Adding Costumes and Wardrobe to Your Online Profile
One of the fun parts of being a Central Casting Background Actor is putting wardrobe together for a variety of roles, like gala attendees in Reasonable Doubt, 1980s club goers in Eric, and basketball players in Bel-Air. The wardrobe and costumes you own not only show you can put great looks together, but can help you get booked. Here's what you need to know about adding wardrobe to your online profile.
What types of wardrobe should I add?
Having a variety of wardrobe options helps Casting Directors determine the types of roles you can portray. Do you have a pristine Santa suit? Can you put together great '90s outfits? Have a bunch of non-trademarked Halloween costumes? These are all great options to add to your profile.
An important thing to remember when adding photos is to only upload unique and distinct outfits. This lets Casting Directors see your different looks without cluttering your online profile. For example, if you have multiple tuxedos, you only need to upload one photo of you in a tux, not five pictures in different suits or five poses in the same suit.
We know you may have multiple costumes you want to show off, but Casting Directors recommend including a casual, business, and formal photo, then upload 1-2 photos in your best costumes. You can also keep an eye on the Jobs page to get an idea of the types of roles we're currently casting. See a lot of posts looking for 1940s looks? If you have wardrobe for those roles, it can be helpful to add a photo to your profile of yourself in your best 1940s look. Don't forget to regularly delete photos that no longer represent your current appearance or of costumes/wardrobe you no longer have.
If Casting Directors need to see specific wardrobe, they will likely ask you to take a quick photo of your current look in that clothing. If you want to be prepared in these situations, we recommend keeping a collection of recent photos in your best looks ready for when a Casting Director asks for one.
How do I add costumes to my profile?
Did you know that in addition to photos, you can also add the types of costumes and wardrobe you have to your profile? This helps Casting Directors find you when casting for specific looks. To add your wardrobe, log in to your profile and open the "Casting Information" section. Then scroll to the "Wardrobe" option. Here you can choose from the most common looks or add unique looks by choosing "other" and typing in your costume.
To upload a photo, scroll to the "Photographs" section of your online profile. After uploading a photo, you can select which slot (category) the photo falls into. If the wardrobe photo you uploaded doesn't have a unique slot, choose "wardrobe: other."
No matter the type of photo you upload, pictures should always fit within Central Casting's photo guidelines. These guidelines include photos that are correctly framed, well lit, in focus, and taken against a white or solid light background. Photographs that obscure your face, include other people, and are dark or blurry should not be uploaded to your online profile. You should also never edit, touch up, or add Instagram/Snapchat/social media filters to your pictures. Since these types of photos don't accurately represent what you look like, they cannot be used when considering you for roles.
Whether you're uploading photos or adding costumes, only include items that you own and have access to. If you're booked based off that look, you will be expected to show up to set with that exact wardrobe.
Want to learn more about optimizing your Central Casting online profile? Check out our tips in 5 Things to Consider When Adding Additional Photos and 7 Opportunities to Update Your Online Profile.
