Right now, the city of Los Angeles looks like a postapocalyptic landscape. Agents and managers are wandering through the ruins, counting their wins and losses. Exhausted casting directors are scattered on the streets, barely able to catch their breath. And thousands of actors look like they’ve been to hell and back.
Ah, the end of pilot season. There’s nothing quite like it.
This year was especially brutal. The casting process usually starts at the beginning of January, but this time the breakdowns came out late and we didn’t start submitting until the end of the month.
The same amount of pilots being cast during a shorter period of time equals complete and utter chaos.
But what else is new? Pilot season is an outdated casting model that’s been around for ages; it’s loosely based on the concept of a fall premiere.
Here’s how it works: Pilots have to be cast and produced between January and April so they can be finished in time for the networks to make their choices by May. That’s a special month in the land of TV because that’s when the upfronts are held.
Upfronts are a weeklong, annual event held at various venues in New York. Every day, a different network announces
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