It never fails, every year towards the end of January I start to get emails from actors in a near panic about the upcoming pilot season that they don’t have anything booked yet.
It’s kind of a ritual in the industry to spend the month, getting rid of the holiday weight, redoing headshots, updating your reel, brushing up on your acting skills by loading up on classes, and everything else that goes into making your acting career a success.
Time and time again, I hear from actors that spend tons of time, money, and energy getting ready for a pilot season that, for them, never really happens.
See, having an extra audition or two does not a pilot season make. It’s something that you should be looking to do always.
Sure the nature of pilot season has changed some over the years, but so has everything else. The fact is that it remains a time when there is more work to be booked than any other time of year. So, if you want to make this pilot season the one that you look back on as being the turning point for your career, focus on these 3 things…
CDs are busier than ever during this time so you have to prepare for a couple of things to happen. Since they are spread so thin, you will end up seeing their assistants more often than you otherwise would, and you have to be skilled at navigating this landscape.
It’s also easier to become just another number, since casting offices are seeing so many actors during this time.
Whomever it is that you are reading for in auditions treat them the same way. It starts with doing your prework. Look them up and see what they are all about. What other productions have they worked on? Did you go to the same school, are you from the same town, do you both live for a good pinot grigio?
You need someway to stand out from, what soon becomes, a blur of actors indiscernible as individuals from one to the next. Unfortunately you can’t rely on your acting skills alone to make this happen.
You have to do something that makes you the talk of the office. What if you walked in and read the CDs palm or sent in a friend to “courier” the CDs favorite candy bar and a business card sized headshot along with a thank you “thank you for allowing me to read for you” note that was delivered a few minutes after your audition.
I know first hand, that it just might be the best three bucks you ever spend.
To become memorable at auditions, you first need to have enough opportunities to audition. To do that you have to make the industry aware of you. “If they don’t know you, they can’t hire you” and IMDb is one of the places you should be putting your focus on.
Not only is it a place that industry decision makers go to source new talent, it’s looked at any time you are being considered for a role as part of your Castability Index.
Make sure you are in good standing. If you are not happy with where you are, here’s a quick fix.
When you improve your ratings with the industry, you will find that doors are easier to open. You may find that your agent can get you into auditions for bigger roles in bigger productions than what you have been able to get into thus far.
Since it’s a measure of your industry reputation and credibility, a good ranking can be the difference between reading for a guest role vs a recurring role. It could be the difference between reading for a bit part or reading for the second lead.
While there is a formula for success, there is no magic potion you can cook up to make yourself successful as an actor.
Then they have to like you. That’s what being memorable is all about. Get creative and have fun with this. I’ve seen everything from sending over an entire barbershop quartet to deliver a “thank you for allowing me to read” song and dance, to a simple candy bar and thank you note as I mentioned a moment ago.
The palm reader trick is my personal favorite, as it can be done in the moment, while you’re still in the room and it immediately piques the interest of everyone there.
Once they know you and like you, then you have to make yourself the only logical choice.
You do this by make yourself a marketing tool that will lead to viewers tuning in to see your performance and support you.
There’s a way I can help you get the ball rolling with that too.
As more studio advertising dollars move to online channels, the networks are increasingly looking to cast actors that can bring an organic audience with them. It’s the business side of the entertainment business.
It’s why you see more and more Instagrammers and YouTubers successfully making the leap to the silver screen.
All things being equal, the actor that can deliver a stellar performance and that also brings X amount of fans and followers and their attention to the production will win the role almost every time. It’s not the best system in the world but it’s what the industry is doing now and for the foreseeable future.
So how will you approach this pilot season grasshopper? Let me know in the comments below or shoot me an email. I’m always here to help however can, so that I can…
See you at the top,
Scott