Over the last few weeks we have been putting together the building blocks of your career. With those in place, now it is time to focus on how to successfully complete auditions, and have casting directors looking forward to having you read.
This is the place where most actors start but as you have seen over the last few weeks there's a lot of work that must be done first.
Professional actors know this and they focus on building their career on a solid foundation because otherwise actors are much more likely to end up on the audition hamster wheel.
Most actors simply go from one audition to the next without putting much thought into the process, simply because it is the “fun” part of the industry.
It's the part where you get to display your talent and creativity but in order to differentiate yourself from everyone else and give yourself the best chance of booking the projects you are reading for, you have to rely on more than talent alone.
That’s why we put the foundation of your career in place first.
Now, it’s time to focus on the way in which you approach auditions so you can have the best chance of booking.
Auditions are something you cannot avoid as an actor. Some actors love them. Some actors are less than excited about auditioning.
It's understandable. auditions can be nerve racking and they are always full of uncertainty.
That's why so many actors are excited that the industry is moving towards self taped auditions so quickly.
Whether doing a self-taped audition or a traditional audition the outcome is largely determined by an actor's ability to build a character.
During auditions what CDs are looking for Is an actor's ability to connect with the character in a way that is unique but still aligns with what production has in mind.
When you're building a character there are literally endless possibilities in terms of the character choices you can make. Over the years I have seen that most actors largely make very similar choices.
That makes it very difficult for them to stand out to CDs during auditions.
As you are considering how to build the character you will be auditioning for, think of ways in which you can do something different or unexpected.
You may even consider deviating from the character’s description. If it feels natural, that may be the way to go.
Characters will continue to evolve throughout auditions, and even when you’re on set so don’t be afraid to try something different.
Remember, CDs are open to seeing different interpretations and it may help you stand out from everyone else.
If your interpretation and character choices are way off, they will let you know and give you feedback. You will likely even get a chance to try it differently in the room.
What they want to see from you is the ability to create a character and portray the emotions of the given scene.
It’s not as much about getting the character “right.”
Much of what CDs will be looking for is whether your vocal tonality matches the character you are building.
That’s a fundamental part of acting and actors that don’t display practiced tonality are typically the actors that CDs pass over quickly.
To ensure that your tonality matches the character and the action in the scene, consider what the overriding emotion of the scene is and how it affects your character.
The scene may be serene but if that serenity negatively affects your character, it would show in their voice, even if the action of the scene shows otherwise.
Casting Directors are actively looking for that level of nuance, even if the choices you have made don’t exactly match what production had in mind.
Actors who do this are much more likely to get feedback for how to approach the character and get invited to call back auditions.
Actors that are more focused on getting the character “right” are more likely to be passed over, even if the character choices were more in line with what production had in mind.
That’s also why it is important to match your body language to the action of the scene and how it affects your character.
Similar to vocal tonality, your character may be saying one thing verbally but acting in an entirely different way.
That conflict would come across in their body language and tonality.
Your character may be speaking bravely in the scene but underneath, they may be nervous for what is about to happen.
That would likely result in strong tonality, with vocal patterns that lack inflection, and forced body language that would be trying to hide the character’s true emotions.
As you work on the scene, look for those nuances and contradictions and plan how you will portray them.
Most actors will go only as far as “faking” the bravery their character is displaying without planning for the contractions in the way we just went over.
That leads to characters that are very one dimensional and Casting Directors do not feel compelled to give them call backs.
Another area where you can display your grasp of the character’s and the scene’s nuance is your facial expression.
Just like with tonality, your face may show an emotion that is completely fabricated because of what is happening beneath the surface.
That can come across as ingenuine on set, if the character choices are not well planned.
When an actor’s performance plays unnatural it is typically because something about the performance is not aligned with another factor.
It could be that their facial expressions don’t match the tonality, or it could be that their body language doesn’t match either of them.
Actors who don’t show the ability to put those factors in alignment for an audition are unlikely to get call backs or book, because casting directors will not be confident in their ability to do it on set.
Creating highly nuanced, layered characters is something you should be well practiced at if you want to master auditions.
Self taped auditions have some slightly different dynamics but the core of what we went through today still applies.
We will talk about the rest in more detail, next time.
For now, get started on what we talked about today. The strike is a perfect opportunity to brush up on your audition skills.
It’s a great time to get a few industry friends together and take turns building characters and performing mock auditions.
I’ve heard from many actors that are eager to get back to business as usual in the industry, but they are making the mistake of waiting for things to change.
There is a perfect opportunity right now to revisit things that you may not have had an opportunity to do during “normal times.”
When the strike inevitably ends most actors will be left scrambling to catch up on what will be a huge wave of activity to catch up on lost time.
However, there is a small group of actors that are continuing to work on building their careers in the meantime.
They continue to make sure they are highly visible to the industry where Casting Directors and industry decision makers look for talent. I created Boost My Star to help with that.
Regardless of what is going on in the industry, if they don’t know you they can’t hire you, so it’s important to make sure you are always highly visible.
I have also heard from Casting Directors that are continuing to unofficially take note of actors they want to see when the strike ends.
Now is a perfect time for CDs to catch up on that so it’s not something that should be ignored until things get back to normal.
CDs measure those factors along with evaluating an actor’s performance when making decisions.
They also consider an actor’s industry reputation.
Actors that go on to build a career as professional actors are typically the ones that have the fundamental elements of their career in place and can also master auditions.
After all, until you build your career to a place where your body of work speaks for itself, auditions will be the key to booking projects.
So as you start to think of how to best approach what we talked about today, feel free to get in touch. I’m always happy to bounce ideas and help however I can because I truly want to...
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Scott