Why I’m running a Pay-What-You-Can Headshot Day
I’m setting aside a day to shoot pay-what-you-can headshots for performers. Actors, dancers, comedians, poets, singers. Community theatre stalwarts and first-time auditioners.
If you’re in the arts, this is for you. One look. Two finished images. No judgement if your budget is zero. If you can contribute, brilliant; it helps me cover the room, lights and time so I can say yes to someone who can’t. If you can’t, you’re still welcome. Full stop.
This is not a loss leader. It’s not a sales funnel. It’s me trying to put something back into my community. I get so much energy from the work, friendship, belonging that comes back from being part of that -so I want to put something back that’s actually useful. A good headshot isn’t a luxury in this business; it’s a key. If the industry is making it harder to find the door, the least I can do is make sure you’re in a better place to be seen.
I’ve been mulling this idea for a while. I’ve been out and about in the freelance world for a year and a bit after getting my P45 from corporate life.
The one thing I’ve seen a lot of in that year out in ‘the wild’ of Scotland’s creative scene again – is just how hard a lot of us are finding it right now.
Who is this day for?
I especially want to hear from local community theatre groups and underrepresented communities. If your cast is stitched together from shift workers and students and carers; if your rehearsal room is where people finally get to be seen as themselves; if your budget line says “biscuits” and that could even be a luxury – please, send your people my way. I will ring-fence spots for the folks who wouldn’t normally get near a professional shoot.
But what it isn’t – and I hope you understand why I say this – it’s not for someone who’s actually doing alright, and just looking for a cheap way to get a headshot. It’s definitely not for commercial business promo shots. Be honest, and don’t take the piss, right?
The honest bit: I’d love to use this day to help refresh my own galleries with people I don’t see represented enough. I want to see the Glasgow I know and love represented. With your consent, I’ll share some behind-the-scenes and a couple of before/afters to show what’s possible. Of course you can opt out. There’s zero pressure to say yes. But after years shooting London-based corporate life, well – I don’t think that represents my home, or my country as well as it could – and I want my work to do that.
The state of the arts here
We’ve seen massive cuts to funding, at the top and the bottom of the industry. Right now, as I write this, Hollywood is in town filming for the next Spider Man. And you know what I’ve seen a lot of in the last few weeks? Stories coming out about how few Scottish actors, production crew and talent are actually being employed by that multi-million dollar production. Yeah, it’s effing cool to have Tom Holland leaping about Bothwell St, but how about creating some actual jobs in the Scottish creative scene?
Scotland’s creative scene is brilliant and scrappy, rough and ready and, right now, more than a little bruised. I hear it in every creative networking thing I go to, including our own. Funding wins make the headlines then the footnotes tell a harder story. Creative Scotland confirmed multi-year support for 251 organisations this year, which is good news and I’m genuinely glad for the groups who got the nod… but it still leaves a lot of people and projects on the edges, especially individuals and grassroots outfits who’ve had programmes paused or closed outright when budgets didn’t land as promised. The festivals are feeling it too. Corporate backing has become harder to win; sponsorships have pulled back under activist pressure and reputation risk, which makes for lively opinion pieces but very real holes in festival budgets. When ticket sales only cover a fraction of costs, you can’t just “sell more tickets” to fix it. Even the Edinburgh giants have had to shrink and reshape a bit, and that has a ripple effect on artists from the very first headshot to the last bow on stage.
Closer to home, venues are fighting like hell to keep the lights on. The Citizens reopening is a beautiful reminder (especially for a long-term resident of the Gorbals) – that resilience is in Glasgow’s blood, but it has taken years of patience, and a city’s worth of goodwill to get there. We need that energy everywhere in the grassroots, not just in the big-name projects.
And if we’re honest, audiences… well, they’re doing the sums at the kitchen table like everyone else – get the messages or go to the theatre? We all know the answer to that one.
Creative Scotland’s own evidence shows culture and the arts has slipped down people’s “must-do” lists because the cost of living keeps shouting louder. That hurts emerging artists most, because the ladder’s first rungs are the ones that vanish first.
So I thought, ‘fuck it’, I can’t do much, but I can try to do something to help the creative community here at home.
Okay, I'm in - what's next?
First of all, the practical bits: I’m sorting a venue and date now, aiming for September-ish in Glasgow, either centrally or I’ve a couple of options with easy access on the ‘ol Clockwork Orange. I’ll only do this once this year, so if it’s sounding like it would be a good thing for you to do – or if you’re thinking of a friend who keeps putting getting a mugshot update off – get on the list.
First emails go to the waitlist, and I’ll prioritise the people who genuinely need the help right now.
I don’t need a headshot though?
If you like the idea but don’t need a headshot, you can still help. Share this with your theatre company. Forward it to your drama school pals. Hop onto my Instagram here and tag that pal who keeps putting auditions off because their photo looks like 2016.
If I can make a small, bright space for a day and fill it with faces that deserve to be seen, give someone the nudge they need to book a role, join a company, or try again… that’s a day well spent.
Register your interest here and once the date is confirmed,I’ll be in touch. I’ll ask for a couple of details from you, and why you want to grab a slot. If money is the thing getting in your way, say so. No essays required. No proving your worth. You’re already worth it. I don’t care – I want you to get a good headshot to help you get the work in.
Hopefully, if you’ve read this far, I’ll see you in front of my camera soon. Let’s make something honest.
