Since their creation in 1938 as comic characters in The New Yorker, the Addams Family have been adapted into plenty of TV shows and films. However, none of these had connected with viewers as much as Tim Burton’s Netflix series Wednesday. Starring Jenna Ortega in the titular role, the first season of the series sees ‘Wednesday Addams’ attending a supernatural school while trying to solve a murder.

Among the colourful and macabre cast of characters – all brought to life through Tim Burton’s iconic Gothic style – one stood head and shoulders above the rest, even though they possess neither. We’re of course referring to ‘Thing’ – the living, disembodied hand who gets more emotion and meaning across with a few finger taps than some characters do with entire sentences. ‘Thing’ is brought to life by Romanian magician-turned-actor Victor Teodor Dorobantu, who landed his acting debut when Tim Burton and the production team chose him for the role. 

We had the chance to talk to Victor about his iconic role – and we’ve never been so thrilled to talk to the hand! From his audition for Wednesday and his experience working with Tim Burton, to the process behind filming as ‘Thing’ and the challenges of non-verbal acting, here’s what Victor had to share:

Hi, Victor! How did you first become involved in Wednesday?

I was initially a magician. I was trying to expose myself out there to the public, so I went to some talent shows in Romania. They weren’t so successful – I failed two times. I heard Tim Burton and his team were looking for an actor to play ‘Thing’ and they were looking for a magician specifically. In the black and white movies, they used a magician as well, Christopher Hart. Maybe they thought a magician would be the perfect person to have the dexterity and everything?

I got a phone call randomly one day. I wasn’t part of any agency. I wasn’t even on any list in the world, but I got a phone call. I think they Googled ‘magicians in Romania’ and they found a video from that talent show where I failed, and they called me to a casting with other magicians. I literally ended the phone call because I thought it [was] a joke or a prank or a scam. So, they called me three or four times and they convinced me to go to the casting. 

It wasn’t so much about hand acting at the audition. It was more about creating the character or what ideas you have for the character to develop, because they were still trying to build it up, starting with prosthetics, to how he talks and how he moves. After I met Tim Burton at the last audition, he chose me.

What did you have to do at the audition?

I think it was three auditions. The first one was photos. The second one was videos, like walking with the hand. And the third one was talking to Tim Burton, not showing the hand at all. I just spoke about what I think ‘Thing’ should look like or act like or behave.

I don’t know how to say it, because I don’t want to sound like I’m a producer for the character, but Tim Burton, Miles [Millar] and Alfred [Gough] always let me decide some things about ‘Thing’ because it’s a very tricky character to perform. It’s not like any other creature. It’s just a hand, and you have to find ways to make it as emotional as possible, but not make it too much so it doesn’t look like a cartoon character.

When you talk about it, it looks easy, but when you really do it with the prosthetics to make it look like a self-standing creature, it’s very complicated. Even walking is very specific. It has to be balanced. It has to be with a specific emotion, anger or happiness. It’s a lot of work that we’ve put into ‘Thing’, especially in season one, when we created it.

The script doesn’t have any lines for ‘Thing’. It’s just text where it says what ‘Thing’ has to transmit. After I read the script and see the other characters’ reactions, I have to find a way to [express] that emotion. Fun fact about that: in season one, I never read the entire script, so when the show was on Netflix, all my friends were asking, “Who’s the monster?” and I didn’t know. I was as shocked as everyone else.

With season two, I had to read the script. I tried for one or two weeks to avoid it, and then when I realised what’s happening with the other characters and what I saw on set, I was like, “No, I have to read this.”

This was your first time acting professionally. How did you find the experience?

When I was a teenager, I was acting, but not professionally. I was trying to do a side job because I had a really modest family and didn’t have my own pocket money. I was trying to find ways to make money on the weekend when I was free and not at school. So, since I was 15, I was working with a local theatre that was more like an after-school club for kids. I was the kids’ entertainer. Then I started acting in kids’ theatres and then I started doing magic to entertain the kids.

I thought I was acting, and I also had friends [who] were acting in the big theatres, but I didn’t know the feeling of being on a set. I swear that no actor in this world knows what a Tim Burton set feels like, because when you walk on a set that is created by Tim Burton, you are in the story. If you ignore the cameras, you’re really there. It’s amazing work that they’ve done in season one and season two. The sets look so amazing that you have to take a day to be in shock. 

When I first stepped on the set, I was very emotional. I cried for days and days because I didn’t imagine myself doing stuff like that. Season 1 and the aftermath of it was literally a waterfall of shock. I didn’t know how to express my feelings. Every day, I was getting used to the set, and then I realised the actors I [was] next to, so I was emotional again. And then, after the show was on Netflix, the aftermath and the reactions of the public around the world and the press and everything – it’s a little bit overwhelming, and somehow you feel like you don’t deserve it when you didn’t do it before.

Could you tell us about the filming process for your scenes?

The process is so long – we’ll need an hour to talk about it! But, to make it short, the first part is prosthetics. The make-up takes two hours and the stump that goes on top of my wrist depends on the scene we’re shooting, because we have different shapes for different scenes and sometimes we have to change them during the day. So, some days we have two hours for each round of make-up. 

Then we put my blue suit on, which acts like a chroma key. When we shoot, people think we’re shooting in a studio and then they edit it and put it in the show. The reality is I’m shooting right next to the other characters in real time. We usually shoot a scene with me and the other characters as it would normally be, then they take me out and they shoot the same scene again, but very specifically with the same camera movement, with the same light, everything. So, it acts like filming the background, what was behind my body when you shot it.

Image credit: Vlad Cioplea/Netflix / Victor Dorobantu as ‘Thing’ with Jenna Ortega as ‘Wednesday’ on the set of ‘Wednesday’ (Season One)

Then they take another shot with nobody in frame, they take VHR shots, they take photos or videos of the environment, so they know where the lights and everything was placed. Then they take a shot of a chroma ball where ‘Thing’ was, so they know how the light was hitting on each side of the hand. Then they take a shot of something that’s called the chip chart or the colour chart. It’s a small chart, like the make-up one, where you can see all the colours that are involved in that type of lighting, so ‘Thing’ looks as real as possible when they delete my arm. 

It’s very complicated for the electric and light departments because my body is casting shadows and you have to take care of each thing that you’re removing from the image. It’s also very complicated for the other actors to talk to a hand and sometimes to talk to something that’s not even there. 

And then the longest process is the post editing, which is very complicated for ‘Thing’. It takes a lot of time.

The process of shooting with ‘Thing’ is very expensive, very complicated and very tricky, but we have experience now and we [have] developed a way of doing it. Now we’re doing some VFX shots in a studio with motion capture because some shots are very complicated for my body to shoot. For example, if ‘Thing’ jumps off a building, that means my body is doing that too. I’m not a stuntman, so we have to shoot it with motion capture. 

We’ve developed some sensors that are created specifically for my hand, because motion capture for other creatures is with a full body, but a hand is very specific with every movement. Even in the shots where ‘Thing’ is not there, it’s still me controlling it with motion sensors in the studio. 

We have casts of my hand that are very realistic, made of silicone, and they have armature inside. So whenever a very dangerous stunt is performed, I have my own doubles! They’re travelling around the world doing commercial shoots, doing photos with the Netflix marketing department. And it’s funny to know that airport security has to check bags and find hands the same as ‘Wednesday’ did in the trailer that we just posted on Netflix.

What was it like working with and taking direction from Tim Burton?

I think Tim Burton is a very special director. He’s very specific about his work. He’s very creative, he’s very goth. Tim Burton is exactly like his characters. 

Working with Tim is a very good opportunity because he’s not just a director to us. He’s a friend, he’s family, he’s a colleague and he treats us as his friends. There’s lots of times when Tim allowed me to create the movement for ‘Thing’ or the scene for ‘Thing’. So he sometimes lets you direct your own scene, and I’ve seen him doing that with all my castmates. Everybody loves him.

How challenging is it to convey the emotions of ‘Thing’ using only hand movements?

Even in cartoons, when you look at the cartoon character – let’s say it’s a fridge – they draw a mouth and eyes to transmit emotion. ‘Thing’ doesn’t have a mouth to smile or eyebrows or anything. It’s just how fast you move, the way you put tension in your fingers and stuff like that, so it’s a very complicated process to find a way to express an emotion. To be honest, I didn’t plan it, exactly. Most of the time, I just improvised until I nailed it. I had to create my own language for ‘Thing’ – tapping, gesturing. It’s so many things.

The role must be very physically demanding. How do you warm up and prepare yourself before filming scenes and take care of yourself after?

Honestly, it’s very complicated because, technically, you think I should be like a contortionist, but I’m not supple at all. I’m not fit, but I found a way to do it. 

The people on set take care of me a lot, especially in season two. When I landed a knee on the ground to bend behind an object, they always came to me like, “Hey, do you need a pillow? Do you need me to make the ground softer for you? Do you need me to clean it?” Everybody’s making it easier. 

Of course, I have to stretch and keep myself fit when I’m shooting. It’s not that easy, but when you see what comes out of this work, you forget about it. I was very tired physically after season 2 – you will see why after you watch the season, you’ll understand how much work was put into it. I needed a couple of months to recover. But I would do it again and again and again forever.

Image courtesy of Netflix / ‘Thing’ in ‘Wednesday’ (Season 2)

Were there any differences in the filming process between Wednesday season one and two?

It was a huge difference. I can’t tell you why, because everything that I say would spoil it, but it was a lot more from all points of view regarding the entire cinematographic industry. Every department that you think of had 10 times more work to do.

Everything that you see in the show is me. And when it’s not me 100%, it’s me in a studio controlling ‘Thing’ with motion capture, where it was impossible to use my body to do it.

Has your time on Wednesday made you want to pursue other acting opportunities?

I’m trying to. Since I wasn’t an actor before this show, I didn’t know how it’s done. I didn’t know what [having] an agent meant. I’m still learning. I don’t want to join other projects at the moment because I’m still working, but I’m dreaming about being a creature performer now, because this is the beauty of what I’ve done until now. It’s giving life to creatures.

What would be your dream creature to bring to life?

I would create the creature. I admired ‘Vecna’ from Stranger Things a lot. I don’t know – any creature that needs to be with a lot of emotion. Nobody else would do it the same [way].

Finally, what’s the entertainment industry like in Romania?

The industry doesn’t know how many great actors are in Romania. Most acting in Romania starts with theatre – it’s on another level. I think that if Romanians and the artists in Romania had more opportunities, they would amaze the world. But unfortunately, I think Romania is not investing enough in art in general, especially in acting. I know a lot of people [who] are very talented and they don’t have the opportunity to do it.

If I ever had the power to make them more visible, I would. A platform like Spotlight has this power – to make people see the talent. Entertainment in Romania revolves more around TV shows, but they’re not the kind of ones that would create a career outside of Romania for an actor.

But I think we have the power to show the world what we are. I have always thought [that] whenever you have gained power from your own resources or from what you’re working on, you should use it to help other people as well. So I will try to do that whenever I have a little bit of power.

Thank you, Victor, for sharing your experience on the show! ‘Wednesday’ Seasons 1 and 2 are available to watch on Netflix in the UK now. Victor is represented by Warren Bacci at TTA in the UK.

Take a look at our website for more casting stories and interviews with performers, casting directors and agents.

The post My Casting Story: Victor Teodor Dorobantu on Netflix’s ‘Wednesday’ appeared first on Spotlight.

At its core, personal branding is how you show up in the world. It’s about proactively shaping your public image and creating a narrative that aligns with your professional aspirations. Branding is a strategic process that attracts opportunities, enhances career visibility and boosts self-confidence, all of which can significantly impact your career trajectory and overall success. 

So what does that mean for you as an actor?

Well, you are your business, and therefore you need to be clear about your unique value, skills and what sets you apart. 

Here are some tips for creating your personal branding strategy, plus how your Spotlight profile, social media, and other online resources can help:

Do You Already Have an Online Presence?

First things first, have you ever Googled yourself? No? We don’t blame you. Take a deep breath and do it now. 

If you come up in the search results, then you already have an online presence. Ask yourself these questions:

• Is this an authentic representation of me?
• Is there a clear, consistent narrative?
• Is this the person I want the world to see? 
• If I were a casting director, would I invite myself to audition? 
• If I were a director or producer, would I want to work with me?

If the answer to any of these questions is ‘no’, here are some steps you can take to ensure your online presence represents your brand: 

1. Do a social media clean-up. 
2. Brainstorm words that describe how you would like to be perceived, then pick your top five. 
3. Keep a list of your top five in a prominent place (either in your workspace or on your phone). 
4. Consult the list before all future posts and ensure your intended content is in alignment. 

If you don’t have an online presence, fret not. Think of this as a clean slate on which to make your mark, which is simpler than you think. 

Online Platforms for Personal Branding as a Performer

Your marketing tools can really help to establish what your personal brand is. These are some of the most commonly used marketing tools that actors can utilise:

Your Spotlight Profile

How often do you tend to your Spotlight profile? Whether you’re agented or not, Spotlight is the most direct route to acting opportunities. It’s madness to neglect your profile. Here are three tips from our agenting days: 

• Check your page every month: update your bio, add any new credits/skills and check your showreels. If there’s nothing new to add, use it as a catalyst to do a workshop or upskill. 
• Keep your headshots current. They have to look like you. 
• Don’t list a skill or accent if you’re not 100% confident in it. It’s embarrassing for everyone. 

Top Tip:  Ask a friend in the biz to look over your page and vice versa (we love a skills swap) and objectively review it.

A Personal Website

In addition to your Spotlight profile, it’s definitely worth considering a personal website. With real scope for creative flair, they’re a great way to showcase who you are as well as what you do. Before you baulk at the price, do a quick Google search. There are some very affordable DIY platforms out there. 

If you’re a technophobe, you can outsource to a recommended third party or do a skills swap with a tech-savvy friend. It’s worth investing your time/money to stand out from the crowd. And remember: it’s all tax-deductible! 

Top Tip: Keep it simple. Think about websites you like using in everyday life and ones you don’t. What is it about them you like or dislike? Make lists to get a better idea of how you’d like your personal website to look.

Whatever your approach, it’s vital to have all your information in one easy, accessible place. Industry professionals would much rather have a link to a Spotlight profile or personal website than an info-dump email with millions of attachments.

Social Media

The positives of social media are aplenty. The immediacy, the outreach, the connectivity. At the risk of patronising you, here are a few popular platforms that you could consider being on as a performer: 

• Instagram
• TikTok
• YouTube

You’ve no doubt heard of them, but if you’re not familiar with any of these platforms, get curious and investigate. You may have dismissed some platforms as not for you but think again. TikTok, for example, has a reputation for being a youth-only platform, but it’s a hive of creativity involving a mix of music, lip sync videos, comedy and microblog content. It can be a great way to show the world what you can do. 

Top Tip: Don’t let fear get in the way. You don’t have to sign up for anything; you can just explore the sites and get a feel for what’s afoot. Focus on the platform you’re most comfortable with and build from there.

Create a Personal Branding Strategy

It’s time to create a plan of action to blitz your personal branding. Write down the series of steps and practical tasks that you need to take to launch your new digital persona. It might look something like this: 

• See what’s already in place and highlight what’s missing. 
• Research other creatives and take inspiration from them. (Be critical. If you like or dislike something, ask yourself why. What is it about their presence that lights you up? Do they use a particular colour palette or image across all platforms so they are instantly recognisable?
• Work out what forms of social media suit you and make sure it’s manageable to keep up to date. Consistency is key!
• Find a free or low-cost social media workshop.
• Ensure all your credits and reels are up-to-date across all platforms.
• Email industry professionals on your HitList (find out more about this in our book, The Jobbing Actor) with your revamped material. 
• Give yourself a realistic deadline for completing each task.

Putting yourself out there can feel a bit cringey at first, but don’t let fear of judgement scupper your creative ambitions. If you’re not showing up in the world, how will your dream collaborators know where to find you? Personal branding can be a really rewarding and insightful process – just remember to keep it simple, authentic and consistent. Be proud of who you are and what you have to offer – you’re great! 

If you’ve enjoyed this little nugget and want to reclaim full ownership of your career, why not dive into our innovative six-week coaching programme designed specifically for actors, by industry professionals and accredited coaches? You’ll find it all in the pages of The Jobbing Actor. 

Anita Gilbert and Letty Butler (aka Bert & Butler) have between them over 40 years’ experience in the business. Anita has worked as a professional actor, as well as a theatrical agent, and is now a full-time voice and accent coach. Letty is a jobbing actor with extensive credits for stage and screen. She’s also an award-winning writer and professional life coach.

The post Building Your Brand as an Actor appeared first on Spotlight.

Once little more than a niche experiment, vertical filmmaking has become something of a global trend in recent years. Fuelled by the meteoric rise of TikTok and a growing consumer demand for short-form content, the Chinese micro-drama industry is expected to be worth $14 billion by 2027. With profits like that to be made, it’s no surprise there’s global interest in the future of the genre.

Here, we explain the increasing popularity of this new art form, what its future looks like and what all of this means for performers.

What is Vertical Filmmaking?

Vertical filmmaking is the production of video content specifically optimised for smartphones. Videos are shot for a screen that’s taller than it is wide, catering to the way people naturally hold their mobile.

It also signals the first time content has been designed to be displayed on a smartphone screen. Anyone who has tried to watch a Netflix drama displayed horizontally on a mobile will know they don’t quite look right simply because they were created for a larger screen. Vertical filmmakers typically adapt framing techniques to the narrower space available to focus on concise, impactful storytelling with a more intimate feel.

In China, vertical content has found its own niche. Micro-dramas are essentially short-form soaps, with episodes lasting between 60 and 90 seconds. These are usually free to view for the first few episodes, with a subscription required to continue watching. Some go on for thousands of episodes, but the Chinese audience laps them up. 

When Did Vertical Short-Form Content Begin?

Vertical filming is not a new concept. Filmmakers have been experimenting with it since smartphones became a must-have. There was even a Vertical Film Festival in Australia that launched in 2014 but was cancelled in May 2020.

The difference is that, previously, vertical films were produced by filmmakers trialling a new format. Now, China’s booming micro-drama market is responding to consumer demand for a specific type of content.

Short-form vertical shows became popular in China during the COVID-19 pandemic. As people increasingly turned to their phones for entertainment, producers were encouraged to create content that would meet this demand. Online web-novels have been a big hit in China for years, with readers logging on daily for a new chapter. The rise of vertical filmmaking began when some of these were adapted for smartphones.

Apps like ReelShort, DramaBox, ShortMax and CandyJar TV stream a vast array of vertical shows falling into categories like ‘Young Love’, ‘The Hero Returns’, and ‘Werewolf and Vampire’. Typically, romance is at the heart of the story and with each episode lasting around a minute, there are plenty of twists and turns.

China stands out as the world leader in the vertical format, but it’s not the only country doing it. In April 2020, the US vertical film platform, Quibi, was launched. Founder Jeffrey Katzenberg raised $175 million from investors (including the BBC), but the platform folded after less than nine months due to a lack of interest. So, despite positive signs for the genre, it seems success is not guaranteed.

The Rise of Vertical Short-Form Content

Vertical filmmaking has recently expanded its reach to other countries, gaining popularity in India and the Philippines, among others. After a slow start, it’s also building a US fan base. ReelShort and other vertical drama apps like DramaBox have gained significant traction, with ReelShort achieving revenue of $22 million in 2023.

Vertical films initially struggled to transition to America. The first attempts to break into the US market focused on English-speaking voice artists dubbing over the original Chinese footage. Viewers often found this jarring and some cultural references didn’t transfer well. For example, in Chinese drama, a nosebleed is a sign of love, which confused viewers in the US.

Nonetheless, producers picked up on the fact that there was interest in the format. More recent vertical films aimed at Western audiences have been adapted from the Chinese version and reshot in America using English-speaking actors. 

Since this innovation, the number of subscribers has been on the rise, and American audiences are increasingly consuming mini-drama content. Major players such as Netflix are now exploring the potential for the genre. Elsewhere, Channel 4 aims to establish itself as ‘a digital-first public streaming service by 2030’ via its Fast Forward program and is keeping a close eye on how consumers react to growth in vertical filmmaking.

While vertical filmmaking isn’t yet as popular in the UK as it is in China, it’s certainly getting there. There are production companies here that focus on vertical filmmaking, and Jen Cooper, the founder of UK-based website Vertical Drama Love, has been described as the ‘first ever vertical critic’. 

Much of the success of these shows is put down to increasingly fragmented viewing habits. Viewers watch micro-dramas while commuting, when taking a short break, or when they need a bit of escapism but just don’t have time for a full-length TV show. This way of using smartphones to incorporate short-form entertainment into a busy lifestyle shows there is significant untapped potential across the globe. 

Interestingly, despite the popularity of the format in China, the government has started to censor some of it. This could encourage Chinese producers to seek export opportunities in more liberal jurisdictions and create more opportunities for actors in the West to get involved. Of course, anyone being offered such a chance must carefully consider the quality of the production and what that might mean for their career. 

There are concerns about the quality and perception of vertical content – particularly those made in China. While the future of the industry shows potential, its current reputation is for cheesy scripts, cliche tropes and poor-quality production.

Should Actors Look for Roles in Vertical Content?

For performers, vertical filmmaking presents opportunities and challenges. Increased demand means casting calls are abundant. Micro-dramas often record an entire season in just over a week, so could represent a good way to keep working between other jobs or quickly build a portfolio. This is certainly worth considering for actors who are between jobs or looking to build a portfolio.

But beware – pay rates vary considerably, so it’s worth doing due diligence on the production company. There are stories of big pay packets with flights and accommodation thrown in, but also tales of some that make big promises and don’t deliver.

Actors who have performed in vertical dramas have said they offer little scope for character development, nuance and a chance to highlight talent. This has led to debates within the acting community about the artistic value of the work and its potentially negative impact on an actor’s reputation.

It may not be a fair reflection of every film or show in the genre, but there is a risk of damaging your reputation and casting opportunities if you become associated with the lower end of the genre. 

In China, especially, consumers seem content with formulaic Mills & Boon-style stories that are unlikely to take off with a UK audience. Those wanting to follow this emerging format are advised to look west to the US, where there is more appetite among filmmakers for quality over quantity.

The Future of Vertical Content

Vertical filmmaking has the potential to become a respected part of the entertainment landscape. Continued development in mobile technology, coupled with changing viewer habits, could see the format enhance its reputation among viewers, filmmakers and performers in the coming years. 

While it currently faces criticism for a perceived lack of quality, growing popularity and financial success could lead to a significant shift in how content is created and consumed in the future.

For actors, this trend offers new avenues for work and exposure, albeit with some caveats regarding pay and artistic merit. As the industry matures, there is potential for higher-quality productions that could enhance the credibility and appeal of vertical films. Embracing this format may well become an essential step for actors navigating the evolving landscape of modern entertainment.

Take a look at our website for more industry news and acting advice.

The post What You Need to Know About Vertical Short-Form Dramas appeared first on Spotlight.

From classic literary adaptations to highly anticipated sequels and original dramas, this summer sees some of the industry’s biggest names and rising stars coming together across renowned studios and iconic locations in the UK and Ireland. 

Whether you’re looking for inspiration, hoping to spot casting opportunities, or simply curious about what’s currently shooting, here’s your insider guide to what’s in production this month.

Practical Magic 2

The highly anticipated sequel to the 1998 classic brings Nicole Kidman and Sandra Bullock back together as they portray witch sisters ‘Sally’ and ‘Gillian Owens’.  Also returning for the sequel are Dianne Wiest and Stockard Channing as Sally and Gillian’s eccentric aunts and joining them are Joey King, Lee Pace and Maisie Williams.

Directed by Susanne Bier (Bird Box, The Night Manager), Practical Magic 2 is currently filming on the Warner Bros soundstage at Leavesden Studios in Hertfordshire. 

Practical Magic 2 is scheduled for a cinema release in September 2026. 

Harry Potter

Casting by Lucy Bevan, CDG and Emily Brockman, CDG.

“Everyone starts at the beginning at Hogwarts, you’ll be just fine.” are the words that Hagrid says to Harry in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. Quite a fitting sentiment considering this week ‘Hagrid’ (Nick Frost) and ‘Harry’ (newcomer Dominic McLaughlin) have been spotted filming in London’s West End. 

HBO’s mammoth Harry Potter series is filming on location for the rest of the month before moving to Leavesden to continue shooting season one’s episodes.

Harry Potter is scheduled for release in 2027 and will follow Harry’s first year at Hogwarts.

Sense and Sensibility

Casting by Kharmel Cochrane.

Directed by Georgia Oakley (Blue Jean, Little Bird) and currently filming in various locations around the UK including London, the new adaptation of the classic novel by Jane Austin tells the story of ‘Elinor’ (Daisy Edgar Jones) and ‘Marianne Dashwood’ (Esme Creed-Miles) as they come of age. Upon the death of their father, the sisters, alongside their widowed mother (Caitríona Balfe) and younger sister are forced to leave their family estate along with their widowed mother and start a new life in rural Devonshire. 

The recently announced cast is full of outstanding talent including Fiona Shaw, George MacKay and Frank Dillane. 

Sense and Sensibility is scheduled to be released in 2026.

The Thomas Crown Affair

Michael B. Jordan sits in the director’s chair for the remake of the 1999 classic romantic thriller. ‘Thomas Crown’ is a rich playboy who has everything he could ever wish for in life, but as a result of his privileged boredom he starts stealing priceless works of art. A detective is put on the case and due to both of their seductive natures, a steamy affair begins. 

Jordan will also star in the film as the titular character with Adria Arjona, Lily Gladstone and Kenneth Branagh in supporting roles.

Currently shooting at Elstree Studios, The Thomas Crown Affair is due to be released in 2027.

Victorian Psycho

Casting by Carla Stronge and Mike Hooley, CDG.

Set in 1858, a young governess relocates to a remote gothic manor house. Locals start to notice that, since her arrival, members of the household keep mysteriously disappearing. 

Governess ‘Winifred Notty’ will be played by Maika Monro and supported by Thomasin McKenzie and Jason Isaacs. 

Directed by Zachary Wigon, Victorian Psycho is currently filming in the picturesque surroundings of Meath in Ireland and is scheduled to release in 2026.

Other productions coming to the end of their shooting dates this month: 

• Heartstopper – The Netflix original series comes to its grand conclusion with a feature length film which is currently filming in Leeds.
  Casting by Daniel Edwards, CDG

• Rivals (Season 2) – The Disney+ series Rivals is currently filming its second season in Bristol.
  Casting by Kelly Valentine Hendry, CDG.

• The Agency (Season 2) – The second season of the Paramount+ spy thriller starring Michael Fassbender is currently filming at Shinfield Studios.
  Casting by Avy Kaufman, CSA.

Join Spotlight to be discovered by casting professionals working in theatre, film, TV, voice over, commercials and more! Find out about our membership options and start looking for auditions today.

The post What’s Filming in the UK and Ireland in August 2025 appeared first on Spotlight.

A theatre run is a thrilling yet demanding experience. Behind the scenes, it can be a real challenge to maintain your physical health and mental wellbeing. Long hours, emotional intensity and constant physical activity can take a toll if you don’t look after yourself properly. Performers need to adopt healthy habits, so you don’t burn out. 

We asked the winners and nominees at the Off-West End Awards 2025 how they take care of themselves during a theatre run. Everyone we spoke to is a professional theatre performer, used to sustaining themselves across long and active shows. Here are the tips they shared for surviving a theatre run:

The post Theatre Run Self-Care Tips appeared first on Spotlight.

For UK performers, the post-Brexit landscape has introduced a host of new challenges when working in the European Union. Performers face complex and often confusing visa requirements that vary from country to country, and that lack of clarity is impacting their ability to work. 

Whether touring a theatre production, filming abroad, performing at theme parks like Disneyland Paris, or working on cruise ships, UK performers now encounter considerable barriers that affect their ability to seize opportunities across Europe. 

Spotlight is committed to supporting performers as they build sustainable careers and that includes being able to pursue work in the EU. We asked the Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee to look into this issue and we will be giving evidence about the impact of Brexit on performers and the wider industry in the Autumn. To help inform that, we would really like to hear about your experience of working in the EU pre and post-Brexit. You can take part by completing our short survey:

From Seamless Movement to Complex Paperwork

Before Brexit, UK performers enjoyed the freedom of working across EU member states without needing separate work permits or visas. This freedom facilitated not only artistic exchange but also economic growth, with UK cultural exports – including theatre, film and live performance – flourishing across the continent. However, without membership of the European Union, UK performers must now navigate a patchwork of immigration rules and work permit requirements specific to each country they visit.

At present, the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) offers provisions designed to help a range of short-term business travellers, but it currently doesn’t include artistic activities. This means that UK actors touring multiple EU countries must comply with the specific immigration requirements for each country they visit. Applying for distinct work authorisations in each country often incurs high costs and lengthy paperwork. For example, a touring production visiting France, Germany and Spain will face three separate visa processes, each with its own criteria and timelines. The experience of working in Europe for actors can be financially prohibitive because of the costs associated with any paperwork. 

The Toll on UK Performers and the Creative Economy

The repercussions of Brexit extend beyond administrative hassle. Reduced access to European work opportunities means UK performers face a loss of income and valuable experience. Each role and engagement hones actors’ skills, broadening their versatility and employability. The decline in cross-border work diminishes performer development, which in turn impacts the vibrancy and competitiveness of the UK’s creative industries.

Performers’ ability to work impacts all sectors within the creative industries – from theatre, film, television, touring productions, gaming (through motion capture and voice over), cruise entertainment and theme parks. Their ability to work internationally is critical not only for their careers, but also for sustaining the UK’s cultural exports and global reputation. Their success is the success of the sector.

The loss to the UK economy is significant. A 2023 House of Commons research paper on ‘Touring artists and the UK-EU economic partnership’ estimated that in 2019, exports of creative arts and activities were worth over £4 billion, accounting for 1.2% of UK services exports. The current visa regime threatens to erode this economic contribution.

What Needs to Change?

To support UK performers and the broader creative sector, there is a pressing need for the UK government to collaborate with EU counterparts to simplify visa arrangements. Ideally, this would involve adopting a system similar to the UK’s current visa-free arrangements for EU artists working in the UK, fostering reciprocal ease of movement.

Following the UK-EU Summit in May 2025, there are hopes that some of the regulatory barriers impacting businesses operating from the UK in Europe will be removed. We hope that this will also include less red tape for our cultural output too. The ‘Common Understanding’ document does at least recognise “the value of travel and cultural and artistic exchanges, including the activities of touring artists” and identifies it as an area that requires further work to “support travel and cultural exchange.”

Engagement through platforms like the European Commission’s Creative Europe programme could provide a framework for streamlining processes or offering dedicated support to performers navigating cross-border work. 

Looking Forward

UK performers are among the country’s most visible cultural ambassadors. Their ability to work seamlessly across Europe enriches not only their own careers but also the UK’s cultural landscape and economy. Without concerted action to reduce bureaucratic hurdles, both performers and the creative industries stand to lose.

As the government and Parliament explore solutions, it’s essential to ensure that UK talent continues to thrive on the European stage. Streamlined visa processes and mutual recognition of artistic work will secure the future of UK cultural exports, demonstrating the nation’s commitment to fostering creativity and economic growth in a post-Brexit world.

The post How Brexit is Impacting UK Performers appeared first on Spotlight.

In this episode of the Spotlight Podcast, business affairs consultant and professional coach Kelly Andrews joins us in the Spotlight studio to shed light on all the work agents do behind the scenes to look after their performer clients and find them work. 

A veteran of the entertainment industry, Kelly previously worked as an agent and was the Co-Chair of the Personal Managers’ Association (PMA). She’s now a business affairs consultant and professional coach, sharing her expertise and offering support to agents and helping them become “safeguarding superheroes”.

With 30 years in the industry and a self-proclaimed “nerd” on the contractual side of the business, who better to share an insight into the inner world of an agent’s working life? 

Stylised headshot for Business affairs consultant and professional coach, Kelly Andrews.

In this episode, you’ll hear Kelly discuss everything you ever wanted to know about how agents operate. From researching new production rumours to maintaining relationships with casting directors, take a listen to Kelly’s insight into the working life of an agent. Plus there’s advice for establishing an effective relationship with your own agent.

Take a listen:

You can also listen to the podcast on Podbean,  Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, or wherever you listen to your podcasts.

Full Transcript:

Hi, Kelly! Thank you for appearing on the Spotlight Podcast. Could you start by telling us a bit about yourself and your background in the creative industries?

Kelly Andrews: I could. I’m sure nearly everybody has heard it before, but I’m the daughter of an actress and she’s been quite successful in her career. I never wanted to act at all – I mean really didn’t. So, through her connections at Stratford East, I came up, like lots of people in our community did, in their local theatre. That was my local theatre, and I did backstage hanging around and all that when I was a kid and then went directly to Mountview for their technical theatre course, their stage manager course, which I loved. I suppose that was my university. We didn’t get degrees then in those days for going to drama school, but yeah, it was amazing. And I did a few stage management jobs, touring West End, but I really quickly found out it wasn’t for me.

I really liked to sleep in my own bed – I think that’s what it comes down to. I’m a creature of routine and I like some control over those routines and, actually, touring was just a bit too random for me. So, like lots of actors, I decided I needed to make a change, and I was doing temp jobs in offices and things in between stage management jobs while I worked out what the move was. And then it turned out the move was into agenting, because one of my temp jobs was answering the phone at an agent’s office quite quickly and I never looked back. And here we are 30 years later.

I’ve loved it. I’ve loved every single second of my career, really. Well, except one thing which we’re not going to talk about today because it’s so depressing. Except that one thing, I’ve had a most amazing 30 years. I’ve loved every second of it.

Natasha Raymond: It’s great that you identified that you love this industry. Maybe the acting path wasn’t for you, but you still managed to find a niche in it that you could exist in.

Kelly Andrews: Yeah, it’s been extraordinary. I never wanted to act, but I guess because my mother is an actress, my focus has always been about what’s right for the talent, what’s good for the talent, almost to the detriment of everything else, including my own business model as an agent, really. If that’s what they need to do, we do that.

Natasha Raymond: You’re here today to talk to us about agents and how they work and operate. Everyone listening hopefully has an agent or knows what an agent does, but I think there’s lots of parts of agents that they don’t realise happen, so I’m hoping you can shed some light on that for us today.

Kelly Andrews: We’ll try.

First, could you tell us a bit about your own experience of being an agent?

Kelly Andrews: Well, I think I was very fortunate in becoming an agent. I became an agent, or at least worked in an agent’s office, at the time when there was no email, no internet. As fabulous as you were very kind to say I look today, I am actually now getting on a bit, and so that’s all actually true. It was fax machines, no email, phone, memo pads with sort of carbon copies for giving out messages and suggesting talent was a manual process. You did the phone call and then you physically posted the headshots and CVs out. I know that sounds Dickensian to younger people today, but as busy as it was, there was time in the day because every step of the process was slowed down. If you did phone suggestions and then you posted the suggestions to the casting director, there’s a three-day interval there while those suggestions go forward.

So I had time to learn the job, really learn it, and that was amazing because nobody likes to go to work not knowing what they’re doing. My first two bosses appreciated that. Jonathan Altaras had a plan for training me, and I’ll never forget that. He said I would start working for him in the accounts department because he wanted me to be able to look at his completed, finished deals from the contract as the money was coming in at the end. He said, “Because in that way, you’ll learn both to read the contract a bit, but also, what any actor is worth for any number of days in a film project or a TV project or whatever, based on my deal because I’ve done them and I’m experienced.” He said, “So, you will know what actor X is worth for this job at this point in their career, this status, this level of profile.” He said, “And that’s where you start.”

And I did it. It’s extraordinary how that skill becomes ingrained. You do it enough, it becomes ingrained. Then I went to Pippa Markham – legendary Pippa Markham – and she saw in me a skill for contractual minutiae. And so, she took what I’d already learned in my time with Jonathan and built on that and converted that to knowing what deals are from the verbal deal, converting the verbal deal to the paper, which is then the cement that Jonathan had built on. 

I have a strong nerd lurking inside me, so that wasn’t really a problem, but I loved the obscure clauses. I loved that. I loved that there was a secondary way to advocate and protect actors behind the deal at the front, but then there’s all this other stuff. That was my training. Then I opened my own agency and, frankly, danced into partnership later with Carrie Simcox when that opportunity knocked. We had a very, very happy time together.

Carrie was a different style of agent than any of those I’d worked with. By that time, I felt that I was me plus some of Jonathan, some of Pippa and was sort of in my head. I guess I thought, if I’d thought about it at all, that I was a formed agent. But actually, then I went to work with Carrie and I watched how Carrie did things and so on. And in the end, this is what we do, we just steal the best bits of everybody. So, my agenting style became Johnny’s, Pippa’s and Carrie’s. Carrie is in there too, because in the end, you see how other people [work] and you go, “That’s a useful tool. Oh, they said it that way, that’s quite…” And before you know where you are, I’ve stolen all their best bits and Kelly-fied it. That was my experience of being an agent – I never stopped learning. The whole time, I never stopped learning.

Natasha Raymond: It sounds like, when you were learning, it was hands-on. They got you involved, you got to be part of all these scenarios.

Kelly Andrews: I think most agents are like that in their offices. There’s so much, and now with the advance of technology and the speeding up of the day, I’m pretty sure the agents don’t have time to just go, “Just sit here and learn this.” I’m pretty sure all of their team members are working flat out and trying to absorb it all at the same time because there’s so much to do.

You’ve touched on a few things that you did for your clients when you were an agent. Could you talk about those things? I’m sure there’s a lot of safeguarding that goes on behind the scenes that performers don’t know that their agent is doing.

Kelly Andrews: What I thought would be really helpful is to take you through a single job from the very first sniff of it right through to the end of it. And then the listeners can imagine that being multiplied by all the jobs there are going on at once and remembering that the agent is doing every component of that on a different job at a different time. But I think it’s quite helpful to have one structure to come back to. 

So, basically – and it’s become clearer to me the longer I’m not an agent in my new life – agents are safeguarding superheroes. That’s kind of silly and stupid and also quite current because it goes with the current obsession with franchise film and television and that kind of content. Here’s why I think we are. So, let’s start right at the beginning with a job. An agent will – and forgive me, this probably is an agent hearing about this more than an unrepresented actor at this early stage – an agent might hear about a job in development.

Let’s take what we now are all calling Bridgerton. Let’s take the announcement in 2018 that Shondaland is going to go into a production slate with Netflix. And of the things they’re going to do, they’re going to do a TV series based on Julia Quinn’s Regency romance novels. And at that time, they were muttering [about the], currently called ‘untitled Bridgerton project’. It was in the trades, it was in Deadline. The article is still there on Deadline’s website. And so, an agent immediately goes, “I know nothing about that. Julia Quinn’s Regency what? I haven’t read, I don’t know.” And they charge into reading. And that is quite funny because I remember so often when the Game of Thrones deal was announced between George R.R. Martin and HBO, I got on the train, and every time I got on the train that week, I saw an agent reading a copy of the books.

I’d go, “Oh, hi.” And they’d all be like this on the tube reading the first book because it wasn’t something we’d naturally done. So, the same thing happened a bit with Bridgerton, because you want to know all the things that won’t be in the script to help you pinpoint exactly the best people to suggest. Then finally, sometime later, you hear it’s actually greenlit, it’s got a name or whatever, and you might find out who’s actually casting it. So, then you start doing that, “Oh, I heard you’ve been attached to that project. Are you?” And you start the process of pushing, asking if you can see the scripts, which in the modern era is a bit of a problem because of the non-disclosure agreements, but that’s the job – we start asking. 

Then, eventually, the breakdowns start coming in, which is the bit that passes across Spotlight’s desk all the time. But at the other end, it passes across your system, lands on my desk and I go, “Oh wait a minute, what is that? What is Vauxhall? What is this Project Vauxhall? I don’t know what that is.” And immediately, then, the agent is off on some mystery tour of things that we are required to prove or certify that no one else cares about. The actors don’t. If I phone an actor up and go, “You’re going to be met for Shondaland’s new thing,” it’s like, “Great, I’ll just go. And also, my agent’s had to go, and also I want to work and great, off I go. And they’ve said the magic word ‘Netflix’ – it’s great.” 

But the problem is, for us, the Employment Agencies Act of 1973, which governs how agents operate, and also then a subsequent sort of section of that regulation that came into being in 2003, requires generally, a load of stuff that I’m supposed to know. I’m supposed to be able to provide the identity of the employer is supposed to be known before I affect an introduction between the work seeker, which is the client, and the employer, which is either Shondaland or Netflix or whoever, in any project. So, there it is – I’m supposed to know.

I do know Vauxhall, Bridgerton, Vauxhall Gardens, Regency England, Regency London – I’m a history nerd, I didn’t need to do the research. But, actually, what you need is the Deadline article from 2018 filed away. You need the follow-up article where they actually announce it’s going into production and it is going to be called Bridgerton. And then, the final bit is that kind of like, ‘I so certify in the regs that I know this is Bridgerton’, even though the breakdown says ‘Vauxhall’, the contracts will say ‘Vauxhall’, because that’s the company they’ve started. 

So, there are little bits that agents are doing in the background all the time with projects that arrive. They’ve got code names, they’ve got secret names. An Avengers movie is never called that when it’s casting. There’s loads of stuff that’s happening and it’s not called what it’s supposed to be called and it is not called what it will be called when it airs. And the agent really is, by the regs, required to have all that stuff pinned down. I don’t necessarily bother my client with it, but I’m supposed to know it. And so, that makes this kind of background work that people don’t think we’re doing. 

Then come the suggestions, the bit that Spotlight sees happening again across their platform. Agents are doing that initial click of the faces on their portfolio. I don’t know if people still believe that agents do this, but I hear so many times actors going, “Oh, my agent just clicks my face.” And honestly, that’s not what we’re doing. We have clicked their face, and then we’ve done a call and an email and a push and we might be talking about them at the theatre or we might be doing this or that or the other thing wherever we go.

So, we are trying to push that suggestion forward all the time. Then the audition comes. Here’s some insights for young actors particularly: the audition comes – you’ll never hear an agent tell you it’s an ‘audition’. Never. We call them ‘meetings’ or ‘interviews’ because it’s a safeguarding thing. ‘Audition’ is a word that might be considered hostile, it might be considered combative and not creative, and also implies a hierarchy between collaborative contributors. That’s not helpful for the actor to go in feeling diminished at the audition. So, the agent doesn’t say ‘audition’, the agent says, “You’ve got a meeting.” Much more friendly because a meeting could be a meeting over a cup of coffee. I don’t think anybody really believes the con, but it’s the game the agent starts to play. It’s a jargon pivot that we do automatically.

The regs and the rules are a wider legal form of safeguarding. Do I know what Vauxhall is? Yes, I’ve done my work. This, then, is the start of the softer level of safeguarding to prepare the actor for the audition – don’t make it more difficult. The same thing could be said, soft safeguarding, of reviewing self-tapes. Agents do it. People think we don’t – we do. And sometimes, you have unpleasant conversations because sometimes you have to phone back and go, “I can’t send it.” I mean, for all sorts of reasons. The dog’s licking its bits in the back of the shot and you didn’t notice. I truly saw a video like that once or whatever it is, technical or maybe creative, but agents do that.

Furthermore, we’ll then chase the caster for answers about that video tape and about that piece of auditioning or whatever in an effort to absolutely manage the expectations of the artist. We will be trying to keep the actor calm and ready for the news in whichever way it is. ‘Calm’ came out wrong – that sounds like I’m suggesting actors are losing their minds all the time, which is not the truth. But there is a desire to be able to provide feedback and so you’re trying to acquire that for your actors. 

Then, finally, let’s say we receive the offer. Hurrah, we’re off to the races! And then the next bit that I think agents do that people know we do is the deal, money and terms. That can be quite specific and quite simple actually, to some degree. The dates are the dates, production control the dates. We do an exact monetary deal. We are always pushing that up as best we can. The days of really getting huge uplifts on a deal, I think we’re waving them goodbye, it’s little uplifts now. And then, obviously, the more important the role in the piece, the bigger the other things you have to negotiate – billing, travel, overseas accommodation. There are other things. 

Oh, hang on a minute – there’s another thing I need to know. I need to ask about health and safety. Can you believe it? I’m an agent, I don’t care about health and safety, I don’t. But apparently I’m supposed to, according to the regs. Again, the regs require me to understand and ask questions of production about, “We’ve read the script, or my client has read the script, this is going to happen. Are they going to be safe?” And the really peculiar thing about the regs is the regs don’t care about the answer.

So, I’m wasting all this oxygen asking. I ask production, they go, “No, Kelly, that snake is actually going to attack your client. We’ve got the most poisonous snake in the world. It’s going to stick its fangs in your client’s eye and suck its eyeball out for real, because that’s what the scene needs.” And I go, “Right, fine.” The regs require me to tell that to my client, and then my client makes the informed decision about whether to do that or not do that. That’s the legal safeguarding. Naturally, the soft safeguarding, if you like, is Kelly loses her mind in the office and screams at the producer and suggests that of course, you can’t have a poisonous snake on the set. Could you talk to me about what aesthetics you’ve got for sucking the eye out? But there is that conflict at two layers of things all the time where, “Did I ask, did they answer? Did I tell the client? Did the client say they’re going ahead? Great, so that’s all fine over there now let’s do the deal about that thing.” So, there’s lots of bits in the background, I think, that we are doing that people don’t think. 

Then the contractual paperwork arrives and then quite often, that’s the beginning of what really is quite a fight. The contractual paperwork seldom reflects exactly what you negotiated. And so, you’re still going back going, “No, no, we agreed this fee,” or “We agreed that there wouldn’t be free post-syncing,” or whatever we agreed. And suddenly, you’re fighting it again in the paperwork. The Copyright Act, intellectual property, confidentiality clauses – they all have to be rephrased and reworked, so negotiated. And while technically, in this place, the rules and regs for agents are silent, they don’t require us to do any of this, this is the job. And so, we are doing some of that. Sometimes, we’ll say you need a lawyer to our clients, but other times we’re doing it all. 

And then the very final thing is that you might come across six pages of options to tie your client into the job forever that wasn’t discussed at the beginning either. So, there’s a lot of stuff that has to be worked through, and the actor will probably only sign version three or four of the contract, because agent has done that many back and forwards of that many drafts. 

Then the money is coming in for the actor – hurrah, at last. But the rules and regs require agents to have a designated client account where that money is safe and ringfenced. They require us to have written authorisation from the artists that we can receive that money. They require us to pay out within 10 days of receipt, which sometimes can be difficult, because big organisations will dump royalties and residuals for a bunch of people in your account and you’re like, “Well, where’s the paperwork? I can’t pay it to anyone. I don’t know who it’s for.” And we must generate all the paperwork to certify our commission charging arrangement with the client. That must all be there. That’s both legal and financial safeguarding wrapped up in another set of paperworks. 

Post-production brings more of the same – scheduling, negotiating, invoicing, paying. And so, although the job description has many roles, we could say, I’m a negotiator, I’m a salesperson, I’m a this, I’m a that, or the other one, if you’re an agent, actually an agent is a safeguarder. An agent is a superhero safeguarding officer, standing there at the gate checking everything that comes past for the actor.

That’s for every single project. And don’t forget: half of it you do for the projects that don’t come to anything. I might have done all that work to have my files in order about Bridgerton and never had anybody on it. That’s unlikely when a show goes as long as Bridgerton, but you can have no clients in the first series of a show and then you’ve done all that work in case anybody got a job, because if the employment agency standards inspectorate had come, you have to have your paperwork. So, you’ve got it, the paperwork and nobody on it, and you’re like, “Oh, I can delete that now. They won’t inspect that because nobody did the job.” So, yeah, there is a lot of it and we are trying to be on top of it all the time.

Natasha Raymond: You must have such an organised system to keep on top of that.

Kelly Andrews: There are softwares out there that help agents collate the physical data related to both bits of our job and the bits that overlap with the job of the clients. So, something like the health and safety – there’s software out there that does that for agents, and there are check boxes that we can tick. But yeah, it’s quite a lot. It’s quite a lot.

I’m sure there’s also lots of tasks that the agents have to do to do with housekeeping and running the agency. Could you tell us a bit about those?

Kelly Andrews: Well, in terms of running the agency, we tend to take those rules and regs that I’ve referenced, and those rules and regs are quite clear. There are a couple of places where there are disputes about agents about how they can be read. And then, where there’s a dispute about a particular thing in the regs – like, for example, notice periods between agents and artists – where there’s a dispute, filling the void is the industry standard, what the industry considers best practice. The industry has taken interpretation A and then run all the way with it. So, there’s lots of keeping current in those kinds of things. What does the industry think about this this week or this year? So, there’s lots of that kind of involvement.

Then of course, there’s the obvious thing of just running a business. Whatever business you run, any business, any business owner – there’s all the stuff to do. There’s VAT returns, there’s tax returns, there’s bits of legislation, there’s liability insurance in case your clients visit the office because they might trip over. I don’t know what they’d trip over in my office. There’s all that sort of stuff and agents are doing that. Agents have come to their work through a creative access point primarily, too. I was an ex-stage manager. My colleague agents – many of them are actors or performers in some way who’ve made an early career change. They come from the same place that the actors come. So, all that, “Have I got public liability insurance?” stuff is wearing. And the renewals come and you go, “Oh god, are we there again already? More insurance. Oh, great.” So, yeah, there’s a lot.

Natasha Raymond: It’s quite funny, I suppose. Some people might duck out of acting and go to the agent side thinking it’s going to be simpler, and then actually, no.

Kelly Andrews: Indeed. And I think it’s a certain skill set. It really is a blending of really detail-oriented administration and reading, and then the creative bit of working with the actor and suggesting the actor and finding the right opportunities for the actor, and trying to make sure that you are, with every suggestion, pushing the actor in the direction they have asked to go. Not every job is that, but the overall mission is to get to the place the actor’s asked to get to. So, it is a blend of both things. It’s not just one thing, it’s not just either admin or creativity.

On top of all of that, there’s also promoting and talking your clients up to casting directors and just increasing the chances that they’ll get the job. Could you tell us about that side of it as well?

Kelly Andrews: Fostering relationships with sector professionals is a really big one. It’s really important. I think it’s really easy for people to assume that press nights are not really work. The actors know they’re working because they’re on the stage, they’re performing, and they’ve been rehearsing to get to this place. And I think it’s really easy to assume there’s not another kind of work going on. Agents work quite hard at those events, I have to say. 

Beyond the introduction of this client who is in this project to whoever may be assembled at the press night, it’s equally important that the agent is keeping up their own relationships with casting directors, directors, producers, all those people in those rooms, because we’re always talking. I think we all know, don’t we, that in our sector, we are all quite dull. We only talk about ourselves and our art forms collectively. In this industry, I seldom meet people who want to talk about something else. We always talk about what you saw at the cinema, what you saw on television, if you enjoyed something at the theatre, what’s happening in this bit of the industry, is there a problem there, is there going to be a tariff issue now hitting the industry in the UK? We always talk about work, even when we’re all out with our pals. 

And I think that’s partially because there’s a social element to what we do at press nights and in those events because, actually, we always need to be current. Being late to the party about a project or about some piece of information is not helpful for your client. Therefore, the effort is always to be in front of the curve. Do I know it? Have I seen them? And that’s often after a 10-hour day at the desk. You know that old thing Ginger Rogers famously said about Fred Astaire – ‘Well, I do everything he does, but I do it backwards and in heels’. Still being at a press night event at two in the morning or one in the morning can be quite a lot if you’ve done 10 hours at the desk all day. So, fostering those relationships is important. 

Advocating for the general health of the sector is important, and I mean buoyancy health. The PMA membership are really good at this. Lots of agents work closely with Equity for the purpose of saving what’s left of our industry. There are working groups, committees. There’s some incredibly useful seminars out there, and all of that connects the artist to the industry through their agent, because their agent is doing that connection, the agent is doing all of that work. And that in turn then connects the client, even though they’re unaware of it, and perhaps even frustrated that the assistant says, “I’m sorry, she’s at a seminar this afternoon.” That can feel frustrating for the artist, but, actually, at that seminar, I might come back with a piece of information that’s so important. Agents come back with a piece of information that helps move everything forward. 

I suppose I should say that social media is useful to promote clients, both specifically a specific client and collectively, and agents, I think, are always trying to wrangle the best way to achieve that. For my part, I find it’s got limited use. So much of what appears on social media is factually inaccurate. Sources of information have always to be carefully scrutinised, and the way projects and the details of who’s in them now are embargoed for such a long period of time after they’re made, that in the end, you can’t do a social media sort of push until the production have announced in their way. 

You can be part of that, you can feed into that, but you can’t actually go, “Actually, my client has just finished filming on this exciting job and is available please everybody. They’ve just been playing the lead over here.” You can’t do that because you can’t tell anybody that they were in it. Somebody smarter than me probably can tell you, “Yes, yes, Kelly is wrong. There’s loads of ways [social media] can be much, much more useful.” But for my part, I know that a lot of agencies in the UK have not yet adopted a social media marketing manager for their firm, because we are just silenced. We are gagged about so much stuff that some days you think, “I don’t know why I’m bothering. I’m reposting information that’s five days old because I wasn’t allowed to say six months ago when it would’ve been useful.”

Natasha Raymond: Has it always been that way or has that changed as the industry has evolved?

Kelly Andrews: In truth, in the early days of social media, everybody said everything, and like we always make jokes about everything, it used to be the Wild West. But now, the big companies are much more smart about what they will and won’t let you do. You can see it to a point. If you are making a major Avengers movie or a major franchise piece, you don’t want it all blown up because there’s a secret thing that they’ve cast actor X. They want to control it, and to a degree, you can understand that. But it’s quite difficult because they apply those embargoes to everybody in the cast, where actually, there might be a level of actor in the project who’s doing good work, has a nice role in it, that’s really not going to crack open a storyline and not going to reveal anything. But those embargoes are applied right the way down the call sheet.

So, you can’t say, “This client is doing this in this,” which might mean nothing to the fans because the character might be a character created just for the television or film version of it that doesn’t appear in the original source material. But you still can’t do that because you are as embargoed as the agent who looks after Hugh Jackman or Jeremy Renner or whoever.

Natasha Raymond: Which is a real shame, because obviously, Hugh Jackman doesn’t need you going around saying, “Hugh Jackman is going to be in this fantastic project.” But someone who’s playing Hugh Jackman’s character’s brother – that could be their first role. That could be huge for them progressing their career.

Kelly Andrews: And you are gagged in the same way as Hugh Jackman’s publicity team are. Social media, I don’t know. I’m not sure. It’s much more useful in my second career, which we’ll talk about later. But for agents, honestly, I don’t know.

How can performers, agents and casting directors maintain good relationships when working together?

Kelly Andrews: Honestly, it’s really not complex at all. It’s not even a secret, really. Keep the personality out of it. Remember that we’re all professionals. Agents, industry sector professionals, casting directors – I think all of those people can say, yeah, that’s what happens. I read, years ago, that the only really right deal is one where everybody walks away slightly grumpy, slightly ruffled, slightly genuinely annoyed and slightly dissatisfied because actually, that means everybody’s done their job, everybody’s argued for their corner. The whole thing is faintly unhappy at the end, and that makes it a good deal because that means everybody’s done their job. And I think that, certainly for agents and casting directors, that’s what that relationship is. We all know what we’re doing.

A casting director works largely on behalf of the production side of the fight, if you like, if there is one, which there isn’t. Casting work on behalf of production and are required to push in one direction. The agent is required to push the other way – that’s the job. They want cheap, we want more money, in a really simple equation. They might not want to see a certain client, we might want to press a little harder to try and encourage them to do that. That give and take, that backwards and forwards, it’s the job. It’s absolutely the job description. Although we are a community of really passionate, really exciting, engaged people, we do all know what our roles are. So, sometimes it can be a bit heated, but honestly, it very rarely gets really ugly. We all know what our jobs are and we are fulfilling those functions every day. 

So, keeping it professional is really the beginning and the end of it because we know. You may be personally friendly in how you go about it, but we’re not all friends. Most agents, casting directors and independent consultants like me, we will have certain agents and casting directors who are friends and others that we just are socially happy to meet, but the job is the job, and we tend not to lose our minds with each other as often as people think. So, keep it professional.

Natasha Raymond: Definitely. I think, as well, there’s something to be said for trusting everyone to get on with their job. I know performers sometimes want to know what their agent’s been submitting them for. If someone is concerned about what their agent is doing, is there no trust in that relationship?

Kelly Andrews: Trust is a really important part of the relationship between the artist and the agent. But we all know that trust has to be earned, and so blind trust is not helpful or useful really for anybody. That said, I’ve always felt, and I feel other agents would say the same, that actually, to give trust unreservedly at the very beginning of the relationship between the actor and the agent is quite important. Give it first and then withdraw it if there is proof that it needs to be withdrawn. 

Because the artist is putting a great deal of faith in that moment when they choose that agent. They are putting a lot of faith in that agent – that the agent will know the right people, will be able to make the right connections, can negotiate the deals they want, all of that stuff. And for the agent’s part, they have the same kind of concerns. This actor wants this, can I achieve that for them and are we the right fit? Will working with them be okay? And also, for agents, there’s one additional thing: what’s the next thing I’m going to do for that person? They’ve come to me, what’s the first email I’m going to send or the first call I’m going to [make]? What’s the next first thing that I do for them? 

So, we need there to be that trust. Agents are not just bookers. We are not just clicking the mouse and doing suggestions. I keep saying we – this is because I was an agent for so long and my new business is only four years old and in my identity and in my heart, somehow I keep saying we. I mean agents – they – because I’m not one any longer. 

Agents are a commission only business. So, if the artist isn’t eating, neither is the agent. The agent isn’t working on somebody else on the client list and not that artist, they’re working on everybody all the time. And they are quite self-disciplined. They do a lot of boring prep work, really quite a lot of boring prep work. What is boring varies agent by agent, but here’s an example from my agenting life: 

I really dislike comedy. I really dislike it, pretty much all comedy, scripted comedy, unscripted comedy, stand-up, slapstick – I hate it all. Now, that gives a really big gap in my knowledge base of what’s current in comedy, what’s happening in comedy, what’s been written. If I don’t volunteer as a consumer to watch comedy, which I do not, then there’s a whole bunch of stuff going on in the industry that I’m not aware of. And so, I have to backfill that. I have to know my deficiency and fill it. So, for the course of my agenting career, I would be watching an awful lot of stuff I didn’t want to watch in order that I could be current about a rising comedic talent, a rising comedic writer and all of those things that I’m not interested in. 

So, while it’s very easy for me to speak about what’s happening in television and film on the drama side or what’s happening in the theatre – which theatre directors I prefer, that’s really easy for me and always was. Comedy is difficult. So, watch, watch, watch and make notes about what you’re watching and try to see what’s happening, because resting ignorance is not helpful. You need to be proactive. So, yeah, I found it quite difficult in that regard because comedy really isn’t funny. So, really sitting there all that time doing it was quite hard work. 

But an agent wants their actor to trust them, so that if an agent says, “Please do this job,” or, more importantly, “Please do not do this job,” the artist knows that’s coming from a place of research, a place of consideration. We are not just going, “Oh, they’re difficult to deal with, please don’t do this job.” It’s never that. We have a specific reason. Sometimes we can’t even say what that reason is. Another client might have had a bad experience with that producer. There’s confidentiality issues, you can’t say that, but there’s a bit of you going, “We’re going down a rabbit hole here. Please don’t do this job.” 

The agent needs that trust, and that’s where the trust component is. Please trust that the agent is doing the thing you’re asking them to do. Being knowledgeable about who’s a rising director and who’s a falling one. We are trying to look after you. Please let us. I think that’s something in the trust that sometimes gets lost.

Sometimes a performer needs to leave their agent because the relationship isn’t working out. Do you have any advice on warning signs that performers could look out for, or ways that they can do that gently?

Kelly Andrews: I think three things in the relationship are really important: communication, availability information and trust – we’ve talked about trust. Communication flows in both directions. If the artist calls the agent and the agent can’t speak to them right then, try not to be offended. Try to leave a message that conveys whether this is actually urgent, we actually have a crisis or it’s time critical, or it really isn’t, because the agent isn’t ducking you, the agent is just trying to balance their day. If it’s urgent, they’ll call you right back. If it’s not urgent, perhaps it can be kicked to tomorrow. That kind of openness in the communication is needed, and that’s a two-way street. 

Being transparent about your availability as an artist is really important and it’s a bafflingly underused skill by artists. They just are not clear about it. They just don’t be transparent about what their availability actually is. Agents operate on the assumption that the artist is always ready, always wishful to be working. So, failure to communicate accurate availability issues is far more detrimental than it looks on the surface, because it’s just about, “Oh, I can’t do that day.” But in this industry we’re now in – not the one I started in 30 years ago – they’re not doing meetings on another day, they’re not doing it then. The producer and the director and the people, they’re all on recces on other days – this is the day. So, if you can’t do it, let’s all know that you can’t do it, and let’s not mess everybody around and have five phone calls when one would’ve done because I’d have known.

Availability information has so much more import in the day. So, any artist can really make their agent deliriously happy by simply just being clear about periods of genuine non-availability, and making discerning judgments about what is non-availability and what isn’t. So, surgery cannot be moved. Routine dental hygiene can be moved. Your agent really wants to know, and is desperately concerned about the former, and doesn’t absolutely care at all about the latter. So, if you’ve got dental hygiene, don’t tell me, because you’ll move it. If I come to you with a job, surely you’ll move it, won’t you? So, that availability thing, it is a permanent issue in that relationship.

The difficulties, I think, with that relationship are intangible. They’re far more personality-oriented and almost spiritual or psychological – a breakdown in the relationship. Because that’s what it is. Agents are working hard, we are working for you. Just because you didn’t hear from us doesn’t mean we’re not suggesting you. Just because we’re not talking to you, we might be talking to somebody else about you. So, an agent is working. 

I think it will become clear that the relationship is not working because the agent really, then, is ducking you. So, rather than you calling saying it’s not urgent, could they call me before the end of the week, the artist then waits a long time for that call. That might indicate there’s something going on, and that works both ways. If the two people don’t actually want to talk to each other anymore, then it’s time to move on. But it isn’t time to move on because you were in the green room chatting to another actor in the interval of a play you’re doing and that actor said, “You should be with my agent.” Well, do you need to be? Because we’re all in the same green room on the same job. 

It is quite a difficult evaluation to make, if it’s time to move on. Some agents might give signals, some agents might say, “I’m struggling to find you the kind of work you’re looking for.” And then that should be the beginning of an honest conversation. “Okay, am I right to be looking for that kind of work? Am I wrong to be looking for that kind of work? Should I be doing that?” And then maybe it will naturally resolve itself. 

But truly, in my experience, I see a lot of actors move on, and then six months later wish they’d not. So, I would urge people to be very sure they’re clear about why and it’s almost always and only a breakdown in the relationship, especially if you’re not really aware of what’s happening in the sector, because you might think it’s quiet for you and the agent is going, “It’s quiet for everybody. It’s not just you.” So, the breakdown of the communication indicates that the information is not flowing in both directions. Maybe that’s the moment, then.

Natasha Raymond: I think that’s excellent advice as well – not to let other actors in the industry influence you. Wait for the problems to make themselves apparent. Don’t let people tell you these are problems.

Kelly Andrews: Obviously, any actor who is saying, “Come to my agent,” in and of itself in a capsule, that’s a fantastic thing, because that actor is excited and engaged about their agent. They’re proud of what their agent’s doing for them. They feel the team thing is really working. That’s a great thing. But the actor hearing that needs to evaluate whether they’re in a team of their own with their own agent, because if you are in the same green room, then do the agents not have similar connections? We’re all in the same job, we’re all at the same press night. So, I think it is about being sure.

And sometimes you do need to go. I’m not advocating entirely for agents in a blind way. Sometimes it is time, and sometimes an agent will be struggling because the actor has had a difficult year. They might feel now is not the time to say, “I’m no longer the right voice for you. I can’t find the work you’re looking for.” They might not want to say that because the actor has had a bad year, but there will be an energy change, and I think everything else is noise. That’s the moment. Is the relationship disintegrating? In which case, it’s time to go.

Natasha Raymond: Would an agent always be quite upfront about that? They wouldn’t avoid having that conversation.

Kelly Andrews: I think they would. I think the industry is very hard at the moment. Remember everything I’ve said about safeguarding superheroes? We’re also safeguarding the actor’s creativity, the actor’s energy. Actors do a thing that I could never do. They put themselves at risk of hearing the words ‘no’ day after day after day. I’m going to go to this audition – which isn’t an audition, it’s a meeting – they’re going to go to a meeting, and they’re going to put all their creativity out there, and then someone’s going to say, “No,” and then they’re going to shake it off and get up tomorrow and do it all again. 

That’s a very peculiar ability. It’s a really odd skill. I can spot a real actor, and they’re not really sure they want to be an actor, basically by looking for that bit of DNA. You can be talking to two people in a room and go, “Yeah, you are an actor. You are not actually because you actually haven’t got that thing. That DNA thing about, ‘I will keep going, I will put myself out there’.” You have to respect that as an agent because you’re not doing it. You might be cold-calling on their behalf, but you’re not actually physically going in the room. They’re not saying ‘no’ to me, they’re saying ‘no’ to the artist. So, in that way, I think it’s really important for agents, and they do it a lot, to safeguard that creativity. They protect it a bit.

There’s a bit of it where we might not make that call and say, “It’s time for you to go,” because if the actor has had a bad year, and had a bunch of ‘no’s, do they need a no from their agent as well right now? An agent might not do it, and that’s why we’re not doing it – because on the off chance that an interview comes in in five minutes, does the act need all that going on in their head? 

So, it can be difficult to discern. I think it’s fair to say that an actor might not hear that from their agent. I think it’s fair. It might be a little bit more trying to discern it. It’s not a great answer, is it? The listeners are going, “I want Kelly to tell me exactly when it’s time for me to leave my agent.” And I didn’t, did I? I basically said stay where you are.

Natasha Raymond: You gave them good things to think about and good things to look out for. I think the personality difference, like you say, I hadn’t thought of that actually, but you’re right, it is a working relationship.

Kelly Andrews: The truth is if you’re going to deal with an artist regularly, [so] there is an element of you do like them. Most agents, I think, will say, “Do I want to work with this person for 15 years?” is in the back of their head in that first meeting, because they’re going to be stuck with each other potentially. And so, you want to feel that on that journey you’re going to grow as people, that the relationship is going to grow. So, an agent is making that evaluation the same way an actor is, and we want that to be great. So, in the end, you do kind of like your clients.

I was very lucky. Right up until I decided to stop agenting, I felt that no matter what I saw when I went to the theatre – how dreadful the play might be, how disappointed I might be in the director or the script or whatever I was seeing – what was not ever going to disappoint me, very rarely, was my actual client. Because I had chosen their talent, I had continued to choose that talent by staying with them, by endorsing them, by continuing to suggest them and represent them for many years. So, I would go there thinking, “Well, I don’t need to worry about my client tonight. Everybody else might look rubbish, but my client will be great.” 

Now, that might be a bit of self-delusion. That might be a bit of the actor’s strength that the actor exhibits in the audition. That might be the agent’s strength, where the agent just goes, “My clients are going to be fine.” But that’s what the actor wants. The actor wants to feel that’s still happening, and that’s the moment when maybe there’s clues.

As a former agent, is there anything that an agent would want performers to know but they couldn’t necessarily tell them themselves?

Kelly Andrews: There’s like a Sicilian thing – a blood oath I’ve signed of things I probably shouldn’t say. This is hard but be realistic about the profession you’re in and the position you hold currently in it. That’s not to trample on people’s dreams. An actor is holding their dreams of a career here in their hands and it’s the agent’s job never to diminish that, and I wouldn’t want anybody to think that agents are diminishing that. But an evaluation of where you are in your career at all times is healthy.

Do your reading. I have an agent friend who said to me years ago that an actor had called to talk about what was happening in their career – it had been a bit quiet. And he hadn’t said it, but he had wanted to say, “But have you read Broadcast this week?” I know that all actors, and writers too, come to our community from a place of creativity, initially. But you’re joining a business. It’s called show ‘business’, not anything else. And therefore, in this era, with all of the advances in technology and all of the advances that we’ve seen in my 30 years as an agent, I believe that artists need to understand a little bit more about the business than the creativity of the business. The creativity they have, they do it, they know what they’re doing with the script. I would never presume to say, but I would presume to say be aware about what’s happening in our sector. 

Do your reading. Read The Stage, read Broadcast. If you can afford it, take it. It’s very much production led. It very much is talking about film finance, TV finance – the business bit in the UK. But if you don’t know for yourself when somebody says to you, “Commissioning is really down in 2025, which is why nothing’s happening,” – if someone says that to you, your own reading will tell you that that’s true or not true. And then you know a decision about the person who’s telling you that. 

I think we would want to say, be realistic. Look at the shape of the industry. Look at where you are. If you are a leading artist, then you’re not looking so hard at the state of the industry because you are already booked through to ’28. If you’re in your career somewhere, not in the leading roles, have a look at what’s happening around you because other forces are at play. It’s not just that they don’t want you.

I think that’s the thing. I think just a little wider awareness, not trapped entirely in the text, not trapped entirely in the script or entirely in the creativity. Just raise your eyes a little wider at what’s happening in the sector, because there’s lots of things happening in the sector. I made a joke about the tariffs five minutes ago, and we’re all sitting here hyperventilating and breathing to wait to see what that looks like. If that happens, what will that be? What will we do? Who’s doing what to help fight that? Just vague awareness. These are real things. These are real things that will contribute to a downsizing of our production level. And if they’re not making it, the actor can’t be in it.

And also, being aware of all the things in the world, all the diversity, inclusivity, all of the challenges that our sector is actually leading the charge on. There are lots of other industries and professions that are way behind even thinking about this kind of stuff. We are dealing with it head on, doing our best. There’s still work to do, but we are moving forward. That’s something actors need to take on as well, because sometimes you are just not right for the role because you are not culturally correct. You don’t have the lived life skills. There’s something happening in the project that makes you ineligible this time. 

That doesn’t mean the industry’s over for you. It just means things are changing. Be aware of what they are so that every rejection is not so personal. That’s the other thing – actually, today, they wanted somebody with blue eyes and you’ve got brown eyes. They were family matching. But more often than not now, those decisions about why you didn’t get a job are bigger. And so, it’s good to be informed about what those things are.

Natasha Raymond: I’m sure all the agents will thank you for saying that at long last to the clients.

Kelly Andrews: They’ll also thank me for the notes I left at home that I didn’t bring today, all the things of the blood oath that I didn’t say.

Could you tell us a bit about what you’re doing now?

Kelly Andrews: Just before all the Covid-19 stuff, it made a life change. I stopped being an agent, and I rather thought maybe it was sort of over – the industry. I sort of thought maybe that’s it. And being an agent is a very London-centric sort of tied life. So, I moved out of London to be nearer family. A week before we physically put our bits in the moving van, the Covid pandemic lockdown began. So, I moved in the second week of the lockdown out of London. So, it was a great place to be locked down, because it was fields and country and what a lovely place in that hot weather to be allowed to go for your one hour walk a day. 

But it meant that my opportunities for seeking employment were suddenly very different because I thought, “Oh, I’ll go there and there’s lots of [jobs].” For a while, I thought, partially because of why I stopped being an agent, “I’ll just get a job, any job. Mental health break, get a job, that’ll be fine.” And, of course, I didn’t. My mental health break was everybody else’s Covid. 

Lots of people called me about force majeure clauses in the theatre, contracts that were being collapsed because of Covid. “Can they do this? Kelly, you are really good. You used to be chair of the PMA. You’re really good at reading this minutiae. Can they do this? Can they do it this way? Do we have to let them not pay the artist for this?” And a lot of people kept calling. And then one of my friends actually went, “Oh, you haven’t got anybody on this job, have you?” And I went, “No. I’m not an agent anymore, no.” And they said, “Oh, I think I should probably be paying you for this. This is like a consult.” “Oh, it’s a consult?” And here we are. 

So, four years after that or three years after that, my title is consultant. I’m a business affairs and talent agency consultant. I work with agents and casting directors on two things. I have a coaching and training side where I help young agents and young casting people learn about the agreements that operate the contractual component of booking an artist. I do that. For some very junior agents, I do basic driving the desk skills. I have all sorts of agent-related sort of stuff over there. 

And then the other part of my job is truly consulting, which is agents who don’t have the time in the day to do the 40 pages of the contract that’s come from one of these big employment companies for their artists. They just don’t have the time. 40 pages of contractual nonsense that they have to go back and forth and challenge and do all of that. I do that for them. They will outsource that bit to me in conjunction with them because I don’t know the artist, I don’t know the deal. Obviously, they’ve done all of that.

So, I’ll do that if they’re too busy, or as has happened recently in a couple of occasions, kids agencies who are dealing with much, much bigger deals than they’ve historically ever seen, that have tie-ins for longer periods. All sorts of things like that. I’m just a resource, really, now. That’s what I do. I do consulting for the industry, for the sector about how we do it and helping everybody stay honest, not keeping them honest because they already are, but actually helping them. It’s a lot of work for agents and I can do some of it for them.

Natasha Raymond: It’s good to know that even if you’ve taken a step back from being an agent, they can still access your knowledge and all those years of experience.

Kelly Andrews: And it’s really good for me because at the point I decided to not agent anymore, I really felt that 30 years of investment was sort of slipping through my fingers, and that I might not use that skill and that knowledge. And I’m a nerd. I love it! I’ve got books all over my shelves now about intellectual property and copyright and AI and all of that sort of stuff. All the current challenges. Much more time to read all that stuff than I had when I was an agent, and I love that. So, in a way, it’s worked out for me really well. I’m sort of doing the same job, I’m safeguarding, but one removed. I’m standing behind the agent. The agent is doing all the work, and I’m just going, “How about this? Maybe about this. Can I help with this? Do you want help with that? No. Okay, I’ll go away, fine.” It’s great. I get to use everything I’ve learned and focus on the bit that interests me most.

Natasha Raymond: I reckon you’ll have some very interesting discussions coming up with all this AI stuff coming into the industry. That’s either going to be a field day or a headache.

Kelly Andrews: I think the really clear thing is the industry doesn’t really want to say you can’t use it. All of us, I think, appreciate a great Saturday night in the cinema watching a Superman movie or a Mission Impossible movie or an Avengers movie. I think we do. And I think nobody wants to say, “Well, actually, if you need to make Tom Cruise fly and he’s really not doing this one thing himself, use a bit of AI, that’s fine.” I don’t think anybody thinks that that’s ridiculous. I think we want production to be able to make the best production, but I think we need to be clear that we’re only using those tools in a way to enhance this project. Not to let that acquired artistic input get spread like butter across a load of other things and for the AI to learn how to do something better that, ultimately, will lead to the absence of a job for somebody in the industry.

Natasha Raymond: That could be a whole separate podcast in itself.

Kelly Andrews: Or a whole separate day of meetings here at Spotlight when the whole industry comes together to debate the problem.

Finally, what have you recently seen that you’ve enjoyed and would recommend to other people?

Kelly Andrews: This was the one I was hoping we’d talk so much we’d never get to, because I don’t really have a very good answer. I’m incredibly – which you might have guessed by now – actor driven. I’m the daughter of an actress, and I was actor driven as an agent and I still am as a consumer, which means that I just like good actors, brilliant actors doing their thing, wherever that is. And sometimes, it’s in really weird places. You’ll turn something on and think, “Oh, this is load of old rubbish. Oh my God, what’s he doing? Look at that performance.” I’m really like that. And that’s what I look for. The script might be dreadful, the plot might be entirely unbelievable, but I see an unexpected sparkling moment of acting and I can go for months on that. I’m like, “Do you remember that moment when so-and-so did so-and-so?” And people are like, “I didn’t even see it.” I’m like, “Well, no. Probably because you weren’t looking in that thing.”

For an example, obviously everybody’s been talking about Timothée Chalamet’s work in A Complete Unknown, not least all me, because I’m a huge fan of his. I think he’s always quite wonderful. And then there’s Edward Norton – always quite wonderful – knocking it out of the park in the second role. But are many people talking about Scoop McNairy? Are they? Three, maybe four scenes, doesn’t speak. Literally, the character doesn’t speak. I think one line? It’s absolutely extraordinary work and he should have been nominated in every best supporting actor category we had last year. He was extraordinary. 

For me, it’s that kind of thing. It’s the excellent performances. But if you really, really want an answer, I’m going to go with the Netflix Oscar winner, Emilia Pérez. It’s not that recent, but it’s a very controversial project. It was very difficult – a blend of song and music and dance, and a very serious subject, and drug cartels. There’s a whole bunch of stuff on paper. You go, “None of that works. It does not work on paper,” and it really does for me. It really did on camera. I thought those three ladies were extraordinary. And I think, stylistically, it was really difficult and I think they did it. It really worked for me. So, there you are. That’s it. That’s the one I’m going with.

Natasha Raymond: That’s a good one. I knew it wasn’t going to be a comedy, whatever you said.

Kelly Andrews: Absolutely nothing funny! Now I’m not an agent, I don’t watch it. Which people who know who my mum is think is hilarious, because a large part of her career has been in comedy and situation comedy on television. And I just sit there going, “I don’t know any of this. I don’t laugh at anything.” Terrible.

Thanks, Kelly, for taking the time to talk to us on the Spotlight Podcast!

Take a look at our website for more agent-related tips and advice and other episodes of the Spotlight Podcast.

The post The Secret Life of Agents with Kelly Andrews appeared first on Spotlight.

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Spotlight members can claim a year’s subscription to Audition Ready for the discounted price of £9.99. To claim the discount, create an Audition Ready account and enter the code at checkout. You can find the code in two places:

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The Labour government is in the process of changing rights for workers in the biggest shake-up of employment law in decades. The government has already introduced legislation to increase the rights of workers in the Employment Rights Bill. However, the government has also proposed streamlining the definition of ‘worker’ so that as many workers as possible will have access to these new rights when they are implemented. 

However, changing the definition of workers raises a concern for performers who are ‘dual status’. Being dual status means that performers are ‘employed’ for the purpose of employment rights and National Insurance (classes 2 and 4) but are self-employed for tax purposes. Performers are the only workers in the UK to hold this unique classification. 

As the government moves to streamline the workers classifications to ensure that as many people working in the UK can access the new rights provided for in the Employment Rights Act, it’s possible that performers will be reclassified as ‘workers only’ and they will lose the separate classification for tax. Therefore, they may lose the financial benefits this classification brings them, a change that could potentially financially exclude many performers from the industry. 

To highlight this issue, Spotlight has been in conversation with the Departments for Business and Trade, and Culture, Media and Sport to ensure that the dual status is factored into conversations around this second stage of the Labour government’s efforts to change employment law in the UK.

Why Being ‘Dual Status’ Matters? 

In 1993, the A. D. McCowen and S. A. West V The Commissioners of Inland Revenue case set out how HMRC would treat performers when it came to employment rights and tax. As a performer has to take steps to build a business and incur the costs of maintaining their business beyond attending rehearsals and performances, it was successfully argued that they should be able to claim business expenses against tax. This is because there’s a real risk that performers will incur financial losses as they grow their business. The landmark case was supported by the whole sector, which funded it and lobbied for the government to recognise how actors work in our industry and so, the dual status classification was introduced.

The dual status classification is applied only to performers and it recognises their itinerant pattern of work:

• A number of separate engagements that may be consecutive or concurrent
• Periods of unemployment
• A requirement to do activities in their own time, such as learning lines or new skills

Being dual status ensures performers can invest in their business to help it grow without having to absorb all of those costs as they expand and develop their skills and experience.

Business expenses that can be claimed back against tax include: 

• Agents’ and managers’ fees
• Agents’ books
• Travel expenses to and from interviews or auditions
• Training and skills boosts
• The cost of Spotlight and Equity subscriptions.

These are all business costs necessary to sustain and grow that individual performer’s value and to keep their development relevant to the industry. 

In addition, at present, performers are legally allowed to be employed in part-time work (for example, within the service industry or as a teacher), and still protect their dual status as a performer. This allows them to financially support themselves when necessary as they develop and grow as a performer until that work can be their sole income.

The industry has lobbied hard to protect performers’ dual status for tax and National Insurance to ensure they could weather periods of unemployment without having to compromise on their ambitions. 

After many years of ongoing conversations about why and how this works for performers, HMRC now has extensive guidance on its website recognising the unique way actors work and how that applies to tax.

What Would be the Impact on Performers When the Employment Rights Change?

The reason for the reclassification of workers is, on the whole, a positive one. It opens up access to benefits such as sick pay, maternity/paternity leave, and protection against unfair dismissal and is a policy that we welcome. It’s important that actors gain those rights. 

However, as that change happens, the status quo of self-employed for tax must also carry over. As much as it’s important for the financial viability and sustainability of careers in acting, it’s also important to the industry because it ensures diversity on our stages and screens. Without retaining the dual status, performers will be financially worse off. Those from working-class backgrounds or groups that are already under-represented could be effectively financially excluded from the sector as they may struggle to support themselves between roles or afford the resources needed to maintain and develop their skills to remain relevant.

Simply put, being able to claim back tax helps performers to offset the costs necessary to grow their business when they may not have access to family wealth to tide them over. This should not be a reason someone does not get to choose to be a performer or why the sector loses out on showcasing the fantastic range of talent we have in this country.

What is Spotlight Doing to Help Highlight the Importance of Dual Status to the Government?

While the intention behind the government’s policy change is very positive, if the dual status is not protected as those changes take place there’s a risk of unintentional damage to the cultural ecosystem and this must be prevented. 

Spotlight is committed to making performing careers as sustainable and accessible as possible to everyone, regardless of their financial status. We want to see ongoing protections in place so performers have the flexibility they need to be creatively free whilst growing their business. 

Spotlight has been briefing parties and partners about the potential impact on the creative sector. We submitted a joint letter to the Labour government in July 2024 in conjunction with those partners. We’re monitoring the second stage of the employment rights changes over the summer and into the new year and will work with partners in the sector to make sure this vital provision is protected as those new rights take effect.

The government is committed to consulting on the changes before introducing legislation and performers’ voices must be heard on this matter, so we’ll be encouraging our partners and subscribers to respond to the consultation when the time comes.

The post What Performers Need to Know About Employment Law Changes appeared first on Spotlight.

Theatre is living up to its reputation this season both on the West End and around the country as being one of the most inspiring and vibrant means of entertainment. We have so many new productions to look forward to over the coming months, it’s hard to narrow it down to just a few, but we gave it a good go. 

Read on to see a list of some of those exciting new productions coming to London and a town near you.

Evita

Casting by Will Burton CDG.

Andrew Lloyd Webber’s classic musical tells the timeless story of Eva Perón and her rise from poverty to becoming one of Argentina’s most influential figures. Broadway and Hollywood star Rachel Zegler takes the lead role of ‘Eva’ and Diego Andres Rodriguez as ‘Che Guevara’, with a supporting cast including James Olivas, and Spotlight members Aaron Lee Lambert and Bella Brown.

This exciting new production of Evita is brought to the London Palladium by the Jamie Lloyd Company, whose previous productions include the Tony and Olivier Award-winning Sunset Boulevard and the 2025 iteration of The Tempest, starring Sigourney Weaver. 

‘Evita’ opened at the Palladium on 14 June and will run until 6 September 2025. 

Burlesque

Casting by Harry Blumenau CDG. 

From the big screen to a West End theatre, Burlesque is the stage adaptation of the 2010 film which starred Christina Aguilera and Cher. This rags to riches tale follows ‘Ali’ as she leaves her sleepy Iowa town for the bright lights of Los Angeles with big dreams of becoming a singer. She finds herself working in the Burlesque Lounge and drama follows.

This highly anticipated stage adaptation is moving into the Savoy Theatre after successful runs in both Manchester and Glasgow in 2024. Singer and songwriter Todrick Hall will be directing and choreographing this vibrant new production, whilst also playing the role of ‘Shaun’, the character portrayed by Stanley Tucci in the 2010 film. The show also stars Spotlight members Jess Folley, George Maguire, Asha Parker-Wallace and Paul Jacob French.

‘Burlesque’ opens at the Savoy Theatre on 10 July for a limited run, closing on 6 September 2025.

The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical

Casting by Bill Kenwright Ltd.

After its successful run at The Other Palace in London, The Lightning Thief is hitting the road. The hilarious, creative and highly entertaining stage adaptation is based on the Rick Riordan books, and sees Percy Jackson and his friends set off on an epic adventure full of Greek gods, terrifying villains and vibrant musical numbers. 

The show stars Spotlight members Vasco Emauz (Back to the Future) as ‘Percy Jackson’, Kayna Montecillo (Starlight Express) as ‘Annabeth’ and Cahir O’Neill (Fame) as ‘Grover’. 

The tour kicks off at the Theatre Royal Windsor on 15 August and closes on 28 February 2026 at the Birmingham Hippodrome. 

Dear England

Casting by Bryony Jarvis-Taylor CDG.

After a sell-out run at The National Theatre and an equally successful production at the Prince Edward Theatre on London’s West End, Dear England is heading out on tour later this year. 

Following Gareth Southgate as he faces the pressures of managing the men’s England football squad and the bumps they faced as a team throughout three major tournaments – the 2018 World Cup in Russia, the 2020 Euros in the UK and the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. The cast is led by Spotlight members Gwilym Lee as ‘Southgate’ and Ryan Whittle as ‘Harry Kane’.

The UK tour opens on 15 September at the Theatre Royal Plymouth, stopping off in Canterbury, Leeds, Southampton and concludes on 14 March 2026 at the Birmingham Hippodrome.

Inside No. 9: Stage/Fright

Casting by Anna Cooper CDG.

Following the success of the play at the Wyndham Theatre on London’s West End, Inside No. 9 creators Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith are taking their sell-out black comedy play, based on the hugely popular BBC experimental anthology series, on tour. 

Spotlight member Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith will lead the cast, directed by Simon Evans. 

The tour will start on 5 September at the Churchill Theatre Bromley and finish at the Birmingham Alexandria on 6 December.

Sing Street

Casting by Stuart Burt CDG. 

Based on the 2016 film of the same name, Sing Street is a coming-of-age comedy drama about a group of teenagers in 1980s Dublin who start a band and film their own music videos whilst the struggles of real life unfold around them. 

Sing Street is coming to the stage in this brand new production, with Spotlight member Sheridan Townsley starring in the lead role as ‘Conor’, supported by Spotlight members Grace Collender, Tateyana Arutura, Lochlann Ó Mearáin and many more.

‘Sing Street’ makes its debut at the Lyric Theatre in Hammersmith from 8 July to 23 August 2025, following a sold out run in Boston and New York. 

Born With Teeth

Casting by Charlotte Sutton CDG.

Director Daniel Evans brings this thrilling production of the relationship between two literary icons at odds with their time to the West End stage. 

Starring Spotlight members Ncuti Gatwa as ‘Christopher Marlowe’ and Edward Bluemel as ‘William Shakespeare’, this fictional tale sees the two writers working together on the Henry VI history plays. 

‘Born With Teeth’ opens at London’s Wyndham Theatre on 13 August in a limited run until 3 September 2025.

Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre

Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre is always a great place to see new and old productions. The summer season opened on 10 May with the musical comedy Shucked to sold out audiences. The exciting programme continues with Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Dream Ballets: A Triple Bill – a vibrant celebration of dance and music. 

Following that, the adaptation of Malory Blackman’s award winning novel Noughts & Crosses will tread the boards from 28 June until 26 July, before Lerner & Loewe’s musical classic Brigadoon closes the season from 2 August to 20 September. 

Finally, with early performances for younger audiences, the hilarious stage adaptation of Roald Dahl’s The Enormous Crocodile will share the stage with Brigadoon from 15 August to 7 September. 

Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre is a hub of creativity and outstanding productions. If you want a treat in the sun, or fancy watching the stage light up as the dusk sets in, it’s the perfect theatre.

These are just a select few of the fantastic productions currently on London’s West End and on tour in the UK and Ireland. Visit your local theatre’s website to see what else is on. 

Spotlight members can get discounted tickets to London shows thanks to our partnership with London Theatre Direct!

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