David Chiu

I think the turning point for me was the moment I realized that I didn’t have to “act”. I just had to be comfortable being me.

I had been waiting for at least an hour sitting in front of the elevator outside of the casting office. I was surrounded by other asian guys who were similar to me. Tall and skinny with deep voices. They all seemed to know each other and every time the elevator opened another asian guy would enter the mix heartily welcomed by the group. I felt like the outsider. Their names sounded familiar, but I didn’t really know anyone. They all talked about other auditions they had had or what projects they were working on. It was hard for me not to be a little envious, but I just sat silently barely studying my script. One by one they were called into the casting office and I just sat outside reviewing my actions line-by-line and going over the script breakdown I had done earlier. I noticed a couple of guys strutting around in leather coats trying to act “hard”. That’s probably the same approach that I would have used in the past, but now I know better. Instead I reminded myself that I just need to rely on my training. I just need to engage the casting director and take my time.

So that’s what I did. I was surprisingly relaxed in the casting office and I took my time and created moments. I listened and responded and reacted. All very natural. I didn’t try to “act” anything. In the end it worked! The casting director said “very nice work”. I’m confident that I left a very good impression. That’s the best you can hope for really. That the casting director sees your talent and keeps you in mind for future projects.

That was the best audition ever.