Backstage (and the Backstage network of sites, including Mandy and StarNow) edits and formats all listings to fit its job-listing style and editorial guidelines.
All postings (a.k.a. listings, casting notices, casting calls, auditions, jobs, etc.) typically appear online immediately and automatically, 24/7, and are initially marked as "Instant" items, so you can begin receiving applications from talent right away. However, in some cases additional background-verification and/or content-verification checks may be required before the instant-publication status can be implemented. Additionally, it may take between 1-4 business days for your notice to be officially vetted, edited, formatted, and approved. Once edited and approved, you'll receive a notification; the "Instant" flag will be removed; and your listing may receive additional exposure and promotion.
Backstage's editors will contact you if additional info is needed to approve your account and/or your listing. References and other materials may be requested to verify your production, your company, your identity, and your qualifications. Your casting notices and other listings may be temporarily or permanently removed from the site, and your account may be suspended, if Backstage has serious questions about your account, if the content is deemed to not be an appropriate fit for Backstage, if questions cannot be answered to Backstage's satisfaction, or if a background check fails.
Productions must agree to publish accurate and honest information, and must reveal all relevant details in their listings that are necessary for job applicants to be able to make an informed decision about whether or not to apply (including any key details such as controversial subject matter, nudity requirements, fetish-related content, contractual obligations, travel, fees, etc.). Backstage reserves the right to publish or not publish any notice in print and/or online, or suspend or approve any account, regardless of the options chosen at checkout.
Productions must also agree to provide a safe and respectful audition/interview environment. In general, auditions should not take place in a private residence, hotel room, or other high-risk location. Talent should also always be allowed to be accompanied by a second individual or support peer of their choosing, for the purpose of their safety and well-being.
Backstage (and Mandy + StarNow) also reserves the right to edit, update, hide, or reject any listing (or close any account) at its own discretion at any time.
Note: Backstage occasionally distributes discount codes. The codes must be used at the time of checkout; they cannot be applied retroactively. Additional pricing rules and content restrictions apply for posting listings related to acting classes, workshops, or other opportunities where the talent may be required to pay a fee. Contact Backstage for details.
Please contact Backstage if you need help updating your casting notice, using the site, or need to delay the print or online publication of your notice. We're always happy to help!
Additional Terms of Use
Backstage's casting system is primarily intended for the distribution of casting calls, crew calls, job postings, audition announcements, offers of representation, and calls for volunteers and collaborators. Other types of listings, such as calls for submissions to film festivals and talent competitions, and opportunities for actors to attend workshops/classes/events, are also allowed, to a limited degree (and at the discretion of Backstage), but must be posted into the appropriate categories for these opportunities, rather than the primary casting/job categories. Contact Backstage for details.
Additional regulations and pricing requirements also apply to all listings being used to advertise products, services, workshops, classes, pageants, competitions, and any other opportunities that require the talent to pay a participation fee or utilize any external or third-party apps, sites, or services.
Likewise, the Backstage Talent Database can only be used to contact actors for legitimate casting and job opportunities. The Talent Database cannot be used to solicit sales, promote services, call for donations, advertise for fee-based services (such as pageants, competitions, classes, workshops, and membership companies), or send spam or inappropriate messages. All unsolicited contact is prohibited, including sending messages and invitations, outside of the intended use of these tools to contact talent about legitimate job and casting opportunities free of any participation fees or related obligations. Spammers, scammers, fetishists, and pornographers will be banned. Commission-only based jobs are also typically not allowed. Users and casting notices that generate complaints will be removed. Accounts may also be closed at any time at the discretion of Backstage's editors.
Some adult-oriented and erotic-storytelling themed projects (and other productions with explicit content) may be acceptable to post on Backstage on a case-by-case basis, but projects deemed to be pornographic, fetish-related, offensive, objectionable, potentially dangerous, or otherwise inappropriate for Backstage's audience will be rejected, at the sole discretion of Backstage. Additional links, references, scripts, work samples, and/or other materials may be requested as part of the evaluation process.
Any job-posting or listing fees or related upgrades are not eligible for a refund once a listing has been published.
For additional terms, check Backstage's Terms of Service.
Talent Compensation Requirements
Although Backstage encourages all roles to be paid, whenever possible, it's understood that some indie and student productions are experience-building arts projects that rely on volunteer-based collaborators.
With this in mind, productions on Backstage can cast for both paid and unpaid roles. Above all, Backstage requires productions to be honest and realistic about the rates they'll be able to pay (or not pay) and all other pertinent aspects and requirements of the project and roles, so that the talent will have a complete understanding of the situation prior to deciding whether or not to apply to a project.
Likewise, productions posting on Backstage's sites must agree that all unpaid and deferred-pay-only opportunities may be tagged with Backstage's general "Not Paid" label. i.e., In these cases the production should choose "No pay" or "Deferred Pay" (aka "Depends on project outcome" or "Profit share") as the answer to the question "Will you be paying talent?" on the job-posting form, as appropriate, and the specific label chosen will appear within the Compensation Details section of the job listing; however for the purposes of general top-line labeling Backstage may group all "No" and "Deferred Pay" projects together under a general "Not Paid" heading since no upfront pay is guaranteed. This allows for easy identification and filtering of the productions by the talent. Likewise, barter-only projects (aka "contra" or "gifting" collaborations in which the talent receives a free product but no guaranteed monetary compensation) should be marked as "No Pay." While projects using wording such as "Stipend" must be paying at least some guaranteed, non-deferred amount above $0. And projects using phrases such as "Professional Pay" must be paying at least at or above a legal minimum wage. Note: Any additional deferred/future pay, profit sharing, commissions, gifts, or other compensation or contractual benefits or obligations should also be spelled out in the listing's "Compensation" description field, to further clarify the situation for the talent.
Productions must also agree that most unpaid, deferred-pay, low-pay (pay below minimum wage), "expenses only," and stipend-based opportunities may fall under a status of "volunteering" and/or "collaboration" and may be restricted from mandating certain work hours, duties, or contractual obligations that would be involved in an actual job opportunity.
Many types of productions may also be legally obligated to pay their cast and crew. Productions posting jobs on Backstage are obligated to determine if they're eligible to call for volunteers vs. being a type of production that must pay their talent. Productions should refer to their local labor laws, unions, and minimum-wage regulations for guidance.
Also, job posters must comply with any salary transparency, safety, and labor laws and regulations applicable to their locality and/or project type.
U.K.-based projects must also abide by the U.K. National Minimum Wage Act when hiring for a paid production. Just as projects in other countries must abide by their local payment laws.
Specific regulations, safety precautions, and additional questions and rules may also apply when hiring for, casting, or working with minors.
Additionally, productions calling for union talent must follow the compensation guidelines set forth by the union contract or agreement they're operating under.
And, in general, roles requiring nudity should also be compensated above minimum wage.
And all talent — cast and crew — should be provided with a safe, professional, and respectful work environment, as well as all necessary role requirements, contractual details, release forms, payment guarantees, and any other paperwork, compensation, and accommodations appropriate to the situation.
DISCLOSURE: This communication is on behalf of Backstage, LLC or its affiliates (“Backstage”). This communication is for informational purposes only, and contains general information only. Backstage is not, by means of this communication, rendering legal, financial, accounting, business, tax, or other professional advice or services. This communication is not a substitute for such professional advice or services nor should it be used as a basis for any decision or action that may affect your interests. You should consult a qualified professional advisor. Backstage does not assume any liability for reliance on the information provided herein.
Union Requirements
Both union and nonunion productions may cast with Backstage.
However, productions calling for union talent on Backstage must state the name and status of the union contract or agreement they plan on using. In terms of "status," this would include indicating whether or not the producers "plan to apply for" a particular contract in the future; or if they've applied for the contract and are still awaiting union approval; or if the contract has been approved.
Backstage may ask productions for additional verifications and clarifications regarding their current or intended union contracts and pay rates. Backstage also frequently communicates directly with the unions to verify this information. Providing incorrect or misleading information to Backstage will delay the distribution of your casting call and may be grounds for account suspension.
Productions calling for union talent must also abide by all the regulations set forth by the unions, which may include specific requirements regarding audition procedures, work hours, and compensation.
Only productions that meet these requirements may tag their casting calls with Backstage's "Union" or "Union & Nonunion" status settings. All other projects should typically choose the "Nonunion" setting. (The "Union" setting is for calling for primarily only union members. While the "Union & Nonunion" setting can be used to call for both union and nonunion performers simultaneously. And the "Union: N/A" status denotes that a project is seeking both union and nonunion talent but within a context that they believe is not currently applicable to a specific union contract.) Productions that are not prepared to offer a union contract/agreement to performers must use Backstage's "Nonunion" or "N/A" union-status setting.
All productions that are seeking union talent are encouraged to contact the appropriate unions ahead of time (such as SAG-AFTRA, Equity, AGMA, AGVA, ACTRA, FAA/BECTU, PACT, etc., depending on the project) to begin the process of determining what contract or agreement they'll be eligible for and the rules, regulations, and pay-minimums involved.
User Verification - Background Check Fees
In order to ensure Backstage is a safe platform for its users, Backstage may charge a one-time fee for job posters in order to process a criminal Background Check and/or ID Verification process. This fee is non-refundable. For more information on background checks, please consult Backstage's Privacy Policy.
(Backstage may also request additional and/or alternate verification information above and beyond the standard Background + ID Check if needed to verify an account, company, or production.)
Print Options
In addition to publishing content 24/7 online, Backstage also publishes Backstage Magazine approximately 31 times a year. Backstage Magazine is distributed as both a full-color, glossy print-edition magazine (in the U.S.) and a Digital Edition Magazine (distributed both in the U.S. and internationally). In every issue, a small selection of casting notices from Backstage.com are chosen for inclusion in Backstage Magazine, to help bring the listings extra attention. When posting your casting call, choosing the "Print Spotlight" posting option guarantees inclusion of your notice online and in the next available print and digital editions of Backstage as long as your notice is still relevant in time for the next edition.
If you select the "Print Spotlight" upgrade, your listing will still appear online prior to appearing in print. If all of your submission deadlines and audition dates have passed prior to the next available print-publication date, then your casting notice may only appear online (unless updated info is provided for print).
Note: In your job-posting editor there's an option under your email address called "Do not display this address in print"; if you don't choose this option then if your listing is selected for inclusion in Backstage's print/digital magazine your email address will be listed as the contact method for readers discovering your listing offline; but choosing this option will replace your email address with a note directing actors to "apply on Backstage.com." (While on the website, your email address will not be revealed; instead, an "Apply" button will appear, which talent click on to easily apply; the site will then notify you about any applications at your chosen email address without revealing your email to the applicants; and the full applications will be stored in your Application Manager on Backstage for easy filtering, viewing, and management. Likewise, follow-up communication with the talent can take place over Backstage's private messaging system.)
There is no refund available for not appearing in print. However, if you paid for the "Print Spotlight" upgrade, your notice will receive expedited treatment from Backstage's editors and will still be highlighted as a special Spotlight item in search results online, even if it does not make it into the offline magazine.
To ensure inclusion in print, Backstage recommends choosing the "Print Spotlight" option at checkout and posting your casting notice at least 2-3 weeks prior to the day you'd like your notice to appear in print. Backstage magazine appears on newsstands on Thursdays on the weeks that it's published. The official posting deadline is every Friday at 3 p.m. for the following print edition; however, most issues require an earlier deadline, as the number of weeks between print-edition issues varies throughout the year. Backstage reserves the right to extend or shorten the regular print-deadline at its discretion. Earlier deadlines apply during the holidays and some other times of the year.
In the magazine, listings may be further edited down in size, dependent on available space and the length of the listing; contact Backstage for special rates if a guaranteed word-count is required or for other special requests.
For assistance and more details, contact Backstage at www.backstage.com/contact.