SLATE SHOTS (PART 2)
The entire point of a slate shot is to help the creative team meet the real actor behind the material. Which is ironic, because for many actors, slating becomes the least natural part of the entire self-tape. The camera turns on and suddenly the actor starts sounding like “professional actor pretending to be relaxed” instead of an actual human being.
YOUR SLATE IS NOT THE PERFORMANCE
A lot of actors accidentally treat the slate like an extension of the scene. They put on extra energy. A performance voice. Pageant-host friendliness. Hyper-polished professionalism.
But the slate serves a completely different purpose.
The material demonstrates the character. The slate demonstrates the actor.
TALK LIKE A HUMAN BEING
Actors often abandon their real voice during slates.
The pitch jumps higher. The rhythm becomes artificial. The body locks up. Suddenly the actor sounds nothing like themselves.
The strongest slates usually feel conversational. The actor stands naturally, speaks in the octave they genuinely live in, and uses language they would actually say in real life.
TRICK THE BRAIN INTO THINKING PEOPLE ARE THERE
Part of what makes slating feel awkward is that actors are speaking into an empty camera instead of interacting with actual humans.
One surprisingly effective trick is physically exiting and re-entering the room before the slate. Start recording, step outside, then walk back in and greet the imaginary creative team.
That small bit of entrance behavior helps recreate the feeling of arriving at a real audition.
USE THE READER
Another useful strategy is involving the reader before the official slate begins.
Having a quick conversation, joking around briefly, or casually introducing yourself before cutting into the official slate helps actors stop “performing” and settle into something more human and relaxed.
THE FIRST TAKE IS RARELY THE BEST ONE
A lot of actors try to nail the slate immediately.
But usually the stronger takes arrive later, once the actor exhausts all the overly performative habits and stops monitoring themselves so aggressively. By the third or fourth slate, the behavior often starts feeling much more truthful.
PLAY AN ACTION
Instead of thinking, “I am listing information,” it helps to play an action.
Welcome them. Invite them in. Prepare them for something exciting.
Attention placed outward almost always creates more natural behavior than hyper-monitoring inward.
USE PHYSICAL SHORTCUTS
Naturalism often begins physically.
Standing in a genuinely comfortable shape, placing weight where it naturally falls, and allowing real conversational gestures to emerge all help actors stop defaulting into rigid “actor posture.”
FIND THE REAL SPEAKING VOICE
Many actors unconsciously raise their speaking pitch during slates.
One useful exercise is finding the natural speaking pitch at a piano while relaxed and conversational, then briefly revisiting that note before filming. Not to flatten the voice into monotone, but simply to remind the body where normal human speech actually lives.
BUILD A SLATE BANK
Actors also do not need to reinvent the wheel every single audition.
Pre-recording commonly requested slate information can save enormous amounts of stress and time.
The slate and the material do not need to be filmed simultaneously. Filming them separately and editing them together creates a cleaner result and less work during the filming process.
🥜 IN A NUTSHELL
The best slates do not feel “performed.” They feel like a real person calmly introducing themselves before sharing their work.
WANT TO GO FURTHER?
Hate the way your slate shots look? Check out part one to see an elegant, innovative solution for displaying your slate on the screen.
