Planning: Casting

Casting is an essential element of any media production. The actors chosen to deliver performances can make or break a production, such as a film, television program or music video. For the purposes of my production, which is a music video, the casting must be thoroughly considered. My particular production will feature only one significant role, being of course the protagonist. With this, I am faced with the decision of whether I will cast an actor in this role, or, extending the principles of auteur theory, simply cast myself.

Casting an actor would mean that I would have more freedom in terms of operating the camera. The two roles of actor and director would be clearly defined, and we would be able to work independently from one another, for example creating dynamic camera movements while the actor is performing. However, this idea is not without its faults. Having one actor play such a key role in my entire production could produce difficult scheduling conflicts. If, for instance, I wished to complete some filming at a particular time, I would have to schedule this with the actor beforehand, which could prove difficult, bearing in mind that the actor is most likely not going to be available whenever and wherever I please. Also, if a scenario occurred where I realised, during editing, that I would require an extra shot or a reshoot of a previous shot, this could be an inconvenience to the actor and could be detrimental to my production as a whole.

Contrasting this with the alternative, casting myself in the role, these problems would then be eradicated. Using myself as both actor and director would give me complete control over all creative aspects of the production, which would be adopting a true auteur role. Any scheduling conflicts would be avoided, as if I needed to achieve a shot at any time, I will be available to complete it as both actor and director. On top of this, as I am the creator and director of this production, I know myself exactly what I want and require from the performance of the protagonist. Having myself take on the actor role would eliminate any communication issues between myself and my actor, whom may not otherwise understand or be able to deliver the type of performance I am looking for. As with the other option, however, this actor/director role also has its disadvantages. For one, I would find myself more limited with camera movement, as it would be of course very difficult to perform in a shot and simultaneously operate the camera. Also, working completely alone in the production of my video would create some difficulty with framing shots, as I would have to make some estimates with framing with myself as the actor.

Despite this, I believe that the advantages of casting myself would greatly outweigh the disadvantages. In particular, I refer to the freedom of having my 'actor' available wherever and whenever required, as the actor would be myself.
I have therefore decided to cast myself in the lead role of my music video. During production I will play the role of both actor and director, which provides the most convenience for filming and scheduling. In terms of props, I, as the actor, will need only a small amount. In particular, at this time, these are:

• Laptop
• Mobile Phone
• Clothing with distinct brown/green 'earth' tones.

These are the only props that I believe will be needed for my video. My production will tell a personal and self-reflective narrative, which I therefore believe will not require an abundance of props.