When actors drop out 4 days before shoot time....

R

Robcbh

I was in contact met with an actor that seemed like a cool guy was willing to work with me then bam day after we met hes out, he has some prior engagement he had forgotten about. Does this happen all the time or did i have a shitty pitch or something. To be clear this kid saw everything before hand as far as script and such. So now 4 days before filming and im back at square one. I have put ina ton of work and the filming WILL happen, its just a moral blow.
 
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p38 said:
Offering money brings you people who are interested in the -money- and not the art of acting. There are exceptions, but in general I don't offer anything but food and drink. If the person is passionate about the art, he/she will be there. If you haven't found out by this time, you will :) I saved a ton of time by NOT offering money and it's a good filter to keep things simple for me.
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Modern Day Myth Prod. LLC said:
P38 is right about the money. If they're more interested in money than acting, they will never become great actors.
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Sorry, but as someone who has handled all aspects of several productions (casting, directing, producing) and who acts, I disagree with this line of thinking as an absolute rule of thumb.

There is nothing that guarantees if someone is interested in receiving money for their skilled work that they will not become good at it. You're also not guaranteeing anything special by not offering money, other than eliminating yourself from ever hiring some really good actors with the confidence to require payment, no matter how small, for their craft.

I know that, from a practical, monetary point of view, there are times when you cannot afford to pay for an actor but you still have a need/desire to shoot something. But to say you're getting more passionate or better people by not offering money...? Maybe, but passion doesn't always replace talent or ability. Which is why so many no-budget projects never get anywhere and don't make any money.

I know when I'm looking for work and going through ads, I no longer open or read the free gigs anymore. I did my time working for free. Unless it's a friend's project, or something that is brought to me that is really interesting, I won't work for free any more. I learned as a comedian, and it applies to actors - at some point, you have to say "no" to free gigs, or people will expect you to work free, forever.

If you want to make a living in a creative field, you have to get paid for your work. ANY kind of pay is better than offering nothing. You increase your talent pool, and the number of people with skill who apply, if you offer even $25 a day. As the pay goes up, you have more better and better people to choose from - offer $100 a day for a film project, and you'll get resumes from really experienced, talented actors fighting for the job.

Forget passionate, so-so actors willing to work for free - get hungry, strong actors who already have fully-developed skills and pay them slightly better than a minimum-wage employee gets for a day, and watch the quality of your projects skyrocket.

gelder
 
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+1 Steve Gelder. I'm pretty passionate about directing and producing in general as well as post and editing. I've worked for free on other's projects in the past. If two people want to book me for the same day for production, 98% of the time I'm going with the paid bit. There are extenuating circumstances for sure. Same with editing and post work that doesn't have to happen at a certain time on a certain day. I do a lot of free stuff, but it's usually after paid post work is finished and out of the way or in between gigs. For a pro, passion is there and has everything to do with it, and you can literally afford to be more passionate about your craft when you're able to pay bills with it.
 
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GuerrillaAngel said:
Most people here are not likely to afford SAG scale and keep complete control of their film.

So . . . learn to spot flakers early in the game -- audition time.
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You really need to look into SAG ULB agreements. SAG actors are more affordable than you think.

A studio actor who likes your project will be willing to work way below their scale rate for the rate of a SAG ULB agreement.

To those who believe its all about the money with actors, Harrison Ford will agree with you.

To those like me who personally know studio actors willing to work way below scale for the terms of a SAG ULB agreement, how do you think Robert Vaughn was affordable for Witch Academy with a total production budget of $80,000?

He's not the only studio actor to do that either. Studio actors can live in any city around the globe too. They don't always live in Los Angeles.

William Defoe and Christopher Walken happen to live in the NYC area.

I'd say these so-called so-so actors are better skilled than critics are willing to admit. It's about who you know.
 
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It's more like:

$100 a day up front; the outstanding balance becomes due when certain conditions are met. (Movie gets sold, or is released in certain ways, or it makes money, or whatever. Read the fineprint. It's pretty straightforward)
 
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Not a problem when everyone makes money together.

I will point out too that I will need to have a discussion with the studio actors that small productions cannot afford certain perks they are used to such as being driven around in limos and with small crews they will have to take care of their own hair and makeup. These are things I know we can work out.
 
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Not a problem when everyone makes money together.

I will point out too that I will need to have a discussion with the studio actors that small productions cannot afford certain perks they are used to such as being driven around in limos and with small crews they will have to take care of their own hair and makeup. These are things I know we can work out.
 
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@Steve....

Well you said it: ".... looking for work.."
I clearly stated, I don't want that kind of people because they'd be interested in money and not supporting the art of making movies.

We can go around on this forever and never agree on any of this :)
I paid people minimum daily wages and all I got is a bunch of talentless actors and wasted my money on that project. In the end, I got good actors for no money paid and it turned out well.
None of my project is for sale nor made for monetary reason.

I understand most of you are here to make money... somehow with your creations, but not I.
It's just an art I support by investing my time and money on projects.
 
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And, to help the original poster of this thread, post your casting with nycasting.com for the state you are in. What I like about them and hope other casting sites like Mandy will adoptt is the CDs and filmmakers get to fill out notes on the actors profiles. The site administrators encourage the CDs and filmmakers to leave notes if the actors flaked on a production.

In studio productions, you work in a very small community. Everyone knows everyone like in a very small town. Flakes can't hide.

I'd say the flakes are your bad to so-so actors. They are also self-centered and self-serving. They don't care who they hurt.

On our first shooting day, an actress pulled a no show. Who did she hurt?? Everyone. I heard one of my best and most dedicated actresses worrying aloud how this actress was hurting the rest of the cast who were in scenes with her.
 
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p38 said:
I paid people minimum daily wages and all I got is a bunch of talentless actors and wasted my money on that project.
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That's not money's fault. That's the responsibility of the person who did your casting. If that's you, don't blame the existence of a paycheck; blame your casting decisions.

You're right, we probably won't agree on this. But, when people make hard statements about how you don't get passion when you pay, and then go on about not making money and doing it all for the art, it doesn't really add up, for me. I see plenty of passion from paid actors, on a regular basis.

I don't think your two experiences, both very different, are that persuasive an argument to get anyone to agree with "paying money always means you get bad actors."

gelder
 
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The best acting I've ever had on my set was from people I paid. I've worked with some wonderful actors who were in it for experience/fun, but "serious" actors are trying to pay their rent with their talent. They want and deserve compensation.
 
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Modern Day, Yes, there are low cost options, but even then, still a bit much for a feature film that is likely not to make money.

Cracker, some of the best acting came from an unpaid actor. Of course, the worst acting also came from an unpaid actor. The cost to leave that person's clip on the floor was zero dollars. :)
 
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As for one of my dedicated star actresses who was losing out on scenes from the flake, I worked her into other scenes we shot that she was not originally in. She was always on time in costume, makeup, and hair dress and ready to work. I took her aside and told her I appreciate her dedication and will work her into as many scenes as possible. She was also very much into the production. She had lots of questions and made some good suggestions. She got along well with everyone. I think she sees I kept my word. I told her in person I appreciate her hard work and dedication and would like to work with her again.

Dedication, commitment, and teamwork make a good production possible.
 
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We all have different experiences with actors.
I know I mentioned this but somehow not read or understood; I don't shoot to make money.

--->All people involved in a shoot, doing this for the ART of making a movie.<---

I had 'real' actors from major TV series wanted to work on some of my projects for no pay, because they liked the project. There are SAG rules and other problems prevented this to happen. It's not about the money, it's about the ART.
 
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