Producing : Ghosted by our Casting Director! by Maureen Mahon

That's quite the pickle, your frustrations are totally valid!

Do you have a production attorney? Have him, her contact her officially, and I would ask for anywhere from 30% - 50% refund from her for non-compliance (meaning she didn't do her job and bolted). You can contact CAA directly about the star, they'll want to know if the project is set up somewhere or ask if your funded. And yes, they'll ask for a deposit. If your production cannot provide the deposit do not call. Best bet would be to get another CD and move on.

Sorry that happened, Maureen Mahon. I hope you hear back from her soon or you're able to do what Lindbergh said so things can move forward!

someone just told me yesterday they can raise up to 20M for a project lol !!

i responded so what i have to pay you 10M up front for you to start working ahaha

Excellent advice Lindbergh E Hollingsworth! Yes, act fast and nip it in the bud! Never pay a lot up front, check their references and always look for people who offer equal give and take energetically throughout the project.

There is a Confucius way where people say, 'Yes' to everything then go ahead and do what they want - we see this everywhere now. If you listen really listen to people - they will give themselves and their intention away when they speak. For instance, watch Elon Musk and listen to what he says and see where his energy is going. Really listen.

Lindbergh E Hollingsworth we do have enough money to make a deposit, or put the actor's entire fee into an escrow account, but the production isn't fully funded. CAA agents aren't as likely to respond to my calls as they would hers.

Rebecca James just to clarify, we paid the CD a weekly rate, for 5 weeks, and she did work those 5 weeks. We didn't pay her up front. Unfortunately, the entire 5 seeks were spent chasing three actors, two of whom eventually passed. (Note to self: negotiate a flat fee and not weekly.) So it's a bit of a gray area. She offered to continue working with us, even though we no longer had the director who was the reason she signed on to work with us at all. She said she wouldn't charge us for the additional time it will take for us to cast the two stars. It was a nice offer from an expensive CD, but I guess an offer means nothing if they don't follow through. (But she's definitely a reputable and fully vetted CD.)

Maureen Mahon Well you say she's ghosted you, but it's only been a week. I am going to say that's rather too early to call yourself ghosted. if she is someone deep involved into casting on difference projects, there may be literal minutes a week to follow up on things. Just saying, it is too early to go legal and going legal will burn bridges with her and possibly anyone she works with...

Maureen Mahon now I understand. Now I am in agreement with Shadow Dragu-Mihai, Esq., Ipg. Maybe focus on something else that is working and things will sort themselves out.

Shadow Dragu-Mihai, Esq., Ipg I agree. It's actually been 2 weeks, not one. But even if it's longer than that, I don't really have any grounds to go legal on her. She offered to continue working with us as a courtesy. Like I said, I'm just frustrated and need to get things moving. I decided to go ahead and reach out to the actor's agent and see if anyone bothers to respond.

Thanks everyone. I appreciate the suggestions and the support. I guess I am being a little impatient. It's a weird hurry-up-and-wait kind of business.

You're welcome, Maureen Mahon.

Tell me about the 'hurry up and wait' dilemma! I am always trying to solve how to get momentum up, up, up!

Rebecca James our lead actor is Australian, by the way. (Not the one we're trying to get to now, but the one we've already cast. He was in Talk to Me.)

Maureen Mahon I think venting is a good place to start. It allows you the ability to reset and review alternatives. I would say give it a personal touch and reach out someway other than by email. And work your personal touch magic. Sometimes, it feels good to be pursued but only to an extent. Make them feel loved. lol. But ultimately, you are an expert and you got this. Good luck.

Congrats! We have some talented talent!

Rebecca James he's so talented! And he does a perfect American accent.

Maureen, I'm not sure what your production is about, what genre it is or what your budget is at the moment. There are plenty of actresses out there looking for work so don't worry if CAA won't take your calls. I have a lot of talented actors waiting for me to find investors for our project and one is very well known throughout the world so you just have to look for the forgotten or undervalued players out there. I'm not really sure what a casting director does. I know in my mind exactly who I would want to be in any project I wish to create and then work from that point. Again, I have no knowledge of what your film is about but some projects need stars and some projects make stars. It's better to be the latter.

This is so frustrating, I've had a few of these situations over the past few years. Does anyone else feel this kind of thing became more common after all the lockdowns and restrictions?

Daniel Silvas that you! I've called her in addition to emailing. I decided to give it a rest for a few days. I agree that pursuing her too much will become off-putting. I do know that the TV show she casts was picked up for another season, so I know she's busy with that.

Philip David Lee thank you! The budget is around $5M (we're actually trying to get it down to $5M). We already have 3 actors attached, one of whom is an Oscar-nominated actress who was hot in the 70s and 80s, but her career has waned with age. Still, she's a name you'd know. The lead teenage actor was in the highest-grossing horror film of 2023, but he's yet to break out as a lead actor. And the other actress has starred in some low budget films and comes from a well known Hollywood family, but she has yet to break out. So the actors you're suggesting are exactly what we have already. With those actors, I reached out to their managers directly and cast them myself (with my lawyer's help). The reason we need our casting director is that we want an A-list actor for this one role and all the agents and managers will pick up the phone if she calls.

Hi Maureen,

I hope you’re doing well. I wanted to check in and see if you’d like some support with the current casting situation. It sounds like you’ve been navigating a lot of moving parts, especially with the transition to a new director, coordinating with the casting director, and keeping the project timeline on track.

If it would be helpful, As a spiritual life coach, I can work with you to on creating a consciousness that will assist you in moving things forward smoothly, particularly with the recent communication challenges.

Let me know if you’d like to discuss this further or if there's any specific aspect you’d like assistance with.

Richard Smith I appreciate it, but I'm good. Thanks!

Just remember, Maureen, it just takes one comment in an interview to turn an "A-List Actor" into box office poison and SAG does not reimburse you if one of their union members causes backlash. They define "bankable talent" as an actor "that is capable of guaranteeing a successful box office." which means absolutely nothing. All these buzz words are meaningless. Make your film, memorable, rewatchable, original and iconic. Making a movie is like playing Jenga. It may seem solid and stable but overthinking, doubt or a misplaced move could cause the whole thing to collapse. . .

It can be a really complicated business at times. I'll simply follow up as much as I can.

I funded my own indie feature, this is all growing pains everyone goes through. Welcome to Show Business. Took me 3-years to make a feature, from idea to script to production to post to selling to a distributor. 3-years until I got a paycheck off the movie. I learned a lot from ground zero. Just keep moving forward. Thats the key. Moving forward. Ppl will come and go, hired and fired, dont return calls. Fuck them; I know it aint personal but it stings (peers & mentors stop believing in you & your movie) but you gotta keep pushing to the goal. Finishing. GL!

Document. Document. Document.

Fire her. Cast it yourself. Move on.

Maureen, even when the path seems unclear. Stay anchored in your faith that the perfect team, the perfect timing, and the perfect actor are all aligning with the vibration you hold for this project. Each twist, each delay, is part of the story that will ultimately make this production stronger, more inspired, and more resilient.

In every challenge lies the seed of possibility. Let go of the need for immediate resolution, and trust that a higher wisdom is guiding the project forward in its perfect time.

Sounds like the casting director expressed understanding of situation(s), as she will have be, at this point and is “supposed” to be expected as to contractual agreement.

As to recall, there are many aspects of filmmaking that can be done in the meanwhile, to weigh your options.

I’ve also had setbacks with acquiring certain talent, I focused on “Poster Artwork” and “Storyboarding”, amongst criteria in extension for one of my short films!

Maureen Mahon - I highly recommend getting an entertainment attorney involved, and possibly one that has a relationship with that casting director. We do a lot of work with Elsa Ramo at Ramo Law and everyone at her firm pretty much knows everybody. Think it would be work the call.

I agree with Amanda, Maureen Mahon. You've engaged the CD's services, paid them, and they are not communicating with you. That's unacceptable. Involving an attorney - like someone at Ramo - and can get the CD back in the game or possibly get you some resources back to allocate to another CD. Please keep us posted.

Amanda Toney and Sam Sokolow ,I've got a couple of entertainment attorneys working with us on this project. Although I have been in touch with Ramo Law and would love to work with them, I don't want to take on another attorney. I can check to see if our attorneys know this CD, but my guess is that they don't. Technically, she did work for the number of weeks we paid her for, but it was kind of a lot, and she expressed that she felt bad that we hadn't cast a lead yet, and offered to stay on until we did. Then she went MIA. I don't think she legally owes us this additional work, so I don't think it's really a legal matter. I'll check with my lawyer and see what he says. I'll keep you posted. Thanks!

If she did what you paid her for... and has not got back to you within a reasonable time frame, I would send her a thank you email and move on fast!

Keep us posted on what happens Maureen. I think we are all invested that this is a positive outcome for you...you've got a lot of cheerleaders in your corner!

Thank you!

Yes - we're here to support you, Maureen Mahon. If you've paid the CD for their time and you're not in a position to recoup any of their fee and they are now "off the clock", then perhaps a more personal approach is a next step you can take, depending on what your attorney says.

Sometimes I'll email a contact who has been unresponsive with the subject line "Was it something I said?" and then just write a short, personal email asking if they're OK, that you haven't heard back in weeks and that you thought you were still working together on the film but if they've moved on to please just let you know so you can find someone else to work with and respect all of the work that is still being done.

The "Was it something I said" subject line, while a little old school, has never not gotten a reply back when I've used it.

Just sharing a suggestion of a "break glass in case of emergency" thing I've used in the past. Please keep us posted.

Yes, please keep us posted, Maureen. As soon as you get closure or a resolution on this. WYTB!

I'm sorry you're dealing with this—it sounds really challenging. From what I understand, the casting director did their job initially by finding actors, even though they ultimately passed on the project. There could have been many factors behind those decisions, but it’s clear that connections were made. As for agreeing to resume work almost a year later, it's understandable that people sometimes commit to things in the moment, but intentions can shift over time.

I’d suggest revisiting the original agreement you had with the casting director, as that will be the clearest foundation to move forward. Is there any clause regarding partial refunds, or was the fee non-refundable?

If it were me, I’d consider sending a thoughtful email thanking them for their time and contributions and gently ask if they might be willing to assist in securing just one lead role, rather than multiple. That way, you might find a compromise that works for everyone.

Wishing you the best with this—I hope it all comes together!

Erf, that must be soOo frustrating! Sending you my best thoughts, hopefully she will get back to you shortly (with a good excuse?)

Keep us posted and break a leg!

Sam Sokolow -- that's awesome! ...

"Thanks for all of your suggestions, everyone! I did check with our attorney to see what he thought and he said,

"The issue working with someone doing a 'favor' is that you can't really hold them to it. You should try not to read too much into it though - maybe something personal came up, or a job came through, or some other of a million possibilities that has nothing to do with your project...Given that we are at the end of October - if it were me, not an ideal time to pick up a job that isn't paying, as most are either racing to close out 2024 business, set up 2025 business, or both!"

He suggested our director reach out to the actor via Instagram (artist-to-artist) and see if he responds. I did send an inquiry to his agents at CAA and will check back in a couple of days. We've decided we'll pursue this actor for a week or two and if we don't get a request for the script in that time, we'll go to the next actor on our list. He's also been approved by the distributors and he'll probably be easier to contact. And he looks a lot like the actor who'll be playing his kid.

I really want to get this role locked in before everything shuts down for the holidays. If we have this role cast, we can go back to the distributors who have expressed interest and pre-sell it.

Stephen Folker it's actually only been 3 months since we temporarily shut things down. And about 3 weeks since the CD said she still wants to work with us. I think things are going to work out. :-)

Maureen Mahon If you are in Los Angeles, stop by CAA building. Thats only if you have $ for pay or play contract

Maureen Mahon - we’re all invested now Maureen ❤️- keep giving us updates! I think “The Stage 32 community” should get a special thanks in the credits! ;) Let us all know if you need anything else!

Amanda Toney I agree! I'm making a note to thank Stage32 right now! xo

I would go to the Actors Agents that you currently have agreements with, to see if one of them has a contact at CAA to get your A-lister!

Rebecca James two of the actresses have the same manager and they haven't been as helpful as one might expect. Things got a little messy last summer with the director we'd hired at the time and our producers. They were trying to fire the actresses I'd cast and it was a big mess with lawyers and agents and managers all up in arms. We ended up cleaning house - the director and the other producers are now gone and the actresses are still onboard, but the relationship with their management is a little tender. One of the actresses has a very famous mom (and sister). I asked the manager if he'd ask her to see if her mom would do a cameo and the manager said I should go directly to the mom's reps and that they would confirm that her daughter is onboard. They wouldn't even ask her to ask her mom for us. Amanda Toney , Sam Sokolow - maybe I should write a blog about this whole messy experience. It's a great cautionary tail. Hahaha.

Good news though. I went to the next actor on our "approved" list and his agent immediately responded and requested the script. So that's out to them. Fingers crossed.

Congratulations on the script request, Maureen Mahon!

Maurice Vaughan thank you! This actor actually bears a striking resemblance to the actor we've already cast to play his son, which is pretty amazing since they're both unusual looking guys.

You're welcome, Maureen Mahon.