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[0:00] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Hey, thanks so much to all of you who have sent me emails with questions and comments. It means everything to me. And guess what? New questions and comments are going to be addressed in today's episode. I'm Jeffrey Dreisbach. This is Casting Actors Cast.

[0:17] Jeffrey Dreisbach: This is Casting Actors Cast, the podcast video for actors in the business of show. Casting Director Jeffrey Dreisbach brings you insights and inspiration to help make a difference in your acting and your acting career. Here's your host, Jeffrey Dreisbach.

[0:35] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Well, hello and welcome to today's episode of Casting Actors Cast. I'm Jeffrey Dreisbach. I'm a casting partner with McCorkle Casting in New York. I hope you're having a good day. Welcome. We've gotten so many questions and comments and all kinds of stuff going on. I thought this would be a great day to sort of share some of that.

[0:52] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Hey, listen, if this is the first time you're tuning in to Casting Actors Cast, I couldn't be more excited to have you. This is a podcast, a video, what we call patios. These are patios all about the business of show. Everything from acting, auditioning to the business of the business. What is it like to be in the business of being an actor? So that's all what this is all about.

[1:19] Jeffrey Dreisbach: I've been doing these for a little over three years now, and over 75,000 downloads of the podcast. So if you're new, thank you so much for joining me. Hey, listen, if you've been around for a while, then you know what I'm about to say. This is that moment of the podcast where I get to say thanks, but I also want to tell you about the website.

[1:38] Jeffrey Dreisbach: You can go on absolutely free, castingactorscast.com. That's castingactorscast, all one word, dot com. Absolutely free of charge is a spot where you can open up a menu of freebies on the website. All you need to do is fill out that form that says dive into the talent pool, and that'll open up a free video, for example. It's a 20-minute video called Casting Secrets, What They Don't Tell You.

[2:04] Jeffrey Dreisbach: But guess what? I'm going to tell you in this free 20-minute video. Also, there's a place that you can download a 100-page PDF book that I wrote on doing voiceover work. Conversation Pieces Out of the Studio. The Voiceover Workshop for Professional Actors is a 100-page PDF that you can download. You can read it on your device. Oh, if you want to get the hard copy, you be my guest. You can go on any of the website published websites like Amazon and Barnes and Noble and wherever you get your books if you want a hard copy.

[2:42] Jeffrey Dreisbach: By the way, I'm excited to tell you that several universities in the country are using the Voiceover Workshop book as part of their curriculum and doing voiceover work. So I invite you to have this book absolutely free of charge. There's also a place called Jeff's Jots. And these are blog posts, but they're actually show notes that I use to record the patios. I put on as show notes. So you can have the show notes as corresponding episodes that are going to help you out as well. So you can kind of follow along if you want.

[3:17] Jeffrey Dreisbach: So there's all kinds of stuff there on the website. Also, if you want to get hold of me via email, rather than going through that form, I'm castingactorscast@gmail.com. So feel free to do that. Finally, if you are so inclined and want to check out the YouTube site, please do so. It's the Casting Actors Cast Channel, Casting Actors Cast Channel on YouTube where you can actually see me doing the podcast.

[3:40] Jeffrey Dreisbach: So I sort of simulcast me doing the podcasts on video. So you can actually watch me doing this. So some people find that, I've been told anyway, some people find that to be a really easy way and a kind of a fun way to watch me talking about this stuff because I think you know, you can see me gesture, you can see me make faces, you know, that kind of thing. So there's that.

[4:05] Jeffrey Dreisbach: All right. This is the very last piece of business, my dear friends at Actors Connection. If you don't know about ActorsConnection.com slash New York, you're missing something. What you're missing is an opportunity to work with professionals in the industry. Everything is online now. So you can work with casting directors, agents, managers, professionals in the business of show in New York. And anywhere you are, you can tune in on these weekly classes.

[4:33] Jeffrey Dreisbach: There's also a membership program that they've just opened up. There's all kinds of great things to check out. And hello to my good friends Colleen and Tony at ActorsConnection.com slash New York. All right, so let's jump into some of these comments and questions. I thought this would be a perfect day to sort of read some of the, I mean, I've gotten hundreds of comments and statements from folks and questions. So I kind of threw some of them together just to give you an idea of the kind of feedback that I've been getting, and I will respond to any of the questions that I get as well.

[5:11] Jeffrey Dreisbach: So maybe you'll find some of these questions you had top of mind, and I can answer some of those questions. But so the first message, so we'll call this message number one says, Hi Jeffrey. Hope this finds you happy and healthy. I've been spreading the word about you to my students, and they love your podcast, Jean Hammond.

[5:34] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Gosh, thank you so much. For those of you who might not remember Jean Hammond, she developed this fantastic program called MFA, Meditations for Actors. So I encourage you to check that out. So she has a lot of students and she's in the Seattle, Washington area. So it's really nice to hear back from Jen. I actually did an episode on MFA for Actors, you might want to check out as well. So I'm really glad that there are some tools out there for actors, and MFA for Actors happens to be one of our really, really great tools that you might find extremely useful.

[6:11] Jeffrey Dreisbach: So here's note number two. My agency recommended me not to send my demo reel to casting directors. It is shown on her website. In other words, it's shown on the agent's website, or sorry, it is shown on the actor's website. What do you think about it? Best regards, and this is from Assi, I think I'm saying that right, Asi Asi.

[6:37] Jeffrey Dreisbach: So, Asi, thank you very much. I happen to agree with your agent. I don't think a cold sending of your demo reel is going to bear much fruit for you. Here's the reason why. The only reason I would request from an agent or manager that I get the actor's reel is if there's material on the reel that is germane to the project that I'm working on. I do not necessarily make it a habit of going through an actor's reel just to look at their work.

[7:12] Jeffrey Dreisbach: I use it as a tool that I would send, for example, we had a situation recently where this particular producer wasn't familiar with his actor's work. And so, in addition to the audition, I sent the reel showing clips of the actor acting in some film and some TV stuff. So just openly sending your reel to casting directors in the hopes that that's going to get you some attention, I think is a mistake.

[7:44] Jeffrey Dreisbach: The reel is a necessary tool, but I look at it strictly as that. I don't make it a habit of just looking at demo reels. I'm much more interested in sending the actor the audition, and then they send me back a self-tape. So that is the process. So a demo reel is an excellent tool, but it is not necessarily the first thing that I would send to a casting director, especially to a casting director that you might not be familiar with, or you're doing it sort of in a cold calling sense where you're just kind of sending it out and hoping that that gets you some attention. Much better to use that later on as the relationship grows and develops.

[8:28] Jeffrey Dreisbach: But I appreciate the question so much, Asi, and please keep on listening. It's really been a pleasure having some correspondence with you as well. So I appreciate that. Here's the next letter that I'd like to share with you. This is number three. I just listened to your recent podcast. I really appreciated your clarity in regard to the seven steps casting directors use when auditioning.

[8:55] Jeffrey Dreisbach: And the point you made about actors receiving audition requests for other roles and opportunities or projects by a particular casting director is the best feedback an actor may want in their audition. Okay, I really read that terribly, so I'm going to just read that last sentence again. And the point you made about actors receiving audition requests for other roles and opportunities projects by a particular casting director is the best feedback an actor may want in their audition.

[9:26] Jeffrey Dreisbach: So thank you very much. This is Jeffrey Grover who sent that to me. Thank you, Jeffrey. I appreciate that comment very much. And I think that was really in reference to talking about how actors really don't get the kind of feedback they deserve when they audition for a project. Sometimes you just get crickets at the end of an audition. You really don't know how you did.

[9:47] Jeffrey Dreisbach: And sometimes actors who have agents or managers, they'll press that agent or manager for feedback and how the audition go. I know that agents will sometimes, if it's a relatively new client, they'll call me up and they'll say, How did my client do? And that's when I'm happy to give feedback if I have the time and the inclination to give feedback to that agent or manager. I'll be happy to do so.

[10:10] Jeffrey Dreisbach: But in general, the best feedback an actor gets is when that agent calls, sorry, when that casting director calls that agent and asks for that actor for another role that they may be working on in another project. That's like the highest kind of compliment. What that's saying is that the casting director really likes the actor, really thinks that they're talented, really thinks that they're good, and maybe they might be a good fit for this other project. You know, sometimes that's the best compliment that an actor can get just because this business is not filled with a lot of gratuitous chit chat about the actor's work.

[10:51] Jeffrey Dreisbach: And in some ways that's kind of sad, I guess, but in other ways there's just lack of time and energy to provide that kind of feedback.

[10:59] Jeffrey Dreisbach: And I've actually heard some casting directors say, you know what, school's over.

[11:04] Jeffrey Dreisbach: I'm not in the business of giving feedback about an actor's acting.

[11:09] Jeffrey Dreisbach: They're either right for the role or they are not.

[11:13] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Uh, I think that's a little cold, in my opinion, but I oftentimes will find myself in a situation where I just don't have the time to really provide um feedback for an actor's work.

[11:25] Jeffrey Dreisbach: And the best feedback would be having that actor come in for another project.

[11:29] Jeffrey Dreisbach: So thank you very much, Jeffrey, for that note.

[11:32] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Um, this uh next email message I got is from Mark Johnson, and he writes, I'd love to receive more information about voiceovers, like how does one get into the industry, and what are some tips that I could use to market myself?

[11:48] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Well, thank you for that, Jeffrey.

[11:50] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Well, honestly, you know what I'm probably gonna say.

[11:53] Jeffrey Dreisbach: The first thing I would do is to go to CastingActorsCast.com, download that book called Conversation Pieces Out of the Studio, The Voice of a Workshop for Professional Actors.

[12:03] Jeffrey Dreisbach: It's a 100-page manual.

[12:05] Jeffrey Dreisbach: It's based on the workshops that I have taught at several colleges and universities throughout the country.

[12:11] Jeffrey Dreisbach: And it really does give you exercises, some tips, and it talks all about some marketing tips, things that you need to really be aware of before jumping into voiceover work.

[12:22] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Uh, in general, let me just say this, and I don't mean to be harsh about it, but many, many, many actors think, gosh, you know what?

[12:29] Jeffrey Dreisbach: I could do voiceovers.

[12:31] Jeffrey Dreisbach: And what all it is is just, you know, your voice.

[12:35] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Well, you know what?

[12:36] Jeffrey Dreisbach: There's a lot more to it than that.

[12:39] Jeffrey Dreisbach: And I would suggest for anybody who is has interest in doing voiceover work, first things first.

[12:45] Jeffrey Dreisbach: The first thing that I would do is I would make it an exercise to listen to as many voiceover demos as you can possibly listen to on the internet.

[12:55] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Just type in voiceover uh demo tapes or voiceover um samples or whatever you want to figure out, you know, whatever you want to Google to kind of get an idea.

[13:08] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Because once you hear a demo, it's going to give you a good idea about how much variety and versatility the actor, the performer needs to have for doing voiceover work.

[13:21] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Also, there are so many areas of voiceover work that you might not have thought of.

[13:25] Jeffrey Dreisbach: In addition to what you know is, you know, commercial voiceover work or animation voiceover work, you know, there's narration, there's documentary, there's uh dubbing, audio dubbing, um any uh variety of other types of opportunities for actors to voice and use their voice for work is out there.

[13:48] Jeffrey Dreisbach: And so investigating, taking the time, reading up, listening to voiceover demos, and then following the step-by-steps that you're going to be receiving from any number of books and periodicals talking about getting into voiceover work.

[14:06] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Also know that voiceover work is very, very difficult and very, very challenging for actors who don't have representation.

[14:14] Jeffrey Dreisbach: It's not that it can't be done, and there are non-union opportunities that are out there.

[14:20] Jeffrey Dreisbach: It just takes a little bit more work and a little bit more time.

[14:24] Jeffrey Dreisbach: So I think the fallacy that I get, and I certainly had in my own experience was that oh, all I have to do is just have some sample of me doing voice stuff and sending it off.

[14:35] Jeffrey Dreisbach: But you know what?

[14:36] Jeffrey Dreisbach: There's a technique involved.

[14:37] Jeffrey Dreisbach: And the other thing I want to share with you is that the voiceover world is a separate industry.

[14:43] Jeffrey Dreisbach: It although there's a lot of show business elements involved, it is a completely separate industry with different players involved.

[14:51] Jeffrey Dreisbach: And so it's almost like having another career.

[14:54] Jeffrey Dreisbach: You have your acting career, and then you can have a voice career.

[14:57] Jeffrey Dreisbach: So really be aware that there's a lot more to it than just the initial first thought you might have.

[15:05] Jeffrey Dreisbach: All right, so thank you very much for that.

[15:08] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Mark Johnson sent that to me, and I appreciate it very much.

[15:11] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Let me know how it goes, Mark.

[15:13] Jeffrey Dreisbach: I'd love to hear back from you.

[15:14] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Tell me if you've gotten the book, if you've gotten something out of it, if I can be of additional help to you.

[15:18] Jeffrey Dreisbach: I would love to have the opportunity to uh share more information with you.

[15:23] Jeffrey Dreisbach: All right, let's move on from that.

[15:25] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Let's do the uh next email that I got is from a gentleman named Anaya.

[15:31] Jeffrey Dreisbach: I think it's Anaya.

[15:32] Jeffrey Dreisbach: No, let's take George.

[15:34] Jeffrey Dreisbach: This is George Garber, and let me just read George's email to you.

[15:39] Jeffrey Dreisbach: I'm kind of getting a little mixed up on my all these notes that I've got.

[15:42] Jeffrey Dreisbach: I am a theatrical voice coach and I use your tips with my students.

[15:47] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Thank you so much for your creative and charming podcasts.

[15:50] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Oh, how nice is that?

[15:52] Jeffrey Dreisbach: I had to sneak that in there.

[15:55] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Hey, listen, we all could use a few strokes, right?

[15:58] Jeffrey Dreisbach: All right, this next one is from Anaya.

[16:01] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Uh Anaya writes, I believe I say your name correctly.

[16:04] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Hello, I'm 15, and I want to be an actor for Netflix.

[16:04] Jeffrey Dreisbach: I want to be an actress.

[16:11] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Some people told me it wasn't for me, but I think it is.

[16:17] Jeffrey Dreisbach: That's from Anaya.

[16:18] Jeffrey Dreisbach: So, Anaya, thank you so much.

[16:20] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Well, listen, you're 15.

[16:21] Jeffrey Dreisbach: That's awesome that you have the interest and the desire.

[16:25] Jeffrey Dreisbach: That can really propel you into a lot of different areas.

[16:30] Jeffrey Dreisbach: So, my suggestion to you is to just keep your head down, stay focused, and decide exactly the kind of actor that you want to be.

[16:42] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Now, when you said that you were an actor on Netflix, that's in my opinion, that's kind of narrowing the opportunities just a little bit.

[16:50] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Being an actor means that you are versatile enough to want to take on all kinds of different projects from all kinds of different areas, like film, um television, maybe stage work.

[17:03] Jeffrey Dreisbach: So I understand the dream of being on Netflix, but let's replace that with just some good old-fashioned practical hard work stuff, which is enrolling in an acting class, even if it's outside of school.

[17:18] Jeffrey Dreisbach: If you don't have a drama club or drama department, find one.

[17:22] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Find a place where you can get to get maybe there's some community theater in your area.

[17:27] Jeffrey Dreisbach: But in order for you to feel like you were moving in the direction you want to move in, don't listen to other people unless they're your parents and there are very specific reasons why, but show your interest by going and participating in some acting training and some acting programs that are out there.

[17:46] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Get some feedback from people who might be able to really give you an honest opinion about you and your acting.

[17:53] Jeffrey Dreisbach: That way you can decide whether it's something to move forward with, or perhaps you might want to shift your focus a little bit into some other areas.

[18:02] Jeffrey Dreisbach: The last thing I would want to do is dissuade you from any of your thoughts about this.

[18:07] Jeffrey Dreisbach: But I do want to replace the re the dream of what it is to be an actor with the reality of being an actor, which is that it's just good old-fashioned hard work like any other profession.

[18:20] Jeffrey Dreisbach: So good luck to you on that.

[18:23] Jeffrey Dreisbach: And please feel free to write me back if you will have any additional questions or if I can be of any help to you.

[18:28] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Thank you so much.

[18:29] Jeffrey Dreisbach: The next one is uh from Mark.

[18:31] Jeffrey Dreisbach: It says, Greetings, Jeffrey.

[18:33] Jeffrey Dreisbach: I have some New York credits from theaters that no longer exist due to finances, the pandemic, etc.

[18:40] Jeffrey Dreisbach: etc.

[18:41] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Should I remove them as I update my resume, or keep them as some of the roles were of a good size?

[18:48] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Thanks.

[18:49] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Thanks, Mark.

[18:50] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Well, thank you for that, Mark.

[18:51] Jeffrey Dreisbach: I really appreciate that.

[18:53] Jeffrey Dreisbach: And I also uh want the audience to know that I wrote Mark privately about this as well.

[18:59] Jeffrey Dreisbach: And my answer is pretty much the the same, whether I'm doing it privately to Mark or to anybody who's had that experience of having some great credits but no longer having that theater that's still a viable professional environment.

[19:15] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Many theaters have closed, many theaters have changed hands, all kinds of shakeups going on as a result of the pandemic.

[19:22] Jeffrey Dreisbach: But here's my thinking a performance in a good role at a theater, whether it's there or not now, is irrelevant.

[19:31] Jeffrey Dreisbach: A good performance at a theater is a good performance at a theater.

[19:36] Jeffrey Dreisbach: So if you've gotten a really good role and it really represents your, here's a good word, cast ability now, then by all means, you should absolutely not omit it from your resume.

[19:49] Jeffrey Dreisbach: So don't forget that the resume is your one-page sort of advertisement about who you are and what you've done, but it's also a way in which questions can get asked of you, whether it's from an agent or a manager or whether it's from a casting director saying, Oh, I haven't heard of that theater.

[20:06] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Tell me about it.

[20:07] Jeffrey Dreisbach: So there are all kinds of little things in a resume that can might perhaps trigger a conversation with somebody in the industry.

[20:17] Jeffrey Dreisbach: So by all means, if it is showing you off in a good light because it was an excellent role and you did a good job, the theater's relevancy is less important.

[20:27] Jeffrey Dreisbach: I'm not saying it's not important, it is less important because listen, as a casting director, we know the situation.

[20:35] Jeffrey Dreisbach: We know how many theaters have closed out there.

[20:37] Jeffrey Dreisbach: But the fact that you got cast, that you did and performed in that role, that you did public performances in a professional arena, those are what count uh first and foremost on your resume.

[20:51] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Hey, look at that.

[20:52] Jeffrey Dreisbach: That time's flown by here on this podcast.

[20:55] Jeffrey Dreisbach: If you have any questions, please, peace, please feel free to email me.

[21:01] Jeffrey Dreisbach: If you want to do a direct email, I'm casting actorscast at gmail.com.

[21:05] Jeffrey Dreisbach: That's casting actorscast, all one word at gmail.com.

[21:09] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Thank you so much for tuning in.

[21:10] Jeffrey Dreisbach: We're gonna see you next time on Casting Actors Cast.

[21:14] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Thanks so much.

[21:15] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Thank you for joining Casting Actors Cast.

[21:17] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Please don't forget to review, like, and share Casting Actors Cast wherever you get your podcasts.

[21:24] Jeffrey Dreisbach: Thanks.

[21:25] Jeffrey Dreisbach: I'm Megan Grace Martinez.