Do Casting Directors really hold the key to your career in the film and television world?

Not nearly as much as you do. Hopefully this post will open your eyes to something that has helped me stand out and get noticed by numerous casting directors -creating a respectable online presence.
Casting Director Heidi Levitt said it best so I thought I’d let her share it with you. This same thinking process can also be applied to singers, musicians and bands. A big fat shout out to The Wrap for this info!

- Kahlil (at) gigsmacked (dot)com

The Real Deal.

Here’s the craziest thing about casting.

It’s not that I’ve met so many incredible actors at the very beginning of their careers and been able to see how much they have grown professionally. It’s not that actors simply don’t remember to staple their headshots to their resumes. And it’s certainly not that actors don’t look anything like their photos.

It’s that actors don’t get that they need to be their own advocates.

The craziest thing about casting is how many amazingly talented people there are in this town who are still not working. Still not breaking through. Still not getting that all-important second look. And I have met many of them.

If they stick with it and use every available resource, then they can succeed.

This is where technology comes into play. There are opportunities everywhere to be in web series that debut online. There are students everywhere creating short films for YouTube.

There is the opportunity for every struggling actor to make a name for themselves on Facebook and let their friends and family take part in their journey. Just make it relevant to your experience as an actor (not how you’re struggling from a hangover….).

When I’m casting, I do the search that I think everyone does before hiring someone. I research who’s out there, who’s new and who might be hidden below my radar. I call agents and managers. And when the role calls out for something truly unique, I go online and search for the unlikely and the undiscovered .

Fifteen years ago, I used to travel the world to cast the authentic, but today, the world is on my laptop or in the palm of my hand.

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For actors to be successful today, they need to become Digital Natives as well; they need to use the internet to research what is going on and also create online reels and profiles that are attractive and accessible.

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This is just as important as that headshot, which of course you’re going to remember to staple to your resume. … Right?

-Heidi Levitt

(check out Heidi’s AWESOME iPhone App for actors called ActorGenie)