While attending UCLA, Tammy Billik interned for Fenton-Feinberg Casting and enjoyed working on such projects as, Raiders of the Lost Ark and E.T. so much, that she decided to pursue casting as a career. After working as an assistant to casting directors Judith Holstra, Marcia Ross, the late Elizabeth Leustig, Meg Lieberman and Marc Hirschfeld, she took over casting on Fox TV’s Married... with Children. Other credits include Unhappily Ever After, One of the Boys, Honey, I Shrunk the Kids (the series), and Ellen, as well as several pilots and films. In addition to her casting talents, Billik graduated from Loyola Law School and passed the bar exam in 1992.
Yes, it helps me when I negotiate with agents, as they take me more seriously. Other than that, it has given me a broader overview of the whole business. I have a greater understanding of how society and the legal system interact. It has also given me the opportunity to volunteer my legal services to groups like AIDS Project Los Angeles.
We are open to submissions, even from actors without representation. Generally, if it’s a non-represented actor, they’re not going to have a wide body of film and television credits, so I look at their theatre credits: where they’ve studied, what they’ve done, who they’ve studied with. I like to see people who take their work seriously. I definitely like to meet new people and when a face jumps out at me from a headshot, I’ll bring them in for a specific role or for a general.
Our policy here is that everybody in the office has to see at least one thing a week and report to the rest of us. When they see somebody they find interesting, we often bring them in when a part becomes available. It’s important to keep your finger on the pulse. Actors who are doing comedy work can send us notes, invitations, etc. In addition, every six months we have a Casting Society of America Night at The Improv, where we get casting directors out to see comedians.
Preparation is very important. You don’t have to memorize the lines, but the more familiar you are with them, the more into the role you will be. It’s very frustrating for me when an actor comes in and is just reading off the page, not familiar with the role at all. Know the texture of the show. For example, there is a big difference between Ellen and Married... with Children. So an actor coming in to create a character for Ellen should know that he can’t be too broad and on the ceiling. I suggest that an actor coming in to read for a sitcom make himself extremely relaxed and comfortable. If you are uptight, it’s going to wreak havoc on your ability to make the lines work. It’s all got to jell easily and naturally.
Another thing we appreciate here is when an actor comes in with a strong choice. Take a stab at it, and if you fail, I’ll point you in the right direction. In general, when doing comedy, don’t underplay it too much. You have to keep your feet on the ground in order to be real, but you also have to realize that you are dealing with heightened reality.
Making a strong choice does not mean being loud or broad. It means knowing exactly what you want to do, focusing in on it and committing to that choice. Even when your choice of who the character is and how he behaves doesn’t jell with certain sections of the script, don’t waffle. Stay committed to it. I like to see people make creative choices. Give me something I’m not expecting. If I’ve seen the same part read the same way thirty times and somebody comes in and inventively brings out hidden aspects of the subtext, then they definitely are going to catch my attention.
Auditioning is a very stressful situation: you come in, you desperately want the job, and you put unbearable pressure on yourself. You have to let go of that pressure, and not just for the time you are in the office, but even before and after the audition. Just try to forget about getting the job, and instead focus on performing the work that you know you can do well. I always try to find out what I have in common with the actor, so that we get to a place of comfort before we begin the audition process. A short chat seems to take some of the pressure off.
The analogy with tennis is misleading because it implies that you should just throw your line, reposition yourself and then throw it back again. Comedy needs more than that. You have to be completely present for that person’s line, allow it to sink in as it applies to your character, and then respond to it creatively. This means you have to pay very close attention to what the other actor is doing and saying. You can’t just be waiting to deliver your next line no matter what they say or do. Your response has to come from the impulses of the other actors. All good acting should.
If you came to my office and did your audition in a way that got you a callback, stick to what you did and don’t make any radical changes. One of the most frustrating things for us is to see an actor do something completely different in the callback because they are trying to make it better. They work on it so hard that they lose what was there in the first audition. If you want to make radical changes, it’s better to call and discuss it first with the casting director.
Don’t give up. I really believe that actors are the most dedicated and hardest working people in the business. That’s why I strongly feel that the casting director should be the actor’s best friend. When the actor has any questions about something, he should be able to talk to a casting director without hesitation. It is in our own best interest to give the actor all of the information that he needs. In our office, we know that we are nothing without good performances. We welcome open dialogue with actors, because we want them to give the best possible performance they can.
Billik/Wood Casting
818-789-1631
14044 Ventura Blvd. Ste 309 Sherman Oaks, CA 91423