Jonathan Kaufman 17 May 2019
Having said a couple of days ago how good directing is mostly good casting, I have spent most of this morning seeking actors for our knife crime theatre project SAFE.
Only having just secured our funding – and finally have a script we can use – this has been a rather last-minute affair, and so with limited time for auditions, I find myself scouring Mandy.com (formerly Casting Call Pro) for showreels of suitable actors.
The showreel – ah what a joy this particular technology has proven to be! – in the old days, you had very little to go on except a list of credits and maybe some review quotes from the Leaming Spa Gazette. Now, every actor worth their salt has a short video sequence showcasing their skills. They’re great fun to watch, especially the extracts from low-budget horror films, and give you a good idea of whether a candidate can actually act or not.
Hopefully, we’ll have our cast together in a few days’ time. For now, imagine me square-eyed, watching showreel after showreel, looking for the next Idris Elba…
