Alyshia Ochse of “That One Audition” podcast brings her audience a comprehensive advantage to auditioning, self-tape, and even life itself. The best part about “That One Audition” is that you can even listen to it on the road!

Alyshia Ochse recently sat down with us to help actors learn more about themselves and how to nail their auditions.

You’re an actress and well as the creator and host of “That One Audition” podcast. What did you wish to accomplish when starting the podcast, what are your future goals? 

My wish for the podcast “That One Audition” was to fill the void of mentorship on a mainstream level. [The podcast shows] that creativity has no “right” or “wrong” way to do it (just your way) and that a career in storytelling usually takes about 10 years. I wanted the long-form conversations to pull back the curtain on the biggest part of an actor’s job: auditions. 

My future goals with the podcast are to continue to inspire, encourage and highlight careers that will allow the next generation of actors/storytellers to stay the course. I look at the podcast as a cheerleading platform for creatives. Many of us are told we can’t have a career or that it feels completely unattainable. By showing and highlighting other’s journeys through various audition stories we (as artists) can take what we want and try to emulate it in our own careers.

I think my guests feel comfortable about being vulnerable and sharing their experience because I am an actor and believe that whatever the actor/storyteller wants to share is exactly what I (and the audience) need to hear.

Having been an actress on such shows as the soap Days of Our Lives, How I Met Your Mother, and True Detective, what’s it like being on the other side of the camera, interviewing actors for “That One Audition”?

I am genuinely interested in human beings and their journeys. Interviewing actors (any creative) thrills me. Additionally, I love excavating information from other creatives on how they got that way, how they stay that way, and how they overcome the challenge of living creatively as a career.

When you decided to begin the podcast, did you have any idea how to get it off the ground, or did you learn along the way? What mistakes have you made?

I had no idea what entailed running and operating a podcast. “That One Audition” was originally conceived as a coffee table book called “101 Most Unforgettable Auditions”. I received no interest from any suitable publishing houses so I started to figure out the podcasting world. Mistakes, or rather suggestions of what I wish I would have done, are easy to come by. One, it is always good to batch episodes. Two, having seasons will save your sanity. Three, no one is really that bothered about the sound if the content is great. Four, it’s okay to not run episodes if it doesn’t serve the audience, guest or overall show (I have withheld many interviews that didn’t go well).

What feedback have you received from your viewers?

“That One Audition” listeners have been incredibly vocal on how the interviews help them in their daily journey in their own creative careers. Since I started doing the Wednesday Wisdoms, many listeners will write in and request my take on various subjects (nudity, contracts, audition prep, anxiety help, etc). This correspondence with listeners also allowed me to see the need to create The New Triple Threat. Many actors, even those that come out of fancy conservatories, don’t know how to audition, conduct business or understand tech.  The New Triple Threat is an online membership coaching program and the educational arm of Put Me On Self-Tape and That One Audition. It includes courses for actors at varying levels offering online courses. [The courses] teach the modern actor everything from how to deliver professional-grade audition self tapes, to the craft and skills to deliver the performances casting directors are looking for.

You’re a huge believer in personal evolution and wrote a book called Life Letters. What exactly is “personal evolution”? Walk us through your writing journey.

Life Letters was a process that I created to help me through a difficult period in my life about 10 years ago. I didn’t know who I was and I certainly didn’t have self-love. The majority of my life has been consumed with pleasing others and side-stepping my own thoughts, desires, excitements, weaknesses, etc. After calling off a wedding, I knew I needed assistance to get through it.I gained [that assistance] from my internal source of wisdom (God, Universe, big Self). Eventually, I made this process into a book because many of my dear friends saw a huge transformation in me after this year and requested the process. It is a quick 57-page self-motivational book to get you through a year of growth while learning to love and enhance parts of YOU.

Every year we must put time into finding and rediscovering who we are because we shift and blossom (personal evolution). I have visited Life Letters practice several times since the first year. After getting married I did another year. After becoming a Mother I went back to the letters. And now in “social distancing” I am creating another year of letters. I think we are always challenged to carve out time to remember, learn and love the YOU that you are in every phase of life.

How does music play a part in your creative process?

Music sets my mood. I usually pick music for my characters and listen for the duration of the shoot. Music, sense of hearing, is one of your strongest sensorial tools for any creation.

You have a daughter. What struggles, if any, do you have in terms of being a mom with a job in the entertainment field?

Honestly, people are asking that specific question only to women. It seems to be a hot topic always / only for actresses about how they balance everything. I delegate to the best of my ability and I prioritize that which is most important at that exact moment. I have realized since becoming a mother that you can’t have it all at the SAME TIME. 

Meaning, there is a time and place for work and children, both of which are creative for me. I don’t abide by the tradition of becoming a martyr once you become a mother. It is important to me that my daughter sees me doing work and enjoying my job. My daughter is now five years old and she has a very active imagination. Therefore, I feel like I have become a better creative entrepreneur because of living in the moment with her. I think some of the best actors never departed from their childlike imaginative worlds. I am incredibly grateful to be a mother and have that role be a significant focus of my day.

When you were a child growing up in Kentucky, you played sports and secretly wrote poetry. Why was your poetry a secret? What was going through your mind at the time?

My poetry was only a secret till I was published. I wrote my first poem on my Math book cover. The words just came to me. I was 10/11 years old and words were flowing through my mind that I had never really learned. I remember looking them up later to see what they meant or if they were even real words. It was my first hit of “inspiration” and my first experience being an open channel for creativity. This way of writing was so unusual I felt the need to keep it a secret until I understood where the words originated. After I was published, I entered an AP English class and had one of those teachers that criticized heavily. Because my creativity was just blooming, I felt embarrassed and started hiding my true writings. I would reserve my poetry just for myself.

Oftentimes actors become actors because they’re shy or want to step out of their comfort zone. Why did you become an actor?

I became an actor because I was fascinated by human beings — what they said, how they acted, and what they really wanted to say. I found lifestyles, emotions, and events entertaining by observing human being’s interactions. This research made me want to live and express through acting to not only entertain but to also provide art for those that feel misunderstood. I love storytelling for the lessons, learning from my characters, and being able to explore that, which I as Alyshia cannot.

Anything else you want to say?

Yes! After booking many auditions [via] my own self tapes, I partnered with Anna LaMadrid from Put Me on Self Tape to curate a class that addresses all challenges of self tapes while giving you insider professional tips to get actors booking.

#SelftapeMay is here again.

Head over to the @CastingFrontier Instagram Live at 2PM PDT / EDT on Monday May 3rd, 2021 to learn more about Alyshia Ochse, The New Triple Threat, The One Audition podcast and more!

BIOGRAPHIES:

Alyshia Ochse is an actress (True Detective, The Other Woman, How I Met Your Mother), producer, best-selling author, and entrepreneur. She hosts That One Audition, a widely recognized podcast that shares honest, humorous, and inspirational conversations with on-screen storytellers and Hollywood influencers. She books 70% of her jobs from self-tapes, including her recurring role on Quibi’s must-watch series #FREERAYSHAWN with Laurence Fishburne.

Anna LaMadrid is an actress (Vida; Grey’s Anatomy; Love, Victor) and the founder of Put Me On Self-Tape, where she coaches working actors — including Bridget Regan (Jane The Virgin), Travis Van Winkle (YOU on Netflix), Meagan Good (Prodigal Son), and more. She received her MFA from U of Washington where she TA’d for undergrad acting students. Her already released self-tape courses, “Find Your Light” and “What’s My Frame?” have been game-changers for hundreds of actors.

Both working actors have teamed up to offer a holistic approach to actor training with a fresh approach to the craft, the business and the technology involved in leveling up one’s career skills.

The New Triple Threat is an online membership coaching program, and the educational arm of Put Me On Self-Tape and That One Audition. It includes courses for actors at varying levels offering online courses, teaching the modern actor everything from how to deliver professional-grade audition self-tapes, to the craft and skills to deliver the performances casting directors are looking for.

Want to get your acting career started? Sign up or login to Casting Frontier and start auditioning today!

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Ilana Rapp is a media-savvy Generation Xer with instinctive wit, quick humor and a taste for deep human emotions. As a former (child) actress with Broadway, film and television credits, she is adept at, well, lots of things. She blogged on The Huffington Post and writes entertainment pieces for Casting Networks, Casting Frontier, NYCastings, Mupo Entertainment and New Jersey Stage. She is a huge fan of the television show V. Ask her why her favorite number is 22. Follow Ilana on Twitter @IlanaSpeaks22