Today, self-taped auditions account for 1,987,483 of 1,987,600 auditions in Los Angeles…..okay, I made that up. BUT they do make up a significantly larger portion of auditions than ever before. The rise of digital media and the speed and ease of transmission have streamlined the audition process for many casting directors who now use this as a means to ‘thin the herd’ in their first round selects. Before we dive in, no, I’m not saying I have all the answers and no I can’t promise that the following tips will get you booked, but after taping thousands of auditions at The Actor’s Collective I have gained a somewhat unique perspective on what works, what doesn’t work, technical tips, and pitfalls that I’m going to pass along to you in these types of posts. I’ll also sprinkle in some of the most common questions I get from actors during their taping sessions and my answers. Aaaaand ACTION!
TACLA Taping Tips
Unless casting tells you otherwise, do NOT look into the camera lens for your audition. As with all things, there are exceptions such as theatrical monologues. Additionally, there are rare opportunities in-character that work to look into the lens such as news reporters or the vlogger / influencer type roles that have become more prevalent lately. A good rule of thumb is if you’re talking in-scene to a person standing in front of you, have your eyeline be to the reader.
Know your frame. There’s nothing worse than getting through your audition and nailing every beat and every word only to see that you’ve blown your frame in playback. Know your frame (wide, medium, close) and know how to work in each type of frame. Know where your body is living within this frame and how much room you have on either side of your body.
Be aware of the stage directions, but do not make them law. Writers put a lot of information in scripts to convey the story as they see it in their mind. For self-tapes, stage directions can either add or detract. At the end of the day you want your self-tape to do two things: 1)be technically sound (eyelines, framework, physicality, props) and 2) obviously show your talent! It says I get out of a car at the top of the scene. Okay. But does it do anything for your character or the story within the context of your TAPE for you to be getting out of a car? View all activities and propwork through the lens of a storyteller.