Monday, August 29, 2011

North Carolina Sound Stages And Being Involved In Its Acting Scene

By George Harris


North Carolina sound stages have a number of over 30 sound stages and seven major studio complexes. North Carolina is actually the # 3 filmmaking state, following only California and The Big Apple. Screen Gems Studios, situated in nearby Wilmington, North Carolina, has been around for more than twenty years and has produced more than 300 film, tv, and commercial productions. Possibly this is the reason why Southport, North Carolina appears in so many films. Or perhaps it is just Southport's tree lined streets, historic settings and beautiful scenery which makes filming in Southport so popular.

North Carolina is one of the most busy states for shooting movies and tv outside of California and New York. In fact, it has the the majority of soundstages (1,000,000 Square Feet's worth) and production sites of any state in the union outside California. Over the years it has played host to over 700 feature movie productions and fourteen major tv shows. Do not be amazed if one day while walking down the sidewalk in Southport, North Carolina you pass by Tom Cruise. Why? Southport, North Carolina is a very famous spot for movies. Numerous movies have used Southport as their primary location. Additionally, there are many movies that use Southport for a part of their scenes.

Now how can you become involved in the thriving acting scene in North Carolina? The first and most practical step you could take is to relocate to Charlotte. It's a great city which has a large community of actors and entertainment experts, and it's within just driving distance of any production or audition in the state. It's also in close proximity to many other major Southern Cities. Charlotte also has the most number of production companies and ad agencies of any city in the Carolinas, which do a large volume of commercial and model casting. Also, there are a number of professional Equity theatres in the city running stage shows year round which are maintained by a professional and amateur acting group called First Friday.

Many of the roles and work opportunities for actors in North Carolina are non-union, which has both plusses and minuses. On the good side, non-union jobs are much easier to acquire, more abundant, improve your resume, and allow you to side step difficult union rules as well as work qualifications. The major disadvantage is that these roles don't pay union scale, and will not always help you to get a SAG membership.

North Carolina sound stages are where films such as Being There, The Fugitive, Forrest Gump, The Last of the Mohicans, Cold Mountain, Firestarter, Dirty Dancing, and The Patriot have been shot mostly or entirely in North Carolina. Dawson's Creek, probably the most successful show ever to air on the now defunct WB network, was shot in NC for 6 years. One Tree Hill currently is in production there too. In all of these cases many roles were cast from the locals, and almost all of the background actors were pulled from local neighborhoods. This really is a great opportunity for natives of the Carolinas. Independent production also is ramping up significantly; since 2001 more than 100 independent films and shows have been filmed in-state. The Science of Cool, starring Scott Bakula, currently is in production in NC, and is also a high-profile HD feature.




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