Bangkok is a city that lacks arts and culture!

That’s what I thought when I first came to Thailand. You see all the skyscrapers and the big billboards. Millions of people on public transportation. Another million in cars and taxis. And unlike in Europe where arts and culture are always present. You know where the theatres are, there are billboards with the latest shows, galleries promote their art very visible, it is all more hidden in Bangkok.

It takes time to find out where things are happening.

Where to go, where is what taking place? Concerts? Theatre? Art exhibitions? Why isn’t there a website? Where are arts and culture happening in Bangkok? How to get this kind of information!

Jack Gitting’s Newsletter

One of the easiest overviews of artistic events happening in Bangkok is by subscribing to Jack Gittings’s bi-weekly newsletter. Just drop jack an email at: jackgittings12@gmail.com and ask him to subscribe you to his newsletter. Every two weeks you will get a comprehensive update on artistic events in your mailbox.

All the information from his newsletter can also be found on this (not that beautiful, but very functional) google calendar also provided by Jack:

https://sites.google.com/site/bkkmacaldetails/

I have had two or three rare occasions to bump into Jack when watching a play and he is a really nice and decent guy. He has been keeping his newsletter up for many years and is one of the Bangkok legends.

Subscribing to Jack’s Newsletter is definitely a good way to keep up to date on Arts and Culture in Bangkok.

Bangkok Theatre Calendar

Personally, I am also trying to keep up with the latest theatre events in Bangkok. On this very website namely here: http://actors-thailand.com/bangkok-theatre-calendar/

You can see at what time and what day the plays are happening and if you click on it you can see more details about the event. I take the information from Facebook events that people create. Most of the Thai plays are posted on this Facebook Group Theatre Shows and Workshops in Bangkok So join it if you want to keep up to date – a lot of postings are in Thai, though. 🙂

Bangkok Post + The Nation

Both, the Bangkok Post and the Nation always have a section about arts and culture. The Bangkok Post calls it Lifestyle, while the Nation calls it Life. So it’s still handy to fall back on a paper version of either newspaper if you are looking for artistic and cultural events for the evening.

Their online versions take a bit of time wrestling with to find the information you are looking for. You can still try:

Bangkok Post: Bangkok Post’s Event Listing, Section on Entertainment, Art and Culture and Galleries and their general section on Lifestyle

The Nation: The Nation’s Life Section about Art and Culture

BAM! Bangkok Art Map

There is both the Facebook page and the website of BAM! Where you can find information about the latest art exhibitions.

Those are the sources that I use. If you have any other sources for arts and culture and cultural events, let me know or just leave a comment

 

Do you want to know how to become an actor / model in Thailand? Check out this video or this article How To Become an Actor in Thailand:

Do you want to learn more about me? Check out my website: http://www.robinschroeter.de

What can be done to improve the situation for talents, production companies and agents in Thailand? We need more Transparency!

A lot of actors and models complain about the agents, a lot of agents complain about actors and models. A lot of actors and models complain about the production companies and their standards, a lot of production companies complain about the non-professional talents. There is way too little transparency of what is going on.

There is a lot of misunderstanding going on on all sites. Some of it comes from cultural differences, difficulty to communicate in one language or another, a different outlook on the world, what is ethical and what is not.

Ignorance is a bliss – or not.

Some issues come up because people ‘just don’t know’. This counts for either side. Actors and models don’t know what the agents and production companies expect of them. Agents don’t know what their talent expects of them, and production companies don’t know what the talent expects. A lot of misunderstandings happen.

Misunderstandings where neither side is willing to give in and admit that they just didn’t know can lead to conflict. And once you’re in a conflict it’s not that easy to get out in a way that makes either side happy. Most likely you’ll end up saying you never want to work with this or that person again.

How to prevent this?

Communication, obviously, but an important part that needs to happen – and happens much too seldom – is: More Transparency.

Transparency from all sides. About the jobs, about what is expected, about what either side needs.

What can you do?

A friend of mine started this industry wide survey and I would like to ask you to participate in it.

English
Production: http://bit.ly/helloproductionen
Actors and Models: http://bit.ly/hellocasten

Thai
Production: http://bit.ly/helloproduction
Actors and Models: http://bit.ly/hellocast

What is the survey about?

He asks both sides about their opinions. What they expect, what they need and what their grievances are. This way we can open up a channel of communication to improve the situation for everybody.

The results of the survey will be published and distributed among talents, agents as well as production companies.

This may not be a lot, but it is a first step to improve the communication between the production and the talents. And I think it is an important step to take.

So if you can spare 5 minutes of your time, please take this survey.

English

Actors and Models: http://bit.ly/hellocasten

Production: http://bit.ly/helloproductionen

 

Do you want to know how to become an actor / model in Thailand? Check out this video or this article How To Become an Actor in Thailand:

Do you want to learn more about me? Check out my website: http://www.robinschroeter.de

 

Have you ever done any voice over jobs in Bangkok?

Voice over jobs can be a nice way to supplement your income in Bangkok.

Voice over companies are always looking for new talent. The population in Bangkok is always fluctuating and voice over companies are always looking for new voices to present to their clients.

Do they need my language?

I literally have seen job postings for all kinds of languages from all around the world. English with different accents (British, American, Canadian, Australian), Dutch, German, Hindi, Persian, Indonesian, Arabic, Cambodian, Vietnamese, Chinese, Russian, French, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Thai….You name it, they need it.

If you think that you have a pleasant voice that people like to listen to, this might just be a job for you.

Voice over jobs pay by the hour.

Usually they pay anything between 800-1500 per hour’s work and a session will last for 1-6 hours. Sometimes they pay even more, if you agreed to a specific amount and you can finish the job faster than expetected.

Voice over work is more tiring than you’d expect.

In every day life you may not notice the little sludges and and slurries that enter your speech patterns. You think that you pronounce words clearly. With voice over work your voice is on the spot. People can’t look at your mouth to help them understand what you’re saying. Usually they allow you to take a 5 minute break after each 1 hour session. Believe me, you will want to take a break and it will help you to get back in focus.

Which companies are doing voice over jobs in Bangkok?

Andovar

Andovar is one of the biggest Voice over companies in Bangkok. They are located on Sukhumvit, close to Phrom Pong BTS (and have offices in India, Singapore and the US as well).

For Andovar you can apply online here: http://www.andovar.com/voice-talents/
Tel: +66 2 712 7196
Website: http://www.andovar.com/

EQHO Communications

I have done both work as talent as well as language monitor for EQHO. They are professional and friendly. There is always free drinks and mints ready for you. EQHO is located close to BTS Surasak.

You can contact EQHO via this email: grm@eqho.com
Telephone: +66 (0)2 637 8060
Website: http://www.eqho.com/contact/

TriCS

Tri is a very friendly Indian guy with a studio close to Punnawhiti BTS. It’s great working with Tri. He gets all kinds of voice over jobs.

This is the contact email: info@trics.asia
and website: http://www.trics.aia

Voice Over Asia

Keith has his studio in a beautiful building close to Huay Kwang MRT station. I did a regular gig for Keith. We had a lot of fun doing that job and I made some good friends in the process.

Tel. +66 865235888
Email Keith @ info@voiceover-asia.com
Website: http://www.voiceover-asia.com/

Those are probably the biggest companies for voice over work. I have worked with all four of them and can recommend working with any of these.

Doing some research for this article I found 4 other companies that apparently offer to do voice over work in Bangkok. You’d have to contact them yourself and see how working for them is; and maybe tell me about it afterwards:

Paradise Production

Paradise Production is located in Town in Town.

Email : nicolai@paradisepi.com
Alternative Email : nickkbh@me.com
Skype : kongkehlet
Facebook : Paradise Production
Website: http://paradisepi.com/contact/

TIS Translation

Is located in Samut Prakarn – a little off the regular track.

The contact data for TIS Translation are:
Tel: 092-595-9933, +662-730-9933
Email: admin@tistranslation.com
Website: www.tistranslation.com

Trevi Multimedia

Trevi Multimedia has their office on Samsen Road, which is close to Khao Sarn.

Phone: 08-3716-3600
Email: contact@trevimultimedia.com
Website: http://trevigroup.co/contact/

What should you do?

Just follow the links to their websites, go to their contact us section, send them a message and tell them that you’re available. They will probably ask you to come in and take a recording of your voice. It is kind of your audition. When a job comes up they will present your voice sample to their client.

What kind of jobs can they offer you?

There are actually two kinds of jobs that they may offer you:

1. The actual voice over job
2. The language monitor

The voice over job is obvious. You’ll have to read the script and they will record your voice while doing it.

All of the bigger companies employ a language monitor. The language monitor gets paid around half of what the voice over talent gets paid.

Not a full-time job, but a nice way to make some extra money

Voice over jobs may not fill your coffers to pay your rent, but they can pose a nice way to supplement your income and make some extra cash on the side. And while you are waiting for your film and commercial work to draw in, you can do some voice over work and hone your skills.

Remember: The voice is one of your main instruments as an actor 😉

 

Do you want to know how to become an actor / model in Thailand? Check out this video or this article How To Become an Actor in Thailand:

Do you want to learn more about me? Check out my website: http://www.robinschroeter.de

I mentioned before how important it is to have decent headshots taken of yourself. This is a great opportunity to get them for free!

Mikael Ranta has just opened his own studio close the Sutthisarn MRT station. He offers to take your pictures there for free!

 

 

Mikael Ranta;s studio is just a 10 Minute motorbike ride from the MRT station Sutthisarn and thus very easy to reach.

Apart from being a really nice guy, Mikael has all the equipment available to take good shots. An excellent camera and good lighting equipment.

Free? It’s a barter deal!

Right now he offers a barter deal for the models and actors he works with: He takes your pictures and edits them. After that you get your pictures and he will sell them on pages like Shutterstock. At this point you don’t get any money, but usually it is quite expensive to have good pictures taken of yourself. You will get around 100 pictures with different moves and costumes.

Custumes and Props – even a cat!

Mikael has a number of different costumes available that you can try on as well as probs that you can play around with. If you are lucky and go soon you also get a chance to see his cute baby kitten. I was lucky to have this shot taken of me with the kitten.

Mikael is very open to adapt the shoot to your needs. If there is a certain look of theme that works for you, he is more than happy to tkae pictures in the costumes and styles that fit best to you.

Which character works for you?

I realised that currently I get more jobs for fathers and business men. Thus I asked him to take pictures of me in that mood and tone. It is good to have some idea of which characters work for you before you are going to see him.

Having good headshots is your door into the foot of the casting. The first thing the Casting Director and the Director will see of you is your headshot. Hence, the importance of having good headshots of yourself cannot be underestimated if you want a try at becoming an actor / model.

 

What makes a good headshot?

In a good headshot your face should be evenly lit. It should reveal the person seeing it your inner most soul of who you are.

Different lighting effects, backlighting, or uneven lighting can have interesting effects on your face, but they should be avoided in headshots.

A headshot should tell a story. Simple, direct and straightforward.

 

Do you want to know how to become an actor / model in Thailand? Check out this video or this article How To Become an Actor in Thailand:

Do you want to learn more about me? Check out my website: http://www.robinschroeter.de

 

 

1. One or many agents?

The way most people do it here is that they send their profile to as many agents as possible.

Why do we do that?

In Thailand production companies have either good or bad relations to certain agents which means that they have 2-3 agents that they prefer working with and then ask to send their talent. However, there are probably more than 50 agents in Thailand. In turn this means that, if you send your profile to only one agent, chances are high that you will not hear about a lot of jobs and will simply be left out.

This is the point of view of the talent.

2. From the agent’s point of view.

The agents receive hundreds of profiles from people for each job they post on Facebook or somewhere else. They have hardly any or no relationship to their talent. Therefore, they also hardly have any interest to stand up for their talents.

Maintaining the agents’ relationship with the production company is much more important to them than standing up for their talent.

This is for the very reason that agents are replaceable, there are so many and they all have the same talent. So, if one agent bulks up, just get the same talent from another agent that causes less problem.

As agent you have to be pretty stupid to stand up for your talent and lose your main client – the production company.

3. What are the consequences of this situation?

As a result of this negotiating your budget is extremely difficult.

In Thailand, most times, the budget is set before you go to the casting. By whom? The casting director and the production company.

So without knowing the most important things about the job like: What medium (Internet, TVC, banners, etc), Which countries? Which part, main, featured? What will you have to do? Which company is it for? For how long? What is your contract? What are the terms?

You already agreed to take the job whatever it may be for the budget that the production company set, because they posted the budget with the job.

4. Ask yourself: Does the Production Company have your best interest in mind?

Probably not. They are competing on the budget with other production companies to the client. They are trying to keep your budget as low as possible in order to make their maximum profit. The more money you get, the less they make.

So who can represent you?

Well, that should be your agent. Your agent should have your best interest in mind, but as mentioned above, they actually have very little interest in standing up for you. Hence, right now, the only one who can represent you, is you.

5. So what can you do?

The picture I have painted above looks very gloomy. As talent you are in a troublingly weak situation. When I asked a casting director whether I could re-negotiate my budget, which I felt was too low; after having been to a casting:

“You can try, but until now only the Casting Director and the Director have seen your casting video, if you ask for more money, they may not present you to the client.”

This was shocking to me. They would simply not present me to the client? Not let the client make the decision to maybe give me a higher budget because they saw value in what I did?

So, seriously, what can you do?

Judging from this, the only point at which you actually do have all the information you’d need to negotiate your budget AND the actual leverage is after you have been confirmed to do the job.

Sounds shitty to you? Sounds shitty to me.

This sounds pretty shitty, doesn’t it? I mean, that means that you’d have to say yes, yes, yes, and then in the final moment draw the break and tell everybody, “Stop! Now let’s talk about the budget, or I won’t do the job.” It is your good right to do so, and probably your only possibility to get the budget you deserve, BUT it may also get you blacklisted for other jobs.

Talents are the weakest link in the chain

As depressing as it sounds, there is no Actors Union, like in the West. There is no minimum wage. There is no one to truly represent you.

You have to realise that because of the situation that we are in and because we accept it to be the way it is, we are the weakest link in the chain.

6. No good agents at all? No! There is one agent!

Sounds like an Asterix quote? It is. Nonetheless, it is sad but true.

I have worked with many agents, there are many that I like on a personal level. They are personable and helpful.

The only agent whom I know that is standing up for his talent, and therefore got blacklisted by many production companies for ‘being difficult’, is Kaprice Kea.

I am aware that he is the only name I have mentioned in the entire article, but he does deserve credit for standing up for his talent.

7. In a best case scenario

After having painted this gloomy Hieronymous Bosch style picture, I actually do think there is still hope. It is hard, but would be of real benefit to the talent here.

In a best case scenario:

• We establish an Actors’ Union to represent the interest of all actors in Thailand (and people actually sticking to what they agree to)
• Talents are represented by one agent and one agent only
• Production companies / Casting Directors are required to inform all agents about jobs and allow them to submit talent without prejudice
• Production companies are required to reveal all details about the job to the agents to open fair negotiations
• Talent refuse to work for sub-standard conditions
• Open a Dialogue with the Production Companies to improve the standards for the talent

What will happen if we don’t do anything?

• Budgets will continue to fall
• Working hours will continue to increase (Now 13 hours has become the standard – 12 hours plus 1 hour break, in Canada it Is 8 hours)
• There will be less and less transparency about jobs

 

Do you want to know how to become an actor / model in Thailand? Check out this video or this article How To Become an Actor in Thailand:

Do you want to learn more about me? Check out my website: http://www.robinschroeter.de

 

 

 

 

 

The first couple of times you are going to castings you will be very excited. Everything is fresh and new. Your focus is on how to manage yourself during the casting and with the casting director. A lot of things may be decided even before you get there.

Some important things that you may want to clarify with your agent before going to the casting:

• Where is the casting?

Duh, obvious, but at the beginning I was a doofus and didn’t ask for maps. I thought, oh, I know town and town, got there and couldn’t get a hold of my agent. Just wasting time. Always ask for map and location before.

• When is the casting?

Date and time. Most castings start around 10 or 11, but some may be earlier or later. Also know at what time they end, if you’re one of the people who like to slip in at the last second.

• What is the best time to go to the casting? Does the casting director take appointments?

There may be times when there are many or few people going to the casting. Your agent may know at what time the other people he or she sent their will go to the casting and based on that give you a suggestion. – I usually try to go as early as possible since a lot of people work during day time and can inly go to the casting after their regular job. Going early has been advantageous for me.

• Which pictures did your agent send to the casting?

The casting director or director selected you for this job from the pictures that your agent sent to them. That picture is the look that they wanted. You may increase your chances by dressing the way that you dressed in the picture.

• What kind of character are they looking for?

I always ask that. It’s a big difference between a professor and a comic character. A fighter or a wuss. It helps you to prepare yourself mentally before.

• How should I dress?

Depending on the character you may already have some clue as to how you should go to the casting – just in your sloppy clothes or in a suit. Many castings offer costumes as well. But…you will always look better in your own clothes, since they fit you. In some cases I have even been asked by the director to bring and to wear my own clothes. My own clothes fit me better than the costumes they had and fit the character they were looking for.

• Is there a script?

Mostly for movies, but occasionally for TVCs as well. Being able to study the script beforehand definitely gives you an advantage. I am not good at learning lines and it takes me some time to get a script down. So for me it’s a big plus to get the lines or sides before. Remember: preparation pays off!

• What is the budget for this job?

This is probably the number one question. A lot of times I don’t even bother to go to the casting if the budget is too low. It also helps with the motivation. If there is a good budget you may be more motivated during the casting. But don’t let a high budget scare you off or make you nervous. A job is just a job.

• What are the shooting dates?

Very important to know. If you have another job on the date of the shoot or cannot get time off work on the day of the shoot don’t bother to go to the casting.

• Is it an open or closed casting?

Personally, I hate open castings and don’t bother to go there if I know it’s an open casting. I like being selected from pictures. It’s a little bit of a success every time you get ‘invited’. Open castings have a cattle feeling.

• Who is the casting director?

I used to ask this question much more often before. It still does help to know who the casting director is. Over time you can build a reputation which casting directors can appreciate.

Once you have all this information you are ready to go to the casting. After this it is up to you, but you can say of yourself that you are well-prepared!

These are the questions that come to my head right now. If there are any questions that you find helpful asking beforehand, let me know. I’ll be happy to include them here.

 

Cheers,

 

Robin Schroeter

 

Need to find an agent? Click here

Do you want to know how to become an actor / model in Thailand? Check out this video or this article How To Become an Actor in Thailand:

Do you want to learn more about me? Check out my website: http://www.robinschroeter.de

 

To Be an Artist You Need to Produce

One of the things that I noticed is that to be an artist it is always important to produce. It doesn’t matter what or how, but one of the things that differentiates you from others is if you produce things.

The result may not be what you expect. It may not be as good as you want it to be and certainly certain assholes in your environment will always be eager to tell you, what you just did is shit.

People are opinionated, so let them be. The important thing is that you produce something by yourself, something that is unique.

I always respect people that do something by themselves, because I know how hard it is to get your ass out on the line and just do it. Come up with a concept, write something, make a short video, something funny or dramatic, maybe write a song and record it.

Like I said it doesn’t really matter what you do, because just creating something creative by yourself already sets you apart. Of course, you should create something meaningful, but whatever you do over time you will get better at it. You will develop your own style and following.

People in today’s society, all of us are trained to consume. Every day we consume. We consume music, we consume food, we consume tv shows, we consume the internet.

There is so much to consume that it is easy to get lost in consumption and to forget how it is to create.

As artists you need to create, you need to make our point of view heard, you need to show the world that there is a different way of looking at things, not just through the eyes of consumption.

This is your way of giving back to society.

Have you ever seen this list?

As an arts major this is quite shocking. It means we are not doing our job right! Arts are now more important than ever. Society is falling into a coma and you need need to help them to wake up.

And how do you do that? By creating something that they can consume, from your point of view. With your ideas. Go out there and create! Now.

 

 

Do you have any questions or suggestions?

Contact me: Robin Schroeter