Hi First name / Thespian!
I once attended an event at the
SAG-AFTRA Foundation where five panelists, including Chris Game Casting, discussed the elements of a quality headshot. 📸
This event was livestreamed and the archive can still be seen
HERE!
Two of the attendees were casting directors.
Chris, with whom I’m personally acquainted, teaches an incredibly effective auditioning class, so he's got major cred, if you know what I mean! 💁♀️
EVEN THOUGH I’D ALREADY BEEN A PHOTOGRAPHER for over 15 years at that point, to my surprise, I walked away from this event having learned something new about headshots!
I’ve always known that quality headshots are important, in fact, I’ve written about it plenty of times, but what I didn’t realize is how non-quality headshots are judged by casting directors. ⚖️
AS YOU WILL SEE IN THE ARCHIVED EVENT, actors were allowed to submit their headshots for the panelists to comment on. Each time a clearly unprofessional headshot was displayed, the casting directors immediately assumed the actor was green.
🟢 “You’re too GREEN.” 🟢
That’s the dreaded judgment actors are constantly having to overcome! Who knew that it's not just your lack of experience auditioning that can label you as green, but your headshot can too?!
APPARENTLY, IF YOUR HEADSHOT DOESN’T LOOK PROFESSIONAL, the experience from the casting side is that if they call you in, you’ll likely be green, thus deterring them from calling you in at all. 👎
SO YET ANOTHER REASON to invest in your headshots: because it means you’re invested in your craft, which in turn means you’ll be taken more seriously.
Ready to lose the "green" label? Book your session today and let’s get you the tools that prove you're a pro. ✅
