And... done!

I went with jeans and a black top with sparkles on it.

The audition went really quite well. I felt I took direction well and developed the character nicely. I don't know how theatrical I made it, but I did try to keep myself very still and do as much as I could with my eyes, rather than my whole body.

Only downside is that the director noted that she'd met "Many talented actresses" today. Oh well, I still have a pretty good chance. She would only have auditioned a handful or so girls for the part. And on the upside, I was the last one, so maybe I'll stay in her memory for longer... I hope!

What the hell...

What the hell am I going to wear to this audition???

News!

OK, I'm officially allowed to tell you the news now because it is definitely happening.

I have an audition for the lead role in a short film!!!!!!

ON WEDNESDAY!!!!

In other news, Millie closed on the weekend and we didn't break even. Even though the show was critically acclaimed and we had good audiences for every performance, we never sold out a show. We sold over 3000 tickets for the three week run, but it wasn't enough.

Oh well, that isn't my problem - I did my job as well as I could.

Just a little heads up

There may be some big news coming. I don't want to jinx things so I won't say what, but I thought I'd signpost it for you.

Fun Millie pic

Hehehe. Flannery and her stenogs.

Long shot

Well that's the entire outfit from the earlier photo.

I hate the angle of this one too. Why do photographers tilt their cameras down for full-length shots of short people instead of just adjusting the tripod height?

Saucy secretary look?

Saucy secretary look??? I don't like the angle on this one. It makes me look like my legs are even shorter than they already are.

Another headshot

Another headshot. This one is an actual HEADshot.

New headshots

New headshots. I'm uploading them one at a time because frankly, I can't be bothered to put them on Photobucket. This particular one wasn't one that my agent picked out to use, but I like it. Elijah likes it too. He says, "Thas Mummy, wearing ribbon!"

Millie reviews

According to audience members, theatre people and critics:

I'm a scene stealer.
I'm hilarious.
I'm incredibly talented.
I'm perfect in this role.
I have impeccable comic timing.
I'm a thoroughly perfect comic caricature.

Being in this show is good for my ego.

Interestingly...

Interestingly, I'm suffering for my art and I didn't even realise until last night. The majority of my aches and pains are being caused by my character walk.

Miss Flannery

Me as Miss Flannery.

Lovin' the wig.

Supposedly

Today was supposedly a day off. Of course, what do I do on my day off? Perform at a masterclass.

I keep forgetting!

I keep forgetting to take my camera!!!
That is my mission for tonight. Remember camera.

Last night's show was just as good. Seriously, everybody is raving about this show. The big wig of a rival company came to see it and gave us a standing ovation (standing ovations are REALLY rare here) and told the producer to "bottle the cast" because we were so awesome and he grabbed me by the shoulders, looked straight into my eyes and told me I was amazing!!!

Booyah!!!

Booyah!!! I got rousing applause on my exit in Act 2!!! Half the people I spoke to after the show said I was their favourite character!!! My wig was fixed and it looked perfect, which gave me more confidence. Apparently I have very nice elbows and my "waddle" is hilarious.

Opening Night tonight!!!!

Opening Night tonight!!!!

Janie feedback

My Janie audition feedback is in. I am 100% in agreement with the comments I was pretty sure it was still too theatrical.

The Reviewing Team wrote:

Helen, a good try here, but like we've said to a few others too, you need to work on your voice and tone. It varies at times, which detracts from the sincerity of the piece and also some of facial expressions are a bit too exaggerated. Now having seen a few things you've done, it looks to us, that we can see the intentions of your performance, but they are not quite reconciled with how you execute them. This is another way of saying, the right thought processes are going on in the inside, but they are not manifesting fully on the outside, i.e. the performance. You need to practice more and more, record everything you do and watch it again and again. You show good promise.

How I hurt my leg

I think it was doing the Charleston without having properly warmed up. The theatre we were in had really pokey dressing rooms and we didn't have enough space to do a proper warm up.

Great news: My leg is healing very well, so thanks for all the good vibes!! The physio says I can dance on it tonight and if it gives me trouble I can get an appointment for more physio whenever I need it - even if they are booked out. I test it out with a couple of maxifords and it handled that quite well, so tonight before the show I'll test out my table climbing, kicks and the Charleston to see what I can do and what I need to cheat.

Didn't get the cold

I didn't get the cold - yet. Elijah is still sick, so I still could catch it. I'm doing my best to avoid it.

I hurt my right quad performing at the awards show. *headdesk* Luckily it's not torn and with intensive physio and my following all the instructions the physio gave me, it should be right to dance by preview night.

Better news: The BTMS team have announced the castings for GSOH (the speed dating show for which I did five auditions). While I wasn't cast, they put me on their list of people they'd "like to see more of in the future". Hooray!

Woohoo

I've started getting briefs for paid jobs! Woohoo! No casting calls yet though. I've really got to get moving on my showreel now. That will make a big difference.

Tonight, I'm performing at an awards show with my Millie cast. Let's hope my voice holds up because I'm coming down with a cold. Millie opens on Thursday!!

Family concerns

Thanks for all the support and positivity in this thread. It's so wonderful to know that I've got this support here as well as at home and amongst my "real world" buddies.

My immediate family (other than Hubby) are a bit unsure about the whole thing. In fact, I get the feeling that my brother thinks I am being downright irresponsible and foolish. I keep reminding myself that he was the most talented out of the three of us and he's the one not doing anything with his talent, so maybe it's some kind of deep-rooted jealousy or regret that is fueling his disdain for my decisions.

I think my mother and sister and my in-laws think this is a passing phase and that I'll "get over it and go back to normal" once I've had a few knockbacks. My dad doesn't care. He loves me no matter what I do. Dad and I get along much better now than we ever did growing up. I really feel like he's an ally.

I've gotten some great peer feedback on my latest audition. The official feedback won't arrive for at least a few more days. I've been told I solved one of the problems really well (which was to do with framing the shot - a lot of this script involves the feet) and that I've outdone myself! I think it's probably still too theatrical and maybe a little too much like a spoof. It's a very thin line. Hoping to get the official feedback soon.

Pauline feedback

I got my Pauline feedback. They liked this one the best. They also read my question to them about being able to decipher the brief and not understanding what they meant by a "device" character and answered it! This feedback is REALLY helpful. Hooray!

BTMS Reviewing Team wrote:

Helen, this was some of your strongest work so far, well done. Lovely facial nuances at times, and some excellent extra business at the top and tail of the clip with the camera which added humour. Re-reading your personal facts/journey gave us an insight into the minor drawback here though - you've been attacking the auditions like theatre auditions so far. You clearly have great potential, so please keep practising with the auditions and work on toning down the excesses you'd normally use as a strength for the stage. A "device" character is one where there are fewer layers and more extreme caricatured behaviour is required. You can generally decipher this from coupling the brief with the lines. Sometimes we clearly want depth, other times we want less of that and more style. We call them devices because they clearly have a role in the plot for other characters to bounce off ‚ it may be a device we have added to help another character's journey for instance, or maybe as part of the comedy arc. We don't labour this at briefing point as it is a note more relevant to the final show scripts, but it's something we may expect a few of you to spot and have fun with.

Question

Are all the briefs going to be for unpaid jobs? Seems a bit silly, considering my agent is on commission...

In other news, I did another audition on BTMS today. Have to get Hubby to upload it later.

Interesting development

I got my first brief through my agent today! The job is unpaid though, but it could lead to more exposure and therefore more paid work. The brief is confusing though. The character that I've been sent is described as female and 26+, but the rest of the description implies it's a male. I think I need to check up on this. I don't want to waste my time here.

Hoping

I really hope that I make the second round for at least one of the characters. I want to have another chance at playing them, now that I better understand what they are looking for. I have been struggling a bit with deciphering their briefs. They are dropping clues in them that I'm not experienced enough to pick up. This is obvious by the difference between the official comments on my auditions and those of some of the "old-timers" of the site. It's hard for me to tell how far they want some of the characters taken. Obviously some of them are supposed to be stretched almost to the point of caricature and others played more straight. Reading more into their briefs and figuring out exactly what they want is my next challenge.

Melissa feedback

Here it is:

Helen, another solid effort here, although slightly patchy in places. You started well, but Melissa's energy needs to come across all of her dialogue as well, and we thought you could have pushed this further and in doing so, the character and comedy would have come more naturally and strongly.

Still waiting

Still waiting on my Melissa feedback. Hmmmm. They've done the general feedback, but not the specific stuff.

I went to Sydney today for my photo shoot. So much fun! I had a great time playing up to the photographer and it looks like the shots are great, from what I've seen so far! Woohoo!

Lucy feedback

BTMS Reviewing Team wrote:

Helen, you have a very likeable persona on-screen, so it's fun to watch your clips. Your Lucy sadly dipped into the realms of caricature here though, rather than becoming a believable character. You were acting drunk rather than making us believe you were drunk and therefore we didn't get our connection with you from the opening moments. This approach can work well for a sketch (providing it hits the right style), but not so well over a sustained period. You can easily get this though, so keep practicing‚ it just needs toning down.

Kim feedback

BTMS reviewing team wrote:

Helen, we’re very much enjoying your commitment to experimentation, so well done indeed for that. This was a quirky audition, it seems you made a sacrifice for realism for the style you wanted to play with. On balance, regrettably, it probably wasn’t quite right for Kim. The heavy eye make up was a decent nod to the aggression we were looking for (well done on that – many forgot that note!), but you allowed a menace to creep in to the characterisation which didn’t allow the sensitive side of Kim to get going at all. Well done though, you were brave and this was really interesting – keep it coming!

Hehehehe. I'm making a lasting impression!

My Evelyn feedback

The Reviewing Team wrote:

Helen, strong effort. Without sounding like we are on repeat, this is good work but its lacks a bit of punch - what we're missing is the little details in developing idiosyncrasies that can turn this from ordinary to a full blown characterization and memorable character. Next time, try being a bit more daring and take a few more chances.

I agree totally. I knew that I made her too ordinary. I had a much better idea after this version had been uploaded. I should have played her as a bogan. Oh well, I've learn from this experience to dig deeper into a character first and to try and find what makes her individual and different from everyone else.

In other news, the photo shoot is postponed until the 9th. So no Sydney trip this weekend.

Happily, though, I sent the link of the auditions to my agent and she LOVED them! She also told me she loves how I'm so proactive: how I'm getting out there and trying things and also emailing her fairly often to ensure she's on the case!

Waiting

Thanks everyone! Glad you enjoyed them! It's not very often you get to audition in such a public manner.

I'm still waiting on my "official feedback" and will report on that once I've got it. I'm very interested to see what the producers and director say about my pieces.

I'm still waiting on confirmation of the photo shoot. It may not be happening this Saturday after all. Gah!

All five online

All five of my auditions are now up.

There was a delay on the last one because of a sudden increase in traffic. I guess a lot of people did theirs at the last minute.

Change is good

Interesting.
The filming for this TV show is in February. If I'm cast, then
a) I'm going to be flown to the UK in the middle of the lead up to Thoroughly Modern Millie, which opens on the 28th;
b) I'm going to be on a long-haul flight for the first time and the furthest I've ever flown before was to Vanuatu; and
c) I'm going to have to use my passport that has my maiden name on it and that might make things difficult with the authorities, wouldn't it?

A good bit of positive feedback from the guy who is already cast as the male lead:

Hi there Helen!

We haven't met yet but I just had a look through your auditions and they are fantastic. Well done! Pauline is very good but Melissa is my favourite. I am sitting in an office and actually burst out laughing...

Well, all the best. I look forward to meeting you sometime.

Looking forward to the official feedback. I'm feeling pretty good about this whole process. I've learn quite a lot about performing to camera, especially with close work, just by doing the takes and watching them back. I've never had that immediacy of feedback before. Watching the other audition videos has been really helpful as well. It's helped me to see what works and what doesn't in front of the camera.

If I get cast, I'm going to be totally ecstatic, but at the same time, petrified.

Repeating my mantra: Change is good. Change is good. Change is good. Change is good.

As scary as it is...

http://www.bethemoviestar.com/viewProfile/ozhelen

As scary as it is, I'm putting myself right out there in public. If you go to that site, you'll see all the audition pieces I've uploaded so far. If you click on "more info" on each character, you'll come to a page that links to the other people up for the role and the audition script.

NB. That website no longer exists as the business behind it folded. The videos are now online on my YouTube channel.

Progress

Progress - one monologue learnt and performed to camera. Four more to go. I did the easiest character first (the most down-to-earth one).

Big task

Big task this week: Learn five monologues for five different characters for the same TV show audition, film them and upload them. I may end up culling some of them - not sure if I've got enough time to do all five.

The five are all roles I could potentially play - all within my age range - but they are all so very different. One of them I want to play deadpan but I keep slipping into an American accent, which probably isn't good, considering it's for a British show, plus I don't think it particularly works for the character to be American. I wish I could do a convincing British accent, but it's too short notice to get that one under control for this audition.

Hooray

Hooray. She emailed me back! She's OKed my CV and given me some feedback about what I should put in my showreel. She's organising a photo shoot in a couple of weeks as well, so I might end up just going with their photographer seeing as I haven't found exactly what I'm looking for here. It means another trip to Sydney, though, and this will be trickier because Hubby will have to stay back here and work. This means I'll have to take Elijah unless we can get child care for him somehow. And I haven't worked out what I can do with him in Sydney while I'm on a shoot.

New goal: Work out logistics of Elijah's care for while Hubby and I are in two different cities.

Emailed my agent

Well I emailed my agent a few days ago for some advice and to ask some questions and still haven't heard back. Might have to call her. I prefer to not do these kind of things verbally - I'm always worried I'll forget something important.

I'm seriously thinking of doing a video audition for the "It's Our Movie" project. The script is pretty funny. I actually laughed out loud in some parts. I think I'd suit the female lead. It's kind of a scary concept though, because it's going to be cast by popular vote, rather than by the director, so it could end up being a total shambles or it could be amazing.

There's a new Aussie sitcom that is casting for their pilot. I've applied for that too. They want 20-somethings and the show is about relationships in an urban setting. Other than that, there's not much information - it's all very secretive.

New goals

New goals, since the last list is pretty much defunct:

1. Find out what would best work for me for a showreel and start organising one
2. Get more professional photos done for my portfolio
3. Figure out business/paperwork stuff that I need
4. Keep working on my voice and not be tempted to slack off
5. Stick to my new exercise regime: walking (with Elijah in stroller) 3 mornings a week for 20 minutes; pilates two days a week for 20 minutes
6. Start organising this house - if we move, then it needs to be ready to sell

It's a start

The majority of what this agent gets from casting directors is commercials and feature films. So no theatre or TV shows. But it's a start. And since they are new, there's lots of opportunity to branch out.

I'm expecting an email tomorrow and that will give me more of an idea of what I need to get together for my portfolio.

Drum roll

Thanks for all the excellent vibes, folks!



*drum roll*





I have an agent!

Woohoo!

The agent with whom I met was exactly the kind of person I was looking for. The agency started in Brisbane and is now expanding into Sydney, hence the need to find talent to fill their books. However, she said that she wasn't interested on having lots of people on the books, rather a smaller amount of quality talent, in order to have a more personal relationship between talent and agent!

She said I could choose to use their photographer or find my own for my portfolio shots (choice is good!) and get as much help as I need to put together a showreel.

I'm really excited! I got a very positive vibe from her. She seemed genuinely impressed with me and the bonus is that she has a little son as well, so we bonded over motherhood!

Things are looking good!

I can now tick off my "research an agent" goal because I've done more than that - I've gotten one! My next task is to work out exactly what to do next: my new list of goals.