Sharon Bialy - How to Audition on Camera

Advance Praise

Alright, so youre the greatest thespian since Sarah Bernhardt. But if you cant get the job, whats the point? While acting is an art, auditioning is a craft -- and Sharon knows this world six ways to Sunday. Her book brims with no-nonsense advice and tough love. Theres not an ounce of b.s. or filler in here. And I can assure you, from a point of view, that shes telling you exactly what folks like me are looking for.

-- Vince Gilligan, creator of Breaking Bad

Sharon Bialy and her merry persons have come up with more great ideas than the Federal Government. And hers actually work. I rely on her tremendously. She has long suggested that any actor wishing to understand the audition process work for a while on the other side of the table. Ive never heard better advice. Any actor will profit from her book, and, should they bring a copy along to any audition she and I are running, will surely get not only our attention, but our respect.

-- David Mamet, Pulitzer Prize winning playwright, Glengarry Glen Ross

Auditioning is the most nerve-racking thing an actor has to go through. Sharons book is a fly-on-the-wall insight on how its all done, how you should walk into the room, and what you should expect. I really wish I had read this book when I first started because I could have avoided a lot of cringe-worthy embarrassments. Sharon Bialy is a casting director who truly loves actors, and in her book she openly and candidly gives you all the tools youll need to walk into the room with confidence and give the best audition you possibly can.

-- Krysten Ritter, actress, Dont Trust the B. in Apartment 23

Why should you read this book? The more information you can get before you go into a room, the better! I agree with Sharon that a lot of it has to do with confidence and convincing them you are up for the job and can pull it off. Its their time, their money, and their project. The more ammo you have going in, the bigger the boom. Read the book and you will know what I mean.

-- Norman Reedus, actor, The Walking Dead

Sharon Bialy is the very, very best, especially at preparing actors to shine in the room. As a director who has worked with Sharon on multiple projects, I can tell you that she has now given actors the answers they need to prepare for a fully expressed audition.

-- Davis Guggenheim, Academy Award - winning director

Everyone in the business should read this book. As a talent agent, I find Sharon to be respectful of the actors we send in to audition, and she works to get the best out of them. Her taste and expertise in her field are beyond comparison.

-- Iris Grossman, talent agent, ICM Partners

I wish Id had this advice available to me when I started out.

-- Bryan Cranston, Emmy Award - winning actor, Breaking Bad

Twenty-Five Questions and Answers

1. AS A CASTING DIRECTOR, WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING FOR IN AN AUDITION?

This is the question I get asked most often. The first answer is talent, and the second (tied for first place) is confidence.

What is talent? To me its a mystery, one that has intrigued me every day for over 25 years. I try to unlock its secrets, I peek into its windows, yet I still find the answer elusive, mysterious, and worth admiring every single day. Talent is a quality I cant teach; I am simply going to assume that you have talent since you are taking the time to read this. But confidence is a different matter; I can teach you how to gain more of that. There are four keys:

Practice

Weve all heard the saying, Practice makes perfect. Lets use the comparison with a top athlete to make you the ultimate actor. Athletes have enormous drive, work hard, and are persistent with their practice. Like an athlete, if you keep at it and refuse to give up, you will win games. The more you practice, the more closely the competition or game (or, in the actors case, the audition) resembles just another day of practice. Consistency is key. To gain that inner confidence, do the homework. Practice your audition repeatedly so that coming into the office is just another day of doing what you do best.

Please yourself

Dont try to please everyone, because that is a prescription for failure. Please yourself by delivering the work you practiced during your preparation. Aristotle said, We learn by doing, which is why I advise actors to do it over and over again before they come in to audition.

Let go

The next step is often the hardest once you have done the preparation. You then have to let go of the work when you are in the audition room. Dont try to hit every step you marked during your rehearsal. Its a trap. Letting go of all that preparation takes experience, but you can take some pressure off yourself by understanding that the goal of your audition is not to book the job but to be remembered and brought in over and over again by the casting office. Professional acting is a numbers game, and you want to get up to bat as often as possible.

Practically speaking, when you walk into an audition, even if you are nervous (which is natural), convert that energy into being alive and confident. A recently published book on auditions advises actors to let the casting director know they are nervous because it humanizes the actor and the situation. I completely disagree. When I am casting a into realizing that their product works. That is the actors job, and actors are often handsomely compensated for that achievement.

Be in the moment

Trust the moment in the room; it may naturally develop into something fresh and exciting. The combination of delivering an honest and truthful rendering of your prepared text and staying in the moment in the room will instill poise and cement your assurance in your abilities. That much is under your control. Confidence seems to appear as if by magic as soon as the actor starts working. The camera innately picks it up, as if it can smell the energy of the actor. The challenge for you is to figure out a way to simulate the work experience as much as possible during your rehearsal so that confidence doesnt elude you in the room. If you perceive the five-minute audition as five minutes you get to work as an actor and become a character, your conscious mind will acknowledge that you are working. Picture those athletes with supreme confidence--you cant take your eyes off them. They beat out all competition. Like it or not, auditioning is a competitive sport, one that involves art instead of athleticism.

2. HOW FAMILIAR WITH THE PROJECT SHOULD I BE?

When possible you should be very familiar with the project. You can learn what you need to know about the acting style on a show by watching two episodes. If it is a series that has already aired, there is no excuse in this age of the Internet and YouTube for an actor not to do some research and understand the type of show he or she is reading for. Its all about tone! Even experienced actors sometimes fail to do their homework. Actors will often mistakenly come in for a serious drama with a comedic bent, or vice versa. You can avoid that mistake. Research the writer, the director, and the producer; there is so much you can accomplish with the click of a button, whether it is on like Modern Family as for a drama like The Good Wife.

Ever since ABCs Lost, series have had to deal with Internet leaks. There are times on many shows when, due to security issues, we cast using dummy scenes to avoid giving away story points. That is when its most important to truly understand the tone of the show. Actors using dummy sides (the pages from the script with which you audition) can only take their cues from the text for their characters, since the sides may not even tell the actor which character he or she would ultimately be portraying on the show. These are the hardest auditions, but they are also becoming the norm for many popular shows. If you encounter such an audition, you must trust that the casting director will guide and aid you through this process. If the casting director tells you that you nailed it, and you have no idea why, just thank your lucky stars and enjoy the rest of your day.