Commercial Acting in L.A.: A Session Director's Guide - Paperback

by Paul Loudon (Illustrator), Shaan Sharma (Author)

Learn how to become a successful working actor in TV commercials in Los Angeles in this fun, step-by-step guide by top Casting Session Director and commercial actor Shaan Sharma. It covers everything you need to know about the business including how to get started, how to get the right training, and how to get an agent and a manager. The book walks you through the entire process of auditioning, booking and shooting projects; all from an insider's point of view. Not just for beginners. Even veterans will learn useful tips to help convert more auditions into bookings.

Author Biography

Shaan Sharma started acting in high school theater in Wayzata, MN, after which he spent ten years working as a commercial actor in Minneapolis. In 2007, he relocated to Los Angeles to pursue acting in TV and film in addition to his commercial work. Randomly, through a mutual friend, he got a job directing casting sessions for one of L.A.'s biggest commercial casting directors. Seven years later, Shaan has worked with over thirty top casting directors at just about every casting facility in the city, helped cast hundreds of projects, and directed tens of thousands of actors, helping them book major campaigns for many of the top directors, ad agencies and companies in the world. As a working actor, Shaan has booked a couple dozen TV commercials, including national spots for Best Buy, FedEx, and Capital One, and appeared on the TV shows GREEK, Friends with Benefits, 1600 Penn, Growing Up Fisher, The Thundermans, and Gortimer Gibbon's Life on Normal Street. Shaan also teaches an ongoing on-camera acting class and monthly commercial acting workshops.