Casting People Who Look Like They Have Somewhere To Be.

People Before Poses

We like people who look like they were already doing something before the camera arrived.

They have somewhere to be.

Somebody is waiting for them.

There is a receipt in their pocket, a missed call on their phone, and a very specific reason they chose those shoes.

They are not standing inside the campaign waiting to hold a product.

They have a life outside the frame.

That life is what makes the image interesting.

Give Them Something To Want

A character needs more than an outfit.

What do they want?

What are they avoiding?

Why are they in this room?

What happened five minutes before the photograph?

Where are they going next?

The audience may never know the answers, but the image can still carry them.

A glance toward the door feels different when the character has somewhere to go.

A hand around a perfume bottle feels different when it belongs to somebody with a reason for wearing it.

A beautiful person can hold our attention.

A specific person can hold our curiosity.

Style Is Part Of The Story

Wardrobe should tell us something.

Maybe the trousers are too formal for the location.

Maybe one glove has disappeared.

Maybe the character wears the same color every day.

Maybe their jewelry looks collected rather than styled.

Clothing, hair, makeup, posture, props, and expression all help build the character.

The goal is not to pile on details until the image becomes a costume.

It is to choose the few details that suggest a larger life.

One unexpected object can do more than an entire rack of clothing.

One expression can change the meaning of the campaign.

Characters Give The Campaign Somewhere To Go

Once a character feels real, the campaign can expand around them.

Their bedroom becomes a location.

The object in their pocket becomes a product detail.

The song they are listening to becomes the soundtrack.

Their morning becomes one film.

Their night becomes another.

One portrait can introduce an entire world.

At Sorbet, we are not only casting people who look right for the image.

We are casting people who make us wonder what happens after it.