My first audition...

K

keaten

Active member
Next sunday I have my first audition ever. I have played a small roll in a feature last may maybe 10 minutes of screen time with a good amount of dialog. However, this was for a good friend of mine who was directing. So the scene was very relaxing and I knew everyone and felt very comfortable around them. Normally I am the one interviewing the actors since I am a director. You may ask well how did I end up with an audition?

It really kind of happened on accident. I was asking about helping on the production side of things and decided what the hell I will throw in a head shot. Well they liked my look and want me to come in and audition. It's for a feature film, main character, and casting is being hired out by some local casting agency. No idea if the director will be present.

My question... is what do you guys (actors) do to prepare for this? When I am sitting on the other side of things I know what I am looking for but, I have no idea what actors do to prepare for auditions. Some tips would be great. I feel like acting is really something that could help me out with my directing and understanding my actors. Hence why I am doing this. Plus it might end up being fun!


thanks so much,
keaten
 
Tough question. Each actor preps for auditions differently.

Is this cold read? Or do you have sides? Do you know any of the backstory for the character?
 
If you only have a character back story...go do some google on people like the character. Try to find people who fit the description on youtube videos or TV and study some of their habits and style. I don't like to copy anything myself but actors do pull character traits from real people in their world a lot.

Do you know anyone like the character? I am assuming you already have training as an actor and have built a character before. When I get thrown in something like this without a script...I always try to find people I can pull ideas from.

Hope that helps.

PS..I said youtube because there are so many real people on there now and it is a great character study.
 
Last edited:
Keaten,

There you go. Michelle is a very experienced actress, and knows what she is talking about. Can't get any better than that.
 
Doc it is kind of hard to really guide him and hard for me to imagine a casting director having someone in to read for a lead in a feature film and not give them the script. I have never really heard of anyone reading for the main character who was not given the full script.

I don't know if he is being straight up with us...or someone is not being straight up with him...or he is being punked...or he actually is auditioning for some people who have some perverse sense of how to treat an actor...or this guy says feature because it is full length not a short, without knowing feature means for release as in most major movie theatres.

Think about it...this is the main character and ALL they gave him was a character back story...does that make any sense?

You know I have done some casting in the past. If there was a script everyone got sides and large roles got the entire thing to read in advance of their auditions or screen tests unless a director asked me to have them all improvise....then they were told in advance.

I can't tell if I am missing something here...or...one of my above thoughts on what is going on might be true! I just don't ever remember anyone reading for the main character in a 'feature' film who did not get a script.
 
PS..audition on a Sunday for a feature? i don't know any casting people open on Sunday off the top of my head. and in 36 years of going to auditions....never got asked or went to one on a Sunday either.

taped one on a sunday to get to casting by monday but did not tape it in the casting office...
 
LOL, I read beyond that too. Feature, yes, but maybe a feature student film? Like he said, this is his first audition, so he doesn't know how to sift things yet.

Keaten, I started where you are. It takes time to learn how to read if something is serious, not serious, or just a joke. LOL, I am still learning this too.
 
Last edited:
dag nab it a student film can't be a feature as I understand the use of the word. A student film can be a full length...but few student films make it in movie theatres. Maybe I got this off track somewhere along the line but I have always thought... and swear I was told that 'feature film' meant 'feature release' and that meant major movie theatres. Now I hear feature used on full length indie's and that confuses me...since many play festivals but few make it to theatres.

but the again...they call multi-million dollar films 'indies' now and that REALLY confuses me....lol....indie to me is a few grand or more! shooting kamikaze...eating fast food lunches...and praying you could afford the insurance cert if you had stunts!
 
Michele Seidman said:
but the again...they call multi-million dollar films 'indies' now and that REALLY confuses me....lol....indie to me is a few grand or more! shooting kamikaze...eating fast food lunches...and praying you could afford the insurance cert if you had stunts!
Click to expand...

Try just a couple slices of pizza. This "fast food" you speak of.......never seen it on a set. Unless you mean it to reflect just the time you have to eat it.
 
I lifted the following text from Wikipedia .....

In the film industry, a feature film is a film made for initial distribution in theaters and being the "main attraction" of the screening (as opposed to any short films which may be screened before it). The term is also used for feature length, direct-to-video and television movie productions.

An independent film, or indie film, is a film that is produced mostly outside of a major film studio. The term also refers to art films which differ markedly from most mass marketed films. In addition to being produced by independent production companies, independent films are often produced and/or distributed by subsidiaries of major studios. In order to be considered independent, less than half of a film's financing should come from a major studio. Independent films are sometimes distinguishable by their content and style and the way in which the filmmakers' personal artistic vision is realized. Usually, but not always, independent films are made with considerably lower budgets than major studio films. Generally, the marketing of independent films is characterized by limited release designed to build word-of-mouth or to reach small specialty audiences.
 
I think some filmakers might be reading about Andrea Arnold and her process on Fishtank and copying it. She did not not give the actors the screenplay, just scenes before the next days work was to be shot. The actors took on the role without ever having read the screenplay. This is an established director "Red Road" so she can use these unusual methods and still have a very good cast (Michael Fassbender for one). So we might see more of this in the future for better or worse.
 
Crazy people. Why would I be lying or making things up? It is for a feature. Or sorry a full length film. I came here to get some input and not to be judged on if I am fibbing or whatever is going on. Why does everyone have to look into things so much? Good ole forums! Who cares what the correct term may be.

I also thought it was very weird going into an audition with just a back story. That is why I was asking for some input. So we are on the same page here.
 
One piece of advice that i can give. Don't play the role, be it. Every actor has to portray a character with similar traits to themselves. If its not natural, it's not believeable and you won't get the role.

the actor is in every character they play, to a certain extent. Learn your lines, try to get rid of tension in your body. Nothing worse then being aware of how stiff your neck is while doing lines.

The better you know the lines, the more freedom you have to improvise, and it will be morenatural if you really don't have to think of the lines while you're doing them. the best advice I can give is unfortunately not something that will help you, because the more auditions you do, the better you get at doing them.

Just give it your best, don't play big, be yourself, focus, don't move too much, and most importantly, have fun. Nothing is worse than watching an actor struggle.

If you ever come to montreal and need coaching, gimme a shout. I've done over a hundred auditions since starting out in the business, out of those hundred, booked maybe 15-20 things. So the odds are generally against you, but you have to persist. And don't give up. Auditions are most of the time completely out of your hands, especially if the director is not present, which is most of the time until callbacks.
 
PaPa said:
One piece of advice that i can give. Don't play the role, be it. Every actor has to portray a character with similar traits to themselves. If its not natural, it's not believeable and you won't get the role.

the actor is in every character they play, to a certain extent. Learn your lines, try to get rid of tension in your body. Nothing worse then being aware of how stiff your neck is while doing lines.

The better you know the lines, the more freedom you have to improvise, and it will be morenatural if you really don't have to think of the lines while you're doing them. the best advice I can give is unfortunately not something that will help you, because the more auditions you do, the better you get at doing them.

Just give it your best, don't play big, be yourself, focus, don't move too much, and most importantly, have fun. Nothing is worse than watching an actor struggle.

If you ever come to montreal and need coaching, gimme a shout. I've done over a hundred auditions since starting out in the business, out of those hundred, booked maybe 15-20 things. So the odds are generally against you, but you have to persist. And don't give up. Auditions are most of the time completely out of your hands, especially if the director is not present, which is most of the time until callbacks.
Click to expand...

Thanks for this. I really appreciate the advice. See how it goes and who knows maybe I will enjoy it and put more effort into this side of film making as well.
 
vic777 said:
I lifted the following text from Wikipedia .....

In the film industry, a feature film is a film made for initial distribution in theaters and being the "main attraction" of the screening (as opposed to any short films which may be screened before it). The term is also used for feature length, direct-to-video and television movie productions.
Click to expand...

Thanks for that. I thought I was losing it for a moment.

lambert said:
I think some filmakers might be reading about Andrea Arnold and her process on Fishtank and copying it. She did not not give the actors the screenplay, just scenes before the next days work was to be shot.
Click to expand...

Am I nuts or is this a bit like what the Blair Witch folks did with giving the actors notes each morning in film canisters?

keaten said:
Crazy people. Why would I be lying or making things up? It is for a feature. Or sorry a full length film. I came here to get some input and not to be judged on if I am fibbing or whatever is going on. Why does everyone have to look into things so much? Good ole forums! Who cares what the correct term may be.

I also thought it was very weird going into an audition with just a back story. That is why I was asking for some input. So we are on the same page here.
Click to expand...

Keaten

Sweetie..honest to goodness I did not mean to hurt your feelings or insult you. Notice my first reply was just advice. Then I started to wonder what was going on for you because it was a bit confusing. I never said you lied...I did say someone may have lied to you or you to us BUT...I also left room for you possibly being new enough to use word choices that were confusing.

I seriously never intended to call you a liar darling. That was not my intention. If you get a moment...read that post I made one more time and you will note I was pondering EVERY possibility...not calling you out!

Michele

PS...Since I did leave advice yet never saw a comment in reply from you I did ponder....
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top