Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Watch the opening scene from Contagion online now

The germ-averse among you have to really close this short article now, as we've got the opening scene of Steven Soderbergh's Contagion that you ought to view below.The scene, which opens in Hong Kong on Day 2 (you will have to watch for the finish in the movie to uncover about Day 1), sees Gwyneth Paltrow's travelling businesswoman munching in the bowl of suspicious searching peanuts and showing the initial signs and signs and symptoms from the rather nasty cough.Next, we view herpes disbursing to London, Minnesota and many other locations all over the world.Should you would be the type of commuter to arch a scathing eyebrow at any fellow individuals who a great deal as sniffle, this clip will most likely incite a something from the stress inside you.But, for those who have your anti-microbe hands-gel prepared, get watching the clip now:[brightcove]1485297038001[/brightcove]When clip has you feverish to check out the whole film, Contagion can be obtained available on Blu-ray and DVD today.Read our Contagion review.

Friday, March 2, 2012

Casting Director Kim Williams' Advice on Headshots and Rsums

In more than two decades as a casting director, Kim Williams has helped launch the careers of actors like Martin Lawrence, Mo'Nique, Jesse Metcalfe, Tracy Morgan, and Amanda Bynes. Yet she is always looking for the next new star to introduce to her clients, which have included HBO, Fox, and Tyler Perry. "I guess there's a notion that if you don't have credits, people aren't going to be interested in you," Williams says, "Which is not true. That's the wonderful thing about Hollywood, is that people want to be the ones that discover you."To stay aware of new talent, Williams watches web series and independent films, talks to agents and managers, and often holds small casting sessions at her L.A. office to add faces to her files. She will consider nonunion actors without representation, too. Even with a long list of credits, an actor's training and preparation always has to reveal itself in the audition room, so an honest rsum is more important than a long one."The key is to represent who you are in your picture, represent who you are in your rsum, and then be ready for the opportunities when they come," she says.Williams also acknowledges that since so much of the casting process has moved online, casting directors who once examined 8" x 10" printed headshots now scroll through tiny thumbnails instead. It becomes even more difficult for actors to stand out when their faces are reduced to just a few pixels on a computer monitor."A great headshot is key," Williams says. "My advice always is to keep it simple, and focus it on you. Really, I'm looking at your face and eyes to grab my attention and want to make me curious to know more about you. You should be trying to engage me with your eyes in the picture."Click here to read more about Kim Williams's career as a casting director.