Phoenix Casting/Commercial casting
Commercials · Phoenix, Arizona
Commercial casting in Arizona.
Families that read as families. Real people who read as real. Principals who can carry thirty seconds, and the special skill when the spot calls for one. Cast in a Phoenix studio built for on-camera work, in person, on a live link or on self-tape.
The short version
Thirty seconds of screen time. The first one does the work.
A commercial lives on the faces in it. The mom has to read as a mom in the first second. The guy at the grill has to be someone you would stand next to. Look, feel and believability before a word is said. That is the whole job, and it is what we cast for.
No two spots ask for the same thing. Real families. A specialty skill the script leans on. The dependable actor who can carry all thirty seconds alone. We shape the search to the spot in front of us.
Phoenix Casting has cast national, regional and international spots for Ford, Waymo, Titleist, QuickBooks, APS, Discount Tire, SRP, Bashas’ and the Arizona Lottery, along with the regional brands that shoot here every year. Most of them come back.
Every session runs in our Phoenix suite, built for on-camera work, with Matthew Dearing directing. You watch from the chair beside him, or from a live link in another state. When a role is better served that way, we gather self-tapes and send those instead.
Breakdown to booking
How a spot gets cast here.
- Day oneThe breakdown goes out
Send the script or boards, the roles, the shoot dates, union status and rate. Most breakdowns reach every agency in town and our own statewide database the same day.
- Before anyone rollsThe direction is agreed first
Slate style, framing, wardrobe, props and the note for each role are settled with you before the first actor walks in, so every take is usable and every take compares.
- Session dayMatthew directs in the room
Actors are settled in the lobby, then read with a coach who has spent nearly twenty years pulling the best out of people. When someone has it, they get a redirect and a second option goes on tape.
- Same daySelects arrive as links
Organized takes, sizes and availability on every select, with honest notes on who can carry the day.
- ThenCallbacks and booking
Callbacks run the way the first session did, in the room or on the link. Then holds, availability and a clean booking, with us reachable through wrap.
Real people, families, principals
The net is wider than the state line.
Agency talent and our own statewide database, side by side. Families cast as families, with kids who read while a parent waits in the lobby. Real people who have never stood on a mark. Working actors with fifty spots behind them.
The agencies here carry rosters that run well past Phoenix, out to Los Angeles, New Mexico and Las Vegas, and we have long-standing relationships with every one of them. When a role needs more than that, we go to out-of-state agents and to independent artists until you have the range you want to choose from.
Union and non-union cast the same way, with the same process. Arizona is a non-union state, so a spot can go either way, and plenty of SAG actors work Fi-Core to be in the mix.
Callbacks · Phoenix suitePaired in the room, taped together
What to send
What we need from you.
Script or storyboards. The roles and how many of each. Shoot dates and location. Union status. Rate and usage. Anything you already know about wardrobe, slate or framing.
Half of that is enough to start. Dana fills in the rest on one call, and the breakdown goes out the day the roles are agreed.
Straight answers
What producers ask about commercials.
Can you cast real people who have never acted?
Yes, and often that is the brief. Real people come through our own database and a community search, and they read with the same direction the actors get. On camera it shows up as ease, which is usually what the spot wants.
Do you cast kids?
Yes. Kids read with a parent in the lobby and the session is kept short and calm. The studio has taught kids and teens for nearly twenty years, so the room knows how to put a nine year old at ease in about a minute.
Do you handle extras and background?
Principals and featured roles are our work. For background we point you to the agencies we work with every week, and we can make the introduction.
Where do the sessions happen?
In our Phoenix suite, with you there in person or on a live link from anywhere. When a role is better served that way, we gather self-tapes and send those instead. The homepage answers this one in full, along with turnaround and what you get back. Read the producer FAQ →