Get Scene

Think of your scene like a volleyball game 🏐

Every line is a hit and the ball has to keep moving. The second you lose your rhythm, it falls.

That’s what slow pacing actually is. Not talking too slow, but letting dead air in between exchanges. And a lot of the time, it’s not even the actor’s fault. It’s the reader throwing off the rhythm.

This is why you have to know how to direct your reader before the take even starts. The wrong reader can kill a great audition before you say a word.

Follow for more actor insight! 🎬

Actors spend years trying to connect more in auditions. One private choice grounds you more than all of it 🔥

Before your next self-tape, give your character a secret. Not one the audience figures out. Something only you know. In a live workshop, every actor who used this got more grounded immediately, more specific, less performative.

On this week’s episode of Get Scene Unscripted, host Jesse Malinowski breaks down 4 self-tape strategies that make any audition more engaging: the reaction shot, making discoveries, the nine-quadrant frame trick, and the secret technique.

Stream the full episode now on Patreon, YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts! Links in our bio! 🎧

Know your chili pepper level before you take the role 🌶️

Some roles come with heat. Micro-dramas and spicy verticals are a real part of this market, and you need to know where you stand before you say yes, not after you’re already on set.

On this episode of That Actor Couple, Jesse and Candace break down how to set your own limits for spicy and adjacent content, what to consider before agreeing to a role, and how Jesse asked for nearly double his rate and still walked away with lessons worth keeping.

Stream the full episode now on Patreon, Youtube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts 🎧

She spent years feeling her way through scenes. Then one teacher stopped her cold. 🔥

He didn’t care how she felt. He wanted to know what the facts of the story were. That one question changed how Amanda Fallon Smith acts, directs, and sees everything. When you know what the story is, every choice gets clearer.

On this week’s episode of Get Scene Unscripted, actress, director, and Cosmic Film Co founder Amanda Fallon Smith sits down with host Jesse Malinowski to talk about the $27 billion vertical film industry, running a 7-day film bootcamp, and the shift from actor to director.

Stream the full episode now on Patreon, YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts! Links in our bio! 🎧

What is meant for you will not miss you! 👏 The work you’re putting in now will come back to benefit you in ways you can’t even imagine.

That connection that fell through. The investment that hasn’t paid off yet. The effort you’re pouring into something with no clear sign of where it’s headed. 🎬

It’s easy to measure progress by what you can see right now. But careers don’t always move in straight lines, and the work you do today is building something you won’t fully understand until later. Stay open.

On this episode of That Actor Couple, Jesse and Candace break down a week of 7 surprise auditions, the negotiation where Jesse asked his agent for double the rate, and the full-circle career lesson every working actor needs.

Stream the full episode now on Patreon, Youtube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts 🎧

Your agent isn’t ignoring you. Your emails are just doing too much 😳

Two things to fix right now: One topic per email. That’s it. When you stack three questions into one message, you’re lucky if one gets answered. Agents and casting directors are moving fast. Make it easy for them.

And before you hit send, pretend every word costs $5. Read it back. What can go? Longer sentences, extra context, anything that isn’t essential. Cut it.
Brevity isn’t just polite. It shows you understand how this industry actually works.

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You followed the advice. Waited for the referral. Still stuck. 🔥

In this week’s episode of Get Scene Unscripted, Jesse breaks down the three things actually holding Southeast actors back from getting signed, and calls out exactly why the “you need a referral” and “you need a demo reel” advice is costing you time. If you’ve been on the agent grind, this episode is the game plan you weren’t given.

And just for fun, raise your hands in the comments if you got an agent without a referral 👀

Stream the full episode of Get Scene Unscripted now on Patreon, YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts! Links in our bio! 🎧

A lot of actors treat going union like a gamble. What if it slows you down? What if you’re not ready? 🎬

Jesse committed to a year and tracked what actually happened: same money, maybe more, with less effort. But that result isn’t a blueprint. Going union is one of those decisions that depends entirely on where you are, what you’ve built, and what your market looks like.

On this episode of That Actor Couple, Jesse breaks down the moment a nationally running commercial paid him $3,000 when it should have been closer to $30,000, what that means for his SAG membership going forward, and the exact email every actor should send their agent when life gets in the way. Candace opens up about having to book out due to an unexpected twist.

Stream the full episode now on Patreon, Youtube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts 🎧