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New Projects - Theatre Auditions & Seasons - Pilot Season Changes - TV Relocations - Congratulate CDs

By Abigail Hardin, April 20, 2021

First and foremost, let me start by thanking Sean Gregory for writing our Weekly Insight emails over the past three months. As most of you know we are a small family business (plus Sean) and we are so grateful for his continued help and input as we grow this community and service. As I mentioned in my last Tuesday email, back in January, Sean took on more duties so that I could focus on expediting development and improvements to the site. Sean will continue to help with the Tuesday emails, social media, and should you need to reach out for tech help, handle our customer service emails.

Annie and I have enjoyed meeting so many new people at our recent workshops. As the business continues to pick up speed post-pandemic we have pushed ourselves to offer more and more free workshops to help actors find their footing and navigate this new post-pandemic frontier.

Theatre is Back!!

Last week, we held a new exciting workshop on Booking Theatre Work Post-Pandemic with the Growing Studio. This topic is one that I have been itching to host for a few months now, but the timing finally felt right. It's no secret Theatre was the hardest hit sector of our industry, so it feels as if a huge weight is lifting seeing audition announcements flood the airwaves again, and seasons announced daily.

In the past month alone, 50 new regional seasons have been announced and 45 audition notices have been posted. This may not seem like a lot, but considering the radio silence of the past year, this feels like a welcome re-birth for the theatre industry!

Upcoming Workshops

We also had a great workshop yesterday on Seeking Representation 101 with Actors Connection, discussing not only how to create a successful representation campaign, but also how to build a better relationship with your agent or manager once you have representation. In case you missed this workshop, we will be repeating this topic in May! See more info below.

We will be taking some time off from workshops from late May through early June. So don't miss this opportunity to ask all of your career and Up-To-Date Actor questions!

As usual, there is a lot going on this week. It feels as if the industry is making up for the year of lost time. So kick back with a cup of coffee ☕️️ and enjoy! Now is a great time to take bold action and move your career to the next level.

Have a great week!

And.....we're baaaack!

Theatre 🎭

As I mentioned in my intro, dust off your tap shoes, theatre is back! We've talked a lot about Broadway and Off-Broadway, but for the first time, National Tours are announcing dates and auditions. Two of the country’s major theatrical venues announced reopening plans last week, with the Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles and the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. set to house Broadway productions beginning in November and October, respectively. Tours are large-scale Broadway productions and require large numbers of audience members in attendance to be financially feasible. The return of national tours is a huge sign of confidence that the country is finally ready to open for large-scale indoor events. Here is a full look at the shows that have announced dates and the cities listed on the touring circuit.

Part of this large-scale opening plan is majorly dependent on the vaccine rollout. There was even an audition notice last week that stated all actors would have to be fully vaccinated by May 1st. Last week, the Times Square coronavirus vaccination site serving the Broadway theater industry opened with an open invitation to the city’s film and television workers as well. "We want the film and TV community to be part of our vaccination effort as well," Mayor Bill de Blasio said, "so we welcome them to join the vaccination center in Times Square. We want to make sure that the film and TV industry comes back stronger all the time. Vaccinations will play a key role and we want to make that easy." 💉

Audition notices are being released daily, just a reminder that active Up-To-Date Actor members receive daily or weekly notifications of these audition notices. Make sure you have selected "Theatre"  as one of your interests to receive these notices. Otherwise, you will receive a notification only if you are targeting the Producing Theatre Company, Play, or Author. Happy auditioning!!

Film

Another positive is the return of in-person festivals. A number of festivals including Cannes Film Festival, Austin Film Festival, and Comic-Con have announced either in-person or a combination of in-person and streaming format for their 2021 festivals. Tribecca Film Festival is adding its name to the list. The 20th edition of the NYC film festival is kicking off with an indoor-outdoor event, featuring the world premiere of Lin-Manuel Miranda's IN THE HEIGHTS, two days prior to its worldwide theatrical and streaming release.

Congratulations! 🎉

Last week, The Casting Society of America announced the winners of the 36th Artios Awards, recognizing the best casting efforts in feature films, television, and theatre. The winners include major casting offices on both coasts including

• Los Angeles: Betty Mae Casting, Vickie Thomas, Horn/Aufiero Casting, Francine Maisler Casting, and Kimberly Hardin Casting
• New York: Gayle Keller Casting, JV8 Casting, Avy Kaufman Casting, Ellen Lewis Casting, and Erica Hart Casting

Check out the entire list of this year's Artios winners. This is the perfect opportunity to reach out to the specific casting directors who won and send a congratulations note! You can find the most recent contact info (addresses, emails, etc.) on the Up-To-Date Actor. Take it one step further and add these CDs to your targets to be notified of any new projects they are casting as they are announced.

Pilots, Tax Credits, Relocations, Oh My!

One year later and we're not much clearer on the effects of COVID on the structure of Pilot Season. Across the Big Five networks, the majority of the pilots in contention this year are holdovers from 2020. Some projects were scrapped and some are only now going before the cameras. Studio and agency sources say they expect this to translate into fewer new series pickups this year. Read more specifics on each of the five major networks (ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC, and The CW) and their current state of pilot season.

We've already seen several sophomore series relocate from New York and parts of Canada to Los Angeles. THE FLIGHT ATTENDANT and CHAD are both relocating to Los Angeles from New York and Portland, Oregon respectively. Depending on where you are located, this is either good or bad news. The snagging of the shows pushes the number of TV series that have moved from elsewhere to California — a top priority for the $330 million-a-year tax credits program — to nearly two dozen series over the past several years. Tax credits can make or break an entire state's Film & TV industry - just look at what happened in Florida (lost an industry) and Georgia (gained an industry) in the last decade. Last year, New York State cut their film tax credit from 30% to 25% in response to the budget deficit caused by the pandemic. Five percent might not seem like a lot, but when you're talking millions, the dollars add up. 💸

More Articles:

• Amazon Content Spending in 2020 Hit $11 Billion, Up 41%
• WGA Sets Big Settlement With CBS for All Access Streaming Residuals

Another Movie Theatre Pandemic Casualty 🍿💀

Decurion, the parent company of the 18 Arclight and Pacific Theatres announced they are closing all of their cinemas in Los Angeles, Chicago, Boston, and D.C.. While tiny in comparison to AMC, Regal, and Cinemark, this recent closure announcement has major implications for the industry.

Of the greatest concern is Arclight Hollywood, which alone provided one percent of the total North American gross for edgy and acclaimed indie titles. There is hope, however small, that the Arclight could reopen. Among the top domestic exhibitors, Cinemark is considered the most likely to be interested.

Lastly, this new wave of closures further stresses the need for financial action from government. Theater owners are especially frustrated, anxious, and unnerved that a signature government lifeline so far has struggled to get up and running. The Small Business Association (SBA) program was to have started to receive applications last week. But technical glitches forced the SBA to shut down the portal, with no word yet on when it will get back up and running. UPDATE: Almost two weeks later, SBA has revealed that they hope to fix the crashed website by the end of this week.

On a positive note, New York movie theaters can increase their capacity to 33% from 25% on April 26, according to new Covid-19 safety guidelines announced by Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

Georgia Boycott 🍑

As we've been covering over the past two weeks, multiple big-budget productions have pulled out of Georgia in response to the new repressive election laws. Director Ryan Coogler just announced that he is keeping BLACK PANTHER II in the peach state despite the passing of Senate Bill 202. Coogler states,

Having now spoken with voting rights activists in the state, I have come to understand that many of the people employed by my film, including all the local vendors and businesses we engage, are the very same people who will bear the brunt of SB202. For those reasons, I will not be engaging in a boycott of Georgia. What I will be doing is using my voice to emphasize the effects of SB202, its shameful roots in Jim Crow, and doing all I can to support organizations fighting voter suppression here in the state.

At The Office

Some big shakeups were announced this week. Sharon Klein was named EVP of Casting at Walt Disney Television leading the casting teams of ABC Entertainment, 20th Television, ABC Signature, 20th Television Animation, Walt Disney Television Alternative, Hulu Originals, and Freeform. Lindsey Kasabian was named SVP of Casting at Freeform. Kasabian will report to Klein as Disney is Freefrom's parent company.

More Articles:

• Sarah Timberman & Carl Beverly Move To Lionsgate With Big Overall TV Deal
• UTA Offices To Begin Reopening This Summer; Returning Employees Required To Be Fully Vaccinated

Power and Abuse

In the wake of allegations of longstanding abuse—both physical and emotional—and intimidation, producer Scott Rudin has announced that he will step away from his Broadway productions, effective immediately. "After a period of reflection, I’ve made the decision to step back from active participation on our Broadway productions, effective immediately," Rudin wrote in a statement provided to The Washington Post. "My roles will be filled by others from the Broadway community and in a number of cases, from the roster of participants already in place on those shows."

However, a retreat from the limelight and power is not enough for some. Tina Tchen, president and CEO of the Time’s Up Foundation, added her voice today to those calling for producer Scott Rudin to release employees from prior non-disclosure agreements.

Earlier in the week, MOULIN ROUGE! star Karen Olivo announced she was quitting the production in protest over Rudin's abusive behavior. That action has had a ripple effect that can be felt as far as London. Director Rob Roth, who was set to helm the upcoming UK tour of Beauty and the Beast, penned an email to Rudin while on a flight, which was transcribed by the passenger next to him. In reference to Karen Olivo leaving MOULIN ROUGE! Roth wrote that Rudin should receive "an honorary Tony for somehow getting that horrible woman to quit acting. God bless you Scott for your service to American theatre." After confirming his words and releasing the email, Roth has stepped down from the UK production. 🤔 Seems like two birds killed with one stone.

Diversity & Inclusion

Native American-themed films and TV shows have been on the rise recently – Ava DuVernay and Bird Runningwater are developing a dramatic series for NBC about the struggles and triumphs of an Indigenous family – but Hollywood has a long way to go to include Native Americans into its storylines. During SAG-AFTRA's panel discussion about Re-Creating Native Americans in the Media, Hollywood was urged to tell more stories about Native Americans as the modern people that they are, not just as throwbacks to the bygone era of cowboys and Indians – and to give Native Americans a seat at the table to tell their own stories.

In the wake of last week’s Stop the Hate summit, SAG-AFTRA’s national board has approved a Diversity Action Plan that includes provisions for implicit bias training for its national and local board members. The plan also establishes diversity committees serving the Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) and Latino communities and strengthens partnerships with organizations conducting diversity and inclusion research. profiles. The board, meeting virtually on Saturday, also adopted a new membership rule – Rule 7 – that explicitly prohibits harassment and abuse, including sexual harassment, intimidation, and retaliation for the filing of complaints, and makes violations subject to disciplinary action. Read article for more details.

Seeking a Director of Color? Now, there’s a database for that! Director/playwright Kareem Fahmy has created an open-source spreadsheet to match BIPOC directors with theatres and playwrights. Public spreadsheets like this can be used not only by individuals to hold institutions accountable. They can also work in the other direction, providing institutions with the tools to do better in the first place.

Scholarship Alert: Broadway Arts Community has just announced a new Spotlight Scholarship, shining a light on BIPOC artists and their voices. This year Summer BAC will have several full-tuition scholarships for Summer Roots in NYC, in addition to some additional financial assistance for any and all artists. Check out the article for more information.

The film MINARI is already making history, and the Oscars haven't even aired yet. Veteran Yuh-Jung Youn is the first South Korean actress to be nominated in an acting category at the Academy Awards. She’s up for Best Supporting Actress for her powerful performance. When asked what it’s like to be the first Korean actress nominated for an Oscar, she said, "Very stressful." She added, "I was just very happy being nominated. I never even dreamed about being nominated for an Oscar. People will be very happy for me if I get the win, but it’s very stressful." Youn is not alone, actor Steven Yeun became the first Asian-American actor to land an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor for his performance in MINARI. In a recent article for The Hollywood Reporter Yeun discussed the term "Asian-American actor" and how he takes issue with being defined as such and not simply "an actor."

More Articles:

• THEM's Shahadi Wright Joseph on the Importance of Dark-Skinned Leads: "I Represent Others Who Look Like Me"
• QUEEN OF THE SOUTH: Alice Braga on the Pressures of Being a Latina Lead in Primetime
• POSE Final Season: The FX Show’s Lasting Legacy on LGBTQ Film & TV
• Malaysia-born Hollywood scriptwriter Adele Lim of CRAZY RICH ASIANS fame on being a gamechanger in the cinematic scene

Audition Tips & Insight

Over the past week we stumbled upon several different advice articles for actors. Take a look:

How to Shine Online- Audition Tips for Online Auditions and Self-Tapes

Check out the latest advice article on The Art of the Follow-Up from our good friend Colleen Kahl, president, at Actors Connection.

We stumbled on this old Casting Director panel interview from Comic-Con 2013, but it still has great applicable advice and info on the casting process from major casting directors. Featuring Randi Hiller, Lora Kennedy, Sharon Bialy, Roger Mussenden & David Rapaport.

Evan Peters of WANDAVISION and MARE OF EASTTOWN shares some great insight on his process and preparation.

Does your morning need a fresh routine? Check out this Perfect Your Pre-Audition/Show/Self-Tape Skincare tutorial from Broadway World.

Quick Bites & What to Watch

David Fincher gave Aaron Sorkin a simple but essential tip to prevent studios from owning him as a Filmmaker: don't let the studio think you want to make the project more than they do.

The Gucci family is taking issue with some of the casting choices in the upcoming drama film HOUSE OF GUCCI starring Lady Gaga and Adam Driver.

🐅 Tiger alert! John Cameron Mitchell has been tapped to play the title character opposite Kate McKinnon in NBCU's upcoming JOE EXOTIC limited series. "I’m thrilled to take on the role of this modern folk antihero," said Mitchell. "Joe and I are the same age and like him, I grew up queer in Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas so I feel like I know a little bit about this guy and his desperate attempt to conquer an inhospitable world."

Bryant Park's Picnic Performances series will return to New York City's Bryant Park this summer with 25 live and in-person music, dance, and theatre events. The free series at the midtown park will be offered to a socially distanced audience, with performances live streamed as well. The season will kick off June 9 with a four-night run of shows featuring musicians from The New York Philharmonic and will continue through September 20, concluding with a program presented by The Town Hall starring mandolinist and public radio star Chris Thile to celebrate that venue's 100th anniversary.

What to Watch

• Chadwick Boseman: Portrait of an Artist Netflix DocumentaryTrailer
• Ethan Hawke, John Leguizamo In WAITING FOR GODOT Livestream
• Beast Beast Review: An Indie High School Drama Haunted by Violence
• Watch Inspirational New Video from the Actors Fund
• Lin-Manuel Miranda Embarks on a Virtual Tour of New York City Video

Thanks for reading to the end!! Have a great week! 😘