MTV hits campus seeking new casts

The line outside Touchdown Cafe today won't be for the $2 Miller Lite special. Wannabe actors and actresses will instead be waiting for a chance to be the next Puck, Judd or Montana.

Ann Arbor will be welcoming MTV's "The Real World" and "Road Rules" casting directors from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Touchdown Cafe. Eighteen- to 24-year-old residents of the Metro Detroit area are invited to show their stuff at an open casting call for the 1998 season, which includes "The Real World - Seattle" and two eight-week "Road Rules" adventures.

"The Real World" will film January through July 1998, and both "Road Rules" shows, whose itineraries have not yet been announced, will record from February through April 1998 and from June to August 1998.

Both "Road Rules" and "The Real World" invite viewers to live vicariously through the adventures of the characters. Daily activities - including dinners, discussions and all-out cat-fights - are exposed on film for everyone's viewing pleasure. "Road Rules" adds a special twist, with all of the above filmed during wacky on-the-road journeys.

"Road Rules" Casting Assistant Melanie Lindahl, "Road Rules" Casting Director Kira O'Dell and "Real World" Director Craig Borders will conduct the interviews.

Rebo McFadden, casting assistant for "The Real World," said would-be participants should expect one-on-one interviews. If Touchdown Cafe becomes too crowded, he said, auditioners will be split into groups of four or five and encouraged to interact with each other.

Ann Arbor is one of six cities where MTV is holding open casting calls. Casting assistants have already been to San Francisco, Washington, D.C., Richmond, Va., and Atlanta. The last and final stop will be in Columbus, Ohio, on Saturday. So far, the largest turnout was in D.C., where directors auditioned almost 700 aspiring cast members.

If MTV were to cast a University student for the '98 season, he or she wouldn't be the first Ann Arborite to shine in "The Real World" spotlight. Judd Winick, a 1992 University graduate, appeared in 1994's "The Real World - San Francisco" season. An Art major and editorial cartoonist for The Michigan Daily, Winick is the only person affiliated with the University to appear in the series - so far.

Participants in today's audition have the chance to follow in Winick's footsteps.

"Usually half the cast comes from open calls," McFadden said, adding that open calls "are extremely effective."

McFadden said the other half of the two shows' casts comes from videotapes sent in by ardent fans around the country. Both tapes and casting calls make up the first round of a six- or seven-round screening process. People who leave a memorable impression in round one will advance to the second round. In later rounds, auditioners are filmed in groups to get a feel for their on-screen dynamics.

The final round, where casting assistants interview the top people, will not take place until after Dec. 1, McFadden said.

"Right now, it's too early to start having characters," he said. The weeding-out process, he emphasized, is still only in its beginning stages.

Julie Hazimi, a general manager at Touchdown Cafe, said yesterday that she didn't know what to expect from the event. She said it has been publicized on fliers around the metro Detroit area.

"People have been calling and asking directions from Lansing and Detroit. I'm sure we'll get a good turnout," Hazimi said.

"Definitely the bar business will pick up," she added. "People are going to be waiting."

To quench the thirst of a large and eager crowd, Touchdown will offer several specials, Hazimi said. Those stuck in the bar for the day can treat themselves to $2 Miller Lites or $2.50 Coronas with Bacardi Limon shots.

LSA first-year student Rebecca Mall said she plans to be in line by 10 a.m.

"My GSI and I obsess about 'The Real World,'" she said enthusiastically. "I am from San Francisco and I used to see Puck all the time in his boxcar."

Though he said he doesn't obsess about the show, LSA sophomore Simon Perazza said he wouldn't mind getting a spot. "I want to live in a phat house and not pay rent so then I could save money," he said.

"I don't want to do 'Road Rules,'" Perazza added. "I don't want to live in a trailer, but I will live in a house."

And for those worried if the pimple, albeit tiny, on their nose will hinder their audition, McFadden had some reassuring words.

Attractiveness "plays a small part," he said. "Obviously, a person has to have some sort of appeal. In past casts, looks haven't really been an issue.

"I'm not going to name individual people - like, hey, you're ugly - that wouldn't be right."

10-29-97