THE JOY OF CASTING

What a week! I got hired to cast a film on Monday night, had to have casting sessions Wednesday to Friday. My partner is on vacation and I was doing everything. I feel sorry for the day that I actually have an assistant. When I say everything, let me be more specific:

630AM Wake-Up

635AM Go back to sleep

645AM Wake-up, force my dogs to wake up (he likes to sleep in to at least 11) take him for his morning constitutional.

700AM-735AM Take a shower, eat, drink, get in car and turn on the radio and listen to Stephanie Miller for the next 25 minutes as I wind my way to the office.

8AM-1PM Get to the office — Turn on computers, check messages, check emails, respond to emails, call back agents, managers, whomever, set up the audition room, make sure the camera is working, set up the chairs outside the office, make sure there are pens, clip-boards, staples, the lights work, type out the session sheets, confirm auditions, call out auditions for the next day, return the hundreds (I am not joking) of phone calls from agents, managers, my mother, put out the breakdown, scan the sides, post the sides, post the screenplay, email the sides and the screenplay to the agents and managers who can no longer afford to pay breakdown services (ummm…hello ICM sort it out?!), check-in with the producer, the director, make sure they are coming to the casting session, download previous days casting session into IMovie and send to IDVD then burn the DVD, make the DVD table of contents slips, burn 3 DVDs, post audition links selects on-line to all the producers (pray that the computer doesn’t burn out), make sure there is enough ink and paper in the 2 printers in the office, print out a sign in sheet for the actors, print out sides for the producer and director to have during the session, print out pictures and resumes for the producer and director to have for the session (lots of tress are killed in this process), make sure the audition room is clean…

1PM-145PM LUNCH – probably go to Subway – feel sick about it later…no time

2PM – Casting session. Pray that the Director, Producer and the Producer’s assistant all show up 5 minuets early so that we can start on time. Hope that all of the confirmed actors show up and that there are no long gaps in the casting session.

6PM-8PM – after seeing 30 actors (60 were scheduled) and running an hour late (I didn’t anticipate that 30 actors would show up), wrap up the session with the Producer and Director, make sure that they are happy, confirm with them that they will be at the next session. Clean up the audition room, bring all the chairs from the hallway back into the audition room, download the session from the camera into IPHOTO then import into IMOVIE and edit the session, then burn onto DVD the following morning. Return phone calls, emails and schedule actors for up-coming sessions.

8PM – LEAVE THE OFFICE, because if you don’t you will get locked in the building (happened to me on Saturday)!!! Get dinner, go home watch TV and try not to be to pissed off with the fact that you haven’t been to the gym all week and feel fat!

REPEAT THE ABOVE until the film is cast…

Oh, and try to get in new work, not ignore your other directors and producers for the three films that are almost cast and are starting production at the same time…BREATH, POOP, SLEEP…

I love my job, I love my job, I love my job…seriously, I do. When all is said and done and I am “in the zone” nothing makes me happier than the sense of accomplishment I feel knowing that I am able to do all of this and get a great cast…it is fun, just crazy…