[any ideas?]: Best Buy

Submit your ideas for a new category title (i.e. Audition: Best Buy, Callback: Best Buy, Avail: Best Buy) covering avails that end up going nowhere. We could call it "Near Miss" or "Close Call" or something along those lines. Avoid the negatives, which are too easy, like "Shot Down" or "Mangled Wreckage".

I just got the call from KSA that I've been released from the avail for Best Buy. Hmm...maybe I should just call it [Released:]. As time wore on, I began to suspect they were trying to cast Canadians so they wouldn't have to pay the travel expenses for us United Statesians. Anyway, this is why the whole avail notice is such a pain. Instead of doing an audition/callback and then forgetting about it, they force you to think about it all the time by putting you on avail and making you plan how you'll handle those potential shoot dates. It's kind of draining. On the bright side though, as I've said, it's another validation, another step closer to the jobs that are out there waiting for me.

Today, I spent a couple of hours working on postcards and mailings to follow up with some of the industry people who attended the showcase. Every time I've got news, like the Numb3rs thing, I try to spread the word.

Audition: Allstate @ Lisa Fields Casting

This was my first time in for Lisa Fields Casting. I was told to bring an extra pair of pants for Mr. Changer-Pants. I figured it would be one of those commercials where they show some people doing something stupid while driving, and then Dennis Haysbert asks you not to be stupid. That's basically what it was. It was pretty funny to walk into the room, drop my pants and then slate and do the bit. I also had a steering wheel to contend with, which would be great if the wheel had actually been attached to something. Having it loose made the whole thing a little trickier, but I think I pulled it off...or pulled it on...or whatever. Don't tell the driving students, but I too have changed clothes while driving. I don't recommend it.

I called the agency today to see if the avails had been released for the Best Buy job. They checked in yesterday afternoon, and the avail is still open. I don't fully get the whole concept of the "avail". I mean, I know what it is, but it seems a little silly. Well, the good news is I'm still in the running!

Avail: Best Buy

I got a call from my commercial agency while I was working tonight. The voicemail started, "Hey Chris, I've got good news..." Sweet. I've been placed on avail for the Best Buy spot shooting in Vancouver. "Avail" can mean a number of things. It could mean they have basically picked me, but are awaiting final approval from the client. It can mean that I'm in the top 2 choices. For me, it means I have to alert my other responsibilities to the possibility that I will need to jump on a plane sometime between the 23rd and Oct. 5th. I don't have the job yet, but this is another good sign. See, I told you my time was coming.

Follow-Up

Apparently, I didn't book Numb3rs. Sure the story would've been more interesting if I had. First commercial audition in Los Angeles leads to callback and job. First episodic audition leads to callback and job. A friend told me what a television casting director told her, "The only difference between a callback and booking the job is the paycheck." It means that the CD basically thought you could step in and do the job. After that, it's up to the producers and writers to nit-pick. I'm very happy with where I am and where I'm going after another big step toward making it happen in Los Angeles. With all of these commercial callbacks, this breakthrough in TV auditioning and everything else, I know my time is coming.

Pre-Read: Numb3rs @ Mark Saks Casting; Producers: Numb3rs @ Mark Saks

After a lot of researching, printing, headshots and mailings, I secured my first official episodic audition since moving to LA, and I did it without an agent. The call came in Friday, and it took me a moment to get my bearings and understand what the assistant was saying before I realized what the call was about. Numb3rs is a very successful CBS show, sort of a book-smart procedural in the CSI mold. The audition was at 3:30pm today in downtown LA, where I don't often venture, and I was reading for about 3 different co-star roles.

Roles on a tv show go in a hierarchy. First, you have series regulars. That's self-explanatory. Then you may have special guest stars, which would be cameos like Bruce Willis on "Friends". Guest stars are roles with several different scenes and a "character arc" in an episode. An example of a guest star role would be the main suspect on an episode of Law & Order. You see him at home when he's first questioned. You see him confronted again by the cops, then interrogated and possibly tried. Guest stars and some co-stars may recur, meaning they show up in two or more episodes. Co-stars are the smaller roles...the cop who finds the body, the bartender who saw the victim last night, etc.

This morning, I got some peer coaching from a friend. Sometimes auditioning for smaller roles can be more difficult. There's a goal of being just interesting enough to serve the character without "overcooking" it. The show is about the series regulars, not the co-stars. It was good to work out some of the physical bits and to do the scenes out loud in front of an objective eye.

The pre-read with the casting director was good! So good, I got a callback (aka, "going to producers") on the spot for 2 of the roles 3 hours later. I went to a Starbucks/grocery store to pass the time since it would've made no sense for me to go all the way home. Each role is usually narrowed down to about 4 or 5 different actors for producers sessions. Since the session was running until 7pm or so, I expect they will notify the choices tomorrow morning. No matter what happens, it's all good news!

Audition: Dodge @ Ross Lacy

A Saturday? Weird, but it is my second Saturday audition since I've been here. Ross Lacy has one of the busiest casting offices in LA. It worked out great with my work schedule for the weekend too. Everybody wins. The audition was another young dad role. I got good feedback from the session runner at least. He asked where I trained and we had a bit of a discussion on the value of improv experience. Being in a commercial class has, of course, also helped, mainly in having worked so much on camera the last few weeks. Callbacks for this one are Monday night, which means I won't know if I have to make a switch in my schedule at work until Monday morning. It puts some strain on my supervisor, but he's a great guy who works with me and I enjoy the job. I'm really fortunate to have that situation. Things have definitely gotten busier on the audition front. Keep it rolling.

Callback: Best Buy @ Beth Holmes

This went great. The callback was in Santa Monica which is a bit more of a drive than the audition was. It's still not that bad...basically what my commute was everyday in Atlanta. Apparently, the callbacks were here because of the studio capability to run a remote session. It was like a teleconference. People in a board room somewhere else were watching me on some big screen while I was working in a room with two people and a camera. The director gave me some feedback and redirection a few times, then they gave me a different role to do. Both felt good, and I think the extra work was a positive sign.

Just as I arrived at the studios, I received a phone call from a number I didn't recognize. I almost didn't answer, but curiosity got me. Find out what is was about on Monday...

Callback: Wendy's @ Craig Colvin

Hey, another good callback. The direction was for "more" than originally given to us in the audition the other day, which had been my instinct then anyway. I felt good about it. I focused on the real pain of birth, which I can merely hope to approximate, rather than just letting it go straight to screams and whatnot. The females in the room seemed to nod approvingly. So, again, I bid adieu to an audition with that most confident of sign-offs, "Who knows?".

Audition: Wendy's @ Craig Colvin

Another trip to the office where I got my official start in LA. This was a funny spot. I feel like I probably shouldn't give away the premise of all these things even though we don't sign confidentiality agreements or anything. Maybe it doesn't matter. In this one, I played a husband going into labor in a classic role reversal scenario. The trick was they kept telling us to keep it small...tone it down. That was against my instinct for this one, but I think I pulled it off.

Audition: IBM @ Gabrielle Schary; Audition: Best Buy @ Beth Holmes

I'm telling you it's so weird how quiet it can get for a couple of weeks and then all of a sudden...multiple auditions in a day. Got the call on the IBM spot while I was in class last night. The Best Buy call came in this morning.

IBM (internet only, but possibly wider tv release): This one indicated that sides were posted on LA Casting. However, the sides were really just these character descriptions, which to me meant improv time. Sure enough, that's what it was. I think it went well, but I wonder about these techy-geeky things. I'm not sure I'm totally that look. You just never know.

Best Buy: In this one, I was a "delivery guy". Nothing to it in terms of lines, just looks really, but in the audition itself we improvised a couple lines anyway. I always like my chances with this type of stuff, because I've had a lot of success in auditions/bookings that involve expressive faces. I met some cool people in the waiting area who I'm sure to see again. The Santa Clauses were coming in as I was leaving. So, I talked business with one of them for a while...Santa business.