Supporting Artists: your guide to RosterDeck

RosterDeck is a UK casting and booking platform used by talent, casting and supporting artist agencies. Your agent runs their bookings on it, and you get your own free account: one profile with your photos, measurements and details, one-tap responses to availability checks, your call sheets, your digital chits (pay records) and your digi-fit uploads, all in one place. RosterDeck is software. It is not an agency, it does not cast jobs and it does not represent artists. The agencies who use it do that.

RosterDeck is not a talent agency, casting agency or employer, and it is not an intermediary in your pay. Your working arrangement is with your agent, not with RosterDeck. The normal chain is that the production pays the agency and the agency pays you, usually less their commission. RosterDeck never holds or handles artist money and is not a party to those payments, so anything to do with when you are paid, how much, or a payment that has not arrived is a question for your agency, not for us. What RosterDeck does is give you an accurate, itemised record of every day you worked, so that conversation starts from agreed figures.

No. RosterDeck is free for supporting artists and other talent. There is no membership fee, no subscription and no charge to keep your profile, upload photos, respond to availability requests or view your chits. Agencies pay for the platform, not artists. Separately from RosterDeck, your agency will normally deduct a commission percentage from your fee for jobs they book you on, that is their charge, set in your agreement with them, and it is shown to you on every chit so you can see gross, commission and net.

Sign-up is currently open to new supporting artists. Go to the RosterDeck login page and choose "Continue with Google" in the recommended box at the top. Doing so creates your account and signs you in, with no invitation needed. If you have been sent an invitation link by an agent or by a colleague already on the platform, open that link instead so your account is connected to the right agency from the start. Once you are in, complete your profile and photos before anything else: an incomplete profile is the single most common reason an artist is passed over.

Open the invitation link from the email or message you were sent. The link itself is what carries the invitation, so it does not matter if the Google account you sign in with uses a different address from the one you were invited on. Choose "Continue with Google" (recommended) or create an email and password, and your account is created and attached to the agency that invited you. Invitation links are single-use where they were shared privately, so use your own link rather than one forwarded from another artist.

Yes, and this is one of the main reasons to be on the platform. You keep one profile and one login however many agencies represent you. When a second or third agency invites you, you accept from the Representation section of your settings and they see the same up-to-date photos, measurements and contact details as everyone else; there are no forms to fill in again and nothing to keep in sync by hand. Each agency only sees its own bookings, jobs and timesheets with you; they do not see the jobs another agency has booked you on. You can see every agency currently representing you, and any pending invitations, in Settings.

RosterDeck does not represent artists or place you with an agency, but it does make you findable by the agencies already on it. Turn on Profile Visibility in your settings and your profile appears in the discovery directory, where agents running Networking Mode can search for artists and invite them onto their roster in one click. What gets you invited is a complete, current profile: all nine photo slots filled, accurate measurements, your location, your playing age, and any skills, licences or wardrobe you can offer. Agents search on exactly those fields, so an artist with a blank measurement or a three-year-old headshot simply does not come up. Beyond the platform, the usual routes still apply too: apply directly to supporting artist agencies in your region, and be realistic about travel.

Discoverability (Profile Visibility in your settings) is an opt-in switch. It is off by default. Off, only the agencies that already represent you can see your profile. On, your profile also appears in the RosterDeck discovery directory, where other agencies using Networking Mode can find you and invite you to their roster, though you always choose whether to accept. You can switch it off again at any time. Discoverability is offered to artists who joined the platform independently, who are represented by two or more agencies, or whose agency has Networking Mode enabled; if the switch is not showing in your settings, that is why.

When an agency is casting a job you fit, they send you an availability check by email, and by SMS as well if you have opted in to text reminders. It lists the job and the dates, and you answer with one tap straight from the message: available or not available. You do not need to log in, and you do not need to reply to an email thread. Your answer lands in the agency portal instantly, which is what makes the difference between being offered a last-minute day and hearing about it after it has been filled. You can also block out dates you are unavailable in the Availability calendar in your account, so an agency knows not to chase you for a holiday or a clashing booking.

Once the agency confirms your booking you receive a booking confirmation, and then a call sheet before the shoot day with your call time, location and any wardrobe or preparation notes. Some jobs also ask for a digi-fit (wardrobe photos) or a document to sign, such as an NDA or an appearance release, and those arrive as their own links. On the day, production signs you in on arrival and out at wrap on the digital timesheet, and your chit for that date is generated from those times and emailed to you.

No. An availability check is a question, not a booking: answering "not available" costs you nothing on the platform. What does matter is answering quickly and honestly, because agencies cast from the artists who have replied, and repeatedly accepting and then dropping out is the fastest way to stop being asked. If something changes after you have accepted, tell your agency immediately rather than leaving it: many agreements charge production a late cancellation fee close to the day, and your agency needs the time to recast.

A profile that gets booked is complete, current and honest. Complete: every required photo slot filled and every measurement entered, because agents search and filter on those fields and a blank one takes you out of the results. Current: photos that look like you today. If you cut your hair, grew a beard, changed colour or changed size, replace the photos that week, because being sent to set looking different from your profile is how artists lose repeat work. Honest: give real measurements and a realistic playing-age range rather than flattering ones; wardrobe is ordered from what you entered. Then add the things that separate you from everyone else of your height and age: skills, licences, a valid DBS date, your own wardrobe (suits, uniforms, black tie, period pieces), a driving licence, a car you can bring, languages, and any dietary requirements production needs to know about. Your RosterDeck profile shows a completion score with the exact fields still missing: get it to 100% and leave it there.

There are nine standard slots and agencies expect all of them: Main Headshot, Front (selfie), Back (selfie), Side (selfie), Full Length, Hands (front), Hands (back), Business Wear and Evening Wear. The headshot is what an agent and a production see first in a shortlist. Full length is what wardrobe uses. The front, back and side selfies show your current shape and hair from every angle. Hands matter more than artists expect: they are the deciding factor for close-up work, and for anything involving rings, watches, nails or tattoos. Business wear and evening wear show that you can be cast for corporate, formal and party scenes from your own wardrobe.

You do not need a professional photographer for supporting artist work: a phone and daylight is enough if you follow the basics. Use natural light, facing a window or outdoors in shade, never with a bright window behind you. Use a plain, uncluttered background: a blank wall is ideal. Ask someone to take the shots rather than holding the phone at arm's length, and have them stand a couple of metres back at chest height so your face is not distorted. Shoot in portrait orientation, in focus, with your whole head or whole body inside the frame. No sunglasses, no hats, no heavy filters, no beauty smoothing, no group photos with someone else cropped out, and no photos taken on a night out. Neutral expression for the headshot and a neutral, close-fitting outfit for the full length and selfies, so wardrobe can judge your shape. Tie hair back if it hides your face or neckline. And make sure the photos are recent: a headshot that flatters an artist but does not match who walks onto set is worse than no headshot at all.

Update the moment anything changes, and check the whole profile every few months even when nothing has. Any visible change (hair length or colour, beard, glasses, weight, tattoos, piercings) needs new photos straight away, because agents shortlist and productions approve from those images. Measurements should be re-checked at least once a year; wardrobe orders from the numbers on your profile. RosterDeck stamps each photo with the date it was uploaded, so an agent can see at a glance how old your images are. Because you maintain one profile that every agency representing you sees, one update reaches all of them at once.

RosterDeck records supporting artist measurements in imperial units, which is the convention on UK sets and in UK wardrobe departments: height in feet and inches, chest, waist, hips and inside leg in inches, shoe size in UK sizes, plus your dress or suit sizing where relevant. Measure over light clothing with a soft tape and do not round in your own favour. These are the fields agents filter on when they need, for example, a 6ft male in a size 42 suit for a period scene, so an inaccurate or empty measurement is a booking you never hear about.

Some productions, particularly those involving children, hospitals, schools or police scenes, require artists to hold a valid DBS certificate, and some agencies verify identity and right to work before they put you forward. RosterDeck lets you upload a DBS certificate and a photo ID into secure private storage. These documents are handled quite differently from your profile photos: they are stored in a private area, they are never shown on your public profile or on any production-facing page, and agents cannot browse them. An agent representing you sees only that a document exists, and every single view of the document itself is logged for data protection purposes. Your DBS issue date is shown on your profile with an expiry warning after 18 months, because most productions treat older checks as stale.

A digi-fit is a digital costume fitting: instead of travelling to a wardrobe department for a fitting, you photograph yourself in the outfits or wardrobe options production has asked for and upload them from your phone. RosterDeck sends you a secure link for the specific shoot date, you upload full-length photos against it, and the costume department reviews them as a fitting gallery or PDF pack. It saves you an unpaid trip across a city, and it lets wardrobe sort sizing before the shoot day rather than at 6am on set.

Wardrobe needs to judge fit and proportion, so the rules are stricter than for a headshot. Stand a few metres back from the camera against a plain wall, with your whole body in frame including your feet and any headwear, not cropped at the ankles. Portrait orientation, good even light, no filters. Wear or hold whatever the brief asks for, and take a separate photo for each outfit rather than combining them. Stand straight, arms slightly away from your sides, neutral expression. If production has asked for specific angles, front and back, or a particular item shown, follow that brief exactly: a resubmission costs a day.

A digi-fit fee is a supplement your agency sets on the job's rate card, and where one applies it is added to your chit automatically when you submit your photos, so you do not have to claim it. No union agreement currently defines a remote fitting payment, so whether one is paid and how much is a matter for your agency and the production: check with your agency if you are unsure before you shoot. Digi-fit links are time limited: after the window your agency has set (up to seven days) the link closes and the uploaded photos are purged from the platform.

A chit is your pay record for one artist on one work date. In RosterDeck it is built automatically from the times signed on set: production signs you in on arrival and out at wrap on the digital timesheet, and the platform calculates the basic for that kind of day, your worked hours, and any overtime beyond the day's rule (a Standard Working Day of 9 hours, a Continuous Working Day of 7 hours, a flat 10 hours, or none). Supplements are added on top: travel allowances and early calls, meal penalties, per diems, night and public-holiday enhancements, digi-fit fees, broken turnaround, and the agreement's supplementary fee categories. Holiday pay is then accrued on top at the card's percentage, 12.07% by default. At the end of the day you are emailed your own chit itemising every line, with a PDF copy, and it is also on your dashboard. Nothing is worked out by hand, which is why the arithmetic on a chit is rarely the thing in dispute.

The three agreements most UK supporting artist work is paid under, and their current published figures, are: PACT/FAA, from 14 January 2026: basic day £111.21, night call £166.82, four-hour shift call £69.51, costume fitting or non-performance call £55.61; overtime £10.43 per half hour, and £15.65 per half hour on nights and unsocial hours; public holidays at 1.5× the basic; supplementary fee categories A £23.00, B £23.00, C £30.51, D £37.22 and E £61.63; meal-break penalties £20.86 (£23.38 with holiday pay, as the agreement quotes them); travel allowances £17.09 (TfL Zones 1–3) and £23.89 (Studios / beyond Zone 3); an early call payment of £20.91; broken turnaround £20.86 per hour. PACT/Equity Supporting Artist, from 1 April 2026: basic day £114.39, night call £171.59, costume fitting or non-performance call £57.20; overtime £9.53 per half hour, and £14.30 per half hour on nights and unsocial hours; public holidays at 1.5× the basic; supplementary payments SP1 £32.46, SP2 £27.05 and SP3 £20.00. BBC/Equity Walk-On & Supporting Artist (CDS), from 1 April 2026: basic day £97.68, night call £101.80, costume fitting or non-performance call £54.95; overtime £9.16 per half hour, and £13.74 per half hour on nights and unsocial hours; public holidays at 1.5× the basic; an additional-episode payment of 50% of the basic for each episode past the first; supplementary payments Creative Contribution £32.46, Performance of Skill £27.05 and Provision of Property / Service £20.00; broken turnaround £18.32 per hour. These figures exclude holiday pay, which is accrued on top at 12.07%. Rates are renegotiated periodically and the published agreements are the authority; always check what your own booking is paid at.

That depends entirely on your agency and the job, not on RosterDeck. Your agency attaches a rate card to each job, and that card decides what you are paid. It might be built from the PACT/FAA, PACT/Equity or BBC/Equity preset, it might be one of those adjusted for a negotiated deal, or it might be an agency's own card for non-union commercial or corporate work at whatever rates were agreed. RosterDeck performs the arithmetic on the figures your agency has entered; it does not check them against any union agreement or statutory minimum. So if you want to know which agreement a job falls under and what the day rate is, ask your agency before you accept, and the chit you receive afterwards will show you exactly what was applied.

Overtime is time worked beyond the day's contracted hours, charged in half-hour units at the card's overtime rate, with a higher night rate for hours outside roughly 07:00 to 22:00. Turnaround is the rest break between your wrap on one date and your call on the next date of the same production; the PACT/FAA agreement sets a minimum of 11 hours, and where the break is shorter the shortfall is paid at the card's turnaround rate for each hour or part hour. RosterDeck compares your wrap and next call automatically and flags a broken turnaround rather than relying on anyone spotting it. Holiday pay is accrued on top of your basic, overtime and performance supplements at the card's percentage, 12.07% by default, and expense-type supplements such as travel allowances and per diems are correctly excluded from the holiday base, because they are reimbursements rather than pay.

Commission is the percentage your agency deducts from your fee for finding and administering the work. The rate is a matter between you and your agency and is set on the agency's rate card, not by RosterDeck. You will see it: every artist-facing figure in RosterDeck (your chit email, your chit PDF and your dashboard) shows gross, the commission deducted and your net, so you can always see what you earned and what was taken. Some items are commission-free by default, such as per diems, because they reimburse a cost rather than pay you. If the commission percentage on your chit is not what you agreed, that is a conversation with your agency.

Query it on the chit itself, straight away. Each chit email and chit page has an Approve button and a Query button. Choose Query, say what is wrong (a wrong sign-out time, a missing supplement, a category you should have been paid) and it goes back to both your agency and production while the day is still fresh, rather than surfacing weeks later at payroll. You have one query per chit, so use it to raise everything you disagree with in one go rather than sending the first thing you spot. Production either updates the timesheet or confirms it as correct, and the chit is re-issued to you either way.

You have 48 hours from when the chit is sent. A reminder goes out around 12 hours before that window closes. If you have not approved or queried by then, the chit auto-approves so that one unresponsive artist cannot hold up payroll for the whole job. Auto-approval is clearly marked as such on the record. This is why it is worth checking your chit the evening you get it: once the window has closed the fast route to correcting it has gone, and you are back to emailing your agency.

Your agency. RosterDeck does not pay artists, does not hold artist money and is not a party to the payment; the production pays the agency and the agency pays you. Contact your agency directly with the job, the work dates and the chit: you have the itemised chit and the PDF in your account, which is the strongest possible starting point for the conversation because the figures are already agreed and timestamped. RosterDeck support cannot chase a payment, release a fee or intervene in a dispute between you and an agency. What we can help with is a technical problem in the platform itself, such as a chit you cannot open.

Whether a cancellation fee is payable depends on the agreement and how late the cancellation came. The PACT/FAA agreement sets tiers at clause 13: nothing is payable if you are released at or before 12:00 the day before, 50% of the fee if released after that and up to 15:00, and 100% after 15:00. PACT/Equity Supporting Artist and BBC/Equity Walk-On & Supporting Artist (CDS) publish no cancellation clause, so any fee there is a commercial term your agency has chosen to apply. Where your agency has cancellation charging enabled, a released booking still appears on the timesheet as a locked "Cancelled" line with the fee priced on it, so there is a record rather than a booking that quietly disappears.

The agencies that represent you can see your profile, your bookings with them and your timesheets with them, and each agency only sees its own jobs, never another agency's. If you have opted in to discoverability, other agencies using Networking Mode can also find your profile in the discovery directory and invite you. Production companies see only what your agency shares with them for a specific job: a cast shortlist with your photos and the details needed to cast and dress you, on a secure link that expires. Your DBS certificate and photo ID are never included in anything production-facing, and agents cannot browse them either. Cast photos on the platform are also de-indexed so they do not turn up in search engine image results. The full detail is in the RosterDeck privacy policy.

Under UK GDPR you can ask for access to the personal data RosterDeck holds about you, a portable copy of it, correction of anything inaccurate, or deletion. Email support@rosterdeck.com and we will handle it. Two things are worth knowing. First, some booking and timesheet records are kept for a retention period because they are financial and production records; the privacy policy sets out how long. Second, data your agency or a production company has already downloaded (roster exports, approval PDFs, timesheets) sits with them and is outside RosterDeck's control, so a request about their copy goes to them. Anything you can correct yourself, such as your photos, measurements and contact details, is faster to change directly in your profile.

No, and this catches people out. The contact email on your profile is the address your agency and RosterDeck actually write to (availability checks, call sheets and chits all go there), and you control it from your settings, verifying any change by clicking a link sent to the new address. Your sign-in email is separate: it is the Google account or email and password you log in with, and changing one does not change the other. If your chits are going to an address you no longer read, update the contact email on your profile.

Yes, if you opt in. SMS reminders are off by default; turn them on in your settings and add your mobile number, and your agency can send you a text alongside the email for availability checks and reminders. For last-minute casting this is often the difference between getting the job and missing it, because agencies book from whoever answered first. You can opt out again at any time from the same place.

Turn on two-factor authentication in Settings under Account Security. Your RosterDeck account holds your photos, your measurements, your contact details, your identity documents and your pay records, which makes it worth protecting properly. If you sign in with Google, secure that Google account too, since it is the key to this one. Treat the links RosterDeck emails you as personal: availability, chit, digi-fit and signing links are tied to you specifically and should not be forwarded to anyone else.

Agencies use RosterDeck E-Sign to send documents that a production requires before a shoot, typically NDAs, appearance releases or performance contracts. You get a secure link, read the document in your browser, and sign by drawing or typing your signature. Read what you are signing: these are real agreements about your work and your image, and the document is between you, your agency and the production, not with RosterDeck. Your signed copy stays available to download from your account.

Yes. There is an Invite a Colleague section in your settings that generates an invitation you can send by email, Instagram, WhatsApp or QR code. It is how a lot of artists join. The person you invite gets their own free account and their own profile, and joining through your invitation does not put them on your agency's roster automatically: agencies still decide who they represent.

For anything technical (you cannot sign in, a photo will not upload, a chit link will not open), contact RosterDeck at support@rosterdeck.com, or use the support form in your account. For anything about the work itself (what a job pays, when you will be paid, why you were not booked, what a production wants on the day), contact your agency, because those decisions are theirs and RosterDeck has no visibility of or authority over them.