Episode 2 / Fran, Director at Apex Management

Fran, Director at Apex Management, talks about the importance of actors headshots, how to choose the right photographer for you and how to approach the industry today.

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Why Do Actors Need Professional Headshots?

"Remember you are the artist and every room that you walk into you're going to give something to somebody there. I think that's the kind of positive attitude you have to have, to allow yourself to go through it and know that amazing things are going to come your way."

• READ THE FULL TRANSCRIPT

  Why Do Actors Need Professional Headshots?

  I mean it's a great question if you think about it the headshot is the first thing that anyone in the industry sees about you so surely you want that sort of like best foot forward for yourself. An actor is an actor, you know, a writer is a writer and a photographer is a photographer. There are just so many fantastic tools that you can you can get and that can be used in a studio to kind of help you achieve that maximum look so when a casting director or director are scrolling through, your headshot kind of jumps out and and not only visually looks fantastic but says something about you that differentiates yourself from other people. So I think it's so important to be able to work with a photographer and a headshot photographer that understands who you are and why you're in the industry

  How To Choose The Right Headshot Photographer For You?

  Absolutely I mean it depends you know what kind of actor and what kind of person that you want to be and I think at the end of the day it's realising that we're all just people and like yes you have to sell yourself but what makes you unique. You have to kind of find that partnership with you and a photographer and a headshot photographer, so looking through people's work and sort of thinking well what does that picture say about them and how does that make that different from other pieces of their own work that means that they understand their client and knows how to work with them and knows what their needs are and how to make them feel safe and make them feel comfortable with what they're doing. Because we're not all naturals in front of the camera, it's kind of like Ready Steady Cook where it's like you have that sort of like bag with all these ingredients in and every single person makes something different and you kind of got to see what's for you and what you like. Because everyone is so different so you have to make sure that a photographer understands like all your special ingredients and what can kind of bring it to light.

  What Advice Would You Give To Actors In The Industry Today?

  I think all of it is about identity and remembering why you're here in the first place. If you wanted to do a corporate job you could do that but you're here because you have a passion and a love for something and at one point in your life you believed in yourself so you have to continue to believe in yourself and know that if you work hard and surround yourself by the right people things will work out and you have to have that hope because if you don't have the hope what is there? So just remember you are the artist and every room that you walk into you're going to give something to somebody there and I think that's the kind of positive attitude you have to have to sort of allow yourself to go through it and know that amazing things are going to come your way.

Episode 1 / Gabe, Director at Apex Management

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Gabe, Director at Apex Management, talks about the importance of headshots for actors and what makes a headshot stand out from the crowd. Apex focus on nurturing and supporting their talent and he covers both the role of an agent, well-being and why you need representation in the industry today.

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Why do headshots matter?

"Each individual actor is an individual first and foremost. They are a human and so it's really important for me, as your agent, to create really safe spaces for you, make sure that you are equipped in every situation to feel that you can give your all without there being many barriers to entry."

• READ THE FULL TRANSCRIPT

  Why Do Headshots Matter?

  Okay, so you've got - I guess you've kind of got to imagine it from the casting director's perspective. So imagine that they're receiving thousands of submissions as they do. It's your kind of first real chance to stand out across maybe even you know 1,500 submissions. That small photo that would say a lot.

  What Makes A Great Headshot?

  So, I would say for me the the key thing is authenticity. So you know you should never be kind of portraying a character in your headshot. They should still be you. However with that being said I think they should have a glimmer of something a little bit I guess extra that will really pull the casting director's attention. I also think that something really important is your eyes. Your eyes tell a story and so being able to really kind of look not just look at the camera but look through the camera and try and convey some sort of story emotion is really really helpful from a casting perspective

  What's The Role of An Agent?

  100%. So I the way that I kind of see the relationship between an agent and an actor is that agent is almost like the portal to the industry especially during downtime we are the key to unlocking opportunities but also being able to go okay this is what's going on in the world. And so because of that something really really important to me is communication So being able to feel like I can pick up the phone and talk to you you can pick up the phone and talk to me and we can have a really open dialogue is is really important. That kind of also leads on to well-being So obviously as we all know the industry - it's a crazy industry - but being able to be open and frank and honest with your conversations really, really helps the well-being of my clients, of everyone that we kind of work with. And so that's really really important for me to be able to be open.

  Why Do Actors Need An Agent?

  So there are a few kind of key things I guess. Obviously you've got the logistical side. So we as agents, we spend our lives working. I always think you know we work for our our clients. We're there to unlock those opportunities and those opportunities that are sometimes harder to find and harder to come across. So that's a very key thing. On top of that as well like I say it's very very important to have almost your kind of right-hand man in the industry to be able to work together, feel like you're working with someone to achieve your goals so we can celebrate the good and the things that need to be worked on. Okay, so something that I find really really important is kind of noticing that each individual actor is an individual first and foremost. They are a human and so it's really important for me as your agent to create really safe spaces for you, make sure that you are equipped in every situation to feel that you can give your all without there being many barriers to entry.