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Hello fellow actors.

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Welcome back to casting actor's cast.

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The podcast for actors from a casting

director who wants to help you stop

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fighting the word brand and start using

it intelligently.

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To day's episode, is called, best

methods to uncover your brand.

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And let me start by clearing something

up.

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Immediately, your brand is not a

costume.

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Your brand is not a headshot outfit.

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Your brand is not a personality

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you perform or a trap that limits your

artistry.

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No, no, no.

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Your brand

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is simply this,

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the clearest pattern of how others

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experience you

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that's it.

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And once you understand that,

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the fear drops away.

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This is casting at this castle.

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Well, hello, and welcome back to

today's episode of casting actress

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cast.

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I'm casting partner Jeff Dreisbach with

the mcCorkle group in New York.

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How are you?

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I hope you're having a good day.

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I'm having a really good day.

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So nice that you're here.

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I want to implore you to do, check out

the website of the podcast.

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These patios podcast videos are there

for you, absolutely free of charge.

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If you go to our websitecasting

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actors, Cass all one word dot com,

you're going to see all kinds of

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information there's jeff's jots, which

is corresponding show notes to each of

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the episodes.

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You'll see my new book that's out and

available.

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You'll also see a course that's

available.

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There's also a form that says, dive

into the talent pool.

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You give me your name and email

address, and I give you a free book on

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doing voice overs.

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It's 100 pages called conversation

pieces out of the studio.

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The voice of a workshop for

professional actors.

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It's sort of like a work book, but it

really is kind of fun to go through

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there's all kinds of copy and all kinds

of performance elements to doing voice

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over work.

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I think you'll find that really, really

helpful.

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Also there's a free video, yes, I said

free.

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And that is, it's called casting

secrets, what they don't tell you, but

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I'm going to tell you in this twenty

minute video.

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So my shout out to my good friends and

actors connection.

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I'm so glad that you're there still

doing excellent work.

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And I also have to say, I'm so proud to

be part of the Broadway podcast

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network.

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So you might be picking up this podcast

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cost cast.

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You might be picking this up on a lot

of different providers of podcasts.

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But the Broadway podcast network is

also something I encourage you to check

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out, because there's all kinds of

really interesting programming about

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what's happening on Broadway.

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But there's all kinds of fun

personalities and people that you know

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that might be fun to catch as well.

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So that's the Broadway podcast

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network.

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So I have this discussion all the time.

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And in fact, I go back gosh a few years

now, where I've talked about type, v

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brand.

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And you should know that I still do not

use the word type.

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I don't like it,

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because type really is a throwback to

the 1920s, 30s and 40s, when the studio

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system had their stable.

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Yeah, that's what they called it.

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Really they're stable of talent.

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Those are those people, those actors

under contract.

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And so when a film got green lit, or

when they got the thumbs that they were

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going to be making this film,

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a glorified

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person

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who had these card file boxes in front

of them.

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And in this box, they had all of the

leading ladies on the set, on the lot,

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and then you had all of the leading men

on the lot, and then you had all of the

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character actors, and then all of the

kids and all of the animals and all

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Adam finitum all of the

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kinds of actors that might be needed

based on the writing of the time.

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And so that administrative person would

pick

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the leading lady and then the leading

man, and sort of assemble

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the actors for this project.

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Guess what?

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Those were types.

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Writers were writing very specific

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kinds of characters.

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And so because they were repeatable,

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we saw many different actors playing

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very, very similar types

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of characters.

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I hope that that makes sense.

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I guess what?

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The brand is a completely different

thing.

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As I alluded to in the introduction,

brand

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is something you have control over.

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And it's always funny to me when I

share this with others, especially with

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actors who don't quite understand it,

because they also don't like the word branding.

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And I'm not sure why that is.

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I'm not sure why actors resist branding.

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Maybe it's because they confuse it with

restriction.

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Actors might say, oh, I don't want to

be typecast.

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Well, I just explain why that isn't the

same thing.

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Some actors will say, I'm versatile

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because of my versatility.

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I don't necessarily want to be a brand.

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Or they'll say something along the

lines of, I don't want to limit myself

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those are.

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In fact, in some ways those are all

very valid fears.

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They are.

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But here's the truth from the casting

side.

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Casting doesn't limit you

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confusion.

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Does

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you see, if we don't understand you

very, very quickly,

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we can't bring you back?

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And clarity

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creates opportunity?

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Ok?

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Somebody write that down?

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That was really good.

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See, brand is discovered.

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It's not invented.

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So here's a critical shift.

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You don't create your brand,

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you don't have to work at that.

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You uncover it.

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Your brand already exists in the

following ways.

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It exists in the roles.

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You're called in for

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it already exists in the feedback.

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You receive

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from industry professionals, for

example,

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the industry,

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the energy you bring into the room

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that is part of your brand,

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the stories people tell about you after

you leave the room.

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Do you remember the time that that

actor fill in the

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part of your brand?

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So here's a call to action, to think

about,

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not only think about, but maybe you

should consider actually doing this.

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Write down the last five auditions you

had, and then decide, what did they all

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have in common?

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Please understand that that becomes

data,

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not coincidence.

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There are three questions about brand

that need answering and this is the

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core of what I'm talking about.

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Every strong actor, brand answers these

three questions clearly.

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One,

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where do I naturally live?

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You'll understand what that means.

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Where are you most comfortable?

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Age, range, tone,

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world.

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Second question,

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what problem

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do I solve?

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Is it your authority?

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Is it your warmth?

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Is it your danger?

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Is it your humor?

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Is it your curiosity?

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Question number three, how do people

feel watching me?

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Do people feel safe?

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Do they feel curious?

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Do they feel entertained?

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Do they feel moved?

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Now listen, if you can't answer these

yet?

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Good,

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yeah, that means that you're doing the

work honestly.

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But those are still three questions

that you should ponder.

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Let's talk about what brand is not.

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And that's coming up

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right after this.

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Welcome back, we're talking about brand

and why people are just sort of not

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that comfortable in thinking about this

information, but why it is so

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incredibly valuable.

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Here's what brand is not.

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We need to dismantle a few myths.

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Brand is not your favorite roles.

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Just because they were your favorite

roles doesn't mean that that's who you are.

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Your brand is not your dream casting

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gig.

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You know that that wave, the magic wan?

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What would be the next best gig for

you, that's not it.

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Your brand is not your inner life.

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Your brand is not your

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perception of yourself

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in a particular role.

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Your potential brand

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is about communication,

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not aspiration.

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Casting meets you in seconds.

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That's absolutely true.

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Whether it's in person, whether it's a

zoom audition, whether it's a self

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tape, we see you immediately.

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So that brand helps us know where to

place you

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first.

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So here's how casting actually uses

bread.

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This is the inside truth.

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Casting things in lanes

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because we have to.

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It's not a curse,

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I promise you.

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It has to do with time.

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It has to do with budget.

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It has to do with network expectations.

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Those are all

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absolutely real and important.

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And when your brand is clear, guess

what?

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We remember you.

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We trust you.

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We bring you back faster.

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But I will also say this to you, when

it's unclear,

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yes, what?

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We hesitate,

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we move on.

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We forget.

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Even if you're talented,

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almost,

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I hate to say this, but sometimes

talent isn't even the question.

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Even if you're talented, we will still

forget.

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See, clarity isn't shallow it's

generous.

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So here's a brand clarity exercise that

I would love for you to consider.

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So this is a practical exercise I use

with actors all the time, and it really

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does work.

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So listen to how I assemble this

exercise, and then you do it for

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yourself.

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Ok?

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Ok.

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Ask three people you trust, actors,

teachers, industry, professionals.

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Whoever

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don't ask your mother.

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I want you to ask those folks one

question.

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When you think of me as an actor, what

words come

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up first?

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Don't argue,

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don't explain

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want you to just simply listen.

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Patterns

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in terms of their response, will emerge.

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Circle the repeated

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words that you hear from those other

folks.

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That is your

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brand

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language.

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That's not who you are, but that is how

you are being perceived

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by those others.

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So let's talk about brand versus ranged.

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This is what I call the peace treaty.

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So we need to make peace

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with this,

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I think, once and for all, so that we

don't confuse or muddy the Waters.

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Your brand

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gets you in the room.

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Your range as an actor keeps you

working.

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Another way to say it, brand is the

doorway.

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Range is the house.

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You don't lose range by clarifying your

brand,

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you earn the opportunity

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to show it.

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So how do you apply brand?

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Practically?

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I believe this.

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And this is very useful.

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Your brand should be visible in your

head shots, in your resume, framing

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in your real opening moments,

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in your audition, energy, when you walk

in the room,

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how you introduce yourself,

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not exaggerated,

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but aligned.

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So here's another call to action.

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Ask yourself, does this material

support my lane or does it confuse it?

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Confusion is expensive.

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Clarity is magnetic.

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So here's some final thoughts.

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Your brand is not a cage,

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it's

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a map.

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And wouldn't you understand where you

live?

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You can choose when and how to travel?

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That's the truth

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listen.

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If this episode has helped you, please

share it with an actor.

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Who's terrified of being boxed in,

because that's not what we're talking about.

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I'm Jeff dry's back.

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This is casting actor's cast.

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Please remember

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to act smarter,

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prepare better.

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Book more,

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and i'll see you next time on casting

actor's cast.