SAG-AFTRA Scolds Casting Offices For Charging For Audition Tapes; “It Is An Optical And Ethical Disaster”
deadline.comEXCLUSIVE: After several actresses expressed frustration on Twitter this week about the cost of self-tape auditions, SAG-AFTRA released a statement lambasting casting offices for cashing in on the process by offering rental facilities for actors. “Casting offices charging actors for the creation and production of audition tapes is taking our industry in the wrong direction,” according to the statement. “It is an optical and ethical disaster.
Actors are already faced with undue financial pressures in their pursuit of work. Casting offices running production and audition services runs counter to the principles of fairness and equity in our industry and the practice should be discouraged.” “In addition, an evolution of the practice that involved direct charging for self-tapes by the same hiring entity would be illegal.
We know that most of the casting community love and support actors, and we must find a better way to move forward with the shared goal of safe, fair, and reasonable audition practices.
As a union, we will continue to work to find ways to alleviate unfair practices and mitigate financial burdens for actors, including the new limitations on self-tapes in our commercial contract, a new 5-page requirement limit in our low budget contracts, our work establishing the CA Talent Scam Prevention Act, and our championing the federal Performing Artists Tax Parity Act.” SAG rules state that it’s a violation of membership Rule 11 “to give casting anything of value, as it could be seen as bribing employees and their representatives for jobs.” The Casting Society of America Code of Conduct also states that it expects members to “to behave ethically by upholding CSA’s values of respect for human dignity, equity,
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