Ace Your Audition with ‘The Moment Before’ Technique

What are you doing the moment before your audition scene starts? Are you adjusting your ring light? Are you overly concerned with primping yourself? Are you in a battle with your pop-up background? Perhaps you’re saying your lines to yourself on a loop.

It’s tough not to get lost in a technical riptide in this age of self tape auditions. However, we mustn’t forget what’s most important: the acting.

An effective remedy that can be a buoy in the rocky self tape sea is the “The Moment Before” technique. It’s the best kind of simple, creating a major wake. This tangible tool allows actors to fully immerse themselves in their character and the stakes of the scene before it even begins. Let’s break it down!

What is “The Moment Before” technique?

“The Moment Before” technique (TMB) is exactly what it sounds like, what happened before the scene’s start or the director calling action. It can be 30 seconds before, it can be 60 seconds before, or if you’re auditioning for a musical it can even be what’s happening during the introductory plunk of the piano (Dun, dun, dun).

“The Moment Before” is about understanding and then embodying what your character was experiencing right before the scene you’re about to perform. This technique anchors actors in the reality of their character’s journey, ensuring that they enter a scene in the proper mindset. It helps actors to give a more authentic performance, bringing the needed energy to the top of each scene.

Do you ever feel like it takes you a few lines to get into an audition cut? Using “The Moment Before” can immediately pull you, and, thus, your viewers in. Casting doesn’t have time to watch you warm up, you have to grab attention from the start. Cue: The Moment Before.

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How Do I Apply “The Moment Before” to Auditions?

The best part about this technique? It’s as easy as applying sunblock – I’m talking about the spray-on kind!

Assuming you’ve done your normal scene analysis and character work, all you have to do is sleuth out the moment. With some audition cuts, the moment can be found by reading the entire script. On many other occasions, you have the creative freedom to invent a moment for yourself.

Think of TMB as a mini version of the “Previously On” montage ahead of your favorite TV show. Use your imagination to improvise a vivid and detailed scenario for your character. The more specific you are, the richer your performance will be and the easier it will be to slip into the scene. Sometimes it works so well that you don’t even remember where the scene begins or ends.

A Brief Example of “The Moment Before” Technique

Let’s say the first line you’re given is “Hey,” a simple phrase that’s washed through our mouths countless times. Of course, the delivery varies depending on where we are, who we’re talking to, and – you guessed it – what’s happened prior.

If your character walks into class hungover from a night of partying, they’re going to say “Hey” very differently than if they’re waltzing into the room bright-eyed and bushy-tailed from a peaceful night’s sleep. Were they chugging coffee trying to wake up before they walked in? Were they doing cartwheels in the hallway because they had so much energy? What happened before that “Hey?”

While we’re on exercise, consider if your character finished a jog moments before greeting a friend. Would they be slightly out of breath? On a completely different note, maybe they’re at a funeral for a loved one and run into an old flame. Does this unexpected encounter happen moments after they say their final goodbye to an open casket?

The options of what specific energy one can bring to the top of a scene are truly endless.

Watch “The Moment Before” Technique in Practice

One famous example of “The Moment Before” is Jack Nicholson and the late Shelly Duval’s character work in the iconic secluded horror flick The Shining. Archival footage provides us lucky pupils with Nicholson’s intense warmup in contrast with Duval’s more practical approach. It’s a cool study, showcasing how variations of TMB work for specific talents. While Nicholson is in the throes of insanity before director Stanley Kubrick ever calls “Action,” Duvall maintains a quieter focus and goes over her blocking.

By living in “The Moment Before,” actors can deliver more authentic, focused and emotionally resonant character portrayals. Embracing this technique not only enhances individual scenes but contributes to the overall continuity and reality of the story. Go on – try it for yourself, friends!

This article originally appeared on Casting Networks.

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