SELF-TAPE EVALUATION CRITERIA AND THE STANDARDIZATION OF CASTING IN THE DIGITAL ENVIRONMENT

The article examines the phenomenon of the rapid transformation of the casting process precipitated by the mass transition to self-recorded video auditions (self-tape) and the concomitant need for their unified evaluation. The study aims to identify criteria capable of converting a chaotic torrent of digital submissions into a structured system that secures a balance among technical quality, organicity of performance, and ethical fairness of selection. The relevance of the work is determined by the irreversibility of the shift that has occurred: self-tapes have established themselves as the core infrastructure of contemporary casting, placing the industry before the challenges of material overload, the loss of room chemistry, and the imperative to formulate transparent standards. The scholarly novelty of the article lies in the first proposal of a multi-layered model of standardization that integrates recording technical specifications, artistic evaluation checklists, algorithmic filtering, and ethical protocols of transparency and personal-data protection. It lowers the cost and makes better use of resources as it strengthens the confidence of participants, turning a set of individual video auditions into parts of an ordered digital contour. The unified criteria enable casting directors to deal with an exponential growth in submissions without having to sacrifice the quality of their artistic judgment, while at the same time allowing the actors to perceive transparent and equitable grounds for selection. This standardization is introduced not as a restraining factor but rather from the perspective that allows justice, efficiency, and sustainable industry development to be attained in the new paradigm of digital casting. The article will be helpful to casting directors, actors, producers, and digital-media researchers interested in developing transparent and reproducible criteria for the evaluation of self-tapes.