Written by: Holly Powell
I sat down and had a great conversation with Casting Director Caroline Liem who has worked in many different areas and mediums of casting. She has worked on Television Pilots and Series, Feature Films, Voice Over for animation and was Head of Casting for Jimmy Kimmel Live!. Read more
By: Holly Powell
Thinking back over the thousands of actors who stood in front of me before they began their audition, the one’s I remember most are the one’s who walked in and said “Hi Holly!” I know that seems obvious and simplistic, but it always surprised me when an actor would walk into the audition room looking like a deer in the headlights and say “Hi”, and I knew they didn’t have a clue as to who I was. Or worse they would say, “Nice to meet you”, and I had auditioned them ten times before.
Casting Directors are people too (I know…hard to fathom), and it goes a long way when you call them by name and have educated yourself as to what they have previously cast. All too often actors put Casting Directors on this huge unreachable pedestal and when confronted with this “gate keeper”, actors can come off as scared, insincere or aloof. The genuine “human to human” contact of knowing the name of the person you are auditioning for helps defuse the discomfort of the moment, even when the Casting Director is in a nasty mood.
The actor almost always will get a “breakdown” of the script they are auditioning for that lists all the characters and a synopsis of the script. The breakdown also lists the Producers, Writers, Director and Casting Director and it is the actors job to make sure they know who they are going in to audition for.
Today actors live in the wonderful world of IMDB and all this information is at their fingertips. If you have never met this Casting Director before, type their name into IMDB and check out their previous work. I was always impressed when an actor would comment on something I had cast before…they had done their homework on ME!
I found Hillary Swank in a pre-read for a pilot I was casting many years ago and immediately knew there was something special from the moment she walked into the audition room and said, “Hi Holly, nice to meet you!” She looked directly into my eyes and what I remember most was her complete presence in the moment. It seemed as if we had a job to do together, that we were a team, that I needed her as much as she needed me. This was all accomplished by walking the fine line of being genuine, ambitious and confident in her talent all at the same time. Isn’t it human behavior to want to help and root for someone who calls you by name and who has educated themselves as to where you fit in this casting process? And isn’t it human behavior to maybe feel a little dissed when you have met someone before and they come in and say, “Nice to meet you?”. I’m just sayin’…
It is also imperative that the actor knows the “tone” of the show. Is this audition for television and if so what Network is it on? Is this a comedy, drama or dramady? If this audition is for an episodic show currently on television, then the actor MUST watch an episode of this series. Again, actors today have the advantage of Hulu and other sites to watch “on-demand” television. So, the old excuse that you have never seen an episode of this show is lame. They will know that you have not done your homework…and interpret that to be that you are not serious about your career.
If you are auditioning for a Pilot and the “tone” of the script is confusing, check out the writer on IMDB and see what other shows the writer has written on. One of my students told me that he had an audition for the pilot of “Desperate Housewives”. On the breakdown it said: Hour Drama ABC. Taking this information at face value into the audition room with him, he read the scene as a straight drama, no humor at all. He said it was the worst audition he ever had. Knowing what we all know now about “Desperate Housewives”…that it is an hour “dramady” with lots of tongue and cheek humor…the mental image of this actors audition is truly painful. In hindsight, I told him if he had IMDB’d Marc Cherry, the Creator and Writer of the show, he would have seen that Marc had previously written mainly comedies… “The Golden Girls”, “The Crew” and “The 5 Mrs Buchanans”. Therefore…probably some humor in it!
So, please actors, use all the resources available to you so you never walk into an audition room again without being completely educated as to who, what, when and where.
This quote is by my Guru, Yogananda, and yet it could just as easily become an acting lesson that very much aligned with this lesson I am about to write about.
My mentor and acting coach, Sally Kirkland, once said; “You have to stay very human, from moment to moment. You can’t in any way let the audience know what’s going to happen next.”
This is yet another inspiring quote on being in the moment. How very true. Once we harness the ability to stay in each instant, allowing it to take us to the next, then we can call ourselves actors.
The antithesis of that would be to practice thinking of our next line or anticipating what the other actors line will be. All of that is the opposite of being in the moment.
Many times, I ask actors to keep going when they feel they have made a “Mistake”. Mostly because that mistake can keep you in the moment more quickly than if you had stopped and started all over again. These are the golden moments we live for in our work. Those moments when we go up, the hair stands up on our arms and our mind is a blur. Those precious moments are something that can take you on a journey in a split second from being in your head, thinking about your lines, how you look to others or wondering what the heck to do, to the NOW. They are golden moments that Meryl Streep says she hopes for when she works. They bring you immediately into your own skin, your body, and your mind and then you must KNOW where you are in the story and live in it. Allow those moments; do not be afraid of them, for they will take you places that are delightful, organic and raw. They not only give us a little journey to the NOW, they also keep your scene partner on their toes, wondering, “Where is she going with this?” Thus, needing to follow along on the trip to our truth, our moment. Giving us the opportunity to live through the role and surprise not only ourselves, but also whomever we work with. Of course, having confidence in our Improvisational ability and trust in our scene partner goes a long way. But if you can relax and allow those moments, they are truly what we strive for in each moment of our work as truthful actors. When I say relax, I mean really don’t worry about what will happen, just go with it. Just as Yogananda believed each moment will take care of itself, I also believe that will happen when we forego any upset or frustration and just allow the voyage to take you to yourself to your soul. To performances full of surprise and wonder, much like the journey of Life.
I’d like to preface this installation with a quote by Albert Einstein before I elaborate on the lesson.
Jason La Padura has been a Casting Director for 30 years and his long list of Television, Film & Theatre credits include casting all three films of High School Musical, Heros, and Touch to name a few. He also had the privilege and fun of being a judge for The Miss America Pageant. Jason started out casting theatre in New York and eventually moved to Los Angeles forming La Padura/Hart Casting.
I met Jason in New York when I had my first job as a Casting Director at an Off-Off Broadway Theatre Company called Manhattan Punch Line. Jason’s partner, Gary Murphy, was the PR person for MPL and we had cubicles next to each other. Jason was quickly establishing himself as a theatre Casting Director and with his casting partner, Stanley Soble, transitioned with ease into casting television. He eventually moved to Los Angeles and with Natalie Hart, formed La Padura/Hart Casting.
Jason came to speak to my students in one of my Audition Workshops at Holly Powell Studios, and we taped his visit for my Master Talent Teachers Video Series on “Auditioning”. He gave the students so much incredible advice that I have made it into a 3 Part Video Series for MTT.
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
I first met Jason La Padura in New York almost 30 years ago. I had my first job as a Casting Director at an Off-Off Broadway Theatre Company called Manhattan Punch Line. Jason’s partner, Gary Murphy, was the PR person for MPL and we had cubicles next to each other. Jason was quickly establishing himself as a theatre Casting Director and with his casting partner, Stanley Soble, transitioned with ease into casting television. He eventually moved to Los Angeles and with Natalie Hart formed La Padura/Hart Casting. Read more
When I interview people before taking my classes, so many tell me that they have been told to start their acting careers by training for commercials. I would like to silence all those who are perpetuating this disempowering misconception. They are destroying acting careers before they even start. But I do understand that when most people look at actors in commercials, it looks so easy. It is no wonder that many think that it is a way to break into acting, be seen and make lots of money. Yes, it is fun, creative and can be lucrative. Most working commercial actors can make it look easy because most are pros. As you will discover, there is a lot to do, learn and know before starting to audition well and book commercials.
WHEN TO START: I strongly believe that you should study acting for a year or so and Improvisation for a good six months (at the least) before doing a commercial class. Then you will be more prepared to go get a commercial agent and start auditioning – hopefully, while you continue to professionally train consistently. I believe that when people start auditioning too early, it often creates major problems with craft and confidence. And when those actors do less than stellar auditions, there is a good chance the casting directors they audition for will choose not to see them again, even in the future after they train and improve.
Although, I do have lots of students with little or no training take my beginning commercial workshop. And, I also have agents send me total beginners (who are great commercial types) to learn enough basics to be competent at their auditions. AND after the class, many of these rooky actors who are good commercial types and/or have strong performance talents or skills, do book some work. On the other hand, from years of experience, I am convinced that those who want to book lots more work, plan to have an acting career and want to feel secure about their craft need to prepare and train first before jumping into the commercial arena.
MISCONCEPTIONS and CHALLENGES: Many feel they don’t need to study acting first or that after they book a few commercials, they will use that money to study – I truly believe that thinking is ass backwards. Don’t be fooled, this is a commitment and requires more than you know. Before pursuing any venture, you really need to understand what is involved, Here are just a few of the issues rookies as well as trained actors should know about before auditioning for commercials:
My main intention in laying out these misconceptions and challenges is not to discourage you from pursuing commercial work but to help you avoid the pitfalls that can make it difficult to make a good start. There are many more misconceptions and challenges you should be acquainted with before jumping into beginning your commercial acting endeavor, do watch my Look Before You Leap Into Commercial video.
For additional insights and tips, check out my book Hit The Ground Running @ www.hitthegroundrunningbook.com
