1

00:00:00,834 --> 00:00:01,935

Here's the secret

2

00:00:02,435 --> 00:00:04,804

that keeps audiences riveted.

3

00:00:06,39 --> 00:00:07,374

When you forget yourself,

4

00:00:08,41 --> 00:00:12,12

some of the best moments you've ever

experienced as an actor

5

00:00:12,512 --> 00:00:14,547

probably had something in common.

6

00:00:15,448 --> 00:00:17,450

You weren't thinking about yourself.

7

00:00:17,851 --> 00:00:20,320

You weren't wondering if you looked

good.

8

00:00:20,754 --> 00:00:24,624

You weren't worried about whether the

casting director liked you.

9

00:00:25,625 --> 00:00:27,394

You were judging your performances.

10

00:00:28,194 --> 00:00:29,462

You weren't trying to manufacture

11

00:00:30,497 --> 00:00:31,364

emotion.

12

00:00:31,931 --> 00:00:32,966

You simply

13

00:00:33,299 --> 00:00:34,401

forgot yourself.

14

00:00:35,769 --> 00:00:36,503

You became absorbed

15

00:00:37,704 --> 00:00:43,810

in another person, another objective,

another problem, another relationship.

16

00:00:44,978 --> 00:00:46,246

And when that happens,

17

00:00:47,147 --> 00:00:48,148

time changes.

18

00:00:49,215 --> 00:00:49,783

The room disappears,

19

00:00:50,917 --> 00:00:51,718

the camera disappears.

20

00:00:52,419 --> 00:00:56,489

Sometimes even the dialogue seems to

arrive by itself.

21

00:00:57,691 --> 00:01:00,627

Now, athletes call it being in the zone.

22

00:01:01,294 --> 00:01:03,830

Musicians call it being in the pocket.

23

00:01:04,731 --> 00:01:06,232

Psychologists call it

24

00:01:06,733 --> 00:01:07,367

Flo

25

00:01:08,335 --> 00:01:09,135

actors.

26

00:01:10,170 --> 00:01:12,639

We simply call it a really good day.

27

00:01:13,773 --> 00:01:16,509

The irony is that those magical

performances

28

00:01:17,777 --> 00:01:19,45

aren't magic at all,

29

00:01:19,879 --> 00:01:24,751

they're the natural result of giving

your complete attention to something

30

00:01:25,452 --> 00:01:26,720

outside of yourself.

31

00:01:28,488 --> 00:01:30,390

Welcome to the podcast for actors,

32

00:01:31,624 --> 00:01:32,625

casting actors

33

00:01:32,759 --> 00:01:33,126

cast.

34

00:01:58,518 --> 00:01:58,685

Well.

35

00:01:58,752 --> 00:02:01,721

Hello, and welcome to today's episode

of casting actors cast.

36

00:02:02,88 --> 00:02:02,922

I'm Jeff driesback.

37

00:02:03,390 --> 00:02:06,426

I'm a casting director with mccorkal

casting in New York.

38

00:02:06,760 --> 00:02:07,394

How are you?

39

00:02:07,794 --> 00:02:08,661

So good to see you.

40

00:02:08,661 --> 00:02:09,796

Thank you for joining us.

41

00:02:10,196 --> 00:02:14,601

A real quick announcement if I could,

is, please consider checking up my

42

00:02:14,601 --> 00:02:18,405

website, casting actress casts, all one

word dot com.

43

00:02:18,672 --> 00:02:21,74

You're going to find all kinds of

resource information there.

44

00:02:21,541 --> 00:02:22,742

My new book is available.

45

00:02:23,376 --> 00:02:24,344

My course is available.

46

00:02:24,978 --> 00:02:27,147

There's a form that says, dive into the

talent pool.

47

00:02:27,313 --> 00:02:30,717

Just fill that out, and there's some

free bs if you fill out the form.

48

00:02:31,217 --> 00:02:34,20

By the way, I don't do anything with

your email address, in case you were

49

00:02:34,20 --> 00:02:34,187

wondering.

50

00:02:34,587 --> 00:02:36,656

I don't Spam you or do that.

51

00:02:37,157 --> 00:02:38,24

Anything like that.

52

00:02:38,358 --> 00:02:40,126

It's just a great record for me.

53

00:02:40,193 --> 00:02:44,264

And on occasion, I might send out a

blast or something like that, but maybe

54

00:02:44,497 --> 00:02:46,499

I've done three in the past four years.

55

00:02:46,733 --> 00:02:47,934

Junota means so very

56

00:02:50,503 --> 00:02:50,804

noninvasive,

57

00:02:51,705 --> 00:02:52,639

I promise you.

58

00:02:53,640 --> 00:02:56,476

So let's just kind of think about

59

00:02:57,143 --> 00:02:58,411

today's principle

60

00:02:59,145 --> 00:03:00,814

it's all about concentration.

61

00:03:02,248 --> 00:03:04,317

Your ability to concentrate

62

00:03:05,919 --> 00:03:06,219

concentration.

63

00:03:07,220 --> 00:03:07,787

Follows need,

64

00:03:09,55 --> 00:03:12,325

not effort, not tension, not trying

harder

65

00:03:12,959 --> 00:03:13,760

need.

66

00:03:14,661 --> 00:03:16,496

When your objective matters,

67

00:03:17,297 --> 00:03:17,797

your concentration

68

00:03:18,898 --> 00:03:19,366

follows.

69

00:03:20,500 --> 00:03:23,403

When your concentration follows, your

listening improves.

70

00:03:23,870 --> 00:03:25,905

And when your listening improves,

71

00:03:26,740 --> 00:03:28,174

your behavior changes.

72

00:03:29,376 --> 00:03:30,877

When your behavior changes,

73

00:03:31,211 --> 00:03:32,812

the audience believes you

74

00:03:34,14 --> 00:03:36,950

it's almost like knocking over the

first domino.

75

00:03:37,717 --> 00:03:40,487

Everything else follows naturally.

76

00:03:42,255 --> 00:03:45,759

I want to talk about five ways to

develop concentration.

77

00:03:47,293 --> 00:03:49,596

So let's make today's episode practical.

78

00:03:50,430 --> 00:03:51,398

Here are five habits.

79

00:03:51,865 --> 00:03:54,401

You can begin developing immediately.

80

00:03:55,35 --> 00:03:55,669

One,

81

00:03:56,36 --> 00:03:58,571

start every scene with one question,

82

00:03:59,939 --> 00:04:02,242

what do I need from this person?

83

00:04:03,877 --> 00:04:04,44

Not?

84

00:04:04,511 --> 00:04:05,912

What emotion am I playing?

85

00:04:07,213 --> 00:04:07,714

One question.

86

00:04:08,348 --> 00:04:08,815

One, need?

87

00:04:09,382 --> 00:04:11,851

Everything else grows from there.

88

00:04:13,586 --> 00:04:14,254

Two,

89

00:04:15,155 --> 00:04:17,123

I want you to watch people in real life.

90

00:04:18,91 --> 00:04:20,26

I look at this as a free acting class.

91

00:04:20,427 --> 00:04:23,663

Go to a coffee shop, an airport, a

restaurant.

92

00:04:24,431 --> 00:04:24,998

Don't eavesdrop.

93

00:04:25,799 --> 00:04:25,965

Please.

94

00:04:26,599 --> 00:04:27,834

Do you not want to get in trouble?

95

00:04:28,268 --> 00:04:29,769

I want you to observe

96

00:04:31,371 --> 00:04:34,74

someone trying to impress another

person.

97

00:04:35,208 --> 00:04:36,943

Watch someone apologizing,

98

00:04:37,944 --> 00:04:39,346

watch someone flirting,

99

00:04:40,680 --> 00:04:43,350

watch someone avoiding eye contact.

100

00:04:44,517 --> 00:04:45,618

You're going to notice something.

101

00:04:46,252 --> 00:04:48,21

Nobody is trying to act.

102

00:04:48,488 --> 00:04:48,922

Are they?

103

00:04:49,222 --> 00:04:51,191

They're trying to solve problems?

104

00:04:51,991 --> 00:04:52,792

That's

105

00:04:52,959 --> 00:04:54,94

behavior.

106

00:04:56,496 --> 00:04:58,64

Replace emotion

107

00:04:58,998 --> 00:04:59,666

with verbs.

108

00:05:00,500 --> 00:05:03,870

Now, I'm aware that there are so many

acting teachers out there.

109

00:05:03,870 --> 00:05:09,275

And frankly, at 1 point in time, I was

one of em talking about connecting emotionally

110

00:05:10,910 --> 00:05:12,145

instead of saying,

111

00:05:13,380 --> 00:05:14,748

well, let's give you an example.

112

00:05:14,981 --> 00:05:17,117

I want you to replace emotion

113

00:05:17,917 --> 00:05:18,885

instead

114

00:05:19,953 --> 00:05:20,653

with verbs.

115

00:05:21,621 --> 00:05:22,555

So for example,

116

00:05:24,24 --> 00:05:26,559

if you say my character is sad.

117

00:05:27,961 --> 00:05:28,962

Why don't you say?

118

00:05:29,529 --> 00:05:31,531

I'm trying to comfort,

119

00:05:32,899 --> 00:05:34,567

I'm trying to forgive.

120

00:05:36,36 --> 00:05:37,270

I'm trying to hide,

121

00:05:37,937 --> 00:05:38,838

I'm trying to convince.

122

00:05:39,305 --> 00:05:40,807

I'm trying to protect.

123

00:05:42,575 --> 00:05:42,876

Verbs

124

00:05:43,777 --> 00:05:44,811

create movement.

125

00:05:45,912 --> 00:05:46,713

Emotions

126

00:05:47,714 --> 00:05:49,282

often create paralysis.

127

00:05:51,718 --> 00:05:55,522

Number four, make your scene partner

more important than yourself.

128

00:05:56,756 --> 00:05:59,159

If you're worried about how you're

doing, you're probably losing

129

00:05:59,392 --> 00:06:00,794

concentration, right?

130

00:06:01,561 --> 00:06:04,164

Become fascinated with the other person.

131

00:06:04,597 --> 00:06:05,231

What are they hiding?

132

00:06:05,799 --> 00:06:06,499

What do they need?

133

00:06:06,666 --> 00:06:07,534

What changed?

134

00:06:08,435 --> 00:06:09,235

I promise you.

135

00:06:09,536 --> 00:06:11,671

Curiosity is concentration.

136

00:06:12,906 --> 00:06:17,277

And finally, number five, finish every

rehearsal by asking,

137

00:06:17,711 --> 00:06:19,679

what surprised me today,

138

00:06:20,313 --> 00:06:20,814

not,

139

00:06:21,715 --> 00:06:22,882

what did I get right?

140

00:06:24,184 --> 00:06:27,187

Surprise is evidence that you're

staying alive

141

00:06:27,721 --> 00:06:32,625

and living truthfully is always more

interesting than performing perfectly.

142

00:06:34,260 --> 00:06:38,31

As you know, I like to give a casting

room truth, every now and then, almost

143

00:06:38,264 --> 00:06:39,232

every episode recently.

144

00:06:39,532 --> 00:06:42,68

But here's my casting room truth.

145

00:06:44,170 --> 00:06:45,772

After thousands of auditions,

146

00:06:46,673 --> 00:06:51,44

I have noticed something that almost

every casting director recognizes.

147

00:06:52,178 --> 00:06:54,247

The actors who hold our attention

148

00:06:55,148 --> 00:06:59,52

are rarely the actors trying hardest to

impress us.

149

00:07:00,120 --> 00:07:04,324

They're trying hardest to affect the

other person in the scene.

150

00:07:05,625 --> 00:07:08,328

They aren't presenting a performance,

151

00:07:09,62 --> 00:07:11,197

they're pursuing an objective

152

00:07:12,332 --> 00:07:15,35

they're adjusting, listening, thinking,

153

00:07:15,201 --> 00:07:16,2

changing.

154

00:07:17,303 --> 00:07:18,71

In other words,

155

00:07:18,738 --> 00:07:19,139

they're behaving

156

00:07:20,273 --> 00:07:21,441

like human beings.

157

00:07:22,909 --> 00:07:24,577

Here's something you may not know.

158

00:07:24,811 --> 00:07:28,648

When an actor is genuinely connected to

another person in the scene,

159

00:07:29,616 --> 00:07:31,518

the room gets quieter.

160

00:07:32,18 --> 00:07:33,753

People stop taking notes,

161

00:07:34,821 --> 00:07:38,725

directors lean forward, producer, stop

looking at their phones.

162

00:07:39,159 --> 00:07:40,326

No one announces it.

163

00:07:40,960 --> 00:07:41,428

It

164

00:07:41,695 --> 00:07:42,562

simply happens

165

00:07:43,530 --> 00:07:46,866

because authentic concentration is

contagious.

166

00:07:48,501 --> 00:07:53,440

When an actor is completely present,

everyone else becomes present too.

167

00:07:54,441 --> 00:07:56,943

That's the power of truthful acting.

168

00:07:59,145 --> 00:08:02,549

We're going to have a challenge for you

coming up right after this.

169

00:08:42,989 --> 00:08:44,24

Welcome back to the show.

170

00:08:44,90 --> 00:08:44,591

I'm Jeff dries.

171

00:08:46,192 --> 00:08:47,861

We left you last talking about a

challenge.

172

00:08:48,261 --> 00:08:51,197

And this is what I call this week's

reset.

173

00:08:52,432 --> 00:08:56,636

I call this the five minute curiosity

drill.

174

00:08:57,637 --> 00:08:58,204

Here it is.

175

00:08:58,438 --> 00:09:00,907

I want you to ask a friend to read a

scene with you.

176

00:09:00,907 --> 00:09:02,575

Your only assignment is this,

177

00:09:03,710 --> 00:09:04,811

forget your lines,

178

00:09:05,879 --> 00:09:07,47

forget performance.

179

00:09:08,114 --> 00:09:10,83

Forget whether you're good.

180

00:09:10,984 --> 00:09:15,88

Spend five minutes trying to discover

something about the other character

181

00:09:15,622 --> 00:09:18,91

that isn't written in the script.

182

00:09:19,192 --> 00:09:19,826

Listen,

183

00:09:20,160 --> 00:09:20,960

observe,

184

00:09:21,428 --> 00:09:22,95

adjust.

185

00:09:22,996 --> 00:09:25,432

Allow yourself to be surprised

186

00:09:26,599 --> 00:09:26,766

afterward.

187

00:09:27,400 --> 00:09:29,436

Ask yourself one simple question.

188

00:09:30,337 --> 00:09:33,106

When did I stop thinking about myself?

189

00:09:34,674 --> 00:09:35,75

That's probably

190

00:09:36,109 --> 00:09:38,244

when your best acting happened.

191

00:09:39,612 --> 00:09:43,616

Do that every day this week, I know,

five minutes every day you'll begin

192

00:09:43,950 --> 00:09:49,122

retraining your attention away from

self consciousness and toward human connection.

193

00:09:49,622 --> 00:09:52,325

That's where the believable acting lives

194

00:09:54,894 --> 00:09:55,228

come on.

195

00:09:55,295 --> 00:09:57,597

That was worth the price of admission,

wasn't it?

196

00:09:59,933 --> 00:10:04,104

I have to tell you this, the audience

doesn't fall in love with actors who concentrate.

197

00:10:05,138 --> 00:10:07,674

They fall in love with actors who care.

198

00:10:08,508 --> 00:10:12,979

Care about another person, care about

the objective, care about what's at

199

00:10:13,79 --> 00:10:13,246

stake.

200

00:10:13,880 --> 00:10:15,315

Care enough to listen.

201

00:10:15,849 --> 00:10:17,317

Care enough to change.

202

00:10:17,951 --> 00:10:19,953

Because caring creates concentration.

203

00:10:21,54 --> 00:10:21,354

Consultation

204

00:10:22,589 --> 00:10:23,823

creates behaviour.

205

00:10:24,491 --> 00:10:25,425

Behaviour

206

00:10:25,959 --> 00:10:26,893

creates truth

207

00:10:28,94 --> 00:10:28,795

and truth.

208

00:10:30,196 --> 00:10:31,798

Well, that's what audiences remember.

209

00:10:32,98 --> 00:10:33,133

I can promise you,

210

00:10:34,834 --> 00:10:39,139

if to day's episode helped you rethink

concentration, I'd love for you to

211

00:10:39,139 --> 00:10:40,440

share it with another actor.

212

00:10:40,974 --> 00:10:41,775

Would you please?

213

00:10:42,275 --> 00:10:45,712

If you're watching on YouTube,

subscribe to the channel so you don't

214

00:10:45,712 --> 00:10:50,383

miss another upcoming episode in this

new series that we are putting together.

215

00:10:50,583 --> 00:10:51,217

This is part.

216

00:10:51,384 --> 00:10:56,22

This is the second of a series of five

that i'll have a relationship, which I

217

00:10:56,89 --> 00:10:59,693

will tie in at the end of episode five.

218

00:11:00,493 --> 00:11:02,896

If you're listening wherever you get

your podcasts,

219

00:11:03,63 --> 00:11:04,964

would you consider leaving a review?

220

00:11:05,865 --> 00:11:09,936

That is one of the best ways to help

other actors discover the show.

221

00:11:10,437 --> 00:11:12,272

And if you're looking for more

practical resources

222

00:11:13,373 --> 00:11:18,244

on auditions, performance and building

a lasting acting career

223

00:11:18,678 --> 00:11:22,582

visit casting actors cast dot com,

you'll find my new book, workshops,

224

00:11:23,149 --> 00:11:24,951

courses and more tools

225

00:11:25,385 --> 00:11:29,122

designed to help you prepare smarter,

perform better

226

00:11:29,622 --> 00:11:31,991

and enjoy the journey just a little bit

more.

227

00:11:32,892 --> 00:11:33,860

I'm Jeff dries back.

228

00:11:34,27 --> 00:11:36,162

Thank you for spending this time with

me to day,

229

00:11:36,596 --> 00:11:38,198

keep learning, keep growing, keep

listening.

230

00:11:38,331 --> 00:11:39,199

And remember

231

00:11:39,866 --> 00:11:42,68

great actors don't concentrate harder

232

00:11:43,136 --> 00:11:44,304

more neatly.

233

00:11:45,572 --> 00:11:47,207

Next