Story time:

We read an actor for the series lead of a pilot. He was perfect for the role but the network wasn’t convinced. We read/taped him 2x, but they still weren’t seeing it. In an act of passion, the prods wrote a brand new scene for him, one they felt would seal the deal.
His agent didn’t want him to read again. They felt like the writing was on the wall and didn’t want to put him through it. We pleaded, the producers wrote a love letter for the agent to pass on to the actor… the actor said yes to reading again. One caveat…
we were in a time crunch. He had to learn the new scene immediately and come in tomorrow, on a Sunday morning, to tape it.
He did. He was wonderful and so open to notes and adjustments. He was ready to fight for this role. We (prods and Casting) were all more in love with him than ever. We got a tape that we were all ecstatic about. We sent it to the network that night.

The network said no.
Two months later, I read in the trades that that actor had gotten a series regular role on another show. That show is now WILDLY popular, critically-acclaimed and several seasons into its run.
The pilot we worked on did not get picked up, despite an incredible set of creatives, a great script + assurances from the network that this one was their favorite. If that actor had booked our pilot, he would’ve been unavailable to even audition for his now-uber successful show.
Moral of the story is this: what is for you will not go by you; when one door closes, another one opens… Those platitudes exist in our lexicon because they’re true. It may be hard to trust those ideas when you’re dealing with rejection in real time, but…
if you continue to work your craft, that “no” will simply mean “not yet”.

This story is brought to you by “that time of year” when we look back at everything we did in 2021, (during a global pandemic, mind you,) and have feelings.

#CastingLovesYou #CheersToYourEfforts

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More from @ericasbreamcast

4 Jan
Actors, here's a hot tip for your Tuesday: if you see a prototype in a breakdown description, that is for your REPS, not for you.

1/
We use prototypes all the time when we're discussing the concept of a character. Writers often write with a voice or specific person/type in mind. Occasionally, we'll include those names in the breakdown to help your reps have clarity as to the type and tone we're going for.

2/
If you see a "so-and-so type" or "prototype is so-and-so", try to erase that name/voice from your brain.

For reps submitting, "A Joan Allen type" is more succinct than "Female, 50s, tough."

But for the actor, it can easily lead to an impression, even if you don't mean to.

3/
Read 5 tweets
17 Jun 21
Hi, I'm hearing from a lot of actors who are feeling left behind as they see more of their friends back on set.

So I'm here to remind you that...
1. You can't compare your journey to anyone else's - you are apples and oranges.

2. People only share the good stuff on social media - you have no idea what their bad days are really like (or how frequent.)
3. Only one person can get the job at the end of the day - what is for you will not go by you. (Thank you, Brian Cox, for that perfect quote.)

4. We are *still* in the middle of a pandemic and things are still getting up and running - it's hard, but practice patience.
Read 5 tweets
3 Jan 20
Actors, you should ALWAYS read *all* of the instructions for your self-tapes, as they (and we) are all a little different.

But in case Casting hasn't specified certain things, here are some simple basics you can follow, (to protect your/your reps sanity): #minithread
Again, these are to guide you ONLY if Casting hasn't otherwise specified. (Read all of the instructions, every time, I beg of you!)

1. Slates: if Casting doesn't say where to put your slate, (beginning, end, separate) put it at the end. We should see your performance FIRST.
2. Slates (again): if Casting hasn't asked for a slate, it's still good to include a basic one, saying your name and height, (great if you can make it full body, but ok if you can't.) It's good for us to hear how you pronounce your name and get the perspective on your height.
Read 32 tweets

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