Everything You Need for a Self-Tape on the Road

Now that summer is here, and the world is (somewhat) opening up, you finally booked a flight to go see your Aunt Susie and her parakeet. And the second you get on that plane, you get a self tape audition for “Sketchy Person #4” on the new “Blue Bloods” spinoff. And oh shit, it’s due by EOD, and can you really get away with doing a self tape in front of those shiny wood paneled walls in her basement?

Here is everything you need to make sure you have a surefire way for your self-tapes to ALWAYS look incredible when you are traveling.

  1. Your phone and a good table top tripod with adaptor. I like this one. It’s $15 and comes with it’s own remote.

  2. Don’t have a nice window with natural light? Don’t use a ring light. It looks bad. Grab two good LED lights. Smaller than soft boxes, easy to pack, you can put them anywhere, and it gets the job done. I like these.

  3. A good external lav for your iPhone. I like this one.

  4. A nice clean backdrop. This gray/blue popup flex works best.

  5. For zoom auditions: I like this webcam. Way better than the camera on your laptop.

  6. Acting lessons for Aunt Susie so she can be your reader.

Have fun! And remember… don’t suck!

Matt NewtonComment