Who wants to be a Beer Dad?
Indignity Vol. 5, No. 86
THAT'S SHOWBIZ! DEP'T.
Here's What They're Looking for Inside the Casting Machine
THANKS TO FREQUENT bouts of underemployment over the past decade, Indignity's Joe MacLeod has experience in the entertainment industry, not only as a game show contestant, but also as a "Background Artist," a/k/a "Extra."
Joe's most recent non-speaking, non-union gig was for a scene in Season 1, Episode 3 of the Apple TV plus-sign drama Swagger, inspired by NBA star Kevin Durant's journey through AAU basketball on the way to becoming a pro.
There's no point in showing you Joe's "clip," because his screen time is a fraction of a second, so here's a frame with a helpful In Search of Bigfoot–style locator. Of his latest foray into Getting Paid, master thespian MacLeod remarked "My 1989 Toyota Van made more than I did. They saw me drive up in it and paid me so they could to use it in the auto-shop scene." The van did not survive the cutting room floor, but Joe cashed the check!
Every once in a while Joe scrapes the casting sites looking for an easy payday for him or his van. Recently he's been scanning the vast catalog of Backstage.
Here are selected current performance opportunities from the listings, ranked from most to least fun-sounding. ("UGC" stands for "User-Generated Content.) Pick your path to a paycheck, or maybe even to fame:
Beer Dad (Lead, Male, 40–60)
Boxed Wine Social Media Shoot
Los Angeles Area
Seeking talent for a social media shoot with a boxed wine brand. Talent will be featured across multiple concepts focused on capturing fun, relaxed, social moments.
Friend 1 and Friend 2 (Models, Female, 24–30)
New York Botanical Garden, Friends Visiting an Event at the Garden
Bronx, NY
Seeking models to portray friends visiting the New York Botanical Garden. Models will be interacting and posing with photo ops and art displays during a preview event with multiple photographers and media partners.
Human Chessboard: Game Segment
Los Angeles, CA
Casting human "chess pieces" for a game segment on a live-streamed game. Game contestants must complete a chess puzzle with the human "chess pieces." Must be comfortable wearing an inflatable costume.
Foot Massager UGFC B-Roll and Spokesperson
Shoots remotely
Seeking talent for a UGC-style b-roll footage and spokesperson video for a foot massager product. It helps people relieve foot pain and discomfort. The content will be used within social media advertising.
Defense Attorney Brian Steel (Lead, Male, 18+), Defense Attorney Marc Agnifilo (Lead, Male, 18+), Witness Kid Cudi (Supporting, Male, 18+)
Trial Re-Enactment Project for News
NY, NJ, or CT
Seeking individuals who possess physical similarities to real-life character roles. The casting is about portraying the characters themselves in speaking roles to recreate the Sean "Diddy" Combs trial.
"The Reiters"
Records remotely
Casting "The Reiters," an indie animated series set in the 19th century. With its own spin on the classic Dog-Detective trope, it follows the story of two police academy dropouts, Richard Lloyd and Edgar Painter.
Booty Bridge User (Content Creators, Female, 20+)
At-Home Glute Trainer UGC
Records remotely
Seeking talent to create UGC content for a compact glute trainer with a patented pelvic support pad that enhances glute activation and comfort for effective at-home workouts.
Lucifer (Lead, Male, 30–60)
"Whores on Fire"
Los Angeles, CA
Casting 'Whores on Fire," a feature film. Synopsis: A modern retelling of Jack the Ripper as a Lynchian Grindhouse slasher. Keith, a broken man with erectile dysfunction pleads to god for help while the man upstairs is absent.
Female (Supporting, Female, 30–45), Male (Supporting, Male, 30–45)
Kansas Lottery Kansas City Chiefs Scratch Ticket
Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City
Casting a commercial for Kansas Lottery Kansas City Chiefs Scratch Ticket.
Father (Lead, Male, 35–45), Daughter (Lead, Female, 18–25)
License Online
Los Angeles, CA
Casting a spot that highlights the hectic yet repetitive daily routine of a parent driving their teen around (no actual driving will be filmed).
Female and Male Talent (Supporting, 25–65)
Utility Vehicle Shoot / Ranch Content Shoot MT
Montana
Casting diverse talent for Utility Vehicle Shoot. Note: Ages 28–65. Must be comfortable with travel to location, working in the outdoors, longer days, and working with their hands.
Simulation actor – CPR Scenario Ensemble (Lead, Female, Male, 24–55)
Real-Time Resuscitation: CPR Scenario Reenactment at Drexel University
Drexel University Simulation Lab, Philadelphia, PA
Casting e-learning content. Synopsis: Content For Good is casting six non-union actors for high-quality CPR scenario reenactment videos filmed at Drexel University.
"The Amnesiac CEO Became My Fake Husband"
China
A vertical drama (filmed in China, June 2025) with full English dialogue and platform-backed production support. A powerful CEO loses his memory after a car accident. Three years later, he lives undercover as a drifter—until he saves a woman in danger and feels an instant connection. She knows exactly who he is: the man she once loved. But he doesn't remember her. A sharp, emotional tale of identity, love lost, and love rediscovered.
WEATHER REVIEWS
New York City, May 12, 2025
★★★★ A Toyota stood at the curb with elm samaras pasted all over it like a hail of bird droppings. It was worth looping the wrong way around the block before getting tea, for the sake of simply seeing more of the day. Huge new leaves dangled from a skinny young streetside bur oak. The air felt maybe a tiny degree heavier than it had the day before, but it still seemed tragic that more people couldn't be outside with the sun and the breeze, in the strangely clean-looking and brilliant streets. Now and then the sound of a dirtbike came growling by from the avenue.
EASY LISTENING DEP'T.
HERE IS TODAY'S Indignity Morning Podcast!
Tom Scocca
Click on this box to find the Indignity Morning Podcast archive.
TOM SCOCCA
SANDWICH RECIPES DEP'T.
WE PRESENT INSTRUCTIONS in aid of the assembly of a sandwich selected from Practical Cookery; A Compilation of Principles of Cookery and Recipes and The Etiquette and Service of the Table, by the Department of Food Economics and Nutrition, Kansas State Agricultural College, published in 1921, and available at archive.org for the delectation of all.
CHEESE AND OLIVE SANDWICHES
RUSSIAN SANDWICHES
Spread thin slices of buttered bread with any cream cheese Spread an equal number of slices with fine-chopped olives and pimentos mixed with mayonnaise dressing. Press together in pairs with a crisp heart leaf of lettuce between each pair. Serve while the lettuce is fresh.
If you decide to prepare and attempt to enjoy a sandwich inspired by this offering, be sure to send a picture to indignity@indignity.net.
