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Daily Blog

August 19, 2010

Last night I was having dinner with some friends, one of whom is an actor. He is very good looking and has always worn color contacts, so his eyes kind of pop out at you. He is looking for a new manager and I got him a meeting with someone who I really like. I think they will be a good fit. Anyway, as the drinks were flowing and I was being asked all kinds of questions, I looked at my friend and said, “Look, before you go into meet the manager, I have to ask you about your eyes.” He looked at me inquisitively, “Are they contacts?” “Yes” was the answer and I proceeded to tell him that I thought it would be a good idea to go to his meeting “au natural.” He was confused, concerned and perplexed. The color contacts make us look at his eyes, but I get the feeling that the reason he is not booking as much work as he could be booking is that the eye color is so intense that it is distracting to his acting and his auditioning. If the Casting Director is distracted, that is not a good thing. I should be focusing on the acting not the eye color.

 

At another audition this week, an actor came in and did a very good job at his audition for the Director. After he left the audition room, I asked the Director what he thought. The Director thought he was good, but something was wrong. “It’s his hair,” I said, nonchalantly. When he was auditioning, he kept looking down at the page and on the top of his head was a shiny bald spot. His hairstyle was also not enhancing his acting; it was kind of covering up the imperfections. The actor is in his 20’s so, when auditioning for a leading action hero, the bald spot and bad hair style got in the way, it will subliminally make the Director (or me) feel like something is just not right.

 

Now, I kind of hate telling you all of this, because it make what I do seem sort of petty, but in reality, I deal in what looks right for a role on a giant screen in a movie theater. Actors have to be aware of how they look, it’s part of the deal: You get to be famous and successful and we get to scrutinize every ounce of your body. Of course there are a lot of exceptions, and what I am writing about has more to do with younger actors, but we all judge people every day for the way they look, and if someone is making you feel differently about them and or their performance because their look isn’t matching up to the characteristics and needs of the character, then this can sometime, more often then not be a problem for the actor in getting hired.

 

Distractions like colored contact lenses, bad hair, iffy skin issues, these can all affect the outcome of an audition.

July 17, 2010

I think the hardest part about writing a blog about what I do, and maybe this is because of who I am, in the genetic sense, is that when I write down my daily thoughts or weekly events, at the time they sound important or worth telling and then after a few days pass by I look at what I am about to publish and I think, “Oi, not worth it,” or “Gosh, who is going to care?” For example, I was going to write about the agent who bold-faced lied to me about an actor reading the script and passing on the material and then I found out by emailing the actor directly that they had never read the script, I was going to write about that, but after writing most of that (3 full pages!), I re-read it and thought to myself, “I don’t care anymore, move on Matthew.” Or, I was going to write about the fact that I have had no work and all of a sudden several projects came in at one time and now I find myself in a position not to not accept the jobs, because I need the money and none of them are paying what I need them to pay in order to do them all properly, but I still took the gigs because, well, I needed the money. I could tell you that, in retrospect, it sucks to have to do that, because, I can’t focus on what the production needs, by not paying for an assistant or an assistant and an associate, my time is spent going through emails and scheduling auditions and working so virtually, that the phone calls I need to make to discuss the projects with a live person get thrown to the back of the line and the phone calls to return get pushed back to the back of another line and that the phone sheet becomes my enemy and still somehow I have to remember six different films’ characters and make lists and check availabilities on my own because these producers have no idea how intense the work load that they are asking me to do, is…I could write about that…

 

I could also write about the big drama over Casting Workshops and how over the past several months, my good friends who run these workshops have been freaking out about the LA City Attorneys letter sent to Casting Directors and workshop owners warning them that they may be in violation of the Krekorkian Talent Scam Prevention Act. I could write about that, but after attending several of the meetings and hearing all parties concerns, I got board from the lack of knowledge as to what people (i.e. people who don’t do what I do for a living) do and how we do it and also the lack of understanding that it actually is possible that someone like myself is good at something else besides casting a film and can actually teach a class legitimately and does care about imparting knowledge on to actors but is also entitled to make a living, I could go on and on and on about that, but it just gets a little whiny.

 

I could write about my interns, all of who are in their early twenties. All, still in college, and all of whom are completely useless with computers, printers and the Internet. All of which makes me CRAZY! I don’t understand this, I don’t understand that a generation that has grown up with digital music, cell phones, the world wide web, virtual shopping, virtual worlds, that this generation can literally not plug in a computer to a printer or figure out how to download a printer’s driver onto their laptop, how, dear God up in the sky, how do they function on a daily basis? I could write about that, but then I just feel old and as I am not even 39 yet (a few more days, presents accepted), I could write about that, but I will swallow it and chalk it up to remembering that when I was 22 I was probably as much of an idiot as I think that they are and I probably was…

 

I could write about the office rent and phone bills and needing to put that damn poster up that has been leaning against my office wall, framed and all, since I moved into the office (2 years ago). I could write about needing to dust and vacuum the office and clean out the files, which I leave to Monika, because she loves to do it, I could remind myself that somewhere on my desk which looks like KATRINA hit it, I could remind myself to find that article on that rapper that everyone is talking about and how I tried to get him in a film two years ago but my producer thought he didn’t mean anything. I could write about the gazillions of times I have tried to get the obviously hot, hot actor to be to be the lead of a film and pay him peanuts because he would be happy to be in a film and then by the time the film was ready to be released, by that time, the producers would be kissing me, licking my body in joy and love because all of a sudden their 1.5 million dollar film had the new hot star of the moment, I could write about how this happens to me on a daily basis and still, somehow, I keep my cool when I hear back, “Matt, they just don’t mean anything…” I could write about that…

 

But I don’t want to write about any of this stuff. I want to tell you that I have been really lucky over the last few weeks and working my butt off to make it all work and that despite the state of the independent film world, I have faith that money will come back to it and that the business will find a way to continue to produce and distribute films and that the business will continue, because in truth, we need to find a way to keep things moving in a positive direction or else a lot of us in this industry will be doing something else. And since I have no other discernable skill set, I really need to keep my gig going.

 

So go out there and go to your local independent movie theater. Support independent film. Rent them on Netflix and demand them at Blockbuster! Support an industry that has a lot of talent, support us, because the less support we have, the fewer choices you will have in quality entertainment, quality writing, and quality acting. Support your local theater, school’s arts programs, volunteer, be a good person and remember, if you are in this business: IT IS NOT EVERYTHING, IT IS JUST PART OF WHO YOU ARE. Don’t freak out because you can’t book a client, don’t lie to me (or anybody) if you can’t deliver on something promised, just work towards making things happen. That is the only way we can continue to have an industry that thrives.

 

And with that rant, I will say, have a great rest of the summer. I will try to post something soon, but I have too much on my plate and too many places to visit (Aspen and the Grand Tetons here I come!). Be good…Act well: Cast thoughtfully! Actors still say “no,” it’s ok; you will get your film cast…

June 13, 2010

I can be such a dork sometimes. First of all, my rule of not working over the weekends was broken this weekend when a director I am working with needed to see an actor on Saturday. As I do have a lot to catch up on, I was happy to go into the office at 10 and hold the audition at 11 and finish up around 2 and then go to the gym, etc, etc… Well, 11am happened and the director showed up with the producer, who flew in from Atlanta and the actor was not there. We called the actor and he was running late and would not be there until at least 1pm. The director asked if I minded hanging out and as I did have a lot to do, I said it wasn’t a problem and went back to my desk while they went out for a coffee. 1pm arrived and I gathered all of my belongings. My office is on the 5th floor of the building I am in and the audition room is on the 12th floor. So, in my hands I had a script, two copies of the 17 pages of sides and my small digital camera with an extra battery and extension chord. My hands were full as I opened my door and as the door slammed shut, I realized that I forgot my keys. I usually keep my key attached to a buckle on my jeans but this morning I forgot to do that, so I was out of luck and had no way to get back into my office or into the audition room. I went to the security guard in the main lobby and asked him if he had a master key to the offices, of course not…so, I went back up to the 12th floor to deliver my news that I was a total dumb ass and locked myself out of the offices. The actor auditioning, said no problem and tried to pick open the lock like a professional thief. It was funny at first and then weird and then awkward and then I was like, wow, he really may be a professional thief in his spare time! Well, needless to say, he did not get the audition room door open and not for a lack of trying. He was actually up for the challenge and excited about the possibility of busting on in. He went downstairs to the shop next door and borrowed a screwdriver. He really was a very determined young man. After a few minutes of almost breaking the door, I ordered him to stop and put everything back the way he found it as I am already probably going to be in a hell of a lot of trouble with the building manager for trying to get back into the room. It was all put back neatly and we had the small dilemma of where to hold the audition. We had no choice but to hold it in the hallway of the 5th floor of the building. Sure, the lighting sucked. Sure, the sound was a little echo-y and my dignity was way, way, way thrown out of the window, because aside from being totally embarrassed and humiliated at the fact that the producer flew in from Atlanta to see this one actor, aside from all of that, the actor did a really good job. I am pretty sure he will get the role. The funny/sad thing about all of this is that this is not the first time this has happened to me. Several years ago when I was casting Mean Creek, I locked myself out of my office, without my camera (on a Saturday) and I had several actors to audition; one of them being Josh Peck, who landed the role and always reminds me of the time he auditioned outside, under the landing, in the rain, with his Mother waiting in their car. Oh the glamour of Hollywood. So in the end, it may be a good omen to audition for me on a Saturday, especially if I lock myself out of my office. I just think the Universe is trying to tell me to stay home and chill out and not work: or at least not be such a dork…

May 31, 2010

I am going to be totally honest here: the last three months have sucked balls. I have been casting a feature film and putting together an amazing cast, when all of a sudden the money stopped coming in, meaning my paychecks were not regular and excuses from the Producer were being made left and right. Promises from the Producer, telling me to my face that I was going to get paid and not to worry and everything was fine. Ummm…still haven’t been paid. I have been told that the money will be there by the end of July. I’ll let you know how that turns out! I have been through this more times then I care to remember and I could kill myself, because I know all of the warning signs, but still, I pretend to myself to be as shocked as ever, which is probably a defense mechanism that keeps me from offing myself when stuff like this happens to me. Never once was I asked to stop working. Why can’t they just say at the time, “look this is going nowhere fast,” or “we started to early.” Are you still a Producer if you can’t actually produce…anything? If you are still working, shouldn’t you get paid?

Let me explain: When I get hired to cast a film, it is not the most important thing to be fully financed. But it is important to be able to pay me, because, I AM WORKING. Not for fun, not because I LOVE PUTTING ON A SHOW (a la Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney), no it’s because the Producer believes that in an appropriate amount of time, between auditions and making offers to actors that the money that will be available for production will actually be available for the production. Not a difficult concept to master. I get that casting and producing a film can be a chicken and egg thing. Agents, managers and actors fundamentally get that financing for indie films is partly an art, a mathematical equation, business finesse and there is always a risk when putting a film together. I have pretty much seen all variations of this, after all, I do work in independent film and it doesn’t always work out the way you want it to, but in this one scenario it is vital to not be a big fat liar and to not pretend and it is not a time for ones giant ego to get in the way. Honesty is ALWAYS the best policy when dealing with agents, managers and talent. Letting them know where you are in the financing process is vital, because at no time will you ever be accused of misleading people. Actors, agents and managers must decide for themselves if they want to participate in the casting process. They decide if they like the script, the director, the writers, producers or the casting director and this directly effects how a film is put together. Without the power of a studio or distribution company behind you, indie film casting is ALL ABOUT RELATIONSHIPS. To that end, part of why I get hired is because I am a relationship builder (and of course I have amazing taste in actors :0) ). I am the PR agent for the film, and when I don’t get paid, I have been used and that is not cool. If you make an agreement with someone, you should really stick to that agreement, you look like an idiot if you don’t and no matter how big your ego is, you are still a douche-bag if you don’t fulfill your obligations…just sayin…

So as my bank account was dwindling and my patience running out, I reached out to my casting community. I am really lucky to know some amazing casting directors who have been doing this a lot longer then I have. It is embarrassing to admit that you are down and out. There is a lot of fear that any perception that things are not okay can make matters worse. By admitting that times are tough and shitty, you are admitting defeat. Well, that was what I thought for a few days (maybe a week or two and a few Xanex to help along the way. JUST TO TAKE THE EDGE OFF-don’t judge!) and I let myself wallow in the world of my own self-pity, but then I got bored. I am a Casting Director, I need to cast, I need to work and I had to figure things out, quickly. So I reached out to my colleagues who have been doing this a lot longer then I have (I like to think of them in a mentor-ish way, as I truly respect so much of what they do and have accomplished). When I talked to them and shared my experiences with a few of them and then get a look back like “been there, done that,” I actually feel encouraged. Reaching out, I was able to get referrals from my colleagues who were busy on other projects. Emotionally, I was able to off-load some of the stress I had been taking on. It was very warming on the inside to feel that there were people who cared about what I was going through and it will never be lost on me that the way forward is to pay it back. So, because of the generosity of others and a bit of hustling on my own to stir up work, I am now busy, really busy, but good busy and this summer looks like it will be a successful one for me.

Also, I took the time to put together a reel of my work. I was approached by Speedreels, a company based in the building I have an office in, to put together a reel, much like an actor does. This reel can be like a calling card and a way to introduce Producers and Directors to the work I have done. Going through the material I cast, all sixty hours of it,  and reducing it to 3 minutes was cathartic and emotionally intense for me. I truly love some of the work I have done and been involved with and I hope that shows on the reel.

Go to: www.speedreels.com and enter my name (Matthew Lessall)

Or my website: www.lessallcasting.com

This month, I am looking forward to seeing the premier of a film I cast at the LA Film Festival. It is called, THE WHEELER BOYS and if you have a chance, go see it! Tickets are on sale now and the film stars, Alex Frost, Portia Doubleday, Bill Campbell and some amazing young talent not seen before. The script won a grant from a writing competition sponsored by Netflix and Film Independent and was shot on a very low budget, so it will be exciting to see how it turns out!

You have to believe in yourself to make anything happen. Working for yourself and not having a paycheck come in on a weekly basis because you (me) have chosen to be independent and self-employed, is challenging. But I know both sides (after all I have been doing this for over ten years) to this and I think in the end, I am happy where I am right now. I know I want more and maybe this will involve working with or for someone else and if that happens I want it to be happening because I will be moving forward and growing professionally, not because I am settling, because the option is safer for me.

My Grandfather was the man who gave me my independent streak. He was a very successful lawyer who, throughout his life relied on the kindness of others, treated others with respect, was a self-starter and created his own law firm and paid his community back many fold. He was strong, logical and the most thoughtful man I have ever known. He trusted the word and promises of others. To him a man (or woman’s) word was as good as a contract in writing. I think about him and his advice he would give me if I were ever in a situation like the one I was in over the past few months. I hope, in the end, he would approve of the way things have turned out and where I am going with my life…

I think he would…    

April 27, 2010

A Question from a student: Matthew Lessall-Although the internet was useless in finding the answers to my questions, it did help lead me to your contact information. It’s good to know that sometimes we do have to contact people when we need advice! In saying that, I was wondering if you’d be able to offer me some professional incite on summer acting training programs. Summary: my name is Hailey. I go to college in Kansas City, I’m an actor, blah blah blah. This summer, I’ve decided to broaden my horizons and find an acting intensive that would not only help me grow as an actor, but also would look good on the resume. The two summer programs I’ve been accepted to are South Coast Repertory’s Professional Actor Training program (in Costa Mesa, CA) and American Conservatory Theater’s Summer Training Congress (in San Fran, CA). I’ve weighed the pros and cons… but if I’m going to drop $3,000+ on a summer program, I want to make sure I’m picking the one that is most beneficial in the long term! Do you have any professional incite on either of these programs? What are their reputations like within the industry? What would look better on the ole’ resume? I know you are super busy, and contacting a college student in the Midwest is probably the smallest of your priorities; but if you have the time, I would really appreciate your professional opinion!  Look forward to hearing from you.Thank you!Hailey JonesHi Hailey,Thank you for your email. I am sure that there are pros and cons to both programs. If you are still going to be an undergraduate, it is clear from the two websites that A.C.T will give you credit towards your course work in college and that is not clear with South Coast Rep. So if this is important to you, I would get clarity on that issue. Also, it looks like South Coast Rep has a housing option whereas A.C.T can only advise you on places to rent/share/live, etc… So if this is important to you then again, it may be obvious which program you should attend. As neither of the websites is specific about the instructors, I think it may behoove you to call each program and ask them who the instructors are going to be as this may also help you decide which course to go on. In general, both programs seem like they work in similar ways but that South Coast pays additional attention to brining in professionals like Casting Directors to discuss the business of acting. I think that it is great that you are going to get some formal training and I am sure that you will learn a lot over 8 weeks. However, this is just a start, and as a “resume booster”, it is great to see that you did something to learn more about your craft, but ultimately you must expect that what I and many casting directors look for is consistency in your training. I hope this helps.Best, Matthew