Years ago, one of the greatest American football coaches, Vince Lombardi, was asked, what’s the secret to becoming a champion? Lombardi responded. I attribute the success of my players to the fact that they always showed up fifteen minutes earlier than required. The extra time gave them a chance to prepare and collect their thoughts. That unspoken determination to show up early became known as “Lombardi time.”

Hit there. Michael Chase here once again with another blog, this time to define an actor’s audition “call time.” 

Call time is an industry term that is the actual time an actor should be at the audition and ready to perform. Put another way, it doesn’t mean it’s the time you just show up! There’s an old saying in acting, eerily similar to Lombardi time. If you show up a few mins early, you are on-time. If you show up on-time, you are late. If you show up late, you’re fired!

Listen, casting directors get it. Traffic, kids, car troubles, all of which can and will make an actor late for an audition. However, the casting director may have slated you to interact with another actor. So, if you show up late, the timing of coupling you up with the other actor will be thrown off. It also may force the rest of the day’s auditions to run behind schedule. 

Fun fact: Did you know a casting director (or director) will get fined by SAG if an actor is kept at an audition longer than an hour? Yes, it’s true! Regarding that issue, many casting directors have weighed in on a disturbing trend. An actor will show up late, say 12:15 p.m. for a noon call time, but then sign in as if having arrived at noon. To add insult to injury, the actor then signs out at 1:15 p.m., putting the actor there for over an hour!

You can read numerous other blogs that explain an actor’s audition call time in detail, but the bottom line is, show up early. After filling out paperwork (1099), SAG forms, and possibly revised sides, take a moment to prepare and collect your thoughts. Casting directors aren’t looking for you to show up any earlier than fifteen minutes from your actual call time. No matter what, DO NOT sign in until your actual call time and NEVER sign in late. Remember, thinking and acting like a champion gives the casting director the confidence to champion you!