Preparation for Various Kinds of Auditions

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Preparing for the general interview audition

You'll rarely do a general interview with a commercial casting director. In commercials, a "general interview" is a form of audition. If you're faced with this, you'll need to be proficient in the techniques on "The General Interview/Look-See," especially regarding the art of choosing a topic. And be more upbeat than Little Mary Sunshine.

The improvisation audition



There's no script - you're given a situation and asked to improvise it. And that's where the problems start. The unions are concerned because there's nothing to stop the commercial-maker from stealing a good idea from you. Therefore, if you do an "improv audition" you're supposed to be paid a "creative fee." Since it's typical to audition over 100 actors for each role in a commercial, that means producers would be writing hundreds of checks for "creative fees." So, you'll see that fee about as often as you dance with a dinosaur. Instead, improv auditions are simply held without paying the actors, most of whom know nothing of the fee anyway. Then a little birdie informs the unions. Then that same little birdie flies back to the producer and tells him the unions are about to clamp down. End of improv auditions. Eventually the atmosphere relaxes a bit and improv auditions, to mix a whole bunch of metaphors, start rising from the ashes like Phoenixes. Then the little birdie flies again and ... In any case, if you're asked and choose to do one, the best approach is to be alert and alive, have fun, not stand there like a lump. Classes in improvisation and pantomime can be a big help here.

The scene audition

There's a script and you'll need time to work on it. First, ask yourself: what's the tone of the scene? Intimate? Yahoo? Slice of life? If the script itself isn't in storyboard form (a shot-by-shot illustration of the commercial), ask the casting director if there's a storyboard nearby to look at. The more you know about how to approach the commercial, the better.

If you're going to audition with a partner, ask who the actor will be and work with him. The scene may call for you to be a part of a large group, or to be mommy, daddy, sister or brother in a "family unit" that includes a child. Don't be swamped by the others, especially the young-un\ Make a friend of the little bugger, then control him.

If you've got only a line or two in the scene, go ahead and memorize. Otherwise, it's not necessary.

As you work on it, bear in mind that even the most realistic slice-of-life commercial should be kept relatively light. If you're doing a commercial for Dr. Zhivago's Wonder Elixir and your character has a headache, be mildly in pain - not ambulance agony.

You'll probably find the dialogue horrendously stilted. After all, it's a sales pitch, not a play. It's your job to make those words sound as if you just thought of them, as if you naturally say, "Man, that's coffee!"

At the same time, your acting will usually be broader than for most movie/TV work. A good approximation is sitcom level.

The spokesman audition

The most difficult. It's just you and the camera. You'd better be well-trained before you go out on one of these. And be vocally trained, and know how to enunciate (comin' and goin' will not get you workin').

You're given 23 seconds of copy and, if hired, will have to be able to take tenths of a second off your reading, stretch a word here, emphasize a word there, all the while looking into the camera (without blinking) being absolutely warm and genuine. Without solid training, we doubt you'll be able to hold up to the stress. Be ready or pass.

Spokesman commercials - indeed, all commercials - present a problem, followed by a solution, followed by a resolution. In pencil (so you can erase it later), break down the copy into these three sections. Your approach to each will be slightly different. You present the problem, emphasize the solution, sum up with the resolution.

Often, these sections are preceded by "transition words": "so," "but," etc. Punch these words slightly harder, take a beat, then continue - that lets the viewer in on the fact that the solution/resolution is coming.

Also look for "billboard words" - words to be emphasized. These can include: "only," "delicious," "bigger," "better," "safer," "new," "superb," etc., as well as a price - if that's there, the advertiser thinks it's a selling point. Ask yourself, "If I owned this product, what part of the copy would I want to stress?" "The successful performer, says voice-over agent Don Pitts, "Will go through the copy sentence by sentence, and look for the key words - look for the 'hooks' in the copy. That's what separates the successful performer from the one who's just good."

Next, say the speech out loud, working to create the "golden triangle" of spokesman commercials: you to the viewer to the product. A common error beginners make is to treat the copy like a speech to an audience. It isn't. It's a conversation between you and one other person, seated in his living room, and you talk to him about the product. "Don't make them feel that you're trying to sell something," says Don Pitts. "Rather, make them feel that you're sharing some information with a friend."

For maximum effect, be sure you're out of the script at the beginning and end. Memorize (only) the first and last lines. Give some authority to your voice; make the viewer feel you know what you're talking about. But don't be a bully. And don't point. Make all gestures, even facial gestures, "soft" and restrained. Do it standing. And love your product.

Finally, find a way to "tag" your reading. Smile, nod knowingly, do something that puts an ending on the ending. Acting shtick is usually stomach-turning, but in commercials it works. We saw an actress wink at the end of her reading - wink! - and it played.

Above all, you'd be wise to heed Beverly Long's advice for any kind of commercial audition: "A lot of actors miss out because they don't understand commercials. They think, 'Oh, I might screw up all the rest of the copy, but that last line will be brilliant.' Or, 'They'll be able to see that all I need is time. I can get all this down by next Thursday. I'm going to be great when they give me the part.' Wrong. They are only going to hire the person who does exactly what they want at the audition. Not tomorrow, and not next week, but this instant."
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