What is an Open Call When Referring to Auditions (Showbiz Term of the Day)?

Open Call, Getty Images via @daylife

When we talk about acting and modeling auditions, it is important to know what it means if the audition is an Open Call. Today’s Showbiz Term of the Day is “Open Call.”

My daughter went to Open Calls a couple of times for shows such as America’s Most Talented Kid before we moved to LA. Those were not experiences I really wanted to repeat!

We arrived early in the morning for one particular Open Call. We sat in the waiting room with hundreds of other people, trying to pass the hours. We did not know that other people would arrive long before the open call time to get in line, so there were many people in front of us.

After waiting for many hours, my daughter was finally told she would go in next to audition. She was very exited. She warmed up, practiced, and got psyched and ready to go in.  The assistant came back, and my daughter stood to go in.  But then the casting assistant informed us that casting was going to take a lunch break, and that she would be first after lunch.

My 5-year-old daughter, who had been waiting happily and patiently for 5 or 6 hours, then started to cry. She had been all excited that she was next, and being told she’d have to wait some more was upsetting to her. She was hungry and tired, and we were not sure we even had time to get her lunch before they called her in!

Her Dad rushed off to pick up some lunch (along with hundreds of others). When he finally got back with food and my daughter eagerly took her first bite, smearing ketchup all over her face and hands, the casting assistant showed up to take her back to audition!  I quickly tried to wipe her hands and face, and she finished chewing that bite as we walked back for her audition.

She was not really at the top of her game when we went back to audition. Of course, that was not surprising, given how things had just gone. But she was a trooper and did her best, and I was very proud of her even though she was not selected for the show.

If you are not in the LA Area or NY Area or other areas where theatrical auditions (see  Do You Know What Theatrical Acting Auditions Are?) and commercial auditions (see What Happens When Your Child Is Auditioning for a Kid Commercial) are common, an Open Call may seem like the only way you can be seen by entertainment industry professionals.

So, “What Is an Open Call When Referring to Auditions?”

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What Is Improv? (Showbiz Term of the Day)

Improv, Image by Getty Images via @daylife

Today’s showbiz term of the day is “improv.” If you type the word “improv” into just about any editor where spelling is checked, the word will be flagged as being spelled incorrectly.

But in the world of acting, the word “improv” is a term that is used regularly. It  is one of many showbiz terms that you encounter as you venture into the show business industry that you are not likely to totally understand.

You may have heard the term “improv” if you ever watched the hilarious tv show “Whose Line is It Anyway?” with Drew Carey and Wayne Brady. My daughter and I first encountered the term when she joined “Giggle Gaggle,” a kids comedy and improv troupe with Joy Theatre in North Hollywood.

As an actor, you are quite likely to be asked to do improv in a comedy class or show. It is also sometimes done in regular acting classes, particularly good acting classes. You may even be asked to improv during an audition.  If you are trying to become an actor, you’d better know what improv is and be ready to do some whenever you are asked to do it.

So, “What is improv?”

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What Is a Callback After an Acting Audition? (Showbiz Term of the Day)

Acting Audition Callback

There is a chance that your child will get “a callback” after an acting audition if that acting audition goes well and your child is right for the part. When your child gets a callback for an acting audition for the very first time, you may not know exactly what that means.

My daughter got a callback after her second acting audition, and after the initial excitement was over, I realized I really did not know what that meant or what to do. I had to call her agent back a couple of times and ask lots of questions.

Since I knew very little about showbiz when we first got started, whenever we did something new, I had lots of questions.  And I was embarrassed to have to ask so many questions.

On the other hand, I knew it was important to find out everything I could about her first acting audition callback to make sure we did what we needed to do.

So, in case you are wondering exactly, “What Is a Callback After an Acting Audition?”

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What Is a Go-See? (Showbiz Term of the Day)

At a Go-See a Photographer May Take Some Test Photos

If you are starting a career in showbiz that includes modeling, you have certainly heard, or will very soon hear, the term “Go-See.” Today’s Showbiz Term of the Day is “Go-See.”

My daughter was almost 6 when she had her first “go-see” for Pottery Barn. She did not even have a comp card or headshot yet. We really did not understand what we were doing. And I really would have liked more information.

For a model to book a print job, it is very important that the representatives from the company employing the model see what the model looks like and how well the model photographs. It is also important that  the model’s look and type match the company image and the type of products being advertised.

Those hiring the model also need to have a good feeling about how easy it will be to work with the model. For that reason, just taking a look at some photographs of the model may not be enough to allow the company representatives to choose the right model for a job.

So, “What Is a Go-See?”

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What Is a Coogan Blocked Trust Account? (Showbiz Term of the Day)

Coogan Blocked Trust Account Image via Wikipedia

What Is a Coogan Blocked Trust Account?

For those with children interested in the entertainment industry, it is very important to understand what a Coogan Blocked Trust Account is.

As soon as you get a California entertainment work permit (see “Do You Need an Entertainment Work Permit for Your Child Actor?“) for your child, you also need to open a Coogan Account (see “What is a Coogan Account?” for more details) for that same child.

When I was trying to open a Coogan account for my daughter, I was confused and frustrated. I did not even know how to spell Coogan. All I knew was the name Coogan account. I did not really know what it was.

Many of the bank representatives I talked to had never even heard of a Coogan account.  So I went and researched the topic so I had more information to use to communicate with the bank employees.

So, “What is a Coogan Blocked Trust Account?”

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What is Pilot Season? (Showbiz Term of the Day)

Big Bang Theory Was Cast in Pilot Season 2007, Image via Flickr

There is a lot of talk about “pilot season” right now in Los Angeles. That is because pilot season is going on right now.

The time referred to as “pilot season” used to be much more well-defined than it is now. But it does still occur.

My daughter and I have been friends with several young actors who landed roles on pilots during pilot season.

Pilot Season Has a Big Effect on the LA Area

It is at this time of year that masses of people, mostly actors, descend on LA hoping to be able to take advantage of the increase in activity in the entertainment industry here in LA.

It always seems that LA Traffic gets crazier, and certainly the entertainment work permit office gets busier. And a larger number of Coogan accounts are probably opened at this time of year as well.

And headshot photographers and reproductions offices get busier trying to help all the talent that has just flooded into the area get their headshots ready for distribution as well as the local talent doing the same thing.

Talent Agencies and Talent Managers

Talent agencies and talent managers also get busier. And many agencies and managers in the LA area who work with actors who come here at this time of year become somewhat distracted from their local talent as they focus on sending their seasonal talent out on as many auditions as possible during the short time they are here.

In fact, just about all businesses involved in the entertainment industry get busier at this time of year.

Let’s hope that with the economy in the state that it has been in lately, this will be a great pilot season, and the entertainment industry will come out of the slump it seems to have been in for a while.

So, “What is Pilot Season?”

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What Is SAG? (Showbiz Term of the Day)

SAG in LA, Wikipedia

You’ve probably heard the showbiz term “SAG” with regards to actors, awards, and projects.  You probably not only wonder what SAG is but probably also wonder “What Does SAG Stand For?”

I know “SAG” was one of many terms/acronyms I often heard and wondered about when my daughter and I first came to Los Angeles.

So, “What Is SAG?”

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What Is a Breakdown? (Showbiz Term of the Day)

The term “breakdown” is one you are likely to hear when you are starting your journey into show business. And the term “breakdown” here is not used to refer to someone’s psychological state or a car quitting on the side of the road.

I remember having my daughter’s talent manager refer to the information in what he called the “breakdown” when he was telling me about her first acting auditions. He did not send me a copy or give me any other information about it, so I really did not know what a “breakdown” was.

I discussed breakdowns and who gets the breakdowns in “Who Gets the Breakdowns for Acting Auditions for Big Movie and TV Roles?” So please check that post out for additional information on this topic.

So, “What Is a Breakdown?”

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