Casting director on getting a reality gig: Be your best self - Entertainment, TV, Television - Navy Times

Casting director on getting a reality gig: Be your best self

If you’ve decided to get real about getting on a reality show, you certainly don’t have to go around the world. From the Jersey Shore to Orange County, Hell’s Kitchen to the Paradise Hotel, reality shows are everywhere.

Perhaps you’ve got talent, the voice or a certain X-factor; maybe you figure you’re a born survivor, an ultimate fighter or even the biggest loser.

You’ll never know unless you give it a try, says Semi Aboud. With shows such as “Bridezillas,” “America’s Got Talent” and, most recently, “Top Shot” to his credit, if there were a reality show about top reality casting directors, Aboud would be on it.

He says folks with a military background can make great cast members, “but one thing some of them need to remember is to get out of ‘yes, sir/no, sir’ mode when they’re making an audition tape or chatting with a casting person. Relax, express your opinions freely and have fun with the conversation. That way we really get to know you.”

If you’ve got the chops to be the next top shot, chef or model, here are Aboud’s tips for making the cut:

Be yourself. “It sounds trite, but it’s true,” he says. It doesn’t take a casting pro to spot a poser. “When you put yourself on camera for an audition tape, you automatically magnify everything that you’re doing and saying. So just be genuine.” Besides, if the real you isn’t what the casting director is looking for, then you really don’t want to be on the show. “And trust me when I say that’s what’s best for you, the show and the audience.”

Bring good energy. “You’re remembering to be yourself, right? Now you need to be the most impressive version of yourself,” he says. That means don’t read off of cue cards, wear ratty clothes or talk in a monotone like you’re about to fall asleep. “Whoever you are at 2 p.m. when you’re wide awake and talking about your favorite hobby with that special someone you really want to spend time with — be that person.”

Don’t sell yourself as ‘TV-friendly.’ They’ve heard it all before: I’ve modeled before; I’ve appeared on local TV shows; the camera loves me; I know lots of people, so you’ll have a huge audience for your show! “No, no, no and no,” Aboud says. “I’m looking for real people for a reality show. I like you because you’re a guy from Nashville, a girl from Seattle, a chef from Savannah. Let me do my job and decide if the camera loves you. And, frankly, the network will survive if your 17 friends don’t watch.”

Act interested in the show. Aboud sees too many ho-hum audition tapes from people who barely seem to grasp what it is they’re trying out for, much less why. “If you don’t sound like you’re really into the project, then I probably can’t count on you to stick it out through the casting process and the production of the show. Show genuine interest! Why are you a perfect fit for the show? What about the show made you say, I need to do this?”

Be patient. “The casting and production process is full of stops and starts, paperwork, travel, deadlines, questions and waiting, waiting, waiting,” Aboud says. “We know it can be frustrating. So please be patient with the casting staffers who are guiding you through this. We don’t make the final decisions about who gets on the show, but we do make the first decisions. We are the gatekeepers, and we only let in our favorite candidates.”

Have fun. It’s a simple equation: “If it’s not fun, don’t do it,” Aboud says. “Like anything that takes up a lot of your time, it better be worth it. And since most reality shows don’t pay much — if anything — you’d better be doing something you love.”