There’s one word that unites everyone in the entertainment industry. It doesn’t matter if you work on the business or the creative side; this word applies to all of us.
Selling.
You know why? Because it’s something we have to do every single day if we want to be successful. Like it or not, all of us are in a constant state of selling. That’s how the game is played. Understanding this will help you realize how much we have in common, and that knowledge should erase any fears you might have about dealing with agents, managers, casting directors, or any of the other sharks that swim in this ocean.
So let’s get specific. I want to break down the selling process in a part of this industry that applies directly to you. I’m talking about the business of acting.
When you’re starting out, you need to find representation, and to do so, you have to sell yourself. You have to convince agents that you have the ability to generate income. You do this by training with the best teachers, having great headshots, building up your credits, and creating relationships with industry professionals who will speak on your behalf.
READ: “The Importance of Giving in a Networking World”
Once I sign you, it’s my turn to sell. I have to pitch you to the casting community. That means exploiting my professional relationships and personal reputation to score some auditions. As an agent, it’s my job to convince a casting director that she has to see you instead of the hundreds of other actors that have been submitted to her who look just like you.
Now the casting director takes over. After reading you, she’s surprised to discover that I was right. You really are perfect for the part. So now she has to sell you to her producers and director. In a way, every actor who gets a callback is an actor she’s selling to her team. (And I guarantee she has a favorite. It’s the really skilled casting directors who know how to sway a room that’s on the fence about their favorite.)
Let’s say the project is a studio film that’s going to be the first movie in a franchise. (Think “The Hunger Games,” “Divergent,” “The Maze Runner,” etc.) The producers and director want you for the lead, so now they have to sell you to the studio that’s controlling the purse strings. And that’s a big process. Maybe the executives want a name actor instead of you, maybe they don’t. Either way, the filmmakers have to push hard for the performer they want.}
WATCH: Theo James Reveals Worst Acting Exercise
And don’t think the selling ends there. Oh, no. It just keeps on going, because once this massive motion picture is wrapped and cut, the studio has to sell you and the movie to the ticket-buying public, the exhibitors, and every film critic and idiot with a blog. That selling has to be done on an international level, and on a big studio movie like this, we’re talking about a hundred million dollars in marketing expenses.
Selling is our reality. You can swap out the word actor with script or musician, and this column really wouldn’t be all that different. The basics would still be the same.
It’s like Jerry Lee Lewis said in his biggest hit, “There’s a whole lot of selling going on!”
Looking for your next role? Check out our film audition listings!
