There are tons of casting websites out there. Three of the most popular ones are:
www.nowcasting.com
www.lacasting.com
www.breakdownservices.com
Backstage and Backstage West are also quite popular, but why pay when you don’t have to. And on these websites you can be much more specific, get faster results and get a record of all the people who applied and auditioned.
In my lacasting.com profile (for producing), I have notes on actors who auditioned for a project 3 years ago and I was able to I review these auditioners a little while ago when I was casting a more recent project and needed similar types.
If you’re an actor, you’re probably already familiar with the actor-side of these sites. Well, they also are a great resource for producers. You can do searches and research on actors, and watch reels right on the site.
The least time-consuming way to use these sites, however, is to post what you are seeking and let the actors apply to your project.
In your post, you will need to write a short description of each roll. I’ve seen everything from short “female” to long “female with medium blond hair that comes down to the top of the shoulders, blue eyes, 5’7”, and must be able to speak with an English Yorkshire accent.”
I like to be more specific on the rolls that I know will have a lot of applicants (female & males in their 20’s) and as non-specific as possible with rolls that are difficult to cast (male bagpiper that can do Irish accent in their 40’s or older) without requesting people that don’t fit the roll (female bagpipers.)
Along with the cast descriptions, you will want to include all the information I mentioned earlier… all dates you will need the actors, time/date/location of casting session, compensation… the casting sites will walk you through it so I don’t really need to get into it here.
I recommend that you do not post your personal information unless you enjoy being bombarded by calls and emails (both welcome and unwelcome).
