“I didn't think I'd ever be able to do movies. That was for serious actors.”- Steve Buscemi

“Movie stars have careers - actors work, and then they don't work, and then they work again.”- Frances McDormand

“We actors always say how difficult and physically demanding a role was. But give me a break, it's only a movie.”- Javier Bardem

“Most actors will read a script and think, that's an interesting part. That blinds them to the fact that the rest of it is pretentious nonsense.”- Hugh Grant

“It is all about marketing; that is where the real craft comes in. The best actors do not necessarily become the biggest stars. And vice versa.”- Dirk Benedict

“It is hard sometimes to see how other actors are working when you are working with them.”- Miranda Otto

“Comedians don't have the kind of narcissism that actors have. They're writers who perform their own material. They risk more than anyone.”- Rachel Weisz

“I always say if you've seen good acting on television, those actors are really good. Because you don't have any preparation.”- Sasha Alexander

“There's nothing more boring than unintelligent actors, because all they have to talk about is themselves and acting.”- Tim Robbins

“I just feel lucky to be employed when there are so many actors and actresses who are not. I sometimes feel desperate, in case I'm not cast again.”- Judi Dench

“A lot of actors get concerned about their own image, even going so far as to rewrite a movie to best serve that image. All I want to do is be in good movies”- Michael Douglas

“I'm always described as 'cocksure' or 'with a swagger,' and that bears no resemblance to who I feel like inside. I feel plagued by insecurity.”- Ben Affleck

“I used to google my name to see what came up - it hurt.”- Emilio Estevez

“Being an actor is the easiest job. Just say the lines.”- Jonathan Rhys Meyers

“I went to the audition for a laugh and got the part for the way I walked down the corridor. There's no justice is there?”- Ray Winstone

“I know very little about acting. I'm just an incredibly gifted faker.”- Robert Downey Jr.

“First of all, I choose the great roles, and if none of these come, I choose the mediocre ones, and if they don't come, I choose the ones that pay the rent.”- Michael Caine

“I'm an actor... I do a job and I go home. Why are you interested in me? You don't ask a truck driver about his job.”- James Gandolfini

“Every actor looks all his life for a part that will combine his talents with his personality.”- Walter Matthau

“A good actor with a good opportunity has a shot; without the opportunity it doesn't matter how good you are.”- Denzel Washington

“Acting is half shame, half glory. Shame at exhibiting yourself, glory when you can forget yourself.”- John Gielgud

“Everything must be as in real life.”- Anton Chekhov

I’m casting a short comedic web series!

May 4, 2009 | 2 comments

Many of you know that in addition to being a PDN award-winning image maker, I’m also a two time almost-ran novelist, former feature writer for the Toronto Star, failed M.O.W. writer, former actor in terrible cop shows and commercials both national and international, and that I also own a brand new digital production company called Flyweight Films that creates short films for the web, and which has already had some great press like a mention on Time Magazine’s Nerdworld blog.

Well guess what? This year I’m writing, producing and directing a comedic web series called Act Natural, and I’m ready to cast the pilot episode! Woo!

Act Natural is an original, dry comedy series about the surreal world of commercial actors. It follows the lives of three less-than-perfect actors with visions of success but very different viewpoints as they try to make careers for themselves in film & TV.

Think Flight of the Conchords, Napoleon Dynamite, and Arrested Development.

The show is comprised of short, web-only episodes 5-10 minutes in length.

This is a no-budget, beyond-indie web production, but you never know with these things. I’m looking to build a great up-and-coming cast and crew who can learn, grow and find opportunities through the project. My plan is to build a small following for the show on the web, and then leverage that either through sponsorship, syndication, or reproduction for a larger media body.

The pilot episode shoots July 4th through 7th, 2009, in Toronto. Casting is May 17th through the 19th. If you’re a non-union actor (whether you’re totally green or a total vet — except for you, Paul Gross, you’re busy enough) and this sounds like something you’d be interested in, get in touch with me via email or phone (check the link to your right) to chat or arrange an audition. You can download the script here.

Are you a member of AACTION? They’re doing much of the heavy lifting for me on this, and I encourage you to submit through aactionauditions.com if at all possible, purely in the interest of making my life easier.

I’m casting for the following leads:

Gary 20s/30s
The good actor. A nice, well-mannered guy from a small town. Gary followed his dreams to a 4 year degree program in Theatre performance, and then to Toronto to try to make it in film & television. He’s a great actor, but isn’t exactly matinee idol material. There’s something non-threatening about him, and he’s always felt like a bit of an also-ran. Gary thinks the world should be a meritocracy, and is always a little frustrated that less trained, better looking, more confident people get picked for things over him. He’s a bit of a loser, but a sweet one. He’s always willing to try harder, he just might not be great at deciding where to focus his energy.

Shawn 20s/30s
The manipulator. Smart but rebellious, Shawn’s been getting into trouble his whole life. He’s a bit of a benevolent sociopath — able to mimic emotions but not necessarily feel them. His cocky, cynical perspective puts a lot of people off, but like most “charming rogues” Shawn just wants to feel loved, and he wants to be a successful actor mostly for the respect and adulation. He’s taken a few classes, but is otherwise an untrained actor. He relies on his charm, instincts and luck to see him through.

Mel 20s/30s
The future cat lady. Mel is a smart, pretty girl who is sincere but a little defeated. She was a geeky girl, into comics and romance novels, and her love of make-believe led her into a theatre minor during her Creative Writing degree. Acting is one of Mel’s many “backup plans”. She auditions for the loser girls and frumpy friends, never the heroines. She wishes she could be more like the girls Gary and Shawn seem to like. She has a cat and likes to watch vampire movies. She has a fantasy in which Gary is a vampire and comes to her in the middle of the night to sensuously bite her neck. She’s not sure if she’s secretly in love with him or not.

And the following principal roles:

Mike Kelly (recurring) 20s/30s
The ad man. Mike is Gary’s foil — successful, tall, good-looking. He’s an accounts guy at an ad agency and knows Gary from high school.

Casting Dave (recurring) 30s/40s
The camera operator at the casting place. Dave has nothing but contempt for actors, and lords his position over them. Secretly though he probably wishes he could have been an actor.

Director (1) 30s/40s/50s
Most episodes have a nameless director in them, and he/she’s usually the most ridiculous and over the top character in the script. This one is the passionate helmsman for a pretentious perfume spot.

Julie (recurring) teens/20s
The bitchy casting girl. Julie’s the cute, ambitious girl who works at the casting place as an assistant and seems to get all the plum roles without auditioning.

Plus a nerdy guy and a metal head to dance in the audition scene, and people to play ad agency hedonists and “male actors”.

I’d also love to hear from people who’d be interested in crewing and production work. I have my makeup key, but I’d love to chat with people interested in the following roles:

Additional makeup
Hair
Sound
Locations (as in people with locations to donate)
Production management & co-ordination
Wardrobe
Set decoration & art direction
Props
Craft
Publicist

Don’t be shy about this people! Whether you’ve worked with me before or not, this could be a great opportunity to have fun doing great work.

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2 Responses to “I’m casting a short comedic web series!”

  1. Chris Frampton says:
    May 4, 2009 at 1:41 pm

    The breakdown’s only been on AACTION for an hour and I already have a ton of great submissions. I was super excited about this project already, but it’s awesome seeing it take its first steps at coming together.

    I’ve seen how AACTION and Casting Workbook work as an actor, but I have to say now that I’m seeing it from the other side I’m BLOWN AWAY by how your headshots actually work in an online casting scenario. I can’t image what it must be like for a busy casting director. I’m making some notes on everything from cropping to lighting to retouching to number of pictures, and I’ll put together a blog post on my experience which I seriously suggest you look out for.

    This is the kind of insider’s look that until you’re actually casting a show you’d just never get.

    Reply

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