Just got home after my first ever indie movie call back and I got some tips to share! (This was a legit Independent Film company in my area so I trust my experience to have been pretty much the standard. This was on the professional level.)First off, for those of you who don't know, call backs come after an initial audition. It means that the casting director is considering you for a part and wants a second, third, maybe ninth look at you before he casts you.
So, I'd never been to one before and I had NO IDEA what to expect. This, in my opinion, worked to my great disadvantage. I don't want that to happen to you guys so I'm going to give you the play by play with commentary all along the way. I really hope what I learned tonight will help you guys in some way too!
Before the call back:
Ok, first let me discuss sides. These are short snippets of the script that are provided beforehand so that you can read through the lines of the role you are auditioning for. I got these emailed to me along with the details of the call back (ie the where, when, and what to bring).
It is advised that you wear the same clothing, jewelry, makeup, etc when you go to your call back because honestly you have no clue what they liked about you. They honestly could have stepped out on a whim and called you because they liked your shoes. Either way, it's best not to mess with a good thing.
Next comes the waiting room. DO NOT LET THE WAITING ROOM INTIMIDATE YOU. I know that this probably sounds weird, crazy, insane, fill in the blank but I'm being honest. The waiting room is a scary place. As soon as I walked in the first thing I noticed was how incredibly young I was compared to everyone else. No lies when I say they all looked to be about thirty and here I was sweet sixteen with my mom and dad walking in right behind me.
You have to remember: Just because you don't look like everyone else in the room doesn't mean you are a mistake or wrong for the part. It doesn't matter if you're the only blond in a room of brunets or the for foot five kid in a room full of six foot nine spines. The casting director wanted YOU to be there. Therefore you obviously have something right going on. (Thank you Matt best guy friend ever for reminding me of that or I swear I would have left then and there.)
In the room with the director, casting director, scriptwriter, camera man, and anyone else who's presence they deem necessary:
Be. Confident. They are nice people. They want you to do well and have faith that you will do well. If they didn't they would never have called you back. That would have been a waste of their time and in this world time equals ca-ching ca-ching dolla sign.
They most likely will have a camera there. And if they do they will be recording you. And then they WILL watch those recordings of you OVER AND OVER to see if they really want you for the part. But no pressure right? I tell you this so you can learn to deal with that knowledge before hand. In this game you rarely get second chances to make a new first impression. You need to be ready.
Also, one of the HARDEST things for a person going from theater to film is learning to pull back. To pull back the volume, the extremities, the motions. That which is prided in theater is overwhelming in a small room with sensitive mikes, tight camera shots, and directors who need it done right every time. I personally need to work on this.
Look for "moments." You know that point in time when you have real tangible chemistry, whether good or bad, with a co-actor? Or when you watch a movie and you cant help but believe that two people would either jump off a cliff for each other or would drive one another off a cliff if given the chance? YOU WANT THAT. The people you act against are NOT your enemies. In fact, they might be your future co-workers. They are on YOUR side. Don't try to outshine them. USE THEM. Directors want their actors to get along and produce good chemistry on set. If you show them you're capable of manipulating and using your acting to coax reactions out of your fellow actors thereby making them BETTER, you're golden.
Study your fellow actors. In my case I acted against a six foot something late twenties guy. He was auditioning for the lead role and bee tee dub I have the HIGHEST respect for him as an actor. He's good. However, if I was honest, and please don't take this as my being obnoxious, I would say he wasn't a better actor than me. He was indeed the first actor on my level to ever act against me one on one face to face, but he wasn't better than me. He was more experienced. He had obviously been through the audition process many times before. He was relaxed. That was the advantage he had over me. So I observed him. How he interacted with the other people in the room, especially the director. I searched for what made him good and what made him bad so I could then apply that knowledge to myself. By learning from others successes and failures you are able to surpass them.
After the call back:
Don't beat yourself up if you feel you did bad. You are not the director. You don't know what he or she is thinking.
Don't celebrate yet if you feel you did good. Like I said, you're not the director.
If you don't get picked:
Think about what you could have done better. There is no such thing as a "perfect performance." We are human. We are fallible. There is always something we can do to be better.
Don't judge your self worth or skills based on an audition. There are MANY factors that go into choosing a person for a role and most of them don't even have to do with you. Just accept that it wasn't the right place, it wasn't the right time, and move forward.
If you land the part:
WOOT WOOT! Congrats to you! Now you're going to have to give ME some advice!
If you're wondering, no I personally don't feel I got that role. But it's ok. I'm not satisfied but I'm content because I learned. It was worth it because now I'm more prepared for my next call back. But let me not give up all hope yet... after all, I'm not the director am I? Hahaha I'll let you all know when I find out.
Please comment with any further questions or details I can answer or provide! Or if there's anything I've left out and you feel is important share it please and thanks :)
-rEiNa
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