Two weeks ago I asked you fine readers to chime in about sources for Agent-Free Auditioning so I could share your discoveries right here in the Your Turn section. Here’s the another email — this time from well-known casting director Heidi Levitt — that gives a good “yes, and…” to my list. Thanks and keep ’em coming!
This article is an excellent round-up of the sources out there to help the unrepresented actor. However, there was not a mention of anything for the mobile community and I know that the thing that actors are most dependent on are their smart phones. So, I developed an iPhone app for actors called Actor Genie. For the first time, actors can find out on their phones what is casting in film and television; who’s who among agents, managers, and casting directors with names, addresses, contact numbers, links to Google Maps, and the all-important names of the assistants who answer the phones, schedule the appointments, and are the ones who can truly help get the actor in the door.
Actor Genie also offers a powerful edited list of the best acting coaches, headshot photographers, places to eat, places to work out, and much more. The icing on the cake is every day you will get a tip or piece of advice from a well-known actor, writer, director, or casting director in the opening section of the app called Today’s Take. These “takes” are not only informative, they are only offered on Actor Genie because the app was developed and being run by me — a long-time casting director who knows the business from the inside out — and I have gotten the most amazing and generous professionals out there (including people like Mark Ruffalo, Sarah Polley, Brett Ratner, Neil Labute, Rodrigo Garcia, Ron Livingston, Tim Kring, and Jill Solloway) to share their wisdom.
We hope to be able to move to other platforms very soon and yes, you can use the app on the iPad. Thank you Bonnie for your excellent article. In the end, it’s not about being agent-free but more about using the resources out there to navigate an ever-changing business. The opportunities are there and now, actors have a way to finally find them with online and mobile resources.
Bonnie Gillespie is living her dreams by helping others figure out how to live theirs. Wanna work with Bon? Start here. Thanks!
Originally published by Actors Access at http://more.showfax.com/columns/avoice/archives/001182.html. Please support the many wonderful resources provided by the Breakdown Services family. This posting is the author’s personal archive.