To all of the 12-15 year olds out there that need work

To everyone who "loves acting and REQUIRES an acting job" It might be a good Idea to put some personal information, and a bit of a resume of what shows you have been in, with which company, and who directed it.

For example (using myself):

Instead of: I am 17, I love acting and i need some one to give me a job!!!



Try: Hi, I am a 17 year old from Perth, about 5ft 6 tall, brown hair, brown eyes. Recently I have been in South Pacific (2003) with the Darlington Theatre Players, directed by N. Burton, A Fractured Fairytale (early 2004), also with DTP, written and Directed by L Kirton, On Monday Next (2004) with DTP, directed by G Palmer. Snugglepot and Cuddlepie (2004) with Prompt Corner, and am currently in A Country Wife with Play lovers.

BUT!!!

You still need to be able to act. And be prepared for auditions. No matter how much I wanted to be in Fiddler on the roof, with Roleystone, I didnt get in, because I hadnt prepared enough for the audition. If I had, I believe I would have had a better chance.

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Um, actually, could we maybe not? We're trying to DIScourage this sort of thing.

Melissa

Was that advice or promoting one's self?

S wrote:
>
> Was that advice or promoting one's self?



Can't have been promoting himself, because we've already established that no casting agent is really going to be bothered reading such information on a website posting.

And it can't really be advice, either....for the same reason.

Cheers,
Craig

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Hi I am a 14 year old from perth, about 5'7 tall, brown hair and green eyes. I enjoy acting and im not afraid of the camera.

I am currently at school in perth and I do alot of acting and peforming there.

I havent yet had a role in a play or show outside of school but I am really interested and I guess everyone has to start somewhere.

I would be very greatful for any information about auditions of any kind.
please send it to dmatt_carlson@hotmail.com

Matt

Ok, see? This is what I meant. This is exactly what we're trying to discourage.

Although, as Craig said "we've already established that no casting agent is really going to be bothered reading such information on a website posting" the stream of young wannabe's continues.

There are already 3 or 4 threads of this nature in the Classifieds sections, I would like to avoid the same thing happening here in GreenRoom Gossip.

Melissa-I-am-never-getting-rid-of-all-this-glitter-Merchant

Melissa Merchant wrote:
>
> Ok, see? This is what I meant. This is exactly what we're
> trying to discourage.
>
> Although, as Craig said "we've already established that no
> casting agent is really going to be bothered reading such
> information on a website posting" the stream of young
> wannabe's continues.
>
> There are already 3 or 4 threads of this nature in the
> Classifieds sections, I would like to avoid the same thing
> happening here in GreenRoom Gossip.
>
> Melissa-I-am-never-getting-rid-of-all-this-glitter-Merchant



Perhaps the problem is that people seem quick to respond to a thread before they bother reading other responses...if they bother at all.

I kind of like to be informed about a discussion before I enter into it, so I will have generally read the previous threads before I make a contribution.

But I am sure there are some (especially in the 'job wanted for *-teen year old' category) who read no further than the subject topic and then add to it...not realising how much of the thread suggests otherwise.


If I was trying to get myself noticed, the LAST thing I'd find effective would be to put my notice in the same pile as 80 or 90 other very similar ones.
That, more than anything, is the best argument that this technique is not going to get you results.


Cheers,
Craig


PS
I once spent the night with someone who had been wearing glitter in a show, and there were still traces in her bed...which I ended up unwittingly wearing the next morning....THAT certainly got me noticed!

[%sig%]

Sorry to have re opened the can of worms, but maybe we should have a separate forum where the 12-15 year olds can post to their hearts content, and only when someone actually wants someone in that age group and is willing to risk getting someone that is really green: eg, not knowing the difference between Stage Left and Stage Right.

[%sig%]

Luke Heath wrote:
>
>
> Sorry to have re opened the can of worms, but maybe we should
> have a separate forum where the 12-15 year olds can post to
> their hearts content, and only when someone actually wants
> someone in that age group and is willing to risk getting
> someone that is really green: eg, not knowing the difference
> between Stage Left and Stage Right.
>



Geez Luke, you're becoming a living example of what I mentioned above...someone who seems to have lost the thread because you have not read or understood previous threads...!?

You can put all those 12-15yr old's posts into the same forum if you like (I'd suggest a totally different website please), but it still makes no difference because of what I said above:
"If I was trying to get myself noticed, the LAST thing I'd find effective would be to put my notice in the same pile as 80 or 90 other very similar ones. "

The more they post these sort of mind-numbingly similar notices, the LESS they are going to get noticed amongst the masses. And therefore, NOBODY is going to find it a useful exercise to trawl through them, even if they ARE looking for a young actor. The notices simply aren't useful and are in fact detrimental.

Like I said about your first post, it's no way to promote yourself to anyone who counts, because casting agents aren't going to touch it.
Have you noticed what every notice says...."Hi, I'm 14, I really want to act, I love acting" ...NONE of that is useful information to a casting director, it's already all a given assumption! And your idea of adding resume information is a step in the right direction but it's still the totally wrong forum. If these notices are essentially rubbish, why would you place your job application right in the middle of it?

Previous threads (remember? I suggest they be read) have discussed an entire forum for people to list their CV's/biogs....but this comes up against the same stumbling block; there is very little evidence that any casting agents or directors would find it a useful way to obtain information.

Actor's CV information is only useful if it can be filed and then readily accessed and compared in a meaningful way. Agent's keep files of information on hand, or use books like Showcast (which incidentally also has a website) ...so why would they bother coming here where the information is so random and inaccessible? Many of our more recent posts are from kids who don't remember to make it clear that they actually live in Muncie, Indiana...!

I know several casting agents who DO browse this site. And the way they go about it is this: They write a description of who they are looking for, they post it with a very clear subject heading, and they leave contact details to arrange an audition. They are also very specific about WHEN an audition or a specific job is....and yet I know they have been bothered by people on this site who have written them notices up to A YEAR after the job was over! This sort of stupidity is not going to encourage them to take this site seriously! But it's precisely why they don't hang around to read what you tack onto the bottom of their notices. If you want the job, call the number and be on time for the audition. That's just how it works. The ONLY way.

I mean, pretend I'm an advertiser, and I'll pretend YOU are my casting director. I've got an ad coming up and I'm going to need three 10-15 year olds, 2 girls one boy, to play a family of kids eating breakfast cereal. They need to have the same hair colour, be three different heights, be attractive and cheerful looking, with clear diction and cute voices, bright eyes and smiles....AND they must be able to act well on camera, handling 3 lines of script each.
Now if you can search back through ANYTHING that ANYONE has EVER posted on this site and find me anyone suitable that I wouldn't be able to find quicker by leaving a phone number and holding an audition on Friday, you can have a bloody medal. Otherwise you're just wasting everybody's time.


Cheers,
Craig

[%sig%]

I was just suggesting that as a possible way to get it all out of the way of the Greenroom Gossip, Bulletins, and Classifieds, Etcetera, Etcetera, Etcetera (as the King of Siam once said)

[%sig%]