Pre-Production: Audition Preparation & Advertising

To begin the auditioning process I created an advert to sell the idea to potential actors and listed the characters and details about them.  I began by posting to Mandy Actors (Casting Call Pro)and Actors UK Casting & Jobs which is a Facebook group with over 1000 members. After posting the job to Facebook I was approached by someone who works for Backstage Casting.  He offered me free membership forever to be able to post jobs to the site and this has allowed us to find many possible applicants. Below is the casting advert that I have created. 

Young & Famous

TV SITCOM – STUDENT PROJECT

TRAVEL EXPENSES AND FOOD ONLY

PREFERABLY CAST CAN DRIVE AND ARE LOCAL TO KENT

Synopsis

Attention seeking, retired couple, Annie & Dean struggle to achieve their 15 minutes of fame in order to impress their community, family and friends.

In the quiet village of Farling Bay, Annie & Dean struggle to adjust to their new retired lifestyle, causing them to search for their 15 minutes of fame to gain the attention of their children and grandchildren.  Annie is often found learning the latest trends and Dean’s crazy schemes always end up with him in trouble.  As they are considered the centre of the community, they often use their neighbour’s constant dramas to their advantage, in their hunt for fame.

PILOT EPISODE

Cast

Annie Davis

Annie is 65 years old, young at heart and always trying to keep on top of the latest trends.  Annie longs to be young again and does everything she can to make herself appear younger than her years.  She misses the attention of her family.  She’s a people’s person and often tries to get involved in the neighbour’s latest dramas.  She has recently retired from her repetitive receptionist job and her mid life crisis is gaining new hobbies to make her look and feel young again.  She is married to Dean.

Requirements

• Between 55-70
• Between 5ft 2 and 5ft 6
• Dyed brownie blonde hair
• Fresh faced and spritely
• Up for a laugh!

Dean Davis

Dean is 67 years old and determined to get his 15 minutes of fame.  Dean is retired from a mundane office job, which has resulted in bad hip and backaches.  He has a dry and witty sense of humour and takes the opportunity to make sarcastic jokes where he can.   He doesn’t enjoy socialising and often tries to avoid situations with the neighbours.   He is striving for fame to gain the attention of his children and grandchildren.  He is married to Annie.

Requirements

• Between 55-70
• Between 5ft 6 – 6ft
• Grey/white hair (slightly balding is acceptable)
• Up for a laugh!

Betty – Jo King

Betty is 77 years old and Annie and Dean’s most pestering neighbour.  She is infatuated with Dean and shows it often through presents she has made herself.  She has a pet robotic cat called Arnold who she thinks is real.  She has a tendency to appear in Annie and Dean’s house without explanation.  She’s a very sassy character and doesn’t hold back on her opinions.  She’s a bit senile and not quite on this planet.

Requirements

• Between 65-80
• Between 5ft – 5ft 5
• White/Grey curly bobbed hair
• Up for a laugh!

Claire Skips

Claire is 25 years old and is Annie and Dean’s neighbour.  She always has a drama going on in her life.  She is getting married to Ben Squelch and her Maid of Honour Ashley is a nightmare for organizing things that Claire isn’t happy about.  She often confides in Annie and can never make her own mind up.   She’s a complete drama Queen and a very ditsy character.  

Requirements

• Between 20 – 30
• Between 5ft 3 – 5ft 7
• Blonde hair
• Up for a laugh!

Postman/Delivery Guy

*Minor Role* they arrive at the door to deliver Annie’s new iPad. They are on friendly terms with Dean and Annie as they are also local to the village and see them often.

Requirements

• Between 20 -30
• Between 5ft 5 – 6ft
• Up for a laugh!

Jordan Hamsey

Based off Gordon Ramsey and is the chef of the TV Show The Last Dish which Dean has applied for.  He awards Dean with the application approval but takes it back when he tastes Dean’s cooking.  His cooking results in him being sick in Annie’s flowerpot.  

Requirements

• Fairly similar likeness to Gordon Ramsey
• Between 40-50
• Blonde/ Brown Hair
• Up for a laugh!

If you are interested in any of the roles above, please email biglaughsnetwork@gmail.com to receive a copy of the script and an audition date.  

Due to our casting platforms and advertising we had over 80 applicants apply for the different roles on offer. I sorted these into a spreadsheet to allow us to see clearly who had applied, where they are based, which character they are interested in applying for and their headshot. Next to this information I put whether they would be given an audition or based on looks, location and their show reels. I didn't look at all of their showreels as having over 80 applicants meant that I needed to be selective as to who I initially thought would work for the character they have applied for. I have colour coded the document into sections to show who we are keen on auditioning and who we are not going to audition Here is a picture of the spreadsheet I created:

When emailing replies to all the applicants I realised that I didn't need to give a reason as to why we were not picking them for an  audition however I had to find a balance as to making sure that if we needed them that they could come and audition for a role if we struggle to find a character. 

Once we had our shortlist of confirmed auditionees, I created two documents for the audition days and scheduled each artist in for a 15 minute slot. Please see below: 

We needed to make sure that the artist felt comfortable and relaxed as this will give a true representation as to whether or not they will be good to work with. Becca and I decided to create some improvisational scenarios for each character to see how the actors understood the character they were auditioning for and to see if any of their understandings could create new ideas in character development for us as the scriptwriters. Below are the scenarios we came up with: 

Audition Prep

Introduce ourselves – audition is recorded

Ask them about themselves (sign form)

Where they’ve come from

Who they are

How they are

Explanation

Script Readthrough x2

Scenarios/Improv:

Dean Davis (Scene 8 – when Betty comes in):

• Standing in a queue at a supermarket
• He burnt his food
• His grandchildren told him they don’t want to see him
• Been given a present that he’s already wanted
• What would make Dean really happy?

Annie Davis (Scene 10):

• Didn’t quite understand new piece of tech
• Violet told her she’s dressing too young
• Her family cancels Christmas
• Someone completes her outfit/hair
• What would make Annie really happy?

Betty-Jo King (Scene 8 – when she comes in):

• Saw Dean talking to another old lady/helping another old lady with her troubles
• Arnold went missing
• Annie caught her out on spying on Dean
• Dean was fixing her plumbing
• What would make Betty really happy?

Marie Dubois (Scene 1):

• Annie & Dean were at her child’s birthday party, and they cut and ate the cake before it was time to blow the candles out
• Violet/Alexander got an achievement at school
• Get’s a big promotion at work
• Husband is called away at work again
• What would make Marie really happy?

Delivery Man (Scene 7):

• Lost his parcel
• Went to the wrong house
• Has a suspicious parcel in his bag wants to open it
• Delivers a parcel to his crushes house
• What would make Delivery Man really happy?

Following on from this I have created an audition form that each applicant will need to sign for us to be able to contact them again afterwards to let them know if they were successful and to also understand their travel options and their location as well. Below is the example: 

By creating these documents it allowed us to be completely prepared and ready for our auditions, making us look as professional as possible. Due to this being a student production it is important for us to look professional as it will convince actors that we are worth working for and will make them more likely to commit to our project.