Terminology Tuesday – Pinned

What exactly does it mean to be “pinned”? Sometimes being pinned is also referred to as “on avail” or a “watch and advise”. All of them essentially mean the same thing: you’re “in the mix”. As for why exactly you’re pinned? There could be a few possibilities… ⭐️
Maybe you are exactly who they want, but the shooting schedule hasn’t locked yet. We can’t send out offers to day players without a locked schedule.

Maybe you are the producer’s choice but we are still waiting on studio and/or network approval. 

Maybe you are pinned as a backup in case the first choice falls through (NOT a bad thing!)

Maybe this role shoots soon and we don’t have much time to spare but the creative team still needs to agree on a choice, so, PIN ALL THE ACTORS!

Regardless of the situation, did you know you can always ask? Debating on going out of town (outside of quarantine, of course) but don’t want to risk losing the job? ASK! You can have your reps ask things like “Is she THE choice?” “Are there many other people in the mix?” “Do you expect there to be any issues with getting approved?” These will all help you figure out just how “pinned” you really are. 

Still pinned a week later? Was it the longest week of your life?? If it’s taking us that long to get a deal closed and/or approval on someone, it’s been a long week for us too. Usually we are pretty pro-active about staying in touch with reps if their client is pinned and we can’t make the offer right away (maybe we’re 7+ days away from a locked schedule). They key is to trust + be patient. Don’t worry. We will absolutely let you know the situation as soon as we have more information. 

Pin was taken out? Don’t fret! Somewhere along the line, both casting director AND one (or more) people on the creative team loved you! And once you’ve been pinned, chances are the casting office will want to bring you back (maybe for an even bigger role! 🤞🏼)