\u201cOh my god. If I have to go through another horrible headshot session and deal with more terrible jokes and awkward silences, I\u2019m going to jump out that window.\u201d<\/p>\n
Samantha looked at me, \u201cWell that\u2019s harsh, Martin. This isn\u2019t their fault, it\u2019s yours.\u201d<\/p>\n
She was absolutely right.<\/p>\n
You see, I made a simple error when I posted the job description to find a new photographer for our team at City Headshots<\/a>, and now I was experiencing one of the worst series of interviews and test shoots I\u2019d ever been through.<\/p>\n What was the error, you ask?<\/p>\n Well, it could be summed up in this single sentence I added to the job description:<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re looking for a photographer who is funny, outgoing, and engaging. A big plus if you can tell jokes throughout the shoot.\u201d<\/p>\n Why was that simple sentence such a huge mistake?<\/p>\n Because it got me tons of submissions\u2026 but every single person told me exactly what I wanted to hear.<\/p>\n \u201cI love shooting headshots and I make the experience fun and engaging. I\u2019m very outgoing and I like telling jokes.\u201d<\/p>\n Even though almost everyone said things like that in their applications, almost none of them were actually engaging. They all adjusted their camera settings silently while I stood there in front of the lights awkwardly wondering what they were doing. And they told jokes like, \u201ca man came home one day to find someone had stolen all his lamps. He was delighted.\u201d (To be honest, though, that\u2019s a pretty fantastic joke.) Anyway, to cap it off, after a long day of interviews, I wound up choosing someone I thought would be okay, but they ended up not being a good fit with my team, and I had to let them go.<\/p>\n So why am I telling you this story?<\/p>\n Because believe it or not, it\u2019s the exact same thing with casting directors.<\/p>\n They will never tell you what they\u2019re really looking for because if they do, they\u2019ll make the process of narrowing down actors for the audition incredibly difficult for themselves because everyone will try to change themselves to be exactly what they\u2019re looking for.<\/p>\n Just as I don\u2019t want to hire a photographer who pretends to be outgoing during the interview (and is actually shy and reserved during real shoots), a casting director doesn\u2019t want to accidentally hire an actor who seems to play a character well in the audition, but is not naturally that character \u2014 because they know it will come out later on set.<\/p>\n Keeping the specifics of what they want hidden accomplishes two things:<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Casting directors won\u2019t tell you what they want because they hope you\u2019ll simply play your brand \u2014 or in other words, be yourself.<\/p>\n The more authentic you are, the more likely you\u2019ll intrigue the right casting directors and stand out to them.<\/p>\n Remember: You\u2019re not trying to stand out to everyone, just the people who are already looking for someone like you. By playing yourself, you\u2019ll stand out to the casting directors you\u2019re meant to work with and you\u2019ll book the jobs you\u2019re perfect for.<\/p>\n Casting directors are trying to help you by not posting too many details.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s a super quick process you can use to instantly be more authentic in auditions. By following the two steps below, you\u2019ll come up with three words (called your pride words<\/a>) that will help you feel way more grounded before each audition. Not only will you perform better, but you might also even start enjoying the audition process!<\/p>\n Step 1:<\/strong> Take a moment to think about someone you deeply admire and respect. Ideally, you should know them personally. Come up with someone specific before moving onto step 2.<\/p>\n Step 2:<\/strong> Now that you\u2019ve thought of them, what are the three personality traits you most deeply admire about them? Are they confident? Strong? Intelligent? Funny? Loving? Take a few minutes to think and then write them down. Be sure to only come up with three words.<\/p>\n Congratulations! Those are your pride words.<\/p>\n Now, next time you\u2019re about to audition \u2014 whether for self-tape or in person \u2014 close your eyes and deeply experience each of those three words one by one. For example, imagine \u201cconfidence\u201d and feel it. Then imagine \u201cintelligence\u201d and feel it. And finally, imagine \u201cloving\u201d and feel it. Do this for your own words, and when you finish, open your eyes. You\u2019ll feel way different, and you\u2019ll be ready to knock that audition out of the park. By following this super simple process, you\u2019re using a psychology technique called projection, which allows you to immediately uncover the traits within yourself that you\u2019re most proud of.<\/p>\n Every actor has three pride words, and discovering and using them will help you feel more grounded and in control \u2014 so much so that it\u2019s even possible to minimize nervousness before big auditions. In fact, by getting clear on his pride words, one of my private coaching clients landed his first-ever role on Broadway \u2014 something he\u2019d been trying to do for seven years without success \u2014 in less than four weeks of working with me.<\/p>\n It\u2019s funny how at the end of the day, being a great actor is not about trying to be someone you\u2019re not. It\u2019s not about trying to get out of your own skin and play a completely new character.<\/p>\n The real reason casting directors will never tell you what they want is because at the end of the day, standing out is about owning yourself and being truly proud of who you are.<\/p>\n Being a great actor is about using your authenticity to bring a character to life in a way that only you can.<\/p>\n Looking to get your big break? Sign up or login to Casting Networks<\/a> and find your next role today!<\/p>\n \u2014\u2014\u2014 \u201cOh my god. If I have to go through another horrible headshot session and deal with more terrible jokes and awkward silences, I\u2019m going to jump out that window.\u201d Samantha looked at me, \u201cWell that\u2019s harsh, Martin. This isn\u2019t their fault, it\u2019s yours.\u201d She was absolutely right. You see, I made a simple error when […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":8523,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"cn_email_teaser":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[725,727,732,730,720],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8522","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-acting-journeys","category-advice-filmmakers-creators","category-casting-directors","category-the-industry","category-your-career"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n\n
\nIn my case, I believe that had I not posted that \u201cfunny, engaging, and tells jokes\u201d detail in the job description, I would have opened a wider net and might have brought in someone who, though not funny, was something else \u2014 such as nurturing, relaxing, and calming \u2014 and a person like that could have been a great addition to our team!<\/p>\nA simple two-step process to be more authentic in auditions:<\/strong><\/h3>\n
\nMartin Bentsen uses \u201coutside the industry\u201d hacks to help actors book more work. He\u2019s helped\u00a0over 6,000 actors with their careers and headshots since 2009 and his photography studio\u00a0<\/span><\/i>City Headshots<\/span><\/i><\/a>\u00a0is ranked #1 on Yelp. He\u2019s taught marketing to actors at\u00a0NYU, The New England Theater Conference,\u00a0The Actor\u2019s Green Room, and numerous other major venues.<\/span><\/i>
\nWant to start booking more work by thinking strategically? Check out his completely free mini-course called\u00a0<\/span><\/i>The Practical Performer<\/span><\/i><\/a>.<\/span><\/i>
\n
\nRelated articles:<\/strong>
\nGet To Know the Casting Director: Ellen Chenoweth<\/a>
\nGet to Know the Casting Director: Jason Harris<\/a>
\nGet To Know the Casting Director: David Rubin<\/a>
\nGet To Know the Casting Director: Elizabeth Barnes<\/a>
\nAudition Advice with Ani Avetyan<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"