Whether you’re already a master of your craft or you’re still learning, events and workshops are a great way to add some new skills to your repertoire.
Here we’ve rounded up 4 events happening in November for actors:
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!
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
Penguin in the Room @prartsmarketing are some penguins with an arts marketing dream: penguin stepping our 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 us any time for penguin chats via email: info@penguinintheroom.com
or waddle over to the website: www.penguinintheroom.com
photo credit: <a href=”http://www.flickr.com/photos/84753587@N00/13919893625″>Important call</a> via <a href=”http://photopin.com”>photopin</a> <a href=”https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/”>(license)</a>
So you are an actor/actress 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 the 4 biggies: Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and LinkedIn
1. Twitter – over 200 million members sending over 500 million tweets a day 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 starting conversations and finding opportunities.
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 and finding opportunities. Remember to keep them separate from your friends and family by setting up a page or organising your friends into groups.
3. YouTube – the second biggest search engine after google (now owned by google)! In a visual industry like acting you should be represented on YouTube. If there is one thing you do today upload your showreel.
4. LinkedIn – widely known as the biggest lead generating social media network, which means that people make the most direct sales/money?work from this one. Great for keeping tabs on your connections. Take a look at What is LinkedIn? A Straightforward Guide for more info.
Penguin in the Room @prartsmarketing are some penguins with an arts marketing dream: penguin stepping our 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 us any time for penguin chats via email: info@penguinintheroom.com
or waddle over to the website: www.penguinintheroom.com
We thought this might make you laugh…
photo credit: Actor’s Lab Kim Kardashian sign, sign, pizzeria, Portland, Oregon, USA via photopin (license)
Penguin in the Room @prartsmarketing is some penguins with an arts marketing dream: penguin stepping our 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 us any time for penguin chats via email: info@penguinintheroom.com or Facebook.com/penguinintheroom or waddle over to the website: www.penguinintheroom.com
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
So most of us are on Facebook but a lot of people ask me if they should be on there as an actor? Yes! Facebook is another great way to promote yourselves and network and there will be people on Facebook that aren’t on twitter, LinkedIn etc so don’t miss out on connecting with them. So the next question I get asked is what are the commons mistakes you should avoid? Well, I am glad you ask because here are my top 5 No No’s for Actors on Facebook…
1. Personal profiles – make sure your personal profile (profile through which you add and accept friends) is not visible in google search and update your privacy settings, you don’t want Directors seeing photos of the last hen night you went on do you! Create a page (which people can like) to be the public face of your acting brand. (You can create a personal acting profile but you are only allowed one profile on Facebook so Facebook could shut this profile down at any time)
2. Fan page – Facebook pages are often called fan pages and this makes actors feel insecure about having a page as they assume they have no fans and get caught up in the amount of likes they have. However, it is not about securing fans it’s about making connections and promoting your news – think quality not quantity – if 10 people are engaging with your page regularly that’s much better than 1000 people who never read or like anything you post.
3. Headers – Facebook’s new look timeline has header images (the long thin image across the top) and this is a great opportunity to promote yourselves. Please resist the urge to have a picture of a nice view or a stock theatre image and use this space to display a screen/theatre shot of yourself. Let prospective employers see you in action! You can even put a current production poster there to promote where your followers can see you next.
4. Twitter messages on Facebook – we all like to feel special and if I see that you have clearly posted a tweet on Facebook eg. the post contains hashtags and @tags, I don’t feel special. Your Facebook followers want to feel like you are posting interesting news for them on Facebook and not just posting any old thing because its easier. So, do not link your Facebook account to Twitter and remove twitter language before posting on Facebook. Also, it’s a good idea to post some messages on Facebook that don’t go on twitter and vice versa – make it interesting for people who follow you on both social media channels.
5. News – by all means promote yourself but don’t be a broken record. We do want to hear your news but not just a stream of you related information. Break things up with interesting articles, links etc that are useful for your followers.
So enjoy yourselves on Facebook and I hope you make some wonderful connections out of it! If you are on twitter you can also check out my Top 5 No No’s for Actors on Twitter too.
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
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?
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
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?
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
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