Why do casting directors care about our “audition strategy?

” If you
give a knockout audition, how

Motivators of CDs:
Serving the needs of the material
Serving the needs of the Director
the Producer
the studio
to get their own next casting job

How do you fit in with the rest of the cast?

Have you allowed them to see something in the role they never
imagined before?
How do you balance showing a CD something
unexpected with doing
what they think serves the needs of the project?
Have you made unexpected choices that elevate the material?
Will casting you elevate the piece as a whole?
Can the studio depend on you and your professionalism on the
set?
Will casting you make the CD look good?

Can’t control:
Fitting in with the rest of the cast/how you look relative to the
cast
Mood of the CD/director/producer
Time they gave you with the sides

CAN control:
Making unexpected choices that go beyond the surface
Pivoting skill (taking direction, responding to unforeseen
circumstances, remaining flexible/open/on your feet)
Pacing/tempo/rhythm
Finding transitions (incl. embedded transitions)
Spotting and mastering audition traps
Taking direction/translating bad direction
Creating depth of field in your audition (
Smart use of your own body
How you modulate the emotion of your scene
Incorporating the physical space into your audition
 How high you make the stakes
Pulling hidden clues from a breakdown

Audition Easter eggs: Finding things in your sides that most actors will
miss
Information for your character in your breakdown AND in other
characters
breakdowns
Relationship descriptions, shared history, adjectives used by
others about your characters
Minor details matter (after you get the bigger picture)

CD Private List:
Actors they’ve booked before
Actors they’ve called back before
Actors they’ve brought in multiple times
Actors they like

3 ays to apply secrets

When to Stand out vs when to Blend In
Stand Out
Skill
Strategy
Branding
Attitude: Can-do attitude WITHOUT need and
desperation (relaxed, easy,
Blend In
Resume formatting
Reel (Who to ask for footage)
What questions you ask (what questions to ask)
Audition etiquette
Finding the traps: Major categories of traps
Punctuation traps
Physical action traps
Stage direction traps
Emotional traps
E.G. All Caps trap: yelling (Determine the writer’s intent,
check in with your intention, THEN make an informed choice)
Make EVERY THING specific
Every thing your character says represents something they
can see, hear, taste in their minds eye
Make those choices about EVERY THING