Casting Director Roger Del Pozo tells you how to land a commercial audition
By Roger Del Pozo
Q: How do Commericial Auditions differ from other auditions?
A: Commercials are not so much about acting skills. Landing a commercial all depends on how comfortable you are in the scenario. You need to have a sense of self that will make the audience believe in the scenario at hand. Commercials are all about your look, your personality, and what you can bring to the table in a very short amount of time. Commercials are an immediate read and don’t need rehearsed acting skills. Casting directors will get a feel for your personality and if you’re right for the past within the first 15 seconds of your meeting. Commercials are fast and so is the casting process for them.
Here are 4 quick tips to help you along the way:
1. Be comfortable
2. Make your personality come across
3. Be versatile
4. Don’t act
Q: What kind of monologue should I prepare?
You should always have 6 monologues ready. This means having 3 dramatic and 3 comedic monologues memorized and ready to perform. You need to have versatility in case a casting director asks to see something different. Pick a monologue that is not far off from your true personality and life experience. Work on your monologues everyday. This keeps you focused, steady, and always working. Even the most successful actors need to work on material everyday to flex their muscles and stay working.
Q: What exactly is my "age range" and "type"?
A: First of all, you should never admit your real age. If a casting director asks you your age, simply respond, “How old would you like me to be?” Your age range depends on your appearance. For example, if you are 30 year old but look young enough to play a high-schooler, then your age range should be 18-30.
How do you know your type? Your type should be a role you can slip into very easily because it is close to your true self. Once you play yourself well, then you will be given an opportunity to experiment with roles farther from your type. For example, if you can play a cop, you can probably play a prison mate too. If you can play a lawyer, you can probably play a doctor.
For more advice from commercial casting director Roger Del Pozo, don't miss Q&A with Roger Del Pozo: Diving Deeper Into Commercial Auditions.
Roger Del Pozo - Commercial Casting Director. Roger worked as a casting director at Beth Melsky Casting for over six years. He has since left that office to work as an independent casting director at some of the largest and busiest casting offices and advertising agencies in the city.
His most recent work includes commercials for Adidas, Aflac, American Express, AT&T, Budweiser, Coke, eBay, ESPN, FedEx, Gatorade, Geico, HBO, Herbal Essences, iPod, Lowe's, Macy's, Maytag, McDonalds, MTV, Nike, Pfizer, Sony, Verizon, and Volkswagen. He has also cast feature films, theater productions, industrial films, video games, and music videos.
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