You forgot to slate.
NBD, right?
Well, not the BIGGEST deal, but a deal. Here’s the deal:
𝕊𝕝𝕒𝕥𝕖𝕤 𝕞𝕒𝕥𝕥𝕖𝕣.
Slates mattered before and they certainly matter now.
Think about it.
When you come into the room in-person, we are able to get a whole sense of you:
How you carry yourself, your posture, your stature.
Yes, the acting will always come first.
But it’s (very) helpful to know your true physicality before we sign you on for 8 episodes.
This is also why it’s helpful to do an ACTUAL full body slate. And spoiler alert:
A slow pan down from head-to-toe aint that.
A panned down slate on someone who’s 5ft tall looks exactly the same way as someone who’s 7ft tall.
It tells us nothing.
𝗔𝗹𝘄𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝗱𝗼 𝗮 𝘄𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘁, 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂r 𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗿𝗲 𝗯𝗼𝗱𝘆 𝗳𝗶𝘁𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗲.
As far as what to say: we’ll usually give you some guidance on that.
If you’re just told to slate without any specific instructions: a simple “name” and “height” will usually suffice.
Most importantly: 𝘥𝘰𝘯’𝘵 𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬 𝘪𝘵.
A slate is for informational purposes only.
It should be quick, to the point and (for the love all things good) NOT in character.
#themoreyouknow #thecastingdirectorscut #mondaymythdebunker #actorlife
Related reading: Should You Show Up in Full Wardrobe for an Audition?, Does Your Audition Start the Moment You Walk Through the Door? and Will One Off Day Keep an Office From Calling You Back?.
Want help applying this to your own career? Book a one-on-one consultation with Ramani or see our packages.