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International Actors Ensemble - Self Taping Advice Notes by Grae Burton HERE IS ALL THE INFORMATION YOU WILL NEED TO BE ABLE TO REALISE A SELF TAPE AUDITON YOURSELF. ALWAYS ALLOW YOURSELF “JUST IN CASE TIME” SHOULD YOU NEED TO RE-TAPE, RE-EDIT OR RE-LOAD YOUR AUDITION SELF TAPE.
UPLOADING PLATFORM For your finished edited audition self tape. Most people use Hightail (free version has maximum upload size of 50MB) to send audition self tapes. Dropbox is another cost efficient option. Vimeo and You Tube links are also good (if private, please send video password to view)
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS BEFORE YOU BEGIN TO FILM YOUR AUDITION, WORK FROM THE END PRODUCT TOWARD PRESSING RECORD... o
Generally for overseas Casting Directors the specifications are as follows MP4 or MKV. H.264 Codec. Frame rate same as source. (Check you video frame rate in the properties before you start editing.) Widescreen Format Aspect Ratio 16:9 = wide 640 x height 360 (sometimes height is approx and should be no more than 368). If you are filming in HD then you will need to reduce the size of the edited self tape from 1920 x 1080. “p” or “i” at the end of the video size stands for “progressive” or “interlaced”. Generally your videos should be 640p. Some websites and casting directors request 4:3 ratio = 640 x 480. (This is oldschool TV box size) If this is the case it is much easier to film in this aspect ratio also otherwise you will encounter problems in editing. “Letterboxed” means that the video must be 16:9 ratio inside a 4:3 ratio screen. Think widescreen on an old-school TV with black bars above and below the image. Audio Specs in general should be Stereo, AAC codec, sample rate 48, bitrate 128 160 max File size no more than 30MB – 50MB (which can reduce the quality of the video on longer auditions (6mins or more) but cannot be avoided.)
Whether you are editing on your phone or on computer using Windows Movie Maker, iMovie, Adobe Premiere, Final Cut or another editing platform, you should test the output or exported video properties of the system so that you understand how to change the settings to achieve what you need. If you can only export or save the edited video in HD (1920x1080) then you should use a video converter program such as HANDBRAKE to convert the video to the correct specifications. There are many tutorials on youtube and other platforms. Online REFERENCE Examples (I recommend finding your own) – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FB0ji_3Uees https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ChMAoo0kcU0 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fFkr5v_wsoc https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Xf-jP4dXOw
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EDITING SOFTWARE (COMPUTER) MAKE SURE YOUR COMPUTER AND YOUR EDITING SOFTWARE CAN READ THE VIDEOS YOU RECORD AS SOMETIMES VIDEO CODECS ARE NOT READABLE ON SOME EDITORS. WHILE SHOOTING AND EDITING AN AUDITION SELFTAPE ENTIRELY ON YOUR SMARTPHONE IS NOW POSSIBLE IT IS NOT ADVISED AS THERE ARE OFTEN TOO MANY MISTAKES WHICH CAN OCCUR IN THE PROCESS. PC - For novices the easiest and most accessible option is Windows Live Moviemaker as it is usually the only editing software already supplied on a PC system. AVS Video editor is excellent software also. MAC – iMovie is the built in system and for MAC users and is very efficient, particularly at the output/exporting stage and can often produce exactly the file type and size you need without any further converting required. For more advanced users Final Cut is film maker grade software. CROSS PLATFORM – Adobe Premiere is the best cross platform software for creating editing files usable on both MAC and PC. It can export to any file type including Final Cut editable file.
DATA WRANGLING (COMPUTER) YOU SHOULD TAKE NOTE OF THE TAKES YOU LIKE AND WILL USE FOR YOUR EDIT WHILE YOU ARE SHOOTING. WHEN YOU TRANSFER THE TAKES INTO YOUR COMPUTER
Put them all into a folder with the finished edited version file name as you will need to specify it. Generally something like JoeBloggsMyAgentsNameAuditionCamelotKingArthur or something to that effect.
FILMING YOUR SELF TAPE AUDITION WE SUGGEST WATCHING EACH CLEAN TAKE AFTER YOU HAVE FILMED IT TO ENSURE YOUR CAPTURED IT WELL AND TO BE ABLE TO MAKE ADJUSTMENTS FOR YOUR NEXT TAKE. TRY TO DO AS FEW TAKES AS POSSIBLE TO KEEP THE MATERIAL AND PERFORMANCE FRESH.
PERSONNEL It is usually not possible to create an entire self tape audition by yourself. Have another person to operate the camera, someone you would trust to offer you minimal direction between takes. If you can, create a team amongst your friends and help each other to create your auditions.
SPACE With shooting your audition you should always aim for THE BEST PICTURE AND SOUND QUALITY you can achieve within the timeframe given to create the audition. This is not only having a good camera with a good microphone but also
A well lit (preferable artificially lit), relatively quiet. non-distracting studio with a naturally coloured (preferably not hard black or white) background.
LIGHTING
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Unless it is a cloudy day sunlight can be inconstant and vary greatly from one minute to the next. For that reason you are best to use artificial light and mute the outside light with curtains or blinds.
Lighting needs to pick out the eyes particularly and should try to take away any shadowing around the eyes (under the brows and next to the nose bridge). Additional lighting is best served at just above eye level and evenly positioned in front of (behind the camera) and on either side of the subject. Adjusting the exposure settings and ISO on the camera can also create the illusion of more light in the space than there is but be careful that your audition maintains a realistic look.
WHITEBALANCING MOST MODERN CAMERAS HAVE EXCELLENT AUTOMATIC WHITEBALANCING BUT IF YOUR CAMERA HAS A WHITEBALANCING OPTION INVESTIGATE IT AND CHOOSE THE OPTION BEST FOR PRESENTING THE MATERIAL.
Generally auto will be fine but if your audition is set in a cold winter environment, adjusting to florescent white balance may subtly serve your to create more atmosphere in the audition. Ave a play to see what gives you the best effect.
FOCUS YOUR AUDITION NEEDS TO BE IN FOCUS THE WHOLE TIME. CHECK YOUR FOCUS PRECISELY AND IF YOU CAN AVOID IT DO NOT DO ANYTHING IN YOUR AUDITION WHICH COULD DISTURB IT.
Like walking into shot or moving quickly toward or away from the camera. All modern video cameras have automatic focus. Check that yours is set on that. DSLR cameras usually have to have focus set and this can be done very precisely. In that case if you move in the frame the focus will need to be manually adjusted.
SHOT SIZE
Unless otherwise specified all scenes should be shot in MCU (Medium Close Up) showing shoulders and head clearly and each scene should be in one take. Unless otherwise specified, the ID should be shot wide with the subject direct addressing the camera, then turning into profile on each side, then back to camera with the shot finishing in MCU
PERFORMANCE ANGLE
Carefully check eye line to ensure a close angle to the centre of the frame without appearing to look directly into camera. For multiple eye lines for multiple characters make sure you place the characters cleanly and distinctly without shifting too far from the general off centre gaze. Generally your placement should be slightly off centre. You ID should eyeball the camera and if appropriate be pleasant, in your natural accent and finish with a smile.
SOUND IT IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY TO ENSURE THAT EVERY WORD IS HEARD CLEARLY AND WITHOUT DISTRACTION FOR YOUR AUDITION.
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Where possible you should always use a plug in professional mic with noise cancellation to ensure the best quality sound recording. If this is not available to you and you are not happy with the recorded sound quality, there are some options available to you in some editing programs, but you will need to research them individually. Your best option is to record good clean sound from the outset.
Usually the reader is closer to microphone than you are. For that reason the reader should balance their volume level with yours to make sure it does not distract. While it is expected that there will be background noise while you take your audition, make every effort to minimise this as much as you can.
REMEMBER
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Keep your eyes up, Make sure that you are relaxed. This is key because the camera will pick up any falsehood or tension. Relate to your imaginary environment, your personal circumstances and the characters you are interacting with. These are the only facts in the fiction you have to go by so use them.
