All posts by "Ilana Rapp"

Senior Writer
Ilana Rapp is a media-savvy Generation Xer with instinctive wit, quick humor and a taste for deep human emotions. As a former (child) actress with Broadway, film and television credits, she is adept at, well, lots of things. She currently blogs on The Huffington Post and writes entertainment pieces for NYCastings. She is a huge fan of the television show V. Ask her why her favorite number is 22. Follow Ilana on Twitter @LizardLadyNJ.
How-Murdered-and-Abused-Women-Finally-Got-their-Due-on-TV.jpg

Yes, TV has come a long way since the days of Leave it to Beaver and The Brady Bunch. There are now entire networks devoted to crime and violence, and ...
Tatiana Maslany as Alison Hendrix in Orphan Black

What is it about a bad performance that is so alluring? Is it the *schadenfreude of seeing someone who is usually so polished and perfect stumble? Or is it something ...
Margot Robbie and Leonardo DiCaprio in The Wolf of Wall Street

In today’s society, we’re seeing an influx of different cultures in the entertainment field. With this comes a new wave of actors who are auditioning with different accents. This can ...
Henry Cavill in The Witcher

Some of the world’s greatest actors have a few secrets up their sleeves that help them to become the amazing performers they are. These secrets, while they may be different ...
Tom Cruise and Miles Teller

Denise Chamian, CSA, is one of entertainment’s top Casting Directors. She has worked on some of the biggest movies and TV shows over the past three decades, including Top Gun: ...
NYCastings-Tourettes Syndrome

When singer Billie Eilish opened up in interviews with David Letterman and Ellen Degeneres about how her Tourette Syndrome, a tic disorder, has affected her life and career, she probably ...
5 Reasons Why Acting Is the Best Exercise for Seniors

Acting may seem like an unusual form of exercise for seniors, but it actually has a lot of benefits. There really is no age limit when it comes to acting. ...
Don't Worry Darling

How do actors deal with the challenge of changing behaviors on set? I’ve never started an article out with the title in the first paragraph, but I want it to ...
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New York is the city of opportunity and there is no better place to start your child’s career than with a New York City talent agent. But before you start ...
Actors headshot

There’s one pet peeve that Casting Directors have, and that’s when an actor does NOT look like their headshot. Can you guess why? No need to think about it too ...
Oscar Isaac in Dune

Award Winning Latinx Casting Director CARLA HOOL weighs in on what it’s like to cast Latinx actors in today’s entertainment world. She has been casting film and television for over ...
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I don’t know about you, but my attention span has been disrupted over the past several years. Recently, I was asked to play a game of Scrabble and just the ...
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If you’re serious about being a dancer and/or choreographer as a career, I highly suggest you start looking into agency representation. Dance is an incredibly important and popular form of ...
Actors can learn to 
manipulate people and situations like a puppet.

There’s a conflict in the acting world of whether an actor should or should not manipulate different types of situations. Then, there’s the conflict of real life manipulation vs. storytelling ...
Sean Penn in The Thin Red Line

Many people believe that bad behavior cannot be successful, however, there are many examples of people who have been successful despite behaving badly. Bad behavior can be successful because it ...
Confident man blame you, frowning and pointing finger at camera, accuse person, judgemental stare, standing over light blue background

We’ve all been there before. Something goes wrong and we’re quick to blame someone else. But is that really the best solution? More often than not, blaming others only makes ...
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In the industry of acting, it is not uncommon to feel pressure from your fellow actors. This pressure can come in the form of competition, comparison and even just simple ...
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Throughout your acting career, you will experience many different phases. The first phase is the beginning, where you are full of hope and dreams of becoming a successful actor. You ...
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My father taught me a very important lesson that he learned when he was a boy in school. It was about following the instructions. Very simple, yet why is it ...
Drew Barrymore had a Cameo in Scream

In Hollywood, it’s all about the leading role. The actor who gets top billing and is featured prominently in the trailers and posters. But sometimes, the best performances come from ...