Pre Production: Entire Casting Process
Mandy.com - What is it?
For my casting process I decided to use Mandy.com which used to be 'Casting Call Pro'. This website allows advertisers to post jobs which requires either actors, dancers, singers or anything along those lines. Since I have previously used this platform, I decided it would be a good idea to revisit this site as I managed to always find a lot of willing contributors for my previous films.
My Advert - What was important?
When creating my advert I knew it was important to clearly outline exactly what I wanted and as much detail about the project as possible because its important to allow my contributors to have a good understanding about what they will be applying to and what I will be asking from them. Below is the full advert I created where I tried to be as concise as possible but also very detailed about what I wanted..
Isaiah Anderson
- Character is a young black boy
- Actor must be able to play a young role (age 17 )
- Any weight required
*There is a scene where he holds his breath under water. must be comfortable acting this out
Lily Thompson
- Must be comfortable portraying a close and friendly friendship with main character.
- Character's playing age is 17, actress must be able to look "young" but can be any age really.
Mariette Anderson - Isaiah's mum
Playing age is 45/50
- Black Caribbean or African
- would be good if character could do either any Caribbean accent or any African accent but it isn't necessary.
David Anderson - Isaiah's Dad
Playing age is 45/50
- Black Caribbean or African
- would be good if character could do either any Caribbean accent or any African accent but it isn't necessary.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Responses so far;
Isaiah:
What I'm looking for;
After going through the applicants, Josue and Moses stood out because they both had a look that would suit the character. Josue asked me for a draft script and after I sent it I never heard back from him whereas moses was very enthusiastic about the production. He had a lot of video material that allowed me to gage what kind of actor he is and what emotions he is capable of conveying. Since I felt time was running out and I did not want to him to lose interest. I offered to call him and speak about the production and after this, I decided to take the plunge and choose him for the part. I was really confident in his ability event though I had not met him. This may have been a risk but I was willing to do so.
My chosen cast:
Moses Wilson as Isaiah Anderson
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Lily Responses;
Below are the 48 Lily responses. I was overwhelmed with how many applicants applied for this role. Within 1 day I had over 30 and so I begun sorting through.
What I love most about Mandy.com is the ability to easily sort through your applicants. You get to sort them into a YES, NO, MAYBE pile and its kept discreet. After sorting them, you are able to email the different groups. This made it suuuuper easy to create the unfortunate "unsuccessful" email. I didn't have to message them individually however I made sure to write the mail in a way that wasn't so obvious it was a group email.
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Here's what I sent to the "unsuccessful applicants"
I was feeling a little nervous about the casting process now because I had so many applicants for one role. I did not expect to even get 10. I took to the internet to get some tips on how to approach the next step. How do I select from such a big bunch?
(StarNow.com)
I figured why drag my applicants all the way to maidstone when I could start weeding them out by asking them to send in a self tape and see who brings out the character more.
Here is what is sent to the "yes" and "maybe" applicants. These were the ones who did not have any video material attached and I therefore wanted to get a better grasp on how they would look on camera as well as perform. The message was as followed;
I sent this to 16 applicants and only received 6 self tape responses which I was fine with because it allowed me to narrow down who was really willing to work in this project.
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Below are screenshots of the self tapes .
Lisa: Her performance was okay, a little over acting but again, she did not suit the look I was initially going for.
After reviewing the self tapes there were 2 that stood out to me.
Sigourney
Rachael
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Below are screenshots of the self tapes .
Marion: I really liked her acting ability but she had a very strong French accent which in my opinion would distract from the narrative.
This applicant performed the part well but respectfully, she looked a little older and so she wouldn't have suited the part as my Isaiah character looks young.
Sigourney: Her self tape surprised me as there were elements in it which I thought was quite dead, her eyes seemed a little lifeless when saying certain words, but in her show reel and other video material she produced a great personality and performance. In my opinion she also looked closer to what imagined Lily to be in comparison to the current selection so I was really hoping to give it another shot by seeing her in person as I was unsure of how young she would look.
Rachael: She depicted Lily's character really well considering my description in the email. This showed me that she is possibly able to take directions well. I wanted to see her in person to gage how she really looked as well since my Lily character has to look young.
Sofia: Her performance was okay but in my opinion she didn't fit the look I was going for.
After reviewing the self tapes there were 2 that stood out to me.
Sigourney
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The next step was to arrange a meeting with these two individuals to go through the script, ask questions about availability and allow them to get a better feel of the whole production in general. I went online to see what tips I could get to insure I made the most out of this meeting.
This website provided a list of things that I could consider asking my actors;
I found it quite interesting because it emphasises the need for the actor to have full knowledge of the script. It was eye opening because this wasn't necessarily the route I would've gone as it is a short film where I am really limited for choice. I'm not trying to catch them out on anything, I just want to focus on character portrayals but I do like the question about "what is the most challenging part of this role" - a question like this allows me to understand them as an actor as well as understand what I can do to combat this (their answer) I will be adding this question to a list of things I want to ask.
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The next step was to schedule a meeting with these two potentials. After an exchange of messages via Mandy, I manage to schedule both actors on the same day at a coffee shop in London. It was my original aim to get them down to maidstone studious as this enhances the professionalism of the production. I offered to pay for half of their travel to maidstone as well but eventually due to scheduling, they weren't able to make it to maidstone due to the length of time it takes to get there and back. I met up with each of them in central London and I found it to be a very interesting experience.
Meeting with Sigourney: The meeting with Sigourney went well as it felt like I was meeting a friend. She was very lovely and had a lot of character to her yet very professional. She was confident in herself and asked me questions about the production which showed she had a keen interest. She told me how much she loved the script because of how natural it was and that it was super difficult to people to get right, this made me feel a lot more confident about the production as it was the first time getting feedback from someone who wasn't on the TV production course. After going through the script and talking about the character requirements, I almost wanted to hire her on the spot but then we realised that she wasn't free on any of the days I had planned. This meant I would have to consult my camera man as well as the confirmed actor for Isaiah to make sure their dates would align with the new dates. If not, I would then have to go with Rachael.
Meeting Rachael: I was even more nervous when meeting the second actor for some reason, I think it's because everything became real and I knew I had already had my eyes set on Sigourney. But when she arrived she was very lovely and willing to cooperate with anything to do with the production. My aim for seeing Rachael was to know whether she would be able to give a much more natural performance as her self tape seemed a little sinister at times and over acted. I had her go through the section again to see if she would be able to do this, I explained that Lily is a character who has to seem more genuine. Upon reading the part again, I felt as though Rachael's style of acting was a little too over the top in some ways but at the same time she was fully available for the days provided and she was also an artist which would help the believability of some of the shots.
I was faced with a tough decision but I was more geared towards Sigourney. I managed to confirm new dates with both my camera operator and Isaiah actor which meant I would be able to have Sigourney on board. I told Sigourney of the news and she was very happy to be on board with the production.
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Going back to the listing, When trying to find an actor for Isaiah's mum I only received 2 applications. In my opinion Fredericka suited the part more, especially when reviewing her showreel I could see that she was able to act out a harsh character.
Roli had a very sweet and innocent look, it could work but she did not really look like she could be Isaiah's mum, more like Isaiah's step mum and I think that would be a little distracting to the plot in some ways. Unfortunately, Fredericka did not respond to me when I sent her the script so as of now I do not have an actress for Isaiah's mum.
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Even though I did get some responses for Isaiah's dad, I decided to cut costs I will be using my own dad as I believe he suits the part more. Especially as the dad doesn't have a lot to say.
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Final Thoughts
This whole experience has been an eye opening one because my script is really starting to take life. Its a very bizarre feeling when you see people applying for something you created, your own idea. It is a confidence boost but it is very daunting at the same time because you have to make really important decisions. Ever decision you make effects the final outcome and so I realise how important it is to consider every aspect when choosing actors. I also realised how looks play an important part. At times I felt very shallow for not choosing someone based on their appearance but I know that I must do so because at the end of the day its my final production and I want all aspects to be covered and be fitting for the final outcome.
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