The entertainment industry has been shut down with the rest of the world. Actors have been hunkered down for months. Acting studios are either temporarily closed or online-only. And my guess is that a lot of us actors haven’t been practicing our craft the same amount of time that we were pre-COVID-19. And let me say, you guys - that is ABSOLUTELY OKAY! I am right there with you.

2020 has been an unprecedented year and all of our wellness, and mental health has been on a rollercoaster of ups and downs. If you’re anything like me, that means that some days or weeks you feel super motivated to continue working on your acting career and other days and weeks you wanted to just sleep and wake up when COVID was over. Anyone relate? It’s understandable that all of our games have been a little off compared to our pre-COVID day-to-day hustle. 

BUT! Word on the street is that the tide is slowly turning and we are inching closer to getting back into the groove of acting auditions and full-out production. That means that it is vital that we get ourselves ready to go and back into the audition life groove! You don’t want to be caught unprepared when auditions get back in swing. I want you to come back with full power, ready to give your very best for every audition you get.

5 ways to prepare for post-covid audition SEASON

Getting back up to speed will take time no matter who you are! And that’s okay, but it’s time to start that process before things get busy so that you can not only be competitive but way less stressed. I’m going to share 5 key steps that I’ve been taking to go from quarantine to auditioning again. This is new territory, y’all so I’m learning right along with you. Let’s dive in. 

1. Stay up to date on SAG-AFTRA announcements.

2. Start doing mock-self-tapes at home

3. Switch from Netflix rewatches to market-specific shows

4. Add one new thing to your schedule each week to build endurance

5. Update all your acting materials

Here

stay up to date on sag-aftra announcements

This is SO important for every actor. Whether you are union or non-union, SAG runs the show for us film and TV folks. You need to stay informed on their guidelines and decisions so that you can protect yourself and your work. For the bulk of the pandemic, the unions have all been heads down and trying to figure out what to do . Well, now we have guidelines and information but for the most part, nothing is really happening yet on a large scale.

You can read the most current version (June 2020) of the Production Safety Guidelines created by the DGA, SAG-AFTRA, IATSE, and Teamster’s respective committees for COVID-19 Safety guidelines. This guide was created by the joint efforts of all of these organizations and the health and safety specialists that they employed. While they noted that it’s simply a set of guidelines for the pre-vaccine COVID era, it can also be continually updated and changed, which is important to note. This guide includes on-set guidelines for all cast and crew members.

A few highlights of the unions’ guide? There’s a new process called the Zone System, which outlines different groups of cast and crew who are allowed in various areas on set. Your assigned Zone dictates who you’re allowed to interact with, how much protective coverings you wear and when, and the frequency of testing that individuals in each zone will have. There’s also suggested new crew members who will make up a Health Safety team to help coordinate COVID-19 efforts. The guide is a total of 37 pages long, and it walks through a ton of details of the day-to-day set life and the union suggestions. Whether you’re happy with these guidelines or not, it’s important to know what they are and what you as an actor need to be aware of in order to keep yourself and your co-workers safe.

While most union projects are still not shooting as of late summer 2020, many states have authorized non-union projects to shoot. Please remember, working on a non-union project is always at your own comfort level and discretion as to whether you feel safe on that set. If you’re non-union and sign up for a non-union project and something happens, it’s very hard to impossible for SAG to do anything for you. 

Start doing mock-self-tapes at home

Even if you’ve started to get auditions, you should be brushing up on every type of audition you’re used to getting. Work through a scene representing each one of your typecasts, practice different levels of scenes - from a 1-line co-star, to a 1-page, to a 10-page audition. Give yourself a strict time limit to get it done. These muscles have been SLEEPING for the past few months and we need to wake them up. If you need inspiration for mock self tape challenges, Alex Collins and I designed 4 of them for you!

These self-tape challenges each help you target specific skills most often needed to audition successfully. This includes: mastering the specificity of the ‘under-5’, active listening, nailing lines in record time, and navigating action within a scene. 

4 Mock Self-Tape Challenges to Practice:

1. The 3-for-3: Select three "under-5" co-star scenes (a minor character/day player who has fewer than five lines). Do all three scenes within the same taping session. Create 3 unique choices for each scene.

2. Listen Up: Choose a scene where your character has a few lines, but spends most of their time actively listening to the other character(s).

3. Crunch Time: Select a wordy scene(s) of over 10 pages in length. Complete your self tape in under 24 hours.

4. Annnnd...Action!: Pick a scene with a fight, intimate moment, or other involved physical activity. Play with creative yet appropriate ways to acknowledge the movement without taking away from your performance.

   
   PRO TIP: When working on these mock auditions - make sure you set a strict time limit for yourself for the most realistic practice session (aim for 48 hours or less).

Switch from Netflix rewatches to market-specific shows

If you’re like me, you’ve probably been rewatching a ton of your favorite TV series and movies during the past few months. Grey’s Anatomy is familiar and comforting, for me, okay? But unfortunately, that’s not the best way to prepare to audition consistently again. Actively watching shows that shoot in your local market is a fantastic way to do research for the future. First, figure out what shoots in your market and start watching THOSE shows.

To be really proactive, you’ll want to actively look for certain elements of the show for your work. Good notes to take are on major plot points and character personalities, the general tone and vibe of the show, the acting style, and any unique pacing or style elements (think the natural, documentary style of The Office or the hyper speed pacing of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel). As you get more familiar with each show, you’ll begin to figure out where your typecasts might fit into future seasons. Studying these elements of the projects in your market will make sure you’re primed and ready no matter what audition you end up getting.

This is important because (especially when auditioning for smaller roles), casting is wanting us to blend seamlessly into the world that has already been created. There’s no time to waste teaching a co-star about the vibe of the show, we have to do that work in advance. So, if you’re going to be chilling on the couch anyway tonight, might as well help out future you while you’re at it!

Add one new thing to your schedule each week

One of the hardest transitions to make during this time is going from a slow moving quarantine schedule back into the crazy, go-go-go of pre-COVID actor life, right? We previously had built up endurance and routines juggling our jobs, auditions, class, personal projects, social activities, and so on, but due to corona that routine and stamina we built up has probably slipped to the wayside.

My partner, Michael, and I have decided to add back one “appointment” or activity each week to help us ease back into that routine without going from 0-100 and feeling awful. While we obviously can’t add back in all the same activities we used to (or go to a location where those activities were held), we are doing our best to hold that space and recreate it in our home.

Not going to lie, this one requires discipline. However, I think it’s one of the most important aspects of being ready to handle more on our plates. Not sure where to start? Try adding 1 mock-self-tape to your to-do list each week, then next week do a self-tape plus an hour of screenwriting, then the week after that, do both those things plus a Zoom table read of a script with friends, or an online improv session. This will help you slowly get your body in mind back in the swing of staying busy and build up your endurance. You’ll thank me later! 

Update all your acting materials

There is no excuse to not have your headshots, resumes, and all casting sites (Actors Access, Casting Networks, etc.) up to date and professionally formatted when we emerge from quarantine. Double check that your information is updated and accurate and check in with your agent to tie up any loose ends or provide updates if needed. Due to COVID-19, many agents are requested that you notate if you can do your own hair and makeup or if you live and quarantine with another actor. These important details can help you (and maybe your significant other) when being considered for roles moving forward. At the end of the day, there’s really no excuse to scramble for these materials at the last minute when auditions start rolling in again.

Have no clue where to start with these acting materials? No sweat. Check out the Beyond Acting course, The Actor’s Toolbox to get squared away with all these things and more.

my top tip for transitioning back to auditioning

The biggest takeaway I hope you all take from this article is to start to think about this time as though you’re preparing for battle. We need to have all our acting skills and resources ready to go so that we can spring into action at a moment's notice. After all, both pre-and-post COVID-19, the business of acting is massively competitive, right? Just because the pandemic happened, doesn’t mean that fact has changed. Remember the warrior side of yourself and use it to fuel this transition from the cozy quarantine mindset to finding your way back to busy audition season. There’s still so many unknowns as we navigate this new world with COVID-19, but I promise you won’t regret being ready when the time comes. Luck happens when preparation meets opportunity and I truly believe that will determine which actors do well as we navigate this new world. 

Want to tune in to the full podcast episode on this topic? Check it out on Apple Podcasts and consider leaving the show a review! I truly appreciate your feedback - it helps keep It’s a Slate of Mind running strong! On that note, I will catch you on the next one for our last minisode before Season 4!