Be a Successful Background Actor in 2025

JANUARY 6, 2025

Ready to hit the ground running in 2025? As we begin the new year, this is a great opportunity to make sure your profile is updated and to brush up on your background acting skills.

Update your online profile

Your online profile is one of the best tools you can use to get booked by Central Casting. Our Casting Directors use the information in your profile when booking their shows; the more accurate information you include, the easier it is for them to determine the types of roles you can portray. This is a great time to review the information in your profile, update anything inaccurate, and fill in fields you may have missed.

One field many Background Actors miss is "playing age" in the Key Information section. If you do not make a selection in this field, you will not show up when Casting Directors search for specific portrayable age ranges. We know you may be able to portray a wider scope of ages than the ranges provided, but rest assured, our casting staff select multiple ranges when searching for Background Actors.

Another section to be sure to verify are your measurements. Your sizes are used for a variety of reasons, like when booking Stand-Ins and doubles and when production provides wardrobe. If you don't have these details in your profile or if they are inaccurate, you may be missing out on roles you're perfect for. Not sure how to take accurate measurements? Check out our easy-to-follow tutorial videos on our Measurements page.

While you're updating your profile, it's a good idea to double check your contact information, like phone number, email, and address. Also check this information with our payroll department at myEP as we store information separately. If you have not logged in to myEP before, you can access with the same email and password associated with your Central Casting online profile.

Take new profile photos

Keeping your profile updated with photos of your current look is key to getting work with Central Casting. We recommend updating your photos any time your look changes and adding them to the Artist Choice slots. This helps give our Casting Directors confidence they're considering you for work based on how you look right now.

Your profile photos do not need to be taken professionally, but we do recommend having a friend or family member take them to ensure you are framed and lit correctly. Your profile photos should only feature you, be well-lit and in focus with your face clearly visible, and be taken against a white or solid background. Do not upload photos that are edited, touched up, or include filters; these do not accurately reflect your look and cannot be used to consider you for background work.

Any time you upload new photos, don't forget to remove any outdated ones. If you have too many photos in your profile, especially photos that show a conflicting appearance, Casting Directors cannot determine which look is current and cannot use these photos when booking their shows.

Brush up on your background acting skills

Have you been away from background work for a while? Want to learn how to get camera ready for set? Our Articles section has a ton of great resources to help you succeed as a Central Casting Background Actor. Here are a few to get you started:

Here's to a successful 2025! Be sure to bookmark our Jobs page and refresh yourself on the messaging process so you're prepared to get booked by Central Casting.