(energetic music)
- Hello.
Hello.
Hey everybody, welcome
to part two of auditions,
the good, the bad, and the ugly.
I realized after cutting
this second part together
that there's some things
that I missed (laughs).
I had a lot to say and yet
I didn't say everything.
So, I'm gonna pop in from time to time
in this cut that's from,
you'll see my outfit is
from the same one as before,
with the little bits that
I needed to clarify or add.
So, anyway, here it is.
Part two at ya, bam!
I'm supposed to believe that?
- [Man Off-camera] It's the truth.
- Great, okay. Fine, that's perfect.
(beeping)
Okay, so, from January 5th, 2009
to July 15th, 2008.
Okay and this is what we're
talking about here, okay?
In no particular order,
I just wrote down the
movies that I didn't get.
- "Sucker Punch," "Gulliver's Travels,"
"Mars Needs Moms," "It's
Kind of a Funny Story,"
"Lighting Thief,"
oh, something called
Jesus in Cowboy Boots,
I gotta check that out.
"Sorcerer's Apprentice," "Book of Eli,"
untitled Nancy Meyers project.
Not sure which one that
is, but didn't get it.
"Get Him to the Greek," "Iron Man 2,"
"The Descendants," "Thor," "Avatar."
What? I didn't even know,
I didn't even remember that
I auditioned for "Avatar."
"Jennifer's Body," "Driving Lessons,"
"Legion," "The House on the Left,"
untitled Wayans Brothers project.
I don't know what that is,
but it didn't happen for me.
"Drive Angry," "Transformers 2." (laughs)
I forgot I auditioned for
that (continues laughing).
That was another one where I was just like
trying to dress sexy and like be sexy.
It was just like (humming).
All of these, that I'm about to mention,
I got down to the final round on.
"Juno," "Thirteen," "Brink,"
"Smart House," "Tomorrowland,"
"Pitch Perfect,"
"Into the Woods," "Youth in Revolt,"
"Peter Pan," "Halt and Catch Fire,"
"The Big Bang Theory." (laughs)
Oh my gosh.
It's a lot of heartbreak, folks.
Here I am, still standing.
(beeping)
- [Man Off-Camera] You're
gonna see this dark,
skinny form that's been crouched there
watching the whole time.
- (gasps) Oh my god! (screams)
(beeping)
There's also a category
of jobs that I didn't get
that then later I got.
"United States of Tara."
I tested for it and I didn't get it,
and that one was really prominent
because I felt so sure that I
was supposed to do that part.
It's only happened to me
a couple times in my life
where it's just like, you feel this thing,
this passion inside of
you and you're like,
this is what I'm supposed
to do with my life.
Yeah, I didn't get it and I fainted.
But they ended up restructuring the show
and (laughs) they were recasting
some characters or whatever
and they wanted me to come back in.
I had to start all over again (laughs).
I had to start with meeting
with the casting director,
and then meeting with the director,
and like all these people
that I had already met and tested with,
then I had to do it all over again.
Yeah and I remember after
the test for that one
feeling really at peace that
I wasn't gonna get it again,
and then I got it.
It kinda gives me chills
when I talk about it
'cause that was just...
I was exactly where I was supposed to be
and Toni Collette was and is my idol.
She was the one that I, for
me, was like the beacon.
Like what she was doing, I was like,
oh, that's what I wanna do.
So, to be scene partners with her was...
In my formative years, I
think I got that job...
I was, it was like 18 to
21 when I did that show
and it was just absolutely perfect.
I will also say that "Kong: Skull Island,"
I auditioned for and I didn't get,
and then I auditioned for
it again and I got it.
Also, "Unicorn Store."
I had an audition for it
and got down to the wire, I think, on it,
and didn't get it,
and then five years later it
was offered to me to direct,
and it was a dream come true,
because I felt like everything
was coming full circle at that moment
and we love a full
circle moment, don't we?
(energetic music)
The "Room" audition was particularly odd
because I had to pretend
that a full-grown woman
was a five-year-old.
She was just on her knees
for my eye line (laughs).
I mean, she was wonderful.
I remember feeling really good about it
and I remember getting
in the car afterwards
and calling my agent and manager,
and they were like, you sound so relaxed,
you sound like you're in a hot tub,
and I just remember saying, if
it's mine, then it'll happen,
and I got it and it was amazing.
But with "Room" I had nine months.
I had more than that,
I think I had a year,
so I had plenty of time to
(laughs) torture myself, I guess.
Learn about this horrific
sides of the world
and try and do justice by these women,
and by that character.
"Scott Pilgrim" (laughs) was interesting.
I was a huge fan of Edgar Wright.
Really wanted to be in this movie.
Didn't understand what
the movie was exactly.
It was based off of a graphic novel
that there was only one of them out,
so I didn't have enough information
to really understand what it was.
The pages that I had
were a little bit pieces of the script
and most of it was redacted,
and the only thing that was there
was a description that said,
"a husky, non-Ramona voice."
I didn't even know who Ramona was.
It was like, I don't know
how to not be Ramona,
but I gotta not be that.
This is the truth and it's really crazy.
So, I was staying up way too late,
flipping through the channels,
and I stumbled on the Adult Video Awards,
and I was watching the red carpet
and I was watching these women
with this confidence and this allure,
and they were so great
at their self-promotion,
and I was like, that's it (laughing).
That's what I'm gonna do.
(beeping)
(sighs) Your hair is getting shaggy?
- [Man Off-Camera] Yeah.
- So, that's Ramona.
- [Man Off-Camera] Yeah.
- Okay, I'm jealous.
- [Man Off-Camera]
(laughs) You're jealous?
- I'm allowed.
- [Man Off-Camera] You left
me for that cocky pretty boy.
- (laughs) You've never even seen him.
- [Man Off-Camera] Yeah, I know,
you left me for a guy
I've never even seen.
- Maybe you'll see him soon.
We're playing a show Lee's Palace.
You should, like, so totally come.
(group off-camera laughs)
- [Man Off-Camera] That's
so not gonna happen.
- Great, you're so on the list (laughs).
I was cast pretty quick (laughs).
It was bomb.
So, for "Captain Marvel,"
I remember getting a call
when I was shooting "Kong"
and I was in Australia
at that point filming,
and I remember they called and they said,
"Marvel is interested in
you playing Captain Marvel,"
and I was like, oh, I can't do that.
I'm like, I have too much anxiety.
That's too much for me, I
don't think I can handle that,
and I was like, so tell them no,
and my team was like, okay, for sure.
I think a couple months
later they were like,
hey, they called again, are you sure,
and I was like, yeah, I'm
too much of an introvert.
That's way too big of a thing for me.
It was beyond my comprehension, like no,
and then they called a third time
and they're like, are you sure?
So, the point is, is every
time I was like, tell them no,
and I thought my team was
telling them no, they were not.
'Cause I think they were like,
she would be great at this.
I have a problem with when
I'm filming and when I'm...
Always has been like this,
and it's part of why I
was broke all the time,
was 'cause I couldn't multitask.
If I'm on a job and I'm
playing a character,
I can't self tape.
I can't do anything else.
I can only do one job at a time.
I'm embodying this character.
I can't think about something else.
So, they were like, let's
just wait until this is over.
So, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.
Time skips up ahead.
I'm back from filming,
so I had a meeting with them,
and they had a pitch,
and they had a mock-up of the costume,
and I was very moved by what
they were trying to achieve,
what they were talking about,
and it felt very progressive.
I was very surprised by that.
By the way that they were
talking about feminism,
the way they were handling it.
They were like, all female
writers, female director,
gonna have as many female
voices in this as possible
and it was just like, what?
Part of what we was
kind of amazing about it
and scary about it,
was I wasn't allowed to
talk to anybody about it.
I mean, looking back on it,
I don't think the Marvel police
was gonna come into my home
if I told me my mom,
but I was just like,
I'm such a goody-goody,
I was like, I'm not gonna tell
anybody about what happened,
and so I thought about it.
The next step was, I said
I really wanna meet with the writers
and let me talk with them
and see what they're doing,
and let me see if this story makes sense.
'Cause to me, it's like,
I don't need to be that
and that's a whole level of fame
that I had never expected
to participate in,
and it was like, okay, well,
the only way this works is
if I believe in the story
and what the messaging is,
and if that's the case,
then like, okay (mumbles).
This is here and it's happening,
and it would be against
the flow if I said no.
So, I met with them, it was amazing.
I loved everything that they had to say.
I was so excited about it
and I remember going home and being like,
oh my god, I'm gonna do this,
and I remember exactly where
I was, in my dining room,
and I was staring at my
really crappy bookshelf
I got from Salvation Army (laughs),
still a broke actor, I'm being like,
oh my god, I'm gonna do
this, and then I agreed,
and I remember laughing a lot,
I remember my team being really
proud of me 'cause they knew
that it was a big step for
me in embodying myself,
in believing that I could
do something so big,
in my confidence as a leader,
in the belief in storytelling.
So, after that, I didn't tell anybody.
My friend's texting me saying,
you're gonna be Captain
Marvel, that's amazing,
and I was like, I don't know
what you're talking about.
I was so scared.
Yeah, it felt really good when
I was on stage at Comic Con
and it all came out, it was in the open,
and of course I had many more
secrets to hold after that
about what the movie
was about and all that,
but at least I was firmly
placed as Captain Marvel.
That was it.
I've never had a process like that before.
(energetic music continues)
Okay, well, thanks for watching.
I thought I'd wrap it up
by adding in some helpful
tips with auditioning
because I would say,
the general shape is just
don't do what I did (laughs).
But I can (indistinct) a little
bit more specific than that,
and these are obviously not comprehensive.
I don't know what I'm doing.
So, this is just after
talking with my team,
who also deal with a lot of
people auditioning and my...
How ever many, over a decade,
two decades worth of auditioning.
Yeah, like two decades
worth of auditioning.
This is what I've come
to think is helpful.
(exhales) Number one.
Don't try to do what you
think that they want.
Okay, we don't shape ourselves
and mold ourselves to be
something for somebody else.
I know that seems crazy
in a world where you're
trying to get a job
and are playing a character,
but it is, at the end of
the day, about embodying,
about authenticity.
Those times that I lied,
you show up on set,
and you don't, like for me,
I didn't really get along
with the director very well
or just something felt off,
and I realized that I
just wasn't the right fit,
and I was acting like I was.
Think about it like, if
you lied on a first date
or something like that.
Eventually it's gonna catch up with you.
Two, make a choice.
Don't be afraid.
I think that being memorable
for making a choice,
even if you end up not being
right for the character,
people will remember you
and think of you for the future.
So that's another
important thing to remember
is the audition is not necessarily
just for that one thing
you're auditioning for.
You're making impressions
with whoever it is
that's seeing that video.
I think about past auditions
for myself in particular,
wanting to be like Judd Apatow
or like comedians who do a lot of improv.
It took a couple of times
of auditioning for them
before I got in "Trainwreck,"
and it was just that they remembered me
and we had rapport from all the times
I had auditioned previously
and we had built good faith.
Three, if you make a mistake,
like say you're deep in the scene
and you're like, Trevor I'm
in love with you and I...
And you forget the line,
or you drop a line, smooth.
Just be smooth.
I think showing that
you have the confidence
to think on your feet
and you're not gonna be
rattled if a mistake happens,
is sometimes more important
than saying the line right.
I mean, the thing that I
always remind myself of
is that my job is 99% failure,
and I don't just mean with auditions.
Think about how long it
takes to make a movie
versus then the movie that you see.
I mean, we shoot hundreds, and hundreds,
and hundreds of hours of footage
for it to be an hour and a half.
So, most of it ends up on
the cutting room floor,
as they say in the business,
but what that means is
it wasn't a good take
or it didn't fit.
So be comfortable with the
fact that mistakes can happen.
Oh, that should be the next one.
Four, mistakes are gonna happen.
Is that right?
Well, we'll call that three, okay, three.
We made a mistake.
Four, if you feel like you
got to the end of the scene...
Say you're in the audition
room, let me set the scene.
You're in the audition room.
You're there with the director.
You're there with the producer
and the casting director,
and you do the take,
and the directors like, it's
great, thank you so much,
and you know in your gut you're like, hmm,
there's a twist that I wanted make,
there's something that I wanted to do,
I didn't get to do it, just ask for it.
Say, hey, can I do that one more time?
Nothing wrong with that.
In fact, important.
Give yourself closure.
Give yourself some agency.
This is your time in the room.
It's not like you just have to walk in
and be like, oh, it's all up to them.
No, this is your space, embody yourself,
ask for what you need.
Five, you're gonna have bad auditions.
It is going to happen.
I think that the idea of doing really well
at every single audition is impossible.
If you're thinking about all
the breadth of characters
that you're probably
not gonna be right for,
but you try and you explore it,
also then the specificity of the time,
so it's like on that
Tuesday at two o'clock,
you need to be this character perfectly,
it's just not reasonable
to ask that of yourself.
Everything is a learning experience.
Everything is just getting the reps in.
As much as it tortured to do
as many auditions as I did,
it really did prep me for the future,
so that when I was on set,
not only was I just deeply
grateful to be there,
I also had a lot of experience.
I knew how to take direction,
I knew how to deal with the flow
and the way that things get...
Things pop up, it's not
smooth sailing everyday on set
and so you start to learn
how to roll with it.
Six would be, the auditions starts
the second you walk into the room, period.
So, whatever that is and feel it out.
There were times for me where,
because I understood that,
I come in as the character
from the very beginning
or not, maybe your vibe is that...
I think it's an amazing test of an actor
if they can switch in and out.
I think it's incredible.
I've done scenes with
amazing character actors
who you're doing a scene,
they're doing a different accent,
completely different character,
and then the second you yell cut,
they're like, hey, and their body changes.
That's incredible.
It's up to you, if you feel good
and you wanna embody the
character on your way in,
but just make sure that you understand,
that from the very beginning,
the audition's starting.
It's not once you sit in the chair,
it's not once you say the line,
it's the whole way through.
Oh, and seven, use it as an
opportunity to get to know them.
I don't mean you have to ask
them a bunch of questions,
and be like, where are you
from and all the stuff,
but feel for yourself if
it's the right place for you,
because, as much as you are
there auditioning for them,
they can be auditioning
for you, in a way, right.
You're seeing if you work well together.
You might walk away from...
I can't tell you how many times
I walked away from auditions,
and even though I wanted the job,
I was like, I didn't
understand their direction
or their direction
didn't feel like the way
that I wanted to go with the character,
and then it's like, great, clear.
So it doesn't always
have to be this thing of
you presenting yourself to them,
and waiting for them to
give you the opportunity.
It can also be you accessing the situation
and seeing if it's right for you.
I will end all of this by saying,
I started a YouTube channel,
so that I could have freedom, flexibility,
and do the things that I wanted to do.
That's also available to you.
Make stuff on your phone, write things.
I remember, even when I was younger,
I used just film myself doing monologues
and watch it back, you start
to learn things about yourself.
Don't allow other people to dictate
when you're allowed to express
yourself and do your craft.
Much love to all of you (smooches).
Thank you for taking the time (sighs).
Hope you are happy and safe in your body.
I plan to post a video next week.
Sometimes I end up getting scared
and I just don't, so just know,
sorry if things are
not totally consistent.
I'm trying my best, learning how to do it.
Okay, bye! (growls)
(energetic music)
