EQUIPMENT - Camera, Tripod, Background, Lighting
It's not imperative to have an HD camera, but they are quite affordable. I've seen webcam auditions and cell phone auditions which are dark, grainy and the size of postage stamps. I've also heard auditions where the voices are barely audible. Do yourself a favor and invest in a digital camcorder. Most cameras now record to a memory, or SD card, and connect via USB, which simplifies transferring the footage to your computer.
Having a tripod is absolutely necessary, a shaky hand held camera is only going to distract the CD. Set the camera at eye level so you're not shooting at an unflattering upward or downward angle. The background should be matte, plain or mottled, offering a contrast to what you are wearing - do not wear colors that blend into the wall. Choose a wall that has nothing distracting like light fixtures, pictures, or shelving.
Light the area with at least a front and side light, known as the key and fill, to minimize facial shadows. Avoid ceiling lights which cast downward shadows on your face. If possible use natural light but do not shoot towards the window. Halogen work lights are inexpensive and work well although they may be too white if your background reflects light. Incandescent bulbs can give off a yellow or reddish hue depending on the bulb and changing your skin tone towards the alien or sunburned. Even if the camera has presets for indoor conditions, adjusting the exposure manually may give you better results. If you're interested in perfecting your lighting, do a web search on 3-point lighting to read up on the key, fill and back light.
READY TO SHOOT
Avoid wall shadows by standing a few feet away from the background. This will give some separation and if there are shadows they will be diffused. Again, set the camera at eye level. If you are doing a slate either start wide with a full length shot and zoom in to a close up or vice-versa to give casting a full length view. Stand about five feet away from the camera so the camera zoom stays within the optical range. Shoot at mid close-up waist-to-head and vary to a medium close-up chest to head.
The reader is an important part of the audition. Have them sit near the camera so your not looking too far to the side. and more importantly, are heard by the camera mic. Camcorder microphones are directional and point to where the subject is, so the reader might have to speaker louder to be heard. Do a test to make sure you can hear the reader. The readers pace should be quick and not slow down your performance. At the same time the reader should not be rushing where the listener has to think hard about what was said. It's you they are looking at but the reader does feed you energy to work with. You have a limited time to win their attention, so timing is crucial.
If you are able to, shoot each scene 3 times and choose the best ones. Tip: Memory card cameras, create a new file every time you start and stop recording. When you review the card information on your computer you'll find the camera's file naming convention is not the same as the thumbnails you see on viewfinder screen. Make finding the right clip a simpler task job by writing the scene and take number on a sheet of paper or white board and holding it up before each take. When you review the takes they'll be easily recognizable.
EDITING THE AUDITION
Now that you have your selected scenes recorded what do you do with them? Both the Mac and PC come with a video editing program - iMovie for Mac and Movie Maker for Windows. These basic programs can do the job to cut together the scenes, add titles and fades. Save your video file with your name and project title. Some CDs have specific naming conventions, read the audition information sheet for details.
DELIVERY
There are 2 ways to get your edited self taped audition to casting. You can send the video file to them or have it streamed on line. YouSendIt is a popular choice for sending large files.
A HELPING HAND
If the editing, streaming video or file sending are overwhelming tasks, or you have time constraints, Astral Video offers editing and streaming services to get your audition to your agent or casting. Simply email the audition details - role, project and contacts, your head shot & resume, and upload the video files to our server. For $15, we'll check and adjust the color, bump up the low level audio, add fades and titles as required and make your performance look and sound as good as it possibly can.
Visit our web page for contact details :: Astral Video :: Demo Reel Management for Film and Television professionals.
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