A quick "Thank you" to you!

I don't have any gossip or "behind the scenes" Hollywood stories for you on the last day of 2012.

I do have a heartfelt "Thank You" for reading my blog...And for being so supportive of The Artist and his leap into the unknown in California.

I'm very proud of the kid for having the courage to follow his dream of becoming a professional actor.  I'll admit to some moments of doubt and concern.  It's all worth it when I see the joy on his face while he's working on his craft.

I also have to thank his mom for doing something many mothers would never dream of doing...Letting her 13-year-old son move across the country with his (sometimes more immature) dad to chase his dream.

I need to thank you for letting me ramble on about child actors, stage parents, an entertaining but weird apartment complex, L.A. traffic and various other topics on a regular basis. 

If you like my blog, please feel free to share it with your friends.  I'll have more Hollywood stories in 2013 and it's always fun to connect with new readers.

Have a safe and Happy New Year!

A Final Hollywood Story For 2012

Zach finished 2012 with a "nice get" as he was asked to audition for a part on “General Hospital”.

Auditions are normally held at a off-site casting office far away from the main production of a shoot or movie.  The Artist was asked to audition at the production offices of GH.

The front gate of the studio home of General Hospital.

It’s still an odd feeling to walk up to a major television studio to find Zach's name on the guest list. 

Mark Teschner is the casting director for the show.  He's cast thousands of hours of television in his career.

The Artist and I made our way across the lot and were wondering if we should turn left or right to find the set.  We looked to our left and found the answer when we spotted this sign:

The front of the hospital is really on the side of a studio set.  The sign is next to a loading dock made to look like a hospital emergency entrance.

We entered the building and it was like stepping into a real hospital.  The security guard gave us directions to the elevator.  The sign below is the first sight you see after exiting the elevator:

The current cast of "General Hospital".

The Artist signed in at the casting office desk.  I could tell by the look on his face that he was nervous at the sight that greeted him.  There were three other actors in the room and all of them were in the 18-22 age range. 

We looked at each other but didn't say a word about the age difference.  

Out of the three guys in the waiting room, two of them were blonde and bland while the third guy looked like the wrong version of Taylor Lautner.

He had the Taylor Lautner look from the first “Twilight” movie.  He was long haired and skinny with clothes that were too big for his frame. 

If you’re going to try and look like Taylor Lautner you should go for the buff version/popular version of Taylor Lautner.

Zach waited his turn and went in for his audition.  He was in the casting room for a good 10-15 minutes.  He walked out to the sight of two actors his age in the waiting room.  The Artist was relieved to see kids his age trying out for the role.

A cute sign we spotted as we left the audition.  It's next to the ambulance parking lot on the set.











It turns out GH is auditioning two different age groups to determine which direction they want to go with the character.  As always, it’s a case of “hurry up and wait” before we find out any further news from the producers.  

What Happens During An Audition?

A few blog readers have asked me to describe the audition process.   

The process varies depending on the source of the audition.  An audition can come from your agent or manager, a direct message through a casting website, Craigslist, trade magazine ads, a recommendation or pure luck.
 

Having said that, here's a “typical” audition process timeline:

***An audition is posted on one (or more) of the major casting websites.

***Hundreds of actors are submitted for the audition.  An actor might submit himself or the submission could come from an agent/manager.

There were two girls that lived at The Plaza (our old home) that didn’t have an agent or manager.  They were relentless in their submissions and chasing down casting directors.  They weren't super successful at booking gigs but it wasn’t for lack of trying on a daily basis.

***The casting directors and/or the project producers go through all of the submissions to choose who they want to audition for the upcoming part.  

It’s not an exaggeration to say there are thousands of submissions for every open role in Hollywood.  You can almost consider it a victory to be called in for an audition.  The odds of your headshot, demo reel or resume standing out enough from thousands of other submissions are hard to quantify.

***The actor is notified of the audition via email or a phone call.

The actor confirms the appointment and is told the details of the audition.  Are there sides (script samples)?  Is it an improv audition?  What part is the actor playing during the audition?  Is there a specific style of dress or a certain accent needed for the part?

***The actor rehearses and memorizes the sides and arrives at the audition ON TIME.  The casting director wants the lines memorized before you enter the audition.  It doesn’t hurt to have a copy of the script as a “fall back” but it’s best to have the script committed to memory.

***We always bring the sides, a headshot and resume (attached to the back of the headshot), his current work permit and paperwork to prove he has a bank account to protect his money until he turns 18 years old.

***The actor waits his turn until he is called into the audition room.  The room could have one casting director OR it might be filled with casting agents, producers, directors and screen writers.

***The audition itself could be anywhere from 30-seconds to 5-minutes depending on the material and the interest of the casting director.  The actor might have to do different line readings, improvise new lines, answer questions about his take on the character or read the words EXACTLY as they’re written on the page.

***After the audition, actors get to second guess their performance, wait for a call or email with info about a callback/booking and work on getting the next audition.

Any other important notes to remember about auditions?

It's a luxury to get a couple of days notice before the actual audition.  We've had auditions come up anywhere from "can you audition NOW?" to "later today" to "see you tomorrow".  It's the same way with many job bookings.  It's always easier to jump in the car and run when it's for a paying job!

It’s a never ending process.  The odds of hearing “thanks but no thanks” if you don’t book a gig are about one-percent.  The casting directors don’t have time to contact everyone that didn’t book the job.  You have to learn to keep moving on to the next audition and not obsessing over jobs you didn't book.

It’s not easy but it’s totally worth it when you get a booking!

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm4115971/