IActor not Yet in the mix for Austin Casting Directors

On March 7, 2008 there was a presentation / meeting called byThe Alliance Austin for represented talent and their agents. This was the first general meeting promoted by the group since its founding. The Alliance Austin, consisting of Central Texas casting directors, agents and acting coaches has the following Mission Statement:

The Alliance exists to develop and promote Central Texas area actors, and to ensure continued use of Austin for TV and Film.

Based on comments made during last night’s meeting ofThe Alliance Austin, the SAG casting service, I Actor is not yet in the mix for use by local casting directors.

During the Q&A which followed brief comments by casting directors, Beth Sepko, Rachel Flanagen, Sally Allen, Shelly Reese and Vicky Boone, the CDs were asked if they were using the IActor service.

There was a pregnant pause which seemed to indicate that some of the CDs might not even know what IActor is, followed by Beth Sepko’s comments that it has taken a long time to get the local casting and agent’s community up to speed using Breakdown Services. Sepko went on to say (paraphrasing here:) that IActor may be a factor in the future but as of now, she is using Breakdown Services and won’t be relying on IActor in the near term.

While IActor only officially rolled out in March of 2008, it looks like SAG has some work to do to introduce the service properly to the local casting community. The fact that most of the actors in Texas, a right to work state, currently decline to join SAG, doesn’t bode well for the viability of this service for the SAG actors residing in the Texas market.

Other questions posed to the CDs present regarded marketing, upcoming productions and the necessity or lack thereof of affiliating with SAG. Several hundred local actors attended the event which was held at the Gateway Church of Austin.

And the beat goes on….

Tagged as: Acting Coaches, Austin Actors, Casting Directors, IActor, SAG, Texas Actors