TV/Film Industry Updates - July 2020
Hi Friends,
As we all continue to practice social distancing, wear our masks and eagerly await the days where we can all come together to safely collaborate and make great projects, I wanted to take some time to address some aspects of the industry that we see shifting amidst the Covid-19 pandemic from an agent’s perspective and what it means for actors.
One quick caveat: as we’ve seen throughout the pandemic, new information and updates are coming our way every day. While these updates could be the norm today, that could all change tomorrow.
Casting
Casting Directors are beginning to release breakdowns for projects that are in the early stages of the casting process. In April and May, the opportunities were barren but we are starting to see a few projects released every day. While not anywhere near the normal amount, it’s a promising sign to see. These roles have largely been series regular/major roles since the casting process for those roles are a bit more thorough and in depth.
For the time being, all auditions will continue to be self-taped. The casting directors we’ve spoken to, while they can’t wait to see and work with actors in the room again, will not be holding in person auditions for quite some time. Now more than ever, it is imperative to make sure you have a high quality self-tape set up for the foreseeable future.
One advantage of having self-taped auditions is that casting directors can request more tapes from a variety of actors. Watching self-taped auditions is much less time consuming than in person auditions (and can be done at all hours of the day) so casting directors can open up the amount of opportunities to audition to newer faces. That being said, it does increase the competition for each role in terms of the number of actors being seen.
With so many actors currently available, we are still seeing a healthy amount of straight offers to A list actors for major roles with shoot dates contingent on the evolving pandemic landscape.
When Will TV/Film Projects Begin Filming Again?
On the TV/Film front, many productions have pushed back filming until 2021 out of an abundance of caution. These projects have predominantly been feature films and television shows/miniseries that have shorter shooting schedules. As of now, a few of the network (ABC,CBS,NBC,FOX) episodics aim to begin filming their series in the next few months.
We are seeing some breakdowns released with filming in Los Angeles listed as early as August. Obviously, this is entirely contingent on both state and county guidelines as well as SAG/AFTRA’s blessing (see below) to film.
Location
For the time being, many productions will opt to hire locally in lieu of traveling/housing actors across the country. In the short term, this presents an increase in quality opportunities for talent located in markets like Chicago, Atlanta and Vancouver where there was a healthy amount of TV/Film work pre-pandemic.
Locations with smaller populations and fewer cases will also begin filming before some of the major cities. We’ve seen some projects begin filming in places like North Carolina, Montana and Iowa.
Commercial Production
Some in-person commercial shoots are beginning to occur. Since commercials can operate with smaller crews than TV/Film crews, these productions have been able to safely begin filming.
SAG/AFTRA
Productions are now required to have their Covid-19 safety precautions approved by SAG/AFTRA before any filming can occur. Please make sure to consult with your representation and/or your union before accepting any SAG/AFTRA work.
For non-union projects, the same protections are not required, but that doesn’t mean sets are necessarily less safe. Make sure you receive a full report of their Covid-19 precautions and compare/contrast with the rules stipulated by the union.
Some useful links:
https://www.sagaftra.org/news-events/news/covid-19