Don't Fear the Competition

I have a bad habit of walking into the lobby of an audition and immediately sizing up the room.  I look over everyone and find the person who by looks alone, I would give the part.  In my head, they are my main competition.

Jenna Fischer talks about being at the studio test for "The Office" and there were two other women up for the role.  She says one was gorgeous and obviously not right for Pam and the other perfectly fit her image of what Pam should look like.  She figured she had already lost the part.

You can see how trying to guess what they are looking for is wrong and if you let it get in your head it could hurt your audition.

A casting director once said to me that there really is only one person right for every role and it's their job to find that perfect person.  What that means is that you are never in competition with anyone else for a role.  You are either perfect or you aren't.

Besides it is not your job to book that one part, it is your job to book the room.  Never worry about getting one role in one film.  Instead focus on making fans of the casting director and anyone else in the casting room.  If they become your fan they will call you in for everything they can, eventually finding that role that you are perfect for. 

It is time for actors to stop looking at each other as the competition.   This is a tough enough business as is, we should all be supporting each other.

Stop Worrying so Much!

This audition doesn’t matter.  Seriously, whatever audition you are about to go on does not matter nearly as much as you think.  There will always be another audition, another pilot season, another feature film, even another agent or manager.  Actors often act like if they don’t get this job it will be the end of the world.  Trust me, it won’t.  This is not your last chance!

I don’t say this so you can feel okay about going into your next audition unprepared.  I say this because that desperation you feel to get this job shows up all over your face from the moment you walk in the room. 

You know how you hear about people finding the “right one” the moment they stop looking for them and then they get married and live happily ever after?  That’s because they stopped being desperate.  It’s the same with getting a job.  When you worry about each audition like it’s your last chance, you aren’t relaxed and that can prevent you from getting the job.

Jenna Fischer, who plays Pam Beasley on “The Office,” has a great story about when she pretty much gave up on acting and she suddenly found success.  She had been in Los Angeles pursuing her acting career for about 10 years.  She had some co-stars, gone out for pilots, and such but hadn’t found a way to make a living as an actress.  She decided it was time to pursue a new career and chose to go to veterinary school.  

Since she was very close to her manager and agent she decided to give them one more pilot season before completely giving it up.  But she had something else now and each audition wasn’t the end all be all for her.  That is when she got cast in “The Office.”  That’s not to say she didn’t come prepared for the audition, I am sure she did all that work, but I’m willing to bet she wasn’t nearly as worried about whether or not she got the job.

I’m not saying you have to have a back up career already in your pocket, but you shouldn’t look at each audition as if it’s this or nothing.  Because it’s not.  They are always going to be making another movie.  Television shows are going to be cancelled and new ones will have to be made to fill their slots.  They will always need actors.

I told you this is acting thing is a long-term project, so stop trying to be an overnight success.