I’ve been released - what does it mean?
Release message
You’ve had the dreaded release message saying you will not be required for the availability check you received. But why?
Firstly, it’s important to know that receiving a release message is a very common thing when doing supporting artist work - even more important to remember is that it’s never personal!
There are a number of reasons why someone gets released - we will try help explain why they happen.
More people than we need:
As a process, we need to check more people than we need. We explain our casting process in-depth here and here. The short answer is that we have to contact a lot of people just to get a small amount booked.
Productions like a variety of choice when casting. A good rule of thumb is 1 in 3. This is a competitive industry - the barriers to entry are low and the requirements are high. Therefore, productions like to see 3 options for every 1 role.
There are at least three different departments involved in casting Supporting Artists and you need to be approved by all three. Costume, Hair & Make-Up and the Director and their casting team. Therefore it’s crucial we provide a selection of people to choose from.
Things changed:
It happens all the time. The scene might have been dropped or rescheduled. Maybe they’ve cut the amount of people they need. Perhaps an actor fell ill or the production has ran out of available costumes. The list of potential issues on production’s side feels quite endless.
You were not right for the production:
Not merely in just looks, but not every artiste we suggest matches the specifics they needed. Perhaps you were unwilling to clean shave, or your hair is dyed. Your hair might be too short or too long. Perhaps you didn’t have the exact skillset they desire. Perhaps you are not a driver and the location is remote, with an early call time and there is no transport assistance provided by production.
Productions rarely - if ever - tell us why they didn’t select you!
Unfortunately we usually don’t know ourselves why some people were booked over others. Productions’ selections can really surprise us! There’s simply not enough time in the day to request why each person wasn’t selected and our bookers will have to adjust their casting eye depending on the preferences of each production.
How recent are your photos?
Even the most experienced artists get complacent or forget to update their photos . Production want to see recent pictures and they can see the date you uploaded your photos. If your ‘Current Look’ photos are older than 2 months, most Hair and Make-Up departments will reject you. Why?
Every casting brief is dictated by accuracy to its time period or the design philosophy of the creators. If you turn up looking wildly different from your photos, perhaps with your hair suddenly too short, a different colour, or your glorious beard has disappeared - it’s a waste of everyones time.
We recommend uploading current-look photos at least once every two months or immediately after you have had a dramatic hair cut or style change.
Click below to learn about what we need from your selfies.
Optimising Your Profile
Make sure your photos are recent and that they are in the correct photo slots.
Fill in as many measurements as possible.
Profiles with no Chest/Dress or Waist measurements will be ignored by our bookers.
We search by measurements to find Doubles and Stand-In roles.
Ensure all contact information is correct and up-to-date.
We often chase last minute bookings over the phone.
Have an Emergency Contact.
Keep your home address up-to-date.
Some productions require artists to live within a certain radius of the filming location.
Compensation for travel expenses is sometimes calculated using your listed home address.
Be sure to fill in your skills, experience, training and spoken languages etc.
Roles that demand prior experience or a specific skillset are very common.
Artists with particular skills have a higher chance of booking.
Responding to Enquiries
Quick and accurate responses to enquiries are essential.
We find that we receive the first 75% of the responses within the first 20 minutes of sending the enquiry. We usually leave enquiries open for 24 hours for those that cannot respond immediately, but productions often want to see options as soon as possible.