“On hold,” “On avail,” “Pinned.”

What’s the difference between "On hold," "On avail," and "Pinned"? In reality there is little to no difference between those three phrases. But let’s take a closer look at them.

“On hold” and “pinned” are the same thing. They are used mostly for theatrical projects: films and television shows. The word pinned comes from a time when actors submitted hard copy headshots.

After the auditions, the casting directors would “pin” the headshots of the actors they were interested in up on the wall of the casting office. They might have two or three for each role and it allowed them to study the headshots side by side. For whatever reason, in our digital age, the term is making a comeback. After years of not hearing that phrase, my agent has sent me a number of emails stating that a casting director has pinned me for a role.

Being pinned might mean that it’s between you and one other actor, or maybe two or three others, but usually not more than a total (including you) of four. It’s a good thing – it means you are seriously being considered for the role. But, if you don’t get the role, it can also make you frustrated, knowing that you were so close.

I'm on hold (same as pinned) for a big role right now, and part of me wishes I didn’t know that. It makes me a little nuts every time I get a call or text and it’s not my agent. Last year I did six auditions for different TV shows in a couple of months and I was pinned on four of them. Didn’t get any of the four. But after another one of the auditions during that two month span, my agent simply called to say I'd booked it – no hold or pin.

As for “avail,” it is usually (but not always) used for commercials. It simply means that the casting director is interested in you (along with two or three others) and has called your agent to check that you are available to work on the days of the shoot. Or during the period when the shoot is taking place. They may be shooting for a week, but only need you for a day or two during that week. They may not know the exact day you’ll be working but want to know that you are available during the entire week they are shooting.

None of the terms mean you are booked, or that the producers are obligated to pay you if they don’t use you. The terms simply mean you did good, and are in the running!

As always, if you have a question, drop me a note and I’ll do my best to answer it.

Cheers,

Michael

The Actor's Guide To Auditioning

You have an agent, but no auditions. What’s up?

What are some steps you can take if you have an agent but aren’t getting out for auditions? Maybe you have a bad, lazy agent and it’s time to get another one. But ... before you take that drastic step, let’s explore a few other reasons for a lack of auditions and what you can do about it.

Your headshots. Do you like them? Did you spend a lot of money on them? Unfortunately, those things count for very little. (See my post on “What makes a strong headshot?")

Your headshots need to fit in with what your agent is submitting you for. A friend of mine is an example of headshots that might not work for her. Her shots are technically beautiful. She is beautiful in them – in fact she looks like a model. But there’s two problems with her using those shots.

First, she had her hair and makeup professionally done for the shoot. This is not something she will want to duplicate for every audition. And second, the shots don’t really match her demo reel. In her dramatic clip, she plays a girl next door type – very down to earth. A second clip also shows her without makeup – pretty, but not at all glamorous. And these are the kinds of roles she wants to get, but she’s not getting called in on them, because her pictures don’t match the type of roles she wants to be submitted for.

Note: Because she’s in Los Angeles, even if she wanted to pursue glamorous or model-type roles, the competition is fierce. There’s just so many beautiful people for casting directors to choose from, which means she still might not get called in often. (There’s a way to deal with that that I’ll address in a future post.)

Anyway, it might be time to talk to your agent and see what they’re submitting you for, and how each of you sees you and the potential roles you want. If you don’t see eye-to-eye on the roles, that’s a bad sign.

Something else that may be the problem. What are you doing to help your agent get you in the door of casting directors? Your promotional work doesn’t stop when you get an agent. Are you doing plays, short films, stand-up, sketches (for YouTube or Funny or Die), improv shows, etc.? Find the performing areas that help you get more experience and exposure.

You also need contact your agent for a meeting (a meeting that takes place, if at all possible, in person or on the phone – not by text or email).

Note: My agent likes to hear from their actors (but only every once in while, like every few months). I notice my auditions go up after I say hello by phone or in person. If I have an audition nearby their office I might let them know this and ask if it's okay to drop by after the audition.

When you do talk - instead of asking them why you’re not getting called in for auditions, ask them what you can do to help them get you more auditions. Getting angry or upset at your agent won’t help your cause. But by asking them what you can do, you avoid accusing them of not doing their job. And you make it sound like it’s the two of you working together – which is what you want from your relationship.

When you do talk to them, your agent may have two answers for you about why you aren’t getting auditions. 1) They are submitting you a lot, but the casters aren’t calling you in. Or 2) The agent isn’t seeing many roles that fit you. Ask what he thinks you can do to change that.

If they are submitting you a lot – it may be your headshots. Talk to your agent about those. You want to make sure your headshots fit the roles you're being submitted for, so, you need to ask them about that. Do they need other types of headshots, like ones that are more commercial? Or do you need more credits? Time to get yourself more short film roles. Join Actors Access and sign up to receive notices for short films or low-paying feature films that your agent may not be submitting you for. 

Finally, if nothing else works, it may be time to talk to another agent. When you contact them, you don't have to say who your current agent is, just that you're looking for new representation. And don't bad-mouth your agent - just say that's it's not a good fit, then ask them what roles they see you auditioning for, andif they can get you into those auditions.

Cheers,

Michael

The Actor's Guide To Auditioning

What makes a strong headshot?

A few months ago a friend asked me to take a couple of headshots of her in order to submit for a particular role in a new Cohen Brothers film. I hadn't taken actor's headshots for a few years, but I agreed to do hers.

Most of us know that a good headshot needs to be focused, have good lighting, show the actor looking directly into the lens (making strong eye contact with the viewer), and that the actor needs to look pretty much as they will when they walk into a casting director's office.

But there's something else. It is what I had my friend do as we took her shots. Like I said above - we need to be making good eye contact with the person who is looking at our headshot, but - and this is a huge "but" - we need to have something going on behind our eyes. No matter how good-looking we are, or how well the photo looks, technically, if there is only blankness behind our eyes, the headshot will not capture the viewer's attention.

Note: If a newbie director is making a short film and needs a cute male or female, he may only care that the actor looks "cute," but I'm really talking about professional casting directors and directors here. And they look for the magic going on behind the actor's eyes.

So back to my actress friend and her headshots. What I did was give her short little scenarios to think about while we were shooting. Since she was going to use them for a particular role, I gave her ones that might be part of that role. 

But there are ones that could be used for any headshot shoot, for example: if you want to convey sadness, you might think about a good friend who has let you down, or if you want a great open smile, you might think about spotting the love of your life across a room and "lighting up" at the sight of his or her face.

I'm sure you could come up with other scenarios for other "looks." The point is if there is something actually going on behind your eyes, it will come across in the headshot. And that will make people (casters and directors) stop and take a second look. I would be prepared to have my own inner mini scenes to use as many headshot photographers don't know about them or how to use them - at least that's what I do for my own headshots.

Can you guess what I might be thinking in this headshot? It gets me called in for certain roles - which ones?



Cheers,

Michael

P.S. The friend that I shot the headshots for got called in for the role, and booked it!