Resources
Free tools to tape better
Asa Butterfield's e-book on landing a role, plus two one-page downloads distilled from our guides. Free, for your email address.
Free e-book
Asa Butterfield's Top Tips: Landing That Role
Advice on auditions and landing the part from Asa Butterfield, the star of Sex Education, Hugo and Ender's Game. Seven pages, free to download.
The Actors Gym Self-Tape Checklist
A one-page checklist for filming a clean, castable self-tape: camera, framing, light, sound, slate and file.
Camera and framing
- Shoot in landscape unless the brief says otherwise
- Clean the lens and turn on aeroplane mode
- Lens set at your own eye height
- Standard mid-shot: mid-chest to a little above the head
- Stay centred and inside the frame for the whole take
Plus 17 more checks across 5 further sections in the download.
Lighting Setup Diagram
A one-page diagram of a simple three-point self-tape lighting setup: window key, fill, back light and camera positions.