Industry updates, events and the latest insights
Welcome to the Current Scene. This is where you'll find ongoing discussions from me on things that are relevant to you, in your audition processes and as performers.
Drama schools in the UK now more than ever seem to be at the forefront of industry conversations, find the latest below:
Here are some upcoming events across the UK that will directly be discussing things such as drama school auditions. If you can, buy tickets and get yourself off to them!
Leading global union Equity are still campaigning for a total abolishment of audition fees, keep up to date with them here and see how you could get involved!
Most recent topics for discussion:
Recently, some auditionees have reported finding that their self tapes for schools, usually uploaded as unlisted links on YouTube, have had 0 views at the time of receiving rejections for further rounds.
The thought of schools not even viewing tapes before sending out rejections is of course incredibly disappointing and infuriating. So before immediately assuming this was the case, I headed on a quest to see whether it was possible for YouTube to say 0 views, even if someone had watched a tape. Turns out, it's possible!
The most viable reasons are as follows:
If said school did not watch for a long enough period of time
Skipped through large sections of the video
Said schools' privacy settings are different, for example if they watched in incognito mode
To be honest, none of this makes it less frustrating, as being able to see if your video has had views gives you the feeling of some control over being in the unknown and limbo period. Furthermore, knowing that it is largely possible that a school has simply skipped most of your video can also be upsetting after having possibly spent a lot of time on it.
However, a lot of agents and casting directors will be the first to tell you that (in an in-person audition) they will usually be able to tell within the first minute whether they are interested in the person or not. So if we apply that to self-taped auditions, the logic unfortunately still stands.
My point is that it is easy to begin viewing these schools with suspicion, believe me I know. I'm not saying that any of this is what's happening, but I want to provide some clarity to avoid negativity that could impact your relationship with a school as much as the other way around!
Remember, these schools want success. Surely they wouldn't do themselves the disservice of missing out on a potentially brilliant future student by not even watching?!
At the end of the day, who knows, I could be right or wrong, or both! If it really doesn't feel right, contact them. But with all the noise that can surround you during this process, try not to jump to conclusions that will only stress you out more.
What it means for you and whether you're eligible
Most of you will know what Spotlight is by now, but if you don't it is basically the UK's leading casting platform. Think of it like the LinkedIn for performers + creatives. You pay for the membership either monthly or annually, and must meet certain criteria for being able to create your account.
Usually, people who train wait till their final year to then be under the Graduate membership. But it is possible to become a member if you haven't trained, or don't want to wait till then!
You also don't have to have representation at this moment, if you meet the criteria you can be self-represented and apply for roles yourself.
Below will be the information you need on the matter further, including what you need to apply:
Getting started as a spotlight member
7 tips for becoming a spotlight member
If you are wandering if Spotlight really worth it, the matter is a lot of jobs posted will cast mostly just from Spotlight, and furthermore a lot of agents won't represent someone not on Spotlight. So, like it or not, until the next big casting platform takes over, it's pretty much a necessity in my honest opinion.
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