Casting calls in New Jersey are worth watching for a reason most state pages cannot claim: the capacity here is still being built. The state pays a 30% credit, rising to 35% in certain counties, with a 4% hiring bonus added in 2025 and a fund of $100 million per fiscal year — and Netflix is constructing a 292-acre studio campus at Fort Monmouth with 12 soundstages. Union background work pays $231 per 8 hours in 2026, and the state minimum wage is $15.92 an hour.
The honest caveat is timing. Netflix broke ground in May 2025 and plans to open the full facility in 2028, so the studio is a construction site rather than a casting source today. What exists now is a well-funded credit, a deep commercial and corporate market, and the largest casting market in the country directly across the river.
This guide covers what is castable here now, what Fort Monmouth changes and when, what the work pays, the cross-border rules for child performers, and how to tell a real New Jersey casting call from a fake one.
How the New Jersey credit works
- 30% base credit on qualified film production expenses.
- 35% in certain designated counties.
- New Jersey Hiring Bonus of a further 4% on qualified expenses, introduced in 2025.
- $100 million annual cap per fiscal year.
- Two routes to qualify: either incur at least 60% of film production expenses in New Jersey, or have more than $1 million in qualified expenses in the state.
The 60% route is the one that matters to performers. A percentage-based test rewards productions that are genuinely based in New Jersey rather than ones passing through on a large budget, and productions based here hire locally.
Fort Monmouth: what it is and when it matters
Netflix broke ground in May 2025 on a production campus at the former Fort Monmouth army base, covering more than 292 acres with 12 soundstages plus backlot and production support facilities. The state economic development authority designated Netflix a Studio Partner, making it eligible for expanded benefits under the film and digital media credit, and approved the project for up to $387 million in Aspire tax credits.
Netflix has estimated more than 1,500 permanent production jobs and more than 3,500 construction-related jobs. The full facility is planned to open in 2028.
The useful way to read this: 2028 is when stage capacity arrives, not when casting begins. Seven Netflix productions were already shooting in New Jersey at the groundbreaking. The state is not waiting for the studio, and neither should you.
New Jersey and New York as one market
For most working performers these are not separate markets. A large share of the casting that covers New Jersey is run out of New York offices, and a great deal of New York work is reachable from New Jersey.
- Register for both, and state which New Jersey towns and which New York boroughs you can reach, with realistic travel times.
- Expect self-tape for first rounds and in-person callbacks. Returning a clean tape within 24 hours matters more than your postcode.
- Do not assume a New Jersey-based production posts only to New Jersey. Many breakdowns go out through New York channels.
What does casting work in New Jersey pay?
Union scale, effective 1 July 2026
On a SAG-AFTRA production, background work pays $231 for an 8-hour day, special ability background $241, and stand-ins and photo doubles $270. A day performer earns $1,283 and a weekly performer $4,456. Overtime, meal penalties, night premiums and wardrobe allowances are paid on top, and the production contributes 20.5% towards pension and health.
New Jersey is not a right-to-work state. That does not prevent you working the non-union commercial, corporate and independent jobs that make up a large share of local postings.
Non-union rates
Non-union work is negotiated per job and must meet New Jersey's minimum wage of $15.92 an hour, which adjusts annually by formula. A lower rate of $15.23 applies to employers with fewer than six employees and to seasonal work — worth knowing, because small production companies may fall into that category.
Popular casting categories in New Jersey
Child performers in New Jersey and across the river
New Jersey is not among the four states SAG-AFTRA lists as requiring a child performer trust account: California, New York, Louisiana and New Mexico.
New York is on that list, and it also requires a child performer permit from its Department of Labor. A young performer living in New Jersey and auditioning in New York is therefore subject to materially different rules on each side of the river, and the New York requirements are the stricter ones. Establish which state's rules apply to a booking before accepting it, and ask in writing about hours, schooling on set, supervision and payment. On a SAG-AFTRA production the union's young performer provisions apply regardless.
How to spot a fake New Jersey casting call
Publicity around the Netflix campus has produced a steady stream of notices promising work "at Fort Monmouth". The site is under construction until 2028, so treat any casting claim attached to it with particular scepticism.
- You are asked to pay to audition, to be submitted, or to be registered for a named production.
- A paid role is offered before any audition, from a photograph and a message.
- Money arrives first and you are told to deposit it and forward part onward. This is fraud without exception.
- The audition is at a private address or hotel room rather than an office, studio or secure self-tape platform.
- A named photographer is required before you can be considered.
Official sources: NJEDA: Netflix studio project · US Department of Labor state minimum wage table · SAG-AFTRA
Casting calls in nearby states: New York · Pennsylvania · Connecticut · Maryland · Washington DC
Find New Jersey casting calls on allcasting
allcasting is a casting marketplace: verified casting professionals post roles and talent applies directly. Applying is free, and nobody on the platform can promise you a role.
- Browse Jersey City casting calls and extras work, updated daily
- Register for the New York market too — see casting calls in New York
- Netflix casts background nationally — see how Netflix casts background actors
- Before you accept a booking, see what acting work actually pays in 2026
10/15/20269/20/20269/16/20269/14/20269/4/2026How To
Get Positioned Before New Jersey's Studio Capacity Arrives
New Jersey is building rather than peaking: a 30% credit rising to 35% in some counties, a $100 million annual fund, and a Netflix studio campus at Fort Monmouth due to open in 2028. The performers who benefit are the ones already registered and visible in the New York and New Jersey pool before that capacity lands.
- 1Register for the New York market as wellNew Jersey and New York function as one casting pool for most performers, and a large share of work covering New Jersey is cast out of New York offices. Appear in both, and state clearly which New Jersey towns and which New York boroughs you can reach and how long it takes you. Limiting yourself to one side of the river halves what you see.
- 2Keep a self-tape setup permanently readyNortheast casting leans heavily on self-tape for first rounds, with callbacks in person. A quiet room, a plain wall, a window or inexpensive key light, your phone at eye height and a reader available at short notice covers almost everything you will be asked for. Returning a clean tape inside 24 hours is what converts a submission into a callback.
- 3Build local credits now, not in 2028Fort Monmouth is a construction site until 2028, but seven Netflix productions were already shooting in New Jersey when it broke ground, and the state's credit is funded at $100 million a year regardless. Use the time: take background and commercial work now so that when stage capacity arrives you have on-camera days, a reel and a casting relationship rather than a blank profile.
Q&A
Is New Jersey actually becoming a production centre?
When does the Netflix Fort Monmouth studio open?
Is there work in New Jersey before 2028?
What does casting work in New Jersey pay?
Does a production have to spend a minimum in New Jersey?
Is New Jersey a right-to-work state?
Does my child need a work permit to act in New Jersey?
How do I avoid casting scams in New Jersey?
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