Breakdown Services is the company that writes and distributes the casting breakdowns most North American film and TV roles are cast from. It runs Breakdown Express for casting directors, agents and managers, Actors Access for actors, and Eco Cast for self tapes and remote auditions. All nine US casting directors whose answers we read on where they post roles named Breakdown Services.
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Breakdown Services says Gary Marsh created the first breakdown in 1971, and that it now posts over 97 percent of scripted content in North America that needs actors: film, TV, theatre, commercials, voice and animation, union and non-union.
Think of it as the parent company. Actors Access, Breakdown Express, Eco Cast, Talent Link and CastingAbout all sit under it. CastingAbout's founders, Blair Hickey and Brian Wold, explain much of the system in our library.
Per the Breakdown Services FAQ, a breakdown is a synopsis of the whole script: every role's character description, the key creative and production team, location, start dates, rate of pay, union status and any special notes.
For major projects, Blair Hickey and Brian Wold told us, the writers at Breakdown Services prepare it from the script. Smaller productions often write their own. Their advice: read the character description properly. Many actors check the age and job title and miss the story and arc, which is what you should take into the room.
The casting director decides three things: which regions get it (Los Angeles, New York, Vancouver, Toronto, the Midwest, the Southeast or nationwide), when it goes out, and whether it goes to agents and managers on Breakdown Express, to actors on Actors Access, or both. Breakdown Express says every breakdown is reviewed and approved before release.
Then it moves fast. Blair Hickey and Brian Wold have seen submissions arrive within minutes, and often 2,000 to 3,000 for a single LA TV role released only to agents.
Breakdown Express is the professional side: casting directors and filmmakers post projects there, and agents and managers view breakdowns, submit clients and manage their rosters. Actors Access is the actor side. Your Actors Access profile is the one your reps submit, so each rep needs you linked to their roster.
Actors can't subscribe to Breakdown Express. Blair Hickey explained that breakdowns are copyrighted and licensed to representatives under contract; if casting wants actors to submit directly, they release the role on Actors Access. Websites selling copies of those breakdowns to actors breach that copyright, he said, and usually arrive too late to matter.
In the US, the ones we asked do. All nine US-based casting directors whose answers we read named Breakdown Services or Breakdown Express as their main channel, among them Lisa Beach, Meg Morman, Bonnie Zane, Sunny Boling and Victoria Burrows. Some add other tools, such as Cast It on bigger shows (Scot Boland) or LA Casting and Casting Frontier (Sunny Boling).
Outside the US it varies. Deirdre Bowen mostly uses Casting Workbook, while Greg Apps and Amanda Mitchell named Casting Networks and Showcast in Australia. Our casting sites guide compares them.
Everything lands in one place. Agent submissions and actor self-submissions are mixed together, roughly 100 to a page. Blair Hickey and Brian Wold told us the default order is random within groups: submissions with video and a SlateShot first, then video only, then SlateShot only, then no video. Casting can re-sort alphabetically, and the offices they asked said they go through every submission.
Still, one office told them 75 to 80 percent of the actors it brings in are people it already knows, so relationships matter as much as submissions.
Eco Cast is the Breakdown Services audition system. Its Eco Cast page lists four parts: Eco Cast Self-Tape (casting sends instructions, attaches sides and sets a deadline), Eco Cast Live (remote auditions, including chemistry reads, with a waiting room), Eco Cast Desktop (records in-person sessions) and Presentations (secure links for producers and directors to watch and comment).
This is the process the Actors Access help centre describes, as of November 2026:
Your rep may review it first and ask for a retake. Blair Hickey and Brian Wold suggest having your set-up ready before invitations arrive and submitting early, never late.
As of November 2026, from the Breakdown Services and Actors Access sites:
| Who | What | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Actors | Actors Access account, including Eco Cast invitations and Secure Sides | Free |
| Actors | Actors Access Plus: respond to every Actors Access breakdown with your full profile | $68 a year or $9.99 a month (USD) |
| Actors | Extra photos and performance media | Fee, not listed on the pages we read |
| Casting and filmmakers | Posting a breakdown | Most postings free; some projects need a fee, and you're contacted if so |
| Agents and managers | Breakdown Express subscription | Not published; enquiries to Breakdown Services |
Sources: the FAQ, Actors Access memberships and the Post a Breakdown page. Free accounts can still submit their name and résumé to roles released to actors.
Yes. Breakdown Express has a Post a Breakdown option for first-time users. Blair Hickey and Brian Wold's advice for actors making their own films: describe what each character does and their arc, not just "female, 20s, really hot". A better breakdown attracts better submissions.
Actors sign in at actorsaccess.com. Casting directors, agents and managers sign in at breakdownexpress.com. For password or account problems, use the official Breakdown Services contact page.
It's the company that writes and distributes casting breakdowns in North America. It runs Breakdown Express for casting directors and reps, Actors Access for actors and Eco Cast for self tapes and remote auditions.
For casting directors and filmmakers, most breakdown postings are free, though some projects need a fee. Agents and managers pay a subscription, and the price isn't published.
No. Breakdown Express is licensed to talent representatives. Actors use Actors Access, where casting releases the roles they want actors to see.
Eco Cast is the Breakdown Services audition system: self-tape requests, Eco Cast Live remote auditions, in-person recording and shareable presentations for producers.
Yes. As of November 2026, the free Actors Access account includes access to Eco Cast self-tape and Eco Cast Live invitations.
Actors log in at actorsaccess.com. Casting directors, agents and managers log in at breakdownexpress.com.
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All rates current from breakdownservices.com, breakdownexpress.com, actorsaccess.com and actorsaccess.freshdesk.com as of 3 November 2026.