|
How to Ace the Audition #5
Exclusive interviews with voice-over pros for VoiceOverXtra.com subscribers
In Your Mind: 'Treat
Auditions As A Job'
 Dan DuckworthVoice Talent, Coach, Casting Director & Producer
Voiceovers Unlimited / AAA Voice Casting
By John Florian
©2009 VoiceOverXtra
"Treat the audition as a job you've already been hired to do," advises Dan Duckworth, the New York City-based voice talent, coach, producer and casting agent.
"That mindset allows you to be more yourself," he explains. "Take the attitude that you're there to do a job. You prepare. You do the best you can. Then you walk out the door and that's the end of it."
Duckworth certainly backs up that advice with experience.
Over the past 50 years he’s been voice-over talent, broadcaster, newscaster – and founded a large professional theater company.
Today with wife Carole and daughter Jen, he operates VoiceOvers Unlimited (say hello to “Mr. Voy Sohver”), which is a voice coaching business that also helps new talent “set up a voice-over business.” And five years ago the Duckworths founded AAA Voice Casting, a casting company that hosts numerous seminars at its New York studio.
TURN OFF INNER CRITIC More on audition mindset: “Once you know what your task is, and you understand the direction – just simply get in there and do it. Turn off the director critic voice in your head that obsesses how well you’re doing it, while you’re doing it. You really don’t know. You never know what is going on, on the other side of the glass.” Arriving to do a job also means being prepared to work.
“Have all the little things out of the way. Don’t waste time putting down bags, or pulling things out of them. Be ready to listen and do what’s asked,” Duckworth says. LEARN TO LISTEN “Very frequently what shoots actors down in auditions is simply that they don’t know how to listen,” Duckworth adds. “Having observed thousands of auditions in our seminars with agents and casting directors, I can tell you that it’s not a readily-exercised skill by most people.” Simply listen? To what?
“Listen to the directions. Listen to what the other person is saying to you (on a script with multiple characters).
"Scientific studies show that most people in a conversation stop listening about 30 percent of the way into the other person’s statement, and start planning what they’re going to say next. “If that gets in your way, learn to shut up and listen!” Finally, Duckworth advises to never leave home without business cards, demo CDs, and head shots and resumes if you’re auditioning for on-camera work.
“Those should be attached to your body.” To contact Dan Duckworth:
Email: aaavoicecasting@aol.com
 Your online resource for voice-over success
Email: info@VoiceOverXtra.com
|
Thanks for sharing your expertise Dan!