Basic pointers.
Most scripts for auditions are usually sent to the agent a few days before the audition. In my experience you are lucky to get them two days in advance. Everything in this industry seems to have a fast turn over. Commercials from cv’s submitted, audition, casting and filmed, the whole process takes just a couple of weeks. TV drama/films take a lot longer as you usually have to go for recalls, this can take a number of weeks but once again from cv’s submitted to audition will only take a few days.
Anyway once your script is sent to you.
- Learn it. I always tell my students that they must be off sides. ( Industry terminology for you to memorize the words)
- Please do not learn your cue from the last word spoken by the other actor. You can see that you are waiting for that word instead of being immersed in what they are saying to you. So listen to every word that your character is saying to you and react to what is being said. It will look and feel more realistic.
- Do not speak their words. I see this a lot especially new actors who are just learning. Actors are unaware they are saying the other actors lines.
- Feel comfortable and relaxed. This is harder than you think, if that means you have to sit down during the audition then please ask to do so. I have seen actors so tense when they are standing and then go on and do a less than adequate audition but sit them down it transforms them. You need to wear comfortable clothing that does not restrict you in anyway.
- Always arrive early. Be polite with everybody, you don’t know who you are talking to, it might even be the casting director.
- Be yourself. Don’t be over confident or lacking in confidence.
- Interpretation. This is so important. If you do not understand the script then unfortunately no matter how hard you have tried to learn the words and have turned up for the audition it will probably not go in your favour, if you misinterpret the script.
(There is so much more to be said regarding auditions and will cover this in future blogs)
So how do you know if you have understood the script?
If you have an acting coach ask them or ask friends and family, I would suggest somebody who reads a great deal.
Look at the writers style. See if they have written anything else. Go and look at their work.
Go and do your research. I can’t recommend this enough.
Some scripts can be easy to understand, for example if boy meets girl and girl meets boy and fall in love happy ending (a romcom) then that should be straightforward and you know what you are dealing with but some can be more complex eg a crime, thriller or mystery. You are not sure which character kills who and you are kept guessing right up to the end and there are a lot of twists and turns. At this point I must mention that a character breakdown and storyline of plot is essential and if you have not been given one then please ask your agent/ acting coach or the casting company. Sometimes they are very brief. We had a very difficult audition recently and submitted a screen test. We had very little to work on, but the casting director liked him and then spoke to me at length how she wanted the character to come across on his second screen test. It certainly helped us a lot and she really liked what he did. The film company decided to cast the actor from a different country, but it was a positive experience and the actor got some exposure.
You need to look beyond the words. They are only the surface!
They might be saying one thing but the actor should be thinking something else, especially if the words written are a lie. Some actors say words and you know that they have no idea what they are saying and why they are saying them. So the clue for you to overcome this is to start asking questions, especially about the plot. This is not so easy if you just get one page or two pages to learn for the audition and you don’t know the plot. See if it is based on a book and then read the book but if that is not an option then you are going to have to put your own style and spin on it and keep everything crossed and hope for the best. I find when I am prepping an actor for audition who has been given a complex script, is to read it many times over and act it out in different ways until both of us find that it feels and looks right. The more scripts you practise the easier all this becomes. Another tip, which may seem a wacky idea is to start reading poems, as they can be interpreted in so many different ways. Read them out loud and it would be best to read them to friends or family and get their opinions on which way they feel is interpreted correctly in the style that they are written.
Anyway I could write so much more but I think this is enough to take in for the time being. I do hope it helps even if it is just in small way. Remember this is only based upon my experiences.
And again I wish you all the luck in the world. ?
