I suck at commercial auditions!
I don’t know what it is, but I just suck at them. I’ve taken commercial technique classes. I’ve observed auditions. I’ve gotten feed back from casting directors. But the whole having just one line to deliver, which the CD just told you, and pretty much just sit there or stand there and look pretty is for some reason difficult.
Ok, so maybe I don’t totally suck at commercial auditions. This blog post just comes after a particular audition that kinda blew.
There were no sides to prepare. All you knew was that the character was a receptionist who is “charming and likable” and to come dressed business professional. So I arrive a little early, like I like to do, sign in, see there’s nothing to prepare and wait quietly like a good little soldier until my name is called. Once I’m called, I walk in, put my stuff down and then slate my name with another auditioner by my side. And then I’m very rapidly told what to say. Not really what to do though, and since this is all like clockwork I hesitated to ask any further questions for fear of putting a kink in their operation. The guy tells me “Just say ‘Hold, please. He’ll be with you in one minute.'” and before I could even say ok or just nod my head to acknowledge I even heard the directions he speeds through the directions for the other auditioner and then rushes behind the camera and calls “Action.” It was such a whirlwind that that one measly little damn line could not stick in my brain. I said, “hold please” and then couldn’t recall what was next and retardeldly stumbled through the following line “He’ll be with you, in, uh, just a, uh, moment.” Fuck.
Fortunately, we did it twice. But I knew I totally blew it that the next time I was trying too hard to redeem myself. And let’s face it, this shit aint rocket science. It should look effortless, not strained. The other hard part about all this was for the most part, I just sat there while the other guy had all these lines and I had no idea if I was supposed to observe and take him in (as the lines could’ve been like a thought bubble, though not clear) or remain in my own little receptionist world. Well the worst thing I could’ve done was stayed on the fence about it so I just quickly made a decision. But at that point, who cares right? They’re going to be like, That girl can’t even say a damn line!
Oh well. You live and learn. And I’m definitely learning! Every time I step foot in a casting office, theater house, wherever… I grow.
