Why do Commercial headshots when you want to book Theatrical roles? It’s more important than you think….
Here’s the deal…
90% of the work in the Pacific NW is commercial work. It’s how casting directors and agents, and most producers earn a living here. It’s tech, and banking, and insurance, and retail. This work is the “constant churn” that pays the bills of the industry professionals. It’s not glamorous, and not the talk of social media, so you may not even be aware of how much is happening here.
In comparison, there are a few TV series and major feature films that cast and shoot in the PNW every year. This is the exciting stuff that people talk about and that actors dream of getting cast in, but it’s the “frosting” on the cake for those that work in the film industry.
As an actor, you dream of booking the big role on one of those series or films. You’ve worked your whole life training and practicing to get those big juicy dramatic roles, and aren’t interested in doing all the silly commercial work. It’s beneath you…. but for some reason, the big roles just keep passing you by. Not even an audition…. What’s going on?
One very unique aspect of the Pacific NW is that the agents and casting directors that handle the commercial work are the same agents and casting directors that handle the theatrical work.
Remember, it takes a TEAM of people pushing for you to book the big roles. Casting directors, producers, and agents don’t just do what we do for passion, we do it to pay our bills, so making money at it is important.
When an actor books a job, it makes everyone on your team a living, up and down the chain. Your agent is happy, the Casting Director is happy and if you do a great job at the shoot, the producer and director are happy, and we all remember that you are the source of that happiness. You have a happy team. With Commercial work being 90% of what we do, day-to-day, it’s the most common and best way to help your team earn a living. The more you book, the happier your team is, and the more they are willing to stick their necks out for you when the big role comes in.
When you’re shooting headshots to use in the Pacific NW, if you want your whole team to be successful, you should be matching your efforts to the market. If the market is 90% commercial work, then 90% of your effort should be getting GREAT commercial shots, so your agent can pick the best of the best of the best and BOOK YOU WORK. That’s 90 commercial shots out of a 100 photo session, or 270 shots out of a 300 photo session.
Once your agent loves you because you’re making them money, and the casting directors all know your name from booking commercials, you’ll find it a walk in the park to get the big theatrical opportunities that you never got before, and your theatrical headshots wont even matter. In the PNW, reputations are built on commercial work because it’s such a huge part of what we do every day.
The BEST way to book your dream role is by first focusing on booking everything, especially paid commercial work through your agent. Make your team happy, and they will bend over backwards to get you the opportunities that you want. If you focus on just the theatrical roles, you’re likely to find that your team doesn’t have the leverage, or isn’t willing to help, when you absolutely need them to get you a shot at the perfect role.