TL;DR: This Week in Lead Actor Weekly
- Knowing your lines is not the same as knowing your scene. A stronger audition starts when you know why you are talking, what you want from the other person and what you will do to get it.
- Sandra Cardinal booked ANOTHER commercial! That makes back-to-back commercial bookings. We’re celebrating another community win.
- Two ways to build momentum. AuditionOS helps turn your next audition into a personalized game plan, and you can still catch Brad Bizjack’s free Success Accelerator replays through October 27.
From the Desk of Joey Freddy Larsen:
I’ve got a question for you.
Have you ever walked into an audition knowing every word, and still felt like you weren’t quite ready?
I think most actors know that feeling. You’ve memorized your lines like a good student. You know exactly when the other character finishes speaking, so you hit your cues. You can get from the first line to the last without a stumble.
And yet something is missing...
Because memorizing the dialogue tells you what to say. It doesn’t tell you why you are talking or what you want/need from the other person.
There’s a big difference between delivering a line and knowing WHY you are saying it and what you really want beneath the line.
Remember that the words are just words...you must supply the energy and life beneath them. Strong acting is not grammatical, it's energetic.
So here is my plea to you: STOP "memorizing lines" and START exploring the energy beneath them to bring them to life and tell a stronger story.
Imagine a scene in which your character says, “I’m happy for you" after you hear they get a promotion. Are you genuinely thrilled? Are you covering your jealousy? Are you pleading for the other person to stay?
Same four words. The words don’t change. But your choice beneath the words does.
And that’s the part of acting I love. The words are written. But words are cheap, just lifeless ink on paper. Your talent lies in the choices you make and the energy you bring to the words to tell a stronger story.
Four questions before your next audition:
- What is my relationship to my scene partner? Get deeply specific. Rather than just "she's my girlfriend", think: "She is the love of my life, childhood sweetheart, my ride or die, and I'd do anything for her."
- What do I want from this person? Not the plot summary. Something specific I need them to say, do, or feel.
- What’s stopping me? The other person, the circumstances, my own fear, or a secret I’m keeping.
- What am I doing to get what I want? Am I charming, challenging, hiding, bargaining, provoking, or letting go?
That’s where a performance starts to become alive. You stop demonstrating emotion and start making something happen.
Here’s your move this week: Before you rehearse your next scene, answer those four questions in plain English. Then say the lines again and see what changes.
A few strong clear choices can do more for your audition than another hour of repeating words you already know.
Community Wins: Sandra Cardinal Does It Again!
BACK-TO-BACK COMMERCIAL BOOKINGS!
Remember when we recently celebrated Sandra Cardinal booking a commercial?
Well, Sandra just booked ANOTHER commercial project!
Two commercial bookings back to back. Sandra, congratulations! What a run.
Every booking deserves a celebration. And when another opportunity comes right on the heels of the last one, it’s a wonderful reminder of what’s possible in this business.
The work is never a straight line, and no actor controls every casting decision. So when one of our own has a win like this, we’re going to celebrate it.
Got a callback, booking, or creative win of your own? Hit reply and tell me. I’d love to celebrate it in a future issue.
Your Next Move: Stop Memorizing. Start Making Choices.
Here’s the audition trap I see: an actor gets completely focused on being word-perfect, then finds themselves scrambling to work out the character’s intention just before it’s time to perform.
Now you’re wondering: What do I really want? What changed halfway through the scene? Why did the other character’s last line hit me so hard?
You can know every word and still feel lost in the moment.
What if you had a clearer way to explore the character, the stakes, the relationships, and the choices before you stepped in front of the camera?
That’s the problem I’m building AuditionOS to help you solve.
Your next audition just arrived. AuditionOS turns it into a personalized game plan, helping you work through the material so you can prepare faster, perform stronger, and give yourself a better shot at booking the role.
It doesn’t make your artistic choices for you. It helps you get to the interesting choices sooner.
GET FIRST ACCESS TO AUDITIONOS
Spend less time second-guessing your preparation. Spend more time doing what you became an actor to do.
One More Thing: Is Your Mindset Getting in the Way?
Sometimes the thing slowing you down isn’t your ability to act. It’s the voice that says, Don’t make that bold choice. Don’t reach out. Wait until everything is perfect.
An actor can spend so much energy avoiding a mistake that they stop giving themselves room to make something memorable.
If any of that sounds familiar, my friend Brad Bizjack is hosting the Success Accelerator, a free five-day challenge running this week. You can still join and catch the replays, which are available through Tuesday, October 27.
This isn’t an acting class. It’s a chance to examine the beliefs and patterns that influence how you show up, make decisions, and move forward.
If you’ve been postponing the move you already know you want to make, there’s still time to watch the sessions before the replay window closes.
JOIN THE FREE SUCCESS ACCELERATOR
Before You Go
This week, Sandra gave us another reason to celebrate. And you’ve got another opportunity to strengthen the part of your career you can control: the choices you make before the next audition arrives.
Know the words. Know what you want. Then go after it.
I’d love to hear your answer to this question: What’s one acting choice you’re excited to explore this week?
See you next week,
Joey Freddy Larsen
P.S. Your next audition deserves more than memorized lines. AuditionOS turns it into a personalized preparation plan so you can prepare faster, perform stronger, and give yourself a better shot at booking the role. Get first access here →
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