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The Science of the Casting Shot

The ‘art’ of a good casting shot depends on understanding the way we view faces.
A casting shot has to do a very specific job, and it has to do that job in a half a second. That is how long as it takes for a casting director to view your picture. Within that half second there are two stages, the first of which is the most important:

The nano second stage…

When we first see a picture of someone's' face we do not see the individual but we a see all the lines and shapes that make up their face. Your brain has a massive visual library of what all those lines and shapes mean and tries to instantly interpret or label (within nano seconds) what the shapes 'mean'. You immediately work out whether the face is male or female, is it threatening, are you attracted to it, is happy, sad, scary, miserable, bland, interesting, their possible age, etc., etc. To see how strong this imagery is look at the following line drawings.

We are all interpreting those lines and shapes with very similar emotional labels (happy, sad, angry etc.) yet all we are looking at is a few lines and dots on a page! There are many other lines and shapes that will influence your look. Some faces can work in a way that contradicts the mood they are trying to convey i.e. the eyes smile but the corners of the mouth turn down.

Most these problems are addressed and can be corrected digitally. This is fully discussed in your photo session.

The subtle art of retouching

Your picture has to get through the nano second stage before you are looked at to see if you are suitable for the casting. Looking bland, simple, miserable and pretentious are major negatives in any casting shot. If your face is giving that impression your picture is usually put in the bin straight away! Once you have survived the the nano stage and you are suitable for the casting the picture has still to do one more job…..it HAS to look like you. You must be recognized from the picture when you walk into the casting room. If your picture does not look like you the likelihood is that you won’t even be asked to audition.

Digital retouching can help you achieve that look even when the lines on your face are trying to tell a different story. Don’t worry, the picture will still look like you!

…..Once you have survived the the nano stage and you are suitable for the casting the picture has still to do one more job…..it HAS to look like you.