the difference between casting offices and talent agencies

We often get asked if Compass Casting represents someone just because they get our emails or because we've been the casting office in a project that they've booked. I want to clear up the difference between the Casting office and Talent Agencies. We're both necessary to keep Talent safe and to make sure that the best casts get built, but we do very different things. The worst thing you could do is call either of us a Casting Agent, so let's talk about what each of us does and how you can help us.

What do Talent Agencies Do?

So much - more than you think - so send your agent a bottle of something nice. Right now. Here are just a few things Talent Agents do:

• Submit Talent - Talent agents have access to projects that most unrepresented Talent would never have access to. We're talking major commercials, network television, and huge feature films that would never be released to the public. Talent agents submit people when they're right for the project and work to foster relationships with casting directors and producers on behalf of the people they represent.

• Push for Talent - After they submitted for Talent, most Talent agents will have people that they will push for when they really think that someone's right for a job. Imagine someone advocates for you once and then advocates for you all over again if they don't get the result they wanted the first time.

• Negotiate for Talent - Agents negotiate for better pay, better credit, and better housing when they're pushing for things that could sweeten a deal. Other times, when it's not sweetening a deal, it's more about making sure that projects are livable for their Talent, they're pushing for minimums to keep their Talent safe, healthy, and in a space where they can collaborate effectively.

• Make sure Talent gets paid - Agents are the ones who are following up on when an actor needs to get paid, how much they need to get paid, and when that payment needs to be renewed based on the terms in the contract. They're absolute bulldogs when actors don't get paid, and an agent rattling the cage of a producer is infinitely more effective than a single Actor going up against an entire production company. They keep Actor safe and paid, and if you don't feel that way about your Agent, you're with the wrong rep.

What do Casting Offices Do?

• Casting Conduit - on a recent project that needed to be released nationwide, we worked with almost 1,000 talent agencies and saw over 18,000 submissions. Our job is to collect everything in one place and keep it organized to make creativity possible in a sea of talent chaos… Almost like a compass.😏 Presenting over 600 selects based on their hyper-specific needs was ours to whittle down, and it was agents' jobs to push for anyone and everyone who was kind of sort of right for this gig.

• Crafting a Cast - in the same way as a property master only has to focus on one thing, so that that prop is always perfect, the Casting Director gets to focus on just the acting in a way that producers and directors can't (or shouldn't). Our job is to create a pool of Talent that solves every project's problem by giving several incredible talent options for every single role. As long as the director has put the right bait on the hook will provide incredible fish that, no matter the catch, make amazing casts.

  • That means if a project didn't take the time to bait their hook with something tasty like great rates, good creative, exciting visuals, or things that matter to you, there's no need to bite.

• Booking between Agencies - Because we created a casting conduit, during the booking process, we work directly with Talent agents to send over lots of paperwork with booking details, payment information, usage, agreements, and more. Talent agents scour all of the documents and, once they agree to the terms, send us a booking confirmation, and we give production access to their talent.

  • Sometimes that's what working with one Talent Agency, and sometimes that's working with dozens, depending on the size of the shoot.

• Hyper Organization meets Creative - Getting to work with actors and coaching them into incredible takes has been one of the greatest joys of my life. I feel like my job as a Casting Director is to coach people and then watch people win during high-stakes acting. I get to be creative when I'm going through submissions, when I'm building sides, and when I'm working with actors in the room. After that, I turn into an organizational monster and have to make sure all of the footage is organized in a way that my clients can view it and then help them make the best possible decisions. Sometimes that means not overwhelming them, and sometimes that means giving them more information than they ever wanted. It all depends on the project. A good Casting director will be a collaborator with every project as an individual, though so many of our projects follow a similar casting template. When the nuts and bolts are sound, the creative can fly more freely.

• Switzerland (sort of) - Most of my career has been spent advocating for actors and making sure that clients understand standards as the years go by. Almost every Producer I've ever worked with has good intentions and isn't trying to take advantage. While it might feel that way sometimes, it's usually that Casting and Talent negotiations are difficult to understand, and they're not understood by most people. So, while I do have to advocate for actors often, it's been extremely rare that I find I'm advocating against evil and more often that I'm advocating against ignorance. Casting doesn't make more money off of talent, so we're not pushing for more money from production - we create a buffer zone between everyone to make the booking process easier.

	Represents Talent	Makes $ Off Talent	Can negotiate for Talent	Cracks down on billing
Casting Office	❌	❌	❌	❌
Talent Agent	✅	✅	✅	✅

Who represents talent?

Talent Agents represent talent - not casting offices. Casting offices work with talent agencies to access the pool of people that they represent. Imagine a Talent Agency representing 100 actors and only having to call one agent, as opposed to having to call 100 actors. The people who represent you are the ones fighting for you to be booked and to be paid more. Casting offices work with talent agents to have access to the best talent.

Who makes commission?

Talent Agents make commission ONLY when their talent books. That means all the time actors have auditioned, submitted, been put on check avail, and then didn't get it, agents are working for FREE. Agents are capped at 10% for SAG-AFTRA projects, and non-union varies from project and agency. Agents pushing for you also means they get paid more, like a real estate agent for a house. More money for you means more money for them.

Casting offices are paid by the production either on a weekly or flat rate. Casting never makes money off of Talent. Some background casting offices will charge a production fee per Talent, but they would not make a commission on that talent's work. If you see a Casting office charging actors a commission, run fast and far. (and tattle.)

Who negotiates on Talent's behalf?

Casting offices can make recommendations to push production in the right direction, but at the end of the day, the only people who can negotiate for Talent are Talent agents. While most casting directors are actor advocates, the only people who can legally negotiate and represent you are your talent agents. While most Casting offices have your back, your agent is your #1 your prom date, your best mate. Have you sent them that gift I mentioned earlier?

Who's responsible for billing?

Actual footage of your agents getting you more money

Talent agents are responsible for making sure that actors get paid. Most Casting offices will send talent agents the information on how billing will be processed, but that's the extent of our power. SAG makes sure that a reputable payroll house is used for union projects, but nonunion projects are the wild West and agents are the Texas Rangers... in a cowboy way, not a baseball way.

Go thank your agent. I'm not joking. They work so hard for y'all, and make casting's job so much easier. Hope this clears things up - I'm not your agent. I'm a casting director. 🫶🏻