John A. Aiello began his career in New York as an actor and producer. When a production of On Tina Tuna Walk, which he cast in New York, was to be mounted in Los Angeles, he relocated to co-produce and cast it. Tuna Walk and the play he cast the following year, The Ten Percent Review, earned a total of fifteen Drama-Logue Awards. Soon after, Aiello moved on to television as a casting assistant to Junie Lowry-Johnson. He subsequently worked as an associate to Lowry-Johnson on the television series Civil Wars, NYPD Blue Murder One, Nash Bridges, Marital Law and the feature, The Hand that Rocks the Cradle. Aiello went independent in 1995 and cast The Nutty Professor. Other work includes Sliders, The Burning Zone, Dellaventura and Fast Track.
Though in most cases in television it is the producer who makes the final decisions, it’s best to address the director, because it is he or she who will direct the actor. But this dynamic varies from show to show and even from episode to episode, depending on the producer/director relationship.
Professionalism is the key empowerment. Come in; do the scene, say, “Thank you,” and leave. Many actors expend a great deal of energy trying to make an impression with their presence through a lot of chitchat. That can prevent the director and producer from seeing you as the character.
I don’t recommend that the actor ask if they want to see the scene done in another way. Though you may think you gave a bad reading, the director may have thought you were brilliant. If they want to see anything different, they’ll ask.
It’s also really important to be on time. Having been an actor and producer myself, I am a stickler for punctuality. I hate to keep actors waiting to go in or producers waiting between actors. Waiting zaps energy. I try to balance the schedule so nobody on either side waits longer than ten minutes.
Believe in yourself, then go along and do all the other things that are necessary to keep your talent up to date. Most people in other walks of life work at least forty hours per week. If an actor is not spending at least forty hours a week honing his craft in some way, then acting is just a hobby. A career needs constant attention. The actor has to spend his time taking classes, doing workshops, going to the theatre, watching all the television and films that he hasn’t seen before, and doing everything else possible to promote his career. Being an actor is not just picking up the sides and auditioning.
Though everything that comes into the office crosses my desk, I don’t recommend actors send their headshots and résumés unsolicited. Because even when I find you interesting, if I don’t have anything for you at that time, I have to recycle them. On the other hand, when we get submissions for a specific show, we divide them by character first, then go through them and decide who to bring in for a pre-read, who to take to the producers directly, and who to put on a list for generals in the future. Sometimes I may not have anything for an actor, but if they have a great look, I may bring them in for a general during slow weeks. But a general for me is not chitchat and monologue. Instead, I send the actor sides from actual scripts and ask them to prepare like a real audition. Then they come in and read it with me.
Yes, I do, but only when I know someone involved in the production, when a title intrigues me, or when a show gets great reviews. We also keep in touch with the work of actors by watching films and television. When my assistants see someone they like, they research them and bring them to my attention. Both my assistants want to be casting directors in the future and are very aggressive.
Postcards are more economical and ecological. It’s the picture itself that sells me on somebody, not necessarily their résumé. Many résumés exaggerate and mislead. I’ve seen résumés where the actor mentions work on shows I worked on, and know for a fact they didn’t do. Or maybe they were an extra. But if you list it, you have to mention it was extra work. Not that being an extra during your early career is wrong; you have to start somewhere. As an extra, you have a chance on the set to learn the lingo, as opposed to wasting your time talking to the other extras and hanging out around the craft service table. Watch and learn about camera angles, observe how actors get direction, see how a performance changes from take to take. Eventually, your observations may pay off and you may move up from being an extra to doing under-fives, then to co-starring roles and even higher.
It seems that every five years, there is a great turnover of writers, directors and producers. Yet many veteran actors reach a point where—though they are available—they refuse to audition for the new directors and producers. They want the part offered to them. While I can understand it, I feel that this attitude is detrimental. You never know who you are reading for; the director you read for today may end up directing a major feature in six months. You should never turn down an opportunity to audition and show your talent to as many people as possible.
I love actors. I live vicariously through them. I like to encourage people to be what they want to be. If they want to be actors, I encourage them and help them to be better at it. I didn’t get that nourishment when I was an actor. Today, nothing gives me a bigger thrill than finding an exciting talent, bringing them to the producers, and seeing them book the role. Or, if they don’t get it, but do such a good job that everybody likes them, I am thrilled because I can bring them back again for other roles. It gives me a great feeling to be able to say, “Look who I found for you!”
I wish actors would prepare better for their auditions. Many don’t prepare at all. They come in without knowing who they are reading for, what the role is, what the style of the show demands. They pick up the sides right before they walk in the door and say, “I’m sorry, I just got these sides a couple of minutes ago.” It just doesn’t work for me. My big thing is thorough research and detailed homework. If, for example, you are asked to read for a television show you have never seen, get a subscription to Netflix and study it. As a result, for example, your sides feature a character named John, you will know that he is a series regular and is played by so and so. Now you will know how to play the scene because you will know how he acts and reacts. The same scene, read opposite a Drew Carey, is entirely different when it is played opposite a Sean Connery. So, know what your role is, know who you will play against, know the style of the show. Then prepare the best you can, come in, do it, leave and try to forget all about it. Go out instead and take charge of doing forty hours a week for your career.
Do what I did; find a therapist with a sliding scale.
John A Aiello Casting, CSA
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