hard to get a Manager and it’s hard to be seen….  But if you have talent, I promise you, if you stick it out, you will be discovered. 

"I’ve seen it too often.  I’ll give you a perfect example.  Many of you saw Avatar?  The bad guy, the bad colonel Stephen Lang. Stephen Lang has been around since time began! Finally, after beating down the doors, doing all those bad roles and going out on auditions, finally, Michael Mann cast him in Public Enemies…then he gets Avatar, so he’s got two gigantic films and now he’s finally reached that pinnacle in his career that he’s waited all those years for.  I’m so happy for him!  Those are the ones that stick it out…those are the ones who don’t say, ‘Oh, this isn’t going to happen for me.’  No…he kept at it, he kept working hard.  That makes me happy.  Only you can decide in yourselves and in your minds,   ‘Do I keep at it?  Do I keep at it? Do I keep at it?’  I always say, you never know what’s going to happen!  When you look at all the Blockbuster films that come out, some of them bomb and some of them are great and then you have something like Paranormal Activity*, right?  Who would have thunk? It happened years ago with The Blair Witch Project.  Another one…Christoph Waltz from Germany.  (Inglorious Bastards)  He was a B movie type TV actor who just happened to get a great break and is a fantastic actor.  It’s all in here (and pointed to his head).”
 
Matt also suggested putting names of the [Los Angeles or New York] Casting Directors on your resume and said, “You have to understand that Casting Directors, we all talk, we’re friends, we all know each other and we compete with each other.  If I lose a job to Joseph Middleton, fine.  At least I lost it to Joseph Middleton.  I love Joseph and Joseph’s the same way with me.  He may have said, ‘I couldn’t cast My Sister's Keeper.  I would’ve f’ed that up.’  But we all talk amongst ourselves and we all are competitive.  Show of hands.  On your pictures and resumes, how many of you put down which Casting Director you were hired by?  How many people are here?  One out of seventy or eighty?  Who’s the first person that sees your picture and resume?  A Casting Director or a Casting Associate, right?  If I turn around a picture and resume and I see that you’ve been hired by somebody good, I think, ‘Why do I not know this person?’  That’s a huge advantage.  Put the Casting Director down because we’re just as competitive. If somebody has hired you that I like, I want to know who you are.  That’s the difference of you getting into my office and not.”

Matt went on to say, “At the most, I can read 60 people a day or if I want to go late, maybe 70, but I think 60 is probably the limit.  That’s on top of all the phone calls we have to take from Agents and Managers, the people who are pitching us and all the pictures and resumes we have to go through.  Again, that’s the key-your picture and resume.  I’m not the first one to tell you that, am?  It has to be something that jumps out at us.  I see so many pictures where, the photographer that you have chosen, is not somebody that you get along with.  Maybe you were recommended by somebody…’Oh, go to Flavio! He’s the best photographer!’  Well, you go and spend $600 to take pictures with Flavio and you don’t get along with him, so your pictures come out like this!  (Then Matt made a funny face)  That’s what I see and that’s not what’s going to get you in. 

We’re all creative people. We grew up creatively.  That’s why you are here today. That’s why you are in this industry because you are creative, so you have to start thinking creatively. A normal picture and resume....it's fine.  In a class that I teach, I start out by having a book of 40 pictures and resumes and say that you have 60 seconds to go through all forty and pick out two.  That fast.  What’s it going to get you to look at the picture and turn it around?  If you have a great resume but a terrible picture, I don’t get a chance to turn it around because you haven’t grabbed me.  Again, I’m not the first Casting Director to tell you this.  It’s got to be something that speaks to us. That says to us, “Turn me around.  See who I am!’…. ‘What if we don’t have anything on our resume?’  Well we all got to start off from somewhere.”  He then showed us a resume with one credit on it, then turned it over revealing a black and white headshot.  He said, “Here’s somebody who got in my office.  It’s Charlize Theron’s first picture and resume.  Show and tell, right?”  He then showed us Jennifer Garner’s old black and white photo and said, “She was seventeen years old and all she had done was theatre.  That’s her first picture and resume and she was with a little, teeny tiny agency in New York.”

At auditions-

• “Trust your natural instincts.”
• “If you think you’re prepared, be more prepared.”
• “Understand which mediums you’re reading for.”
• “Don’t change the lines with three lines.  Even with three lines, you’ve got to make a choice. What are your thoughts behind what you’re saying? Keep it simple.  What you think, may not be what you’re saying.  These are those teeny, tiny moments. Those delicious moments!”
• “Be prepared to adjust.”
• “You never get a second chance to make a first impression.”[Wow, if I had a nickle for every time I tell someone this!!]
• “If you’re reading as a lawyer, wear a suit. If you are reading for a doctor, take off your hat. Also, don’t wear a smock. It stinks of desperation.”

Also, when you go in for Matt and Nancy, all actors stand during their auditions so an actors’ energy does not dissipate.

Matt also cited the power of actors’ hard copy postcards and told us that he likes them. He then told the story of an actor who sent him frequent postcards, so Matt knew who the actor was over time. Matt said that this actor also postcarded other casting directors which resulted in being booked in a role in the film Titanic that he worked on for three months. Matt told us that actor’s first residual check from Titanic was $155,000, to which Matt commented, “Not bad for the price of a few postcards!”.

Matt closed with, “Again, you all spent your time with me, so I really appreciate taking your time to come down. Bringing your kids. It’s a beautiful day. If you have any questions, ask. It might take me a couple of days to answer. I’ll try to answer as long as they’re not long winded. Hopefully, you had fun. It’s an organic way of thinking. Here’s the thing. You’re going to notice this for the next few days and you’re going to laugh… ’Oh that Matt Barry!’. Every day and every place that we go and with every person we meet, we judge them. That’s just what we do. It’s human nature and how you talk to these people is based on what you’re thinking. If you go to Subway, you’re not just ordering a ham sandwich. You’re looking at the guy or girl going, ‘Did this guy wash his hands?’. You’ll say, ‘Ham sandwich?’ (in a questioning tone), or if it’s a Playboy Bunny behind the counter, it’ll be ‘Ham sandwich’ (in a flirty tone) [laughter], it’s all based on what we’re thinking. I want you to start being aware of your thoughts and what you’re saying to people and how your thoughts dictate what you’re saying. We do it every day of our life but yet we don’t do it in our craft. To me it’s asinine because when you’re in a scene with somebody and you’re reacting to somebody, there should be thoughts there. It’s not just about lines.

"It’s never about lines! Yes, the lines are important but when we act every day, there’s always a thought behind something. When you walk into a casting office, don’t pre-program everything because anybody who has something pre-programmed in my office, I’ll say, ‘Let’s do it again. Let’s change a few things.’ It’s like the robot. They come unglued… 'That's not how the coach I trained with told me to do it.' No… because I’m trying to get you to be more natural. Those are the directors that I work with. Those natural reactions. Those real life reactions.”

Based on Matthew Barry's monologue and experiences as a Casting Director, what do you see about your own efforts as a talent that you can change to be better received in the casting room?

THE COMEDIC CD MATTHEW BARRY

 

Matt began his seminar as he always does by kidding, “I’m Matthew Barry. I’m originally from New York. Like many of you, I started out in the theatre. My Father is a Broadway playwright, P.J Barry. If you go to Samuel French [Bookstore], he’s got a whole row of published plays. I encourage you to buy them because he needs the money. [laughter] When I was about five years old, he ran a theatre company (Hudson Guild Theatre Company) in New York [City] and my school was right down the block from the theatre company, so instead of going home after school, I just sat in the theatre and did my homework and watched my Dad direct actors.

"That was my introduction into the theatre world so at eight years old I said, “I want to do that!” At eight, I was Off-Broadway in a show at the Roundabout Theatre and by thirteen, I was on Broadway in a really bad Broadway show. At the same time, I got cast in a TV series for CBS called Ivan The Terrible. It was. [laughter] It didn’t last long. Then my ‘claim to fame’ when I was cast at fifteen in the starring role of Academy Award winning director Bernardo Bertolucci’s film Luna with Jill Clayburgh. It garnered me all sorts of fame and accolades and my head swelled like that. (holding his hands out surrounding his head) I quickly realized that there is no handle for Hollywood or fame, so I got into a lot of trouble… but had a lot of fun! [laughter]”

Matt continued, “I came out to Los Angeles and started working in television and did other feature films and I started to get bored. I was on the set of a really bad TV show one day and was like, ‘I’ve got to do something else.’ I enrolled in the UCLA Program of Film and quickly realized that I knew everything that they were teaching me, so I begged Barry Levinson who was a big director at the time, for a job. He was working on a new film called Toys with Robin Williams. I’m dating myself! He gave me a job in casting.

"I want to work on the set. I want to learn everything there is to know about production. I want to produce. That was…gosh… eighteen years ago. Holy mackerel! That was eighteen years ago and I’ve loved every single moment! Being from the ‘actors’ side’, you sympathize and you know how hard it is. You know that sitting out in the lobby waiting to be called in (as an actor) you’re looking around the lobby at the four big-breasted blondes and you’re the skinny brunette, you’re going, ‘What am I doing here?’ [laughter] and meanwhile inside, the casting director is going, ‘If I see one more big breasted blonde, I’m going to blow my head off’. Then you walk in going ‘I shouldn’t be here….’ And I’m saying, ‘No please!!!!’ ”

Matt went on to say, “I’ve had a great advantage because my career shot up very quickly and I pissed off a lot other casting directors because here was this snotty actor all of the sudden coming into their world and yeah, I know what I’m doing and I’m good at it. I think my big break was doing the Rush Hour films and that afforded me to go all over the world looking for talent. That’s what we all do. That’s what casting directors do. Look for talent. There’s nothing in the world like finding new talent.” He then looked at the young performers seated in the front row and said, “Young adults! Paying attention? There will be a quiz later on.” and he and they chuckled.

Matt continued, “If you look up the films, I’ve broken many, many, many, many careers. Academy Award winners. I usually bring my book of the first pictures and resumes but the last time I did it, they stole half of them. If you have my Halle Berry one, please bring it back. But we all start out somewhere and . . . the one thing I want to say to you is that everything about you walks into our offices. Everything you feel in your heart walks into the office and so you have to believe in yourself. You’ve got to wake up in the morning, you’ve got to look in the mirror and believe whole-heartedly that ‘Yes. I can.’ I don’t mean to sound like a motivational speaker but it’s very, very true. Everything about you… your aura, your energy, EVERYTHING walks into that room and we can tell. We’re weird people, us casting directors. We’re like jackals. We can smell it. [laughter] ‘Okay…let’s see what they’ve got.’ There is nothing greater than having some surprises! Every single film… and I’ve been doing this eighteen years …on every single film there’s somebody who walks into my office and I think, ‘They’re wrong for the part’ and lo-and-behold, they blow me away and I go ‘Wow! Now that’s great because I’m always going to remember you.’ Again, casting directors are like that. We are always going to remember you.”

Matt then mentioned, “If you look at who just won the Emmy recently… Margo Martindale has been around forever. We all know Margo. All of the sudden, you start to get into that circle. We all talk about you. You have to understand something. Casting directors are just as competitive with each other. If they’ve hired you, what do they know that I don’t? I do this all the time. My partner and I go back and forth when looking at pictures and resumes and I’m saying, ‘Wait a minute. What does Lisa Beach know that I don’t know? What does Jane Jenkins know that I don’t know? Wait a minute….Debra Zane hired her? Okay….let her come in and see what she’s got. “

Matt said, “Again, you start to work. Tracy just booked an AFI film today. This is after booking The Middle. Work begets work. It’s an energy. You do an episode of The Middle and all of the sudden, you’ve got that swagger. [laughter] You laugh but it’s very true. You have that swagger. Actors that come in just have that cockiness that they can do it and you go…’Oh really, oh really?’…..and then they ‘bring it’…and you go ‘Ohhhhh….okay!’ That ‘s what gets you going. That’s what gets you working and we all want to work!”

. . . More to follow from Matthew's sneak peak into the world of casting in our next blog!

What did Matthew share that you might never have realized about casting before now?

MERRY CHRISTMAS

 

For those you celebrating Christmas Day, The Avenue wishes you and your loved ones a happy holiday season and safe New Year!

COUNT DOWN #1

#1 - KNOW WHEN TO ACT . . . AND WHEN NOT TO!

There is a fine line between being an actor and being a great actor.  There is also a fine line between real life and pretend.  Many actors get caught up in the throws of their craft and forget to develop who they are as a person.  Being able to act is a skill we learn.  It involves character development, insight, research, practice, and experience.  Living our day to day lives involves the development of our character, insight into the feelings and thoughts of others around us; research on topics that will make us more well-rounded and interesting individuals; practice of the hobbies we love and skills we hope to perfect; and the experience that only time can grant us.

Having the real you to go along with the "talent" you gives one depth that others can perceive.  It gives you what the industry calls the "it" factor -- a sparkle that catches our attention, although we're not quite sure why.  So spend time developing your craft and developing yourself equally!

What part of your "real life" you has helped you book a gig as a talent?

COUNT DOWN #2

#2 - KNOW HOW TO READ, TALK, AND GIVE A KILLER SLATE!

Sounds simple, right?  Well, it's not the second biggest challenge talent face because it's a cake-walk.  In this trade industry where there still isn't really a place to gain higher education in the business of being a talent, learning the ropes generally comes from the school of hard knocks. 

Fifteen percent of Americans suffer from learning disabilities.  Of that 15%, an astounding 80% of those individuals have reading problems.  The obvious challenge of an actor sweating a cold read or not being able to follow script revisions comes to mind.  But more importantly, what about every facet of talent work that requires you to fill out paperwork?   There is bound to be something new on each form you are requested to fill out.  If reading is not your forte, don't panic -- just get help!  Google reading programs in your city to find people ready and willing to help!

Sadly, a lot of challenged talent do not suffer from learning disabilities.  They just don't bother to pay attention.  This is a quandary that only the individual can fix him or herself.  I had an elementary teacher give our class a pop quiz one day.   She made us all put our heads down and wait as each student was handed a paper with the quiz questions.  When she gave us verbal permission, I flipped my quiz and saw what looked like about 20 questions.  The first was a statement, "Read this entire test before proceeding."  Contrary to popular belief, I didn't always follow directions as a child.  This time I was lucky, though.  i went ahead and scanned the test.  No. 20 stated, "Don't do anything listed above.  Put your pen down and your head on your desk."  I caught the curve ball before I got stung and laid my head down to watch my fellow classmates furiously complete each task on the list.  It didn't take long for groans to start filling the room.  The point?  This teacher impressed on me the value in reading directions carefully.  I still to this day deal with talent who don't bother to read the directions they are given and it is in the top 10 of complaints I hear from casting directors on a regular basis.

Once you get past the paperwork, knowing how to talk is the next hurdle.  Everything about our communication, from speech patterns, to pronounciations, to accents, shapes how other people perceive us.  Stereotypes may not be fair, but they are definitely a part of our industry.  Do you speak with proper english?  Do you sound educated and intelligent?  Do you give the impression that you understand the bigger picture and know how to listen?  And once more, do you follow verbal directions when given them?

Your slate involves the talking part -- and doing so in character is key to impressing the decision maker.  They want to know you know this character before you start delivering lines!  A slate clearly communicated and in character will add that "twinkle* to your eye and make you stand out against the competition.

Are you able to nail the steps leading into your casting?

COUNT DOWN #3

#3 --  BE NICE TO EVERYBODY . . . AND LOOK LIKE A MILLION BUCKS!

"No one cares what I look like.  They just want to know I can act.  That's what the hair/makeup people take care of after I get the job."

Wrong.  Discrimination is a human personality trait.  Pretending we live in an idealistic society isn't going to get you the job.  The bottom line is that this is an image business.  Everyone around makes judgements based on how you look within the first five seconds of seeing you . . . long before you have a chance to show how talented you are!  Do you look like what they are looking for?  Your answer will likely be the same answer to the question, "Did you get the job?"  Looking your best sends the message that you take care of yourself . . . that you like yourself . . . that you are proud to offer what you have to offer as a talent!  Those three things are very attractive to our human nature.  Boiled down, we call it confidence.

And if you feel good about yourself, you will likely meet a positive reception.  When received positively, you will in turn want to be kind to those receiving you.  But don't be deceived by current status!  Many talent forget that the gate-keeper (e.g., the Casting Assistant, Grip, Production Intern, etc.) is frequently the first access to the prominent person's ear.  Disrespect the gate-keeper and you will surely be cast aside!  Everyone surrounding (and even down the block from) the person you want to impress is connected.  People talk to people with whom they are connected and negative rumors are no help to the talent in pursuit of a booking!

On the flip side of not disrespecting the gate-keeper or production crew, it's important to realize that the new assistant may turn into a long term assistant.  That long term assistant may one day turn into a casting director or director themselves.  First impressions don't get a second chance! 

Befriend everyone you meet.  The larger your network, the more people who will be on your side when push comes to shove.  And the more people who back you, the better your chances of booking that job, no matter their status or title!

What can you do to befriend the gate-keeper without coming across insincere?

 

COUNT DOWN #4

#4 -- ON TIME IS LATE

 

A call time is given for several reasons.  One of those reasons, however, is to respect the talent's time.  Cattle calls are still done today, where talent sit in a line for hours waiting to be seen.  No one likes waiting, so the industry was kind enough to create a call time when you audition for a project.  If you call time is 10:00am, and you walk in the door at 10:00am, you are late and showing a lack of respect for the industry that is going out of it's way to honor and respect your time as a talent!

The key is to show up 10 minutes early.  That gives you time to fill out your paperwork, keep the flow of casting moving without distruption, and center yourself for your audition.  Any earlier than 10 minutes is annoying, but any later could make your venture of showing up in the first place, pointless!

One of my CD friends tells me that when a talent is late, she notates the offense on the talent's casting paperwork with an "L".  She keeps track of frequent offenders and is sure to not do them any favors.  Worse still are the talent who never show up to their audition, though.  They are marked with a "NS."  One of the southeast's most prominent CDs has specially called to tell me that he will never see a talent again in his casting room who didn't show up.  Never is a long time for an innocent mistake.

It's the actors union after all, who insist for union castings that the CDs move on time and not hold talent longer than they deem reasonable.  That can be hard to do when those same talent don't honor their own union's rules!  CDs and productions can be peonalized financially for holding a talent over the alotted time frame, so showing up late means you are ok with them having to PAY for you to audition -- that will make them sure to avoid casting you!

The professionals who work around take their jobs seriously.  They value you as the talent, but they also value their relationship with their clients.  Jeopardizing that for anyone or any reason is not worth it!

What methods do you use to ensure you are on time (i.e, early)?

COUNT DOWN #5

#5 -- Poor or Mediocre Marketing Materials

Cutting corners on your marketing materials can sink a ship faster than almost anything else.  A professional photographer is worth hiring not because they have a cool camera, but because they have an eye to impress . . . they know lighting and angles . . . and because they have experience with what works and what doesn't!  Anyone can take a picture with a digital camera, but the question is whether or not someone is going to present that medicore image to their client. 

We all want to impress the people we could potentially work with.  As an agent, I won't submit a talent whose marketing materials make our agency look anything less than stellar and professional.  But thinking even farther into the process, what casting director would present a poor headshot to the director that pays their bills?  In the talent world and the business world, ladders are climbed the same.  If we impress those in a position to move our careers forward, we will likely get promoted [or book the job, in this case]. 

Talent who cut corners -- knowingly in the hopes that their skill set will compensate or just because they are naive -- commonly get pushed into the "we don't have time for you to waste our time" pile.  Professional materials tell casting directors, agents, and directors that this is a serious endeavor; that you have something worth experiencing; and that you want to make quality films, television series, editorials, advertisements, etc. 

If you were investing you bank account in another person's work, who would you choose to partner with?

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!

The Avenue wishes you and your family a very happy holiday season!  This year has given us much to celebrate.  We are looking forward to the agency party on Saturday and some down time with the most talented people in the southeast! This year brought a 21% increase in new clientele, more movie bookings than ever before, and one of the highest profit margins since 2001.  We want to celebrate some individuals who had exceptional years or grew by leaps and bounds in 2011, too!

This year we are celebrating JEREMY JONES who booked the lead role in the movie LUKEWARM with John Schneider.  He also made a cameo appearance in DECISION, which aired last month on GAC.  Watch for the release of LUKEWARM in 2012!

We are also celebrating JACQUELINE STEELE who booked a supporting role in the television series THE GAME.  Jacqueline has also worked on HOUSE OF PAYNE and the movie DEADLINE shot in 2011.

HOLLY ALLEN has stayed book practially year around in principal roles on camera and on stage.  Her 2011 credits add up to several movies including the Nashville-based production, DEADLINE, the lead in multiple commercials (BCBST), and major on stage theatre productions at the TN Rep (ALL MY SONS and PARALLEL LIVES).

The Avenue's cover models this year include KATIE HANCOCK, HALEY TRACY, MELODIE THOMAS, ROBERT MITCHELL, SIDNIE TIPTON SIMS, LEVI MILLER, STEVE FLANIGAN, KAREN KAGHA, PRESTON DOUGLAS, and ANNE SWANSON!!

 

Congrats to all the talent who made 2011 such a great year to partner in entertainment!  I'm looking forward to an astounding 2012 with you, too!