1. Investing In The Highest Quality Actor’s Headshots For Unforgettable First Impressions
Visual appearance really does matter when it comes to actors and their profiles on online casting platforms, so having low-quality, poorly lit, oddly cropped, heavily filtered, and altogether amateur-looking photographs will more than likely ensure that the performer’s profile won’t get too many clicks compared to hundreds of their competitors with professional headshots.
It is very advisable to turn to professional photographers who already have experience creating headshots when looking to create or update acting portfolios, as well as a profile on casting platforms. A professional not only will be able to take care of the various important technical aspects, including lighting, angles, and backgrounds, but also be able to advise the actor regarding their poses and expressions.
Investing in professional headshots will indicate a serious attitude towards the acting career to casting directors and other industry professionals who may view the performer’s profile, as well as give a clear first impression about the physical aspects of the actor. Though it is also important to update the headshots as soon as the actor’s appearance changes significantly, or simply once in roughly every couple of years, to keep the visuals up to date.
2. Writing The Actor’s Bio In A Compelling And Memorable Way
One of the most important things when writing an actor’s profile bio is to create it in a manner that is easily understandable and viewable. Adding a large amount of text without additional formatting and information that is not directly relevant to them as actors, like, for example, favorite inspiring quotes, will not only look visually unappealing but also make it more complex for casting directors and other entertainment industry professionals to get acquainted with the respective performer’s information.
It is advisable to prioritise the information that will align the most with potential search keywords. The actor’s bio should begin with a description of the type of actor they are or wish to be viewed as, e.g., comedic or dramatic genre performer, and continue with highlights from acting credits and special skills, if available, as well as relevant training and education.
Actors have the chance to stand out amongst their peers by adding additional sentences, sometimes referred to as a hook, which uniquely describe their actor’s brand, e.g., outlining their approach to the craft, or aspirations for their acting career.
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3. Revealing Not Only Acting Experience But Also Other Relevant Skills
As mentioned in the previous section, actors should try to list not only their direct acting performance experiences but also other relevant facts and specific skills about themselves, which could give them the upper hand when competing for acting gigs. A short quality list is better than a long quantity list - performers should not exaggerate the skills they include in the actor profile, as casting directors will expect them to be fully able to showcase them if chosen as candidates for auditions during a casting call.
Amongst the skills that can benefit the actors' chances to be noticed online and beyond is bilingualism, as many projects require performers to fluently speak in a different specific language at least for brief scenes, or mimic a specific accent when talking in English. Similarly, skills in nearly any type of sport can become useful for acting purposes. Especially high usage rate for acting roles can be for combat and martial arts skills, the ability to dance in any type of way, swimming confidently, horseback riding knowledge, and even athletics, as it means the performer has enhanced body movement abilities. While actors can be taught certain things after being cast, having the necessary extra skills in place already can be a huge boost to get a role.
If possible, having footage that showcases those special skills can really help when trying to stand out in online casting platforms. Similar to continuous improvement of acting skills, aspiring performers should consider eventually gaining or improving these additional abilities as well.
4. Regular Updates To The Actor Profile Is An Absolute Must-Do
Regardless of how well-crafted the actor profile on an online casting platform may be, it won’t amount to much if the information becomes outdated. As mentioned previously, headshots should be regularly updated, but the same goes for all the other information, as it should be renewed as frequently as possible. As soon as a performer gets a new acting credit or gains a new skill, it should go into their acting portfolio and casting profiles.
Online casting platform algorithms will view active and regularly updated accounts as relevant and higher rank worthy, while the new information itself will increase its visibility and search matching even more.
