Talking Casting With Ray Whelan Actor and Talent Agent

In the first of a two-part look at the life of actors and talent agents, garnering some advice for aspiring actors and creative talent looking to be signed we talk to the talented Ray Whelan whose work as an actor has led him down the talent agent route with the T-ypo Agency giving him a unique insight into both sides of the business.

Can you tell us a little about your career and how you can be both a talent agent and actor?  

I grew up in Ireland from a very talented musical family, we were all in plays and musicals before I even went to drama school. After I graduated I moved to London. I have been working hard ever since. After moving into filming and creating my own work I also joined my agent Typo Artist Agency which I love. 

What have you learned in your capacity as a talent agent and actor that could benefit other actors? 

Casting directors are busy people, they have so many projects on the go, so when you send in your self-tape, make sure you label your name, project, and agent, you might lose out on the job if you haven’t done this. I also would say when you actually get a self-tape or audition you have already beaten hundreds of thousands of people to get there, you have to send it in or turn it up. I see too many people skip it or miss their deadline. You will miss your opportunity and even if you don’t land the role, casting directors remember people and usually re-use the acting agents again. It’s not just the actor’s reputation on the line it's also the talent agent’s reputation also.

What recommendations would you make to someone looking to get signed to an agency?

Good headshots are a must first. We look to see if they have a spotlight page and showreel, but we do sign people who are not on spotlight, so don’t be scared to not apply. Our new (T-ypo agency) website should be launched this week, we will have an option to upload your headshots and work and we can simply approve or not. Also, so many agent’s books are open, just keep looking and keep persisting, it’s the name of the game. 

Is there a dream role or project you would like to be involved in? 

As an actor any good role in a film or TV show is great. Later this year we are starting casting calls for a feature film called Ladies Day featuring a host of top actors and celebrities and we will be posting castings on spotlight and our social media.

To learn more about Ray Whelan and his work see:

Ray Whelan Spotlight.

Ray Whelan IMDB.

For further information or to talk to the team at The T-ypo Agency see:

The Typo Agency.

Profiling Talent with Alistair Smith Actor

Can you tell us a little about yourself, your career, and how you came to be part of the acting community?

My entry into the acting community was somewhat of a Covid epiphany.  I’ve come from the corporate world having graduated with a business degree. Over the last 20 years, I built a pretty successful career, starting my own consultancy business about 5 years ago.

I wanted to go to drama school when I was in my late teens but at the time was persuaded to go down a more secure route.  I’ve always been creative and looking back I was very frustrated in my choice of work.

At the start of lockdown, with work having dried up, it gave me the headspace to start thinking about what I wanted to do and came to the realization that I’d never given myself the chance to actually pursue my dreams.  

I called up a good friend who works in theatre and he put me in touch with my first acting coach.  My passion is film and television and so I decided to dip my toe into the water at “an introduction to film and television acting” with Actors Studio at Pinewood studios.  I loved it.  I immediately signed up for the 1 month intensive diploma course and knew this is what I want to do.  Since then, I have joined my local theatre group, taken numerous acting classes, and started to build my network and credits.

 So far in your career has there been a milestone that you want to share or a project you are particularly proud of?

 My current high-point is being cast in a feature film.   It’s filming in the next couple of months and am really excited about it.  I’d say the other high point is just experiencing the kindness and generosity of the creative community as a whole.  Having come from the corporate world it has been a refreshing and welcome change. 

If you could choose any project to tackle what would it be and why: a film?  A TV show?  Theatre? 

I feel I was made for a chunky role in Line of Duty or a gritty drama. A period drama would also be an amazing experience.

What are your goals for this year in terms of your career?

To get on Spotlight, to get an agent and appear on a mainstream TV show.

To learn more about Alistair Smith or to discuss bookings see:

Alistair Smith Showreel.

Alistair Smith Mandy.com Profile.

Alistair Smith Twitter.

Alistair Smith Instagram.

Alistair Smith IMDB.

Alistair Smith Starnow.

The iKons Fashion Film 2021

In a year that has seen industry slow down and in some cases completely stop, it is gratifying to see the fashion industry and the creative talent behind it have found a way to showcase not only the designers but the creative talent from behind the scenes.

The House of iKons has stood tall in this with a fashion film and series of collaborations, and partnerships that have shown clearly that fashion talent still has a voice and a place in the world with the people speaking softly and letting the video do the real work. A creative tour de force, this latest incarnation to one of the leading off-schedule fashion events worldwide, has allowed everyone from the makeup staff to the designers to showcase their wares and remind us that there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

Featuring leading designers, creatives, and modeling talent The House of iKons is planning for live events later in the year and into 2022 with their ever-popular show is leading the way for fashion elites and giving a voice to professionals from across the globe.

To learn more about The House of iKons or to get involved see:

House of iKons Website.

House of iKons Facebook.

House of iKons Instagram.

House of iKons Youtube.

House of iKons Twitter.

House of iKons February 2021 A Strategic Win For Fashion

In the current climate of uncertainty, it is truly gratifying to know that fashion is finding a way and carving a new path that will showcase talent, bring the world of iKonic design to not just their established audience but a wider and more diverse range of people thanks to the savvy collaborations of Savita Kaye and the new media partner Rising Fashion, which will see The House of iKons go multiplatform including Amazon and Youtube to name but two of the places you will be able to find the show in its current form as a digital platform for design and innovation.

House of iKons become an official Associate to the International Art Fashion Council and is now on Wiki Video as one of the Top Six Brands World Wide changing the face of fashion with its innovative diversity and range of creatives globally.

Taking a new and innovative stance on showcasing fashion, the savvy and respected House of iKons team has brought the intimacy of a show and added a more personal element of behind the scenes with the designers that is changing how we view the industry and opening the door to a more inclusive and certainly private aspect that was the preserve of documentary footage and rarely offered this level of access to the world of fashion.

With pre-production already in motion for shows into 2022, there is a definite sense that fashion is here to stay and that iKonic design will always find a way to showcase in a fashion film form that is innovative and has caught the attention and support of Girl Meets Brush, The Fashion Life Tour, Zarya Azadi.

With featured designers including:

1. Sigrun

2. Joan’s Bridal Couture

3. Simi Sandhu

4. Be Unique Be You

5. Model’s Wardrobe

6. N8 by Nathan Vandevelde

7. Yade Couture

8. Korn Taylor

9. G.Seven Feat Yildizstoffe

10. Inci Hakbilen

11. Ethinicroyals

12. Post Code Fashion

13. Eye on Fashion

14. Atelier by Khosh

15. Bahar Yasin Studios

16. Dis is Me Couture

17. a la Mode

18. Love Collection by Emily & Anna

19. Jugger Onate for Jil & Jug Dallas

Scheduled to be released across a wide range of platforms on the 27th of February The House of iKons is The Show of the season and its continued work in the arena of fashion has opened doors to a whole new world of talent.

To learn more about The House of iKons or to get involved see:

House of iKons Website.

House of iKons Facebook.

House of iKons Instagram.

House of iKons Youtube.

House of iKons Twitter.

Motivational Changes

With so many changes happening in the world of cinema, our predictions are starting to look more and more like a reality as people move toward digital platforms and the rise of the Indie film scene as smaller companies step to the plate and create films and TV projects that are specific to the likes of Prime and Amazon in general and of course our own personal favorite HOD TV.

Part of this for us has been about rethinking the websites and the content, we have made some small steps in this and will be taking our creative director’s portfolio site fully offline for a few days to reorganize and rebrand to fit upcoming projects.

While this is happening we did pull out some images that for us are a marker of what we are aiming to showcase and have a very commercial leaning that suits our style and future plans. What we have also been doing is talking to other small companies via Twitter, where we have been making a push toward support for Indie film of all stripes and will be publishing interviews with some fantastic small companies who have been talking about their pre-production work for their projects and how they are working within the guidelines. taking time to talk to distributors about what is out there for us as a team.

Naturally, for us, we are going to be looking at web TV first and foremost and have looked into various festivals and options to promote with our ultimate plan being commercially driven.

Film Festival Tie-ins

In the run-up to the festive season, we were talking to various small film festivals gathering information, and planning for the future. Naturally, this meant opening accounts with sites like Film Freeway and doing some in-depth checks and planning around our goals for the company. What this has led to will be announced soon with full details of how and where we will work. One of the festivals (in Eastern Europe) reached out to us and we are now talking in terms of being a media partner which we do love as a concept. Film and TV, particularly web TV, is something we as a team are keen to push forward with now more than ever.

This does not mean we will be abandoning our editorial work, far from it, we will work with magazines on a continuous basis as part of our marketing strategies but will not be the sole aspect of what we do. In fact, we have found a very interesting film crew based magazine that looks really promising in marketing terms so we will be writing inhouse articles to publish and take ad space later in the year.

Our plans are coming together well and there is some diversification in motion. More announcements and news will be released on the completion of the contracts. We are excited about the prospects of 2021 and look forward to showcasing the hard work that has already been done in the background.

A New Year A New Plan

In many respects, 2020 has been a lost year for a lot of people with the world changing dramatically. For us, it has opened up doors to a whole host of new potential avenues and given us a chance to reevaluate what we have been doing and look at how we can fit ourselves into the market long-term. To do this we have broken our work into key areas that will be public and those which will be kept private to the inhouse team.

In the public sense, we have two key areas we will be focusing on in the first quarter of the year:

Editorial and print: we have been putting this on the backburner in some respect taking time to look at locations, edit work already shot, slowly build up a series of images and work that will be released over the early part of 2021 with additional planned small shoots that will be a combination of artistic and commercial. *This will include product placement in behind the scenes imaging and video with brands such as Lord and Berry, Mykitco, and Brushwork Cosmetics to start. We are open to new potential brand partners for projects contact the team to discuss.

Film and TV: something that we have been doing since the start of Lost Creatives is supporting a range of festivals including Micromania and The Nepal Cultural and Film Centers' own festival. We do have plans to partner with a European festival and will reveal details on that soon.

Our initial goal is to work on 3 projects that will be shorts, designed specifically to go to festivals and as an opening gambit for our planned digital TV shoots in the horror/thriller market (for Which we have already spoken to several distributors and have options in place including the HOD TV route which is our number 1 choice).

In the coming months, our projects will be smaller in nature to help push forward and test the waters of the market and expand out. Our ties to South Asia (Including Nepal Film Production and our key actor contacts in India), will play a heavy part in our work as we are questioning how we will be able to work in Scotland and the UK in general.

Each of the current websites: JamesC mua. Lost Project and of course Lost Creatives will be receiving overhauls and updated images across the galleries, and the welcome pages, additional sites are being planned for our film/TV work to keep the Creatives solely about marketing and the background elements we have built.

Further updates will be released over the course of the month. We are really excited about our plans for 2021 and look forward to pushing the boundaries of our work.

Advertising Plans

In the last few weeks, we have been quiet in terms of our advertising thanks in part to the ongoing work with PR agencies we do through The Lost Project. What this has meant is we do have a backlog of images to edit and products to test, some of this will be used as part of bigger ad campaigns for 2021.

While it might seem we are slow in updating our galleries, there is a reason for this and a strategic goal that will become clear in the next few weeks.

Our editorial shoots (ongoing) are being supported by a new men’s cosmetic line (to be revealed soon) and the fantastic team at Lord and Berry, we do have some new shoots planned and will be doing some macro work with glitter and possibly even a cover shoot.

We have specific magazines and styles we are working on and that takes time to complete more so with the restrictions in place in Scotland, it can be difficult to find the right models and locations without traveling too far from our base. Our head of makeup and creative director JamesC, is working on new projects and wants to do some flat lay images to bolster the galleries which we are hoping to have done before Christmas and our main push through FB started in the new year.

Our remote team members are all working hard with our favorite indie Bollywood actor developing his own projects for the future which we are in full support of and have started working on a website for him.

Something we are really excited about is that one of the magazines we are keen to be published with has taken away deadlines which will, in turn, allow us to do more work with male models and really experiment with concepts at a low cost and showcase the work in the best possible light.

We will be adding more stock soon from Lord and Berry, Mykitco, and our favorite Brushwork cosmetics with a view to creating a brand new cover image for the JamesC website, this will combine our beauty and TV work with some other elements cut in to bring a new depth to not only JamesC’s work but also to the Lost Creative portfolio.

With a series of creative plans to deliver on for the new year, we are putting a whole host of work being finished off The Lost Creative journey is gearing up for bigger things.

2nd Nepal Cultural International Film Festival-2020

With the festival team working hard and the brand support being announced next week, The Nepal Culture and Film Centers International Film Festival is shaping up to be a huge online affair with over 40 films, 24 countries, and an array of speakers in place it is set to be a landmark in the cultural and cinematic calendar.

• The 1st of December will be the grand opening ceremony through virtual media which Ncfc team members, Chief guest, selected filmmakers, jury members, actors, film industrialists, and the VIP guest will be invited to attend the virtual festival.

• From the 3rd to 18th December selected films will be screened. Each day 5 films from different categories and countries will be screened virtually and will incorporate Q&A Session with the filmmakers after the screening of the film.

• The final award distribution ceremony will be held on 29th December.

Filmmakers can register their attendance for the festival free of charge, forms can also be filled out worldwide through the website of the organization: www.2ndnciff.ncfc.org.np.

Nepal Culture and Film Center Media Partnership

We are immensely proud of our connections to the South Asian market, having lived and worked in India our creative director JamesC has kept close ties to filmmakers and his friends there. In the last few years, there has been an increase in work with Nepal in particular the team at Nepal Film Production and now we are happy to announce our collaboration with the Nepal Culture and Film Center.

One of the most beautiful countries in the world, truly the jewel in the crown of South Asia, Nepal has become a go-to destination for tourism, film, and documentary makers for decades.

The Nepal Culture and Film Center is a major part of this and alongside companies like Nepal Film Production, they have become a destination that holds a mystique and beauty with leading professionals across genres traveling there to learn, film, and be a part of a vibrant film and TV scene.

Designed to facilitate talent development the Nepal Culture and Film Center hosts film festivals and seminars, supporting the creative talent of the country and keeping them in the public eye.

To be associated with such a prestigious group is an honor worthy of note and we will be working closely with them and of course, our longstanding friends at Nepal film production, the future of The Lost is looking bright and we cannot be happier.

To learn more about The Nepal Culture and Film Center see:

Nepal Culture and Film Center Website.

Nepal Culture and Film Center Facebook.

Nepal Culture and Film Center Youtube.