I want to get film acting experience?

Question

How can I get FILM acting experience? I want to act in film, and I have some stage experience, but lots of big actors haven't done stage, so how can I find auditions? I live in Chicago. And please don't give me an online audition site like actorsaccess or castingcall because those are scams.

I'm 16 years old

Answer 1

Excuse me, but ActorsAccess is most certainly not a scam. Where did you get your information from? It comes from Breakdown Services which is THE casting service that every legit agency in Los Angeles uses on a daily basis. ActorsAccess is the free watered down version so there are concessions you have to make like getting advertisements in the mix as well as you obviously don't get cream of the crop auditions. You won't get those great auditions WITHOUT AN AGENT. I don't understand how people think they can get the next Oscar winning role from an audition they got from a free site online? NOT gonna happen! You need to work your way up like everyone else and it starts with training and theatre. If you think AA is a scam because you have to pay to submit for electronic submissions then don't use it or pay for the Showfax subscription. $68 per year and you can submit all you want for free for that year.

You want another way to find auditions, get an agent. You want an agent with no experience? Good luck with that.

Also, most big actors actually did do theatre first. The amount of theatre may vary widely but many most certainly did do theatre. Look up their bios. They may or may not be classiclly trained, they may not have performed Shakespeare, but I'll bet they performed on stage.

Marianne

Answer 2

Hello there,

I'm an actor.
Here are a couple of suggestions:
1) get some training. Get into a good school, start to take acting classes so you can see what it's really like.
2) Have a look at this page on my site. It's about 15 things teen actors need to know: http://www.actingcareerstartup.com/teen_acting.html
3) It is totally not true what you said about actorsaccess. They are probably THE most legitamate casting website in the country. Actorsaccess is synonomous with Breakdown Services, which gets about 25% of the breakdowns that agents get. How do I know that? because last week at ActorFest in NYC, I interviewed the man who manages the LA office. This week I will interview the director of the office here in NY about some interesting new projects they have coming up. I'll make this information available on my website and on my blog.
In addition, there are two other sites that I know for a fact that are legit. The problem for you is that they are not in your area: nycasting.com and nycastings.com .

nycasting.com is a place to find lots of extra work, which is point number 3. I would suggest you get a good headshot and put together a resume and submit to some casting website that has work in your area. Try also extrasformovies.com. They also might be able to help.
Working as an extra will help you to see how the pros work. It's boring work, but it can be very educational.

Good luck!

Tony
http://www.actingcareerstartup.com

Answer 3

ActorsAccess a scam huh? Wow that's news considering it's a part of breakdown services and almost 90% of the working actors I know in Hollywood use it. But as to your question:

You want film experience go and get it! There are always media programs at colleges that are putting productions through all the time and need people. You probably won't get paid, but you will get expereince.

Notice you didn't say Hollywod or blockbuster type of films. For things like that you'll need an agent. And of course, experience! And since it looks like you're already very against using on-line services, then the local paper, book stores and student services often times list parts for local productions. If you have a community theatre you might also want to check there as people working on a show may have some information from time to time as well.

There is a pretty decent acting scene in Chicago, because of that you could always try craigslist or certain myspace groups that are based out of the Chicago area. But as it always comes down to, if you want to do Hollywood movies, you need to be in Hollywood.

Answer 4

Do some community theatre first! Then once you can act and have a resume together try getting an agent.

-Laila

Answer 5

Wow, in Chicago they have a lot of things.

Try listening in for auditions on the radio, make a portfolio so you have something to show for it. Like pictures of you and signed documentation. Get a photographer to take pictures of you, and I mean a REAL one. For modeling. That would help a lot.

They usually have things said on the radio to get talented people. Listen to a popular radio station.

=]
Good luck.
Can I get your autograph?
haha
=D

Answer 6

Im kinda in that stuck situation 2.
I am a good singer..But I can never find good auditions.
if you want experience get an agent.
they find all the good auditions.

Answer 7

For Acting, I would recommend

http://www.hollywoodnorth.com