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At Wrapbook, we pride ourselves on providing outstanding free resources to producers and their crews, but this post is for informational purposes only as of the date above. The content on our website is not intended to provide and should not be relied on for legal, accounting, or tax advice. You should consult with your own legal, accounting, or tax advisors to determine how this general information may apply to your specific circumstances.
The film industry has been revolutionized by technology over the past quarter century, from the advent of digital cameras to the dominance of CGI. As a result, the pace of change has never been more rapid.
One of the most significant advancements in the production process has been the emergence of casting websites. These digital platforms known for being the best casting call websites have streamlined the process, enabling productions to connect with the perfect talent, and vice versa.
In this post, we'll explore nine of the best casting call websites that working actors rely on to land their next big role.
Back in the mid ‘90s, actors without representation had to hustle hard to land auditions. They'd sift through industry publications and physically visit casting offices, hoping for a chance to impress.
Today, the casting process has largely moved online. In addition to working with agents and managers, casting directors often discover new talent through the best casting call websites, such as the ones below we’ve flagged as the best casting websites for actors:
Actors Access remains one of the best casting websites that connects actors and casting agencies. It's part of the Breakdown Services family, which also includes Breakdown Express. The platform provides actors with access to casting breakdowns, which are lists of roles for upcoming projects.
While the basic service of viewing breakdowns and maintaining a profile is still free, Actors Access now offers premium subscription plans to accommodate different needs. These plans often include features like unlimited submissions, priority placement, and access to additional resources. Plan pricing for Actors Access Plus is currently set at $68/year or $9.99/month.
Actors Access stands out for its reputation within the industry and its user-friendly interface. However, it's important to note that while the basic service is free, you may need to invest in a subscription to maximize your chances of landing auditions.
Backstage is the reigning heavyweight champion of best casting websites.
Established in 1960 as a magazine for actors in New York, Backstage originally published casting calls and industry news. Over time, the company and its scope expanded, until it eventually made the jump online in the late 1990s, where it quickly evolved into one of the best casting call websites for actors.
Regardless of whether you’re an actor, casting director, or representative from one of the many casting agencies, your fundamental goal in utilizing a casting website should be to connect with as many talented people as possible. A casting director wants to see, and an actor wants to be seen.
From either perspective, this is where Backstage shines as one of the best casting call websites. The site boasts a database of well over a million members, posts thousands of new roles every week, and is built on nearly 60 years of industry experience, servicing many of the heaviest hitters in film, television, and theater production.
That said, if you’re trying to figure out how to find casting calls for free, casting websites like Backstage may not be ideal. In order to directly apply for jobs on Backstage, you’ll need to be a member.
Membership plans start at around $199.95 for the year, but coupon codes are available for events such as cyber week sales. A six-month plan will run you around $19.99/month, while a strictly month-to-month plan comes in at $24.95.
In other words, while you can find free casting calls on Backstage, the service through which you access them isn’t. As we’ll see over the course of this list, this kind of fee structure is common among the best casting websites.
But even with the fee structure, when you consider its raw numbers, storied reputation, and versatile capabilities, Backstage is an undeniably formidable force among its peers.
Casting Frontier is a younger company that got its start by offering industry professionals a streamlined approach to the casting process, and it offers actors some access to their submission process for free under their basic plan.
Casting Frontier’s Premium and Premium Plus plans can be purchased at an annual cost of $149.88 and $199.92, respectively. The perks offered by the plans allow you to upload additional headshots, voice reels, and other multimedia tech files with the one major perk of unlocking unlimited direct submissions to projects.
Exploring Casting Frontier with a free account should be considered by any currently unrepresented actor. If you find it a good fit to your particular needs, making the upgrade to one of the premium plans might be the way to go.
Compared to websites like Actors Access and Backstage, Casting Networks is also relatively new to the game. The company was founded in 2002 with the goal of creating software to streamline the frequently inefficient process of casting film and television projects.
Today, that original goal has blossomed into a family of software solutions that collectively provide end-to-end services for casting agencies and talent representatives.
Casting Networks has also developed several features designed explicitly to help actors manage their careers. These features include:
Casting Networks offers a wide variety of high-quality roles from vetted casting directors and creators in the industry, as well as an extensive collection of interviews with casting directors that include invaluable advice and insight into the casting process. This collection is available for anyone to access even without a membership.
If you have an agent, setting up an account on Casting Networks is totally free. However, if you have yet to secure representation, you can sign up for a 14-day free trial that allows users to try Premium before committing to a membership. After the free trial period, Premium is either $29.99 monthly or $299.90 annually, or you can downgrade to a free account.
Central Casting is a major player in the entertainment industry, specializing in providing background actors for film, television, and commercials. The best part? It’s completely free to join. If you're looking to break into the industry as a background actor, Central Casting is a great place to start.
While Central Casting is one of the best casting call websites, and a great way to get your foot in the door, it's important to be realistic. Background acting is often competitive, and the pay isn't always high. However, it can be a rewarding experience and can lead to opportunities for speaking roles or even more significant acting work.
If you are a SAG-AFTRA member, iActor is your exclusive online platform for landing acting roles. This user-friendly platform connects you directly with casting directors, allowing you to submit auditions and showcase your talent.
To get started, simply create a profile on iActor. Here, you can upload your headshot, resume, and other relevant information. Once your profile is complete, you'll start receiving casting calls tailored to your specific skills and experience.
When you're interested in a role, you can submit your audition materials directly through the platform. This streamlined process saves time and effort, allowing you to focus on what you do best: acting.
It's important to note that while iActor is a valuable resource for SAG-AFTRA members, there are no additional fees associated with using the platform. Your SAG-AFTRA membership provides you with access to this exclusive service known for being one of the best casting sites for working actors.
It may seem strange to list IMDbPro alongside the best casting websites in the business, but, in a way, its atypicality is exactly what makes it appealing.
It’s not the first place you think of, but IMDbPro does, in fact, maintain an active casting notice board, and IMDbPro’s submission system allows actors to respond to these notices by forwarding their actual IMDb page. This allows for a level of interactivity that you rarely see with the standard resumes and headshots on other casting websites.
But the submission system is really a secondary attraction here. IMDbPro offers the most robust presentation of industry information currently available. Having the ability to research a given project before you submit yourself to any of the listed audition websites is an invaluable tool.
Of course, accessing IMDbPro does require a subscription. However, you can take advantage of a 30-day free trial to explore its features and benefits before committing to a monthly plan of $19.99 or an annual plan of $149.99.
IMDbPro isn’t likely to replace behemoths like Backstage or Actors Access, with their decades-long reputations as the best casting websites around, but its unique features make it a complementary tool capable of enhancing your experience with any of the above.
NYCastings is primarily a resource for (you guessed it) projects casting in and around New York City. Registration for the site is free, and if you are based in or can easily travel to NYC you should absolutely pay attention to their casting board.
However, as you can probably guess by now, you’ll need to pay a fee to gain access to some of NYCastings’ more robust submission and presentation features, the most prominent of which is “24/7 access to casting notices.”
While NYCastings does feature casting notices from cities all across the United States, the monthly, quarterly, or annual fee may be a hard sell for the Angelenos among us. For New Yorkers, however, NYCastings might just be one of the best casting websites.
Playbill is easily the most widely recognizable company to appear on this list of best casting websites. If you’ve been to the theater, you’ve almost definitely leafed through one of their iconic yellow production publications.
But Playbill is so much more than a little book. It’s the world’s leading source of theater news and an invaluable resource for working actors and theater professionals.
Playbill updates their jobs board daily, making it one of the most up-to-date audition websites available to actors. If you find free casting calls on Playbill, rest assured that they’re legitimate, as the staff at Playbill vets their listings thoroughly.
Playbill also touts the major advantage of being entirely free to use. You can browse at your leisure for absolutely no cost. The only downside is that Playbill does not offer a submission portal, meaning you’ll have to take the contact information from their listings and do the legwork of submitting yourself for a role all on your lonesome.
It’s a small inconvenience, but an even smaller price to pay for Playbill’s combination of low-level price and high-level reputation.
The best casting websites offer vital services to both actors and filmmakers. From actors seeking their next big break to directors and producers searching for the perfect talent, these platforms streamline the casting process in ways unimaginable just a few decades ago.
For more information and insights on working with actors, check out our article on paying your performers on a low-budget feature or getting all your SAG paperwork in order when hiring union actors.
