Virtual auditions and self-submissions are on the rise, with more and more Casting Directors looking to the virtual world to accomplish two things: broaden the potential talent pool and help cut through the initial “clutter” to narrow in on the actors with the most potential.  A headshot is great of course and having the right look is half the battle, but the right look doesn’t do you any good if you can’t act. Scores of would be actors suddenly become wooden and stiff the minute the camera is rolling or they start saying lines. Virtual auditions help separate the people who look good in a still shot from the people who look natural and at ease on camera.

The problem, of course, is that actors are actors not videographers.  In reality, however, actors have always had to wear a variety of hats.  Many actors at various points in their career had to do their own PR, be their own booking agents, stylists, HMU artists, choreographers – you name it, they’ve done it. In fact, almost any successful actor will possess an infinite amount of knowledge about lighting, camera angles and how to set up shots because of their constant interaction with the people that are tasked with doing those things.   

In this changing digital world, however, learning up front what most professtional actors know about what goes on behind the camera is becoming more and more crucial to becoming a successful actor in Hollywood in the first place.  The good news is, almost every person has a high-end video camera right in their pockets.  The bad news, however, is that just because your camera phone has major potential to shoot great video, the camera is only as good as the person using it, so it’s up to you to learn how to use it to its fullest potential.

You can, of course, hire professionals or semi-professionals (film school students, friends in the industry, people new to the industry but with some experience) to shoot your auditions, but in reality it’s far easier to master some basic skills to learn how to quickly and easily shoot your own videos.

Here are 5 tips to help you become a master of the Virtual Audition.

1.) Make sure your phone is stable

Many tripods for camera phones are available for under $20 and will allow you to set up your phone, press record (or have someone press record for you) and then continue on with your audition. If you press record yourself, use simple editing software like iMovie to edit out the few seconds of video between when you press record and start your audition. You can have a friend hold the phone for you, but then you get a shaky picture, which will draw attention away from your audition. Even if you have a friend help you with your audition video always use a tripod or stabilizing device of some kind.  If you really want to go cheap and easy, take two chip clips or two binder clips and attach them to the bottom of your phone like this. 

These Oxo chip clips are great, because they have rubber linings on the clamps so they won’t scratch your phone. Be careful with binder clips as they can scratch your phone screen.

2.) Frame your shot properly

What casting directors want to see is your face, but you also want to make sure your entire face does not fill the screen, because it’s overpowering. 

This is a much better shot composition because we can still see the person’s face, but it doesn’t dominate the screen in an uncomfortable way.

Compose your shot so that at least your head, shoulders and upper chest are on camera, but make sure your head is not all the way at the top of the frame. You want to leave “head space” above your head. Instead of zooming in – which diminishes the picture quality, move the entire camera and tripod forward or backward until you get the desired framing.  You can either have someone sit in for you while you frame the shot, or set the timer on your camera and then go stand in position.  You can keep checking the picture until you get the camera positioned properly.

3.) Don’t look directly into the camera.

The camera is the “audience” and you need to maintain your fourth wall. If you are working with a partner, have them sit facing you just to the right or the left of the camera and look at them. If you are not working with a partner, you can tape a small piece of poster board or other rigid, lightweight material to either side of the camera to give you something to focus on.

4.) Shoot against a plain background

Too much clutter in the background continuously draws the eyes away from the subject.

Shoot against a plain or neutral background.

An easy fix for this is to hang a plain, light colored (flat) sheet against a wall and stand in front of that.  If you are going to do this however it’s best to iron the sheet because if it is severely wrinkled, that too can draw the eyes away from your audition. (see the above pictures of binder clip tripods. Notice how distracting the wrinkled sheet is in the background!) Just remember you want all eyes to be on you, so do your best to make that as easy for those watching as possible.

5.) Learn some basic lighting techniques

YouTube has a great series in their Creator Academy that will teach you some great basic production skills in less than two hours. You can watch all of the videos here, but here is a great video on how to use lighting effectively.