It's the Audition, Stupid!: The actor's essential guide to surviving the casting and getting the part

Casting Director Brendan McNamara has worked in casting since 1998. Starting as a runner at Hubbard Casting, Brendan was privileged to gain experience at one of the world's premier casting companies. He returned to Ireland to complete a degree in Drama and Theatre Studies at Trinity College, Dublin. After finishing his studies, he returned to Hubbard Casting working on projects such as The Bourne Supremacy, Churchill The Hollywood Years, Silver City and Omagh. He was also casting assistant for two series of Taggart. On leaving Hubbard Casting, Brendan freelanced for several other casting companies, working on tv shows like the BBC's M.I. High, A Class Apart and That Summer's Day. He also worked on music videos for The Streets and Franz Ferdinand, and tv commercial campaigns for Tiger Beer, Direct Line and the Royal Bank of Scotland. Brendan formed Beach Casting in May 2007. Since its inception, the company has had early success in establishing a name for itself with projects like Katy Brand's Big Ass TV Show for ITV and The Agent, an independent British feature film directed by Lesley Manning. Recently Brendan has cast an animated feature film for Warhammer 40K featuring Terence Stamp, Sean Pertwee and John Hurt, The Secret World Of Sam King for BEBO/Universal Records and new campaigns for NSPCC, McDonalds, Tesco and VW. He cast Treacle Jr., an independent British feature film directed by Jamie Thraves starring Aidan Gillen and Tom Fisher, which won Best Film at Dinard 2010. Before he became a casting director, Brendan featured as an actor in the Warner Bros. film The War of the Buttons produced by David Putnam, Paramount Pictures' Angela's Ashes directed by Alan Parker, and BBC Productions Rebel Heart, Paradise Heights and Brooklyn Bridge.