All in a day's work.

All in a days work.

Like most actors, my first television job was “doing a day on something”. Not a regular member of the cast,  but just booked to do one day’s filming and a couple of scenes. I say a couple of scenes,  but these days with the advent of two camera shoots, the workload can be much heavier. My first two guest appearances in “Doctors”, the esteemed BBC1 soap, each consisted of one filming day of between 22 and 27 scenes. A whole plot line. In today’s cut-price world of television, schedules often ensure that guest artists spend as little time on set, but doing as much work as possible. 

So how do you make sure that this day goes well? You've no time to get to know anyone, and you’re stepping into a unit that runs like a smoothly oiled machine, it can be hard to find a comfortable place to be.From the minute you step out of the “non-exclusive transport”  that your agent has managed to negotiate for you, you need to fit in. The second assistant director is probably the person who will meet you and show you to your dressing room, if you have one. On many shoots these days, you may find yourself putting your bag down in a communal changing room. Don’t take a lot of valuables to the set. It’s not a good idea to have to lug a bag around all day with iPads, wallets etc

This sounds obvious, but learn your lines. Make sure you know them backwards. Remember the director has already seen you read at the casting. That’s probably most of the direction you'll get. So come along prepared to offer up something positive, rather than trying to second guess what the director might want. They'll tell you quick enough when it’s not working.  You’ll have to be flexible too.

 Listening is a good skill, both on stage and off. You’ll meet a lot of people. The cameraman, the make-up artist, the costume person (always someone to be on the right side of unless you want to end up dressed by Primark). Say their name aloud to help you remember it. On one of my first days on Coronation Street couple of years ago, I did several scenes in the brasserie with nine regular members of cast. A fan of the show, I had to suddenly remember ‘Leanne’ was actually called Jane and so on.  Calling fellow actors by their character name doesn’t endear you.

Owen Brenman, director and cast member on Doctors, offers the following advice “Listen, be polite and be on time. Don't be over eager to please.”  The first assistant may thank you on the day but that won’t be the reason you get asked back. What gets you back is being good on camera. Don’t be overwhelmed by the occasion, - that’s easier said than done. Know your own worth. Out of all the actors that could have done this, they chose you.

Take it and run with it.

In the chair for a days shoot.