3 YouTube Channels Every Actor Needs to Subscribe to

YouTube is a great tool for learning new things, getting the inside scoop on your industry and finding out what’s going on with your fellow actors.

Whether you yourself have a YouTube channel or not, you should make the most of it. So we’ve rounded up 3 great channels that’ll get you started into your YouTube foray.

1. Backstage

Backstage has over 50k subscribers already – and it’s easy to see why. With a selection of acting tips, insider info from casting directors and one-on-ones with agents, you can spend days going down this rabbit hole of information.

Just keep a notepad and pen at the ready to jot down any great new ideas!

2. Tips on Acting

Run by Amy Jo Berman, who spent 20 years as a casting director and former VP of casting at HBO, she posts videos that answer a whole bunch of questions from the wider acting community.

Her mission is to take the “struggling” out of “struggling actor” – if that sounds good to you, you can find her channel below!

3. Act on This – The TV Actor’s Network

This YouTube channel is run by Ross Grant, a very enthusiastic Brit who has pulled together an online community of TV actors and populates his Vlog with a series of videos on what you need to know about the acting business and how to pay your bills using acting (and just acting!)

A bit of a newer blog, but with over 1k subscribers already, surely one to watch!

Happy watching!

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Penguin in the Room @prartsmarketing is a group of creatives with an arts marketing dream: penguin stepping our way into the arts industry and helping other creatives flourish! Specialising in online marketing, social media, branding, copy writing, media coaching and web design for actors, artists, casting directors, agents, production companies, theatre companies and creative individuals.

Contact us any time for penguin chats via email:info@penguinintheroom.com or Facebook.com/penguinintheroom or waddle over to our website: www.penguinintheroom.com

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What The New Data Protection Laws Mean For Small Businesses, Individuals and Freelancers

This May, new Data Protection laws will be coming into place, specifically, the Data Protection Act will be replaced by the General Data Protection Regulation.

What’s the difference? The GDPR will have new rules around the storage and handling of personal information and there will be stricter punishments in place for those who fail to comply.

Why the new law? The short answer is because hackers are more easily able to access data from small to medium businesses than they are to hack huge, well-protected corporate networks.

Changes in Consent

At the moment it’s sufficient to ask someone to tick or even to untick a box in order to consent to the storage of their data.

Under the new laws, consent means active agreement. This means you cannot pre-tick a ‘subscribe me’ button.

Not only this, but companies need to be able to show a clear audit trail of consent, including screen grabs or saved consent forms.

Individuals also have the right to withdraw consent at any time, and it has to be effective and efficient. When someone withdraws consent all of their personal data must be immediately and permanently erased. It is not enough to remove them from the mailing list.

If you are subject to a data breach, you also have to inform the relevant authorities immediately and you must notify all individuals affected within 72 hours of the initial breach.

What does this mean for people that use e-mail marketing (and am I one of those people?)

If you have a newsletter that people subscribe to, or if you send e-mails to a database of people on whatever basis, this concerns you.

And it doesn’t just concern all the new data you might collect. It concerns all the data you currently have.

Any kind of personal data you keep has to follow these rules and you and you alone are responsible for being able to prove that someone has consented to have their data kept on file by you.

This means you can no longer capture e-mails through a competition and then add them into your mailing list, or you cannot auto-subscribe (for example) people that have bought a ticket to your show to your newsletter.

Does the GDPR apply to my personal blog?

The GDPR applies to all enterprises. So if you run a business from home, or if your blog/website is engaged in “economic activity” i.e. you use it to make money – this applies to you.

It does not apply to people processing personal data in the course of a purely personal or household activity. I.e. if you have your plumber’s email address on file, that’s fine. If you’re sending your plumber an email telling him that you have a new kind of product available for sale, that’s not fine.

So what do I do now?

For every e-mail address in your system, you need to go back and seek explicit permission from the person to continue to send them whatever communication you are sending them.

If you cannot provide evidence of consent, you cannot send them emails and you must delete their data permanently.

This means you will need to launch a re-permission campaign and bring your entire database up to GDPR standards.

What are the consequences of non-compliance?

Fines. These are tiered based on the level of non-compliance and the severity of the violation, and they are capped at 4% of an annual turnover of €20million.

Ouch.

Check out our next post on how to run a GDPR compliant re-consent campaign.

Disclaimer: None of the above constitutes legal advice. If you are in doubt, we recommend you seek professional legal guidance.

Penguin in the Room @prartsmarketing is a group of creatives with an arts marketing dream: penguin stepping our way into the arts industry and helping other creatives flourish! Specialising in online marketing, social media, branding, copy writing, media coaching and web design for actors, artists, casting directors, agents, production companies, theatre companies and creative individuals.

Contact us any time for penguin chats via email:info@penguinintheroom.com or Facebook.com/penguinintheroom or waddle over to our website: www.penguinintheroom.com

To GIF or not to GIF?

 

What is it?

No it’s not JIF the cleaning fluid! A GIF is a short video that is repeated again and again. GIF stands for Graphics Interchange Format.

Why would you use it?

GIFs can brighten up your day and your social media posts and even powerpoint presentations! Want to make people chuckle in your next presentation but struggle with writing suitable jokes? Pop a humorous GIF into your presentation and the work is done for you. You can also add GIFs to twitter and Facebook posts and even blogs like this one to spice up your timeline. You’ve got to admit it does command attention doesn’t it?!

Where can I find them?

Some social media networks now have built in libraries of GIFs with different categories or emotions to select the perfect GIF for your post. Twitter and Facebook for example offer a GIF option when writing your posts. There are also lots of GIF websites such as giphy.com that let you download GIFs or use the embed code to insert them into your posts.

You see a GIF is really a GIFT!

 

Penguin in the Room @prartsmarketing is a group of creatives with an arts marketing dream: penguin stepping our way into the arts industry and helping other creatives flourish! Specialising in online marketing, social media, branding, copy writing, media coaching and web design for actors, artists, casting directors, agents, production companies, theatre companies and creative individuals.

Contact us any time for penguin chats via email:info@penguinintheroom.com or Facebook.com/penguinintheroom or waddle over to our website: www.penguinintheroom.com

Social Media for Casting Directors (Film/TV/Commercial)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

photo credit: vancouverfilmschool via photopin cc

So you are a Casting Director in Film/TV/Commericals and you are interested in social media, you might even have a Facebook or twitter profile but what social media channels should you be using?

You should be present on these 4 : Twitter, Facebook, Vimeo and LinkedIn

1. Twitter – over 500 million members and the one every one is obsessed with. Great for people on the go – you can tweet anywhere if you have a smart phone. Perfect for finding opportunities,  networking with potential clients, promoting your work and sharing those casting calls that are a little bit harder to find.

2. Facebook – over a billion members! The Facebook membership is getting older so you will find more and more industry folk on there. Great for connecting, keeping tabs on your connections, finding opportunities and promoting your work. Images work better than text on Facebook so make each post visual (think of all those stills you can use from your projects)!

3. Vimeo – very popular in the industry particularly with film-makers so lots of networking possibilities. Vimeo also enables you to password protect your videos (YouTube doesn’t) so the public can’t see them – upload videos of your auditions and send the link and password to your director/client if they can’t be with you. Much better than downloads!

4. LinkedIn – widely known as the biggest lead generating social media network, which means that people get the most work from this one. Great for keeping tabs on your connections and promoting your CV. Take a look at What is LinkedIn? A Straightforward Guide for more info.

If thats not enough social media time for you then it’s definitely worth checking out Pinterest and popping your reel on Youtube – it’s the second biggest search engine after google don’t you know!

Penguin in the Room @prartsmarketing is one penguin with an arts marketing dream: penguin stepping my way into the arts industry and helping creatives flourish! Specialising in online marketing, social media, branding, copy writing, media coaching and web design for actors, artists, casting directors, agents, production companies, theatre companies and creative individuals.

Contact me any time for penguin chats via email: info@penguinintheroom.com or Facebook.com/penguinintheroom or waddle over to my website: www.penguinintheroom.com

 

Penguin chats with … Casting Director Shakyra Dowling

Casting Director and Penguin in the Room client Shakyra Dowling visited the penguin pool this week to answer some casting and online marketing related questions.

Follow Shakyra on twitter @ShakyraDowling

Whats the biggest misconception about casting directors?

Probably that we are scary people! We want actors to do well, we only bring you in because we think you are PERFECT for the job.

What are you up to at the moment?

Casting 2 feature films – one British Independent and the other a Danish/US co-production

Top casting tips for actors?

– Always learn the sides sent to you.

– Find out who is going to be at the meeting and check them out on IMDB.

– If you can watch some of their previous work on VOD then do so.

You are on twitter and Facebook, do you post castings?

Twitter – especially for those hard to find role!

Do you think it’s important for actors to be aware of their online presence?

Yes, producers always want to know how much publicity they can get out via their cast. So if you have a large following, they are impressed.

Do you chat to actors on twitter?

Sometimes, usually ones I know personally or have cast in the past.

Do you think actors should be on youtube?

If they have a body of work online (trailers for films, online ads, shorts) then its good to have it all in one place on a youtube channel. Showreels should be on spotlight or vimeo as they are more industry tools.

Penguin in the Room @prartsmarketing is one penguin with an arts marketing dream: penguin stepping my way into the arts industry and helping creatives flourish! Specialising in online marketing, social media, branding, copy writing, media coaching and web design for actors, artists, casting directors, agents, production companies, theatre companies and creative individuals.

Contact me any time for penguin chats via email: info@penguinintheroom.com or Facebook.com/penguinintheroom or waddle over to my website:www.penguinintheroom.com

How can I get paid work from twitter?

Happy summer penguins, I hope you are getting some sun block on those white bits! I recently met some lovely film and tv freelancers at the BECTU Freelancers Fair and a question that seemed to come up a lot was how to get paid work from twitter. So, here we go….

http://www.flickr.com/photos/44313045@N08/

Direct job ads

Follow the right people on twitter (ie. people in your industry) and every so often you should see jobs pop up on your timeline. ie. “I am looking for a DOP for a shoot on Monday, London based. DM me” these are pretty clear-cut so you can directly reply with a link to your website or ask for an email to send over a CV.

You can also help this process along by using the twitter search function and putting in some nice keywords. eg. writer, DOP, camera person, film, tv, producer and try phrases like “need producer” or “producer london” to find the right jobs for you.

It’s all about who you know..

However, the method that will get you the most job results is NETWORKING. (Read some tips about face to face networking here.) We know that the creative industries are all about who you know and we all want to work with people we like/can get on with. So, you need to get into the pool of people your industry contacts know and like before that great job comes up – this means that when that perfect job does come up the contact comes straight to you, as they already know what you and have seen/heard about your previous work (via twitter). Alternatively if they don’t come to you but you apply for the job, you will be one step ahead of all the other people applying  as the contact will have already heard of you and spoken to you via twitter.

How do I network on twitter?

Use twitter primarily to interact! Follow the people you admire and want to work with and start conversations with them. Remember every time you reply or retweet them your twitter name and icon comes up on their profile so make sure it features your face/logo and your full name or business name!

Penguin in the Room @prartsmarketing is one penguin with an arts marketing dream: penguin stepping my way into the arts industry and helping creatives flourish! Specialising in online marketing, social media, branding, copy writing, media coaching and web design for actors, artists, casting directors, agents, production companies, theatre companies and creative individuals.

Contact me any time for penguin chats via email: info@penguinintheroom.com or Facebook.com/penguinintheroom or waddle over to my website: www.penguinintheroom.com

FAQ’s from Surviving Actors: Common Actor’s Marketing Questions Answered!

Well I had a jam-packed two days at Surviving Actors this month leading a seminar with The Page UK, being on Fuse Creative Network’s stand and doing one on ones and met lots of lovely creative people! I had a lot of chats and answered a lot of burning questions so I thought I would look at the most common in the hope that it might help you!

Why should I be on twitter?

• Networking – there are half a billion people on twitter so its like going to a networking event with half a billion people and you don’t have to do the face to face stuff you can plan what you are going to say!
• News – If you follow industry professionals, companies, venues, twitter can keep you in the loop with what is going on in the industry.
• Jobs – Castings are posted on twitter.
• Profile – being present and engaging on twitter can raise your profile in the industry as more people will be aware of you
• Promotion – you can promote your shows, films, showreels and just generally your amazing self!

If I’m not working what can I post and tweet about?

Anything that is related to the industry and on point to your objective for being on social media! Post interesting things for your followers. Tell us about an amazing play you went to see, post an interesting article, promote a film company you used to work for, tell us who won the BAFTA’s in case we haven’t seen it yet.

What is LinkedIn?

I have written a blog purely on that subject! Here you go What is LinkedIn?

I have another business should I have two LinkedIn pages, twitter profiles etc?

This is a very personal thing. If you feel your businesses work well together eg. Director/Writer then keep it the same. If you feel that clients from one business might feel uncomfortable initially finding out that you are an actor keep them separate. In addition, you might be working in two very different fields eg. acting and architecture so it might be best to separate your contacts in each area and promote your jobs separately in their relevant industries.

How should I go about contacting Casting Directors on twitter?

Just connect with them. Sending a blanket message with your spotlight link isn’t going to do you any favours. Just think, if someone sent this to me would I click on the link (especially if I get bombarded by a similar thing via email every day)?

What are hashtags on twitter?

Aha I have written a blog on this too. Here you go Making the most of Hashtags on Twitter

How many tweets should I do a day?

6 tweets a day generally gives you the best engagement and outreach. But do not fear, that includes retweets and replies.

Should I have a fan page on Facebook because I haven’t really done much?

I would say yes and don’t think of it as a fan page. I would just think of it as a professional page on Facebook. It keeps people engaged with what is going on with you professionally as your personal profile keeps your friends engaged with whats going on with you personally. Don’t get caught up in the amount of likes either, just try to engage with people.

Penguin in the Room @prartsmarketing is one penguin with an arts marketing dream: penguin stepping my way into the arts industry and helping creatives flourish! Specialising in online marketing, social media, branding, copy writing, media coaching and web design for actors, artists, casting directors, agents, production companies, theatre companies and creative individuals.

Contact me any time for penguin chats via email: info@penguinintheroom.com or Facebook.com/penguinintheroom or waddle over to my website: www.penguinintheroom.com

What is LinkedIn? A Straightforward Guide.

In my marketing consultations with creatives I often hear…

I have a LinkedIn profile but I don’t really know what to do with it?

or

What is LinkedIn for?

Sound familiar? Well lots of people have lots of complicated opinions about LinkedIn and how to use it for marketing (and I’m sure they are all very useful if you like the complicated stuff) but here are my basic tips for understanding and using LinkedIn, as straightforward as I could get them.

What can I use LinkedIn for?

Online Address Book – think of it as a space to keep all of your business contacts, like an address book you can never lose because its online! Add people the day after you meet/work with them and then you have everyone in one handy place.

Working – LinkedIn is widely known as the biggest lead generating network which means more potential to get you work and make you money. It’s all about networking to building your industry address book, nurturing your contacts and reminding them that you exist!

Profile – if you are working on your google listing, LinkedIn is another online profile which will appear in an online search so you can bolster your listings.

Recommendations – LinkedIn gives you the option to ask your connections for recommendations, so use it! Getting testimonials from people and companies you have worked with previously will not only show that you have been working but will give others another reason to hire you. If a contact I know/respect recommends you, I might be more likely to hire you!

Skill Endorsements – your skill list is a great tool to sell yourself as a creative. LinkedIn has introduced a new feature which allows your connections to endorse your skills at the click of a button. Like mini recommendations for your skills!

Highlights – LinkedIn now allows you to rearrange your profile so that you can highlight your key accolades. Eg. If you have won any awards you can move that section to the top! There is also room for a summary paragraph which should list all your highlights too.

Reminders – LinkedIn has its own posts feed, similar to Facebook and twitter. Publish relevant posts on your feed to remind your business contacts you exist and tell them all the amazing things you are up to (only industry related of course).

Introductions – if you want to meet someone in particular eg. for actors it might be that key casting director or for artists a gallery owner, LinkedIn can help. Via LinkedIn you can search the name of the person you would love to meet and see how you are linked to them through your current connections. You can then ask your connection to introduce you! (Free LinkedIn only gives you a few of these introductions so use them wisely as your contact could refuse to introduce you!)

Groups – LinkedIn has many different groups (similar to Facebook groups) that you can join and use for networking, problem solving and looking up opportunities. Once you have set up your profile its worth searching for groups that might be relevant to you or starting one of your own!

So I hope you feel that you know a little bit more about LinkedIn – don’t forget to add the icon to the social media bar on your website so people can find you! Do let me know how you get on.

Penguin in the Room @prartsmarketing is one penguin with an arts marketing dream: penguin stepping my way into the arts industry and helping creatives flourish! Specialising in online marketing, social media, branding, copy writing, media coaching and web design for actors, artists, casting directors, agents, production companies, theatre companies and creative individuals.

Contact me any time for penguin chats via email: info@penguinintheroom.comorFacebook.com/penguinintheroom or waddle over to my website:www.penguinintheroom.com

Does “networking” fill you with dread? Read on…

Image from: http://www.stockfreeimages.com

As the Christmas party season is upon us I thought we could touch on that dreaded word …”networking”. I mean it does sound pretty scary, it has the word net in it so immediately images come to mind of being a tuna, alongside a lot of other tuna in a huge net, struggling to break free to get back to swimmingly along and having a lovely old time. Maybe that’s just me… Anyway, networking doesn’t have to be a scary thing, after all its just chatting.

Top Chat tips

– Smile – however silly it sounds the first step is smile! If you look approachable and friendly people are more likely to want to chat. A smile can be an instant ice breaker.

– Get ready for the launch! Don’t launch into the conversation with what you do and your recent accolades as it can be a real conversation killer. It’s important to promote yourself but pick the right moment.

– Opening Gambit – It’s always good to open with a question (after “Hello” of course): “How do you know the host?”, “How have you been?”, “Have you been to a [insert company name] event before”. If you want to be a bit more adventurous you can even go for “I love your shoes, where did you get them?” and “Have you tried the finger food? It’s delicious and apparently its only from Iceland”.

– Connect – If you want to build a connection with the person, a good tip is to try to make the conversation all about them, initially. Show a real interest in what they do/say and they will always appreciate and reciprocate.  When they ask you what you do, it’s your chance to promote yourself.

Party tips

– Business cards – so you have ace’d the chatting and now the conversation is coming to an end so you say “it was lovely to meet you, here’s my card” and hand over a beautifully designed business card with all of your details. ALWAYS bring business cards to events and ALWAYS and keep them within easy reach, so you don’t have to start rummaging through your handbag/manbag. Try and swap business cards so you have their details too.

– Alcohol – I know its a party but if you are there for business you shouldn’t be drinking like its a party! Having a drink in your hand is a sociable thing and can also give you an excuse to get out of dragging situations “I’m just going to get another”. However, try and make your drink last and if you can’t sip it, resort to water in between glasses. We all know we can say things we normally wouldn’t dream of, when we’ve had a few! Make sure this doesn’t happen with business contacts, no matter how friendly you may be! A silly remark can scar or even end a business relationship!

So go forth and chat! After all, the arts industries are all about who you know – so go out and meet them at a Christmas party!

Penguin in the Room @prartsmarketing is one penguin with an arts marketing dream: penguin stepping my way into the arts industry and helping creatives flourish! Specialising in online marketing, social media, branding, copy writing, media coaching and web design for actors, artists, casting directors, agents, production companies, theatre companies and creative individuals.

Contact me any time for penguin chats via email: info@penguinintheroom.comorFacebook.com/penguinintheroom or waddle over to my website:www.penguinintheroom.com

Penguin chats with…. Casting Director Nicci Topping

Bubbly Casting Director and Penguin in the Room client Nicci Topping from Topps Casting visited the penguin pool this week to answer some casting and online marketing related questions.

Casting Director Nicci Topping

Follow Nicci on twitter @niccitopping and Facebook.

Whats the biggest misconception about casting directors?

That we give actors a hard time. But saying that, we are brutally honest!

Which do you prefer London or Manchester?

Both, as long as we are casting a great project it doesn’t matter where it is!

What are you up to at the moment?

Up to my eyes in scripts…

Top casting tips for actors?

• Make sure you listen to the casting director, and act accordingly to the direction thats been given
• Do not be late
• Dress appropriately
• Make sure you are fully aware about the part you are auditioning for
• Look pleased to be there
• Please don’t waste our time

What do you think of social media?

It’s a great tool if you can use it properly!

You are on twitter and Facebook, do you post castings?

It depends what I am looking for…… but yes sometimes!

Do you think it’s important for actors to be aware of their online presence?

Yes i do a lot of people in the business don’t realise how important it is nowadays.

Do you chat to actors on twitter?

Yes. You can find me @niccitopping

Do you google actors?

Yes always!

If you do google an actor and nothing comes up, what do you think?

Where are they?

What do you think about actor’s websites?

I think they are a great idea! Great additional PR. It makes them look professional.

Well there you have it some top tips from a lady in the know! See some of the awesome projects Nicci has cast at her website: www.toppscasting.co.uk

Penguin in the Room @prartsmarketing is one penguin with an arts marketing dream: penguin stepping my way into the arts industry and helping creatives flourish! Specialising in online marketing, social media, branding, copy writing, media coaching and web design for actors, artists, casting directors, agents, production companies, theatre companies and creative individuals.

Contact me any time for penguin chats via email: info@penguinintheroom.com orFacebook.com/penguinintheroom or waddle over to my website:www.penguinintheroom.com