You open your profile on a laptop, with the role brief on the left and six nearly identical headshots on the right. The jacket changes, but your expression does not. Farther down, your note tells your whole life story while the role asks for one language and one practical skill. In London or anywhere else, the person reviewing submissions needs to see quickly what you bring to this particular role. Your job is to put the right evidence on the desk, not to fill every box for the sake of it.
Short answer: lead with a relevant photo, a concise note, accurate skills and a video that shows you in motion.
This advice comes from a September 24, 2026 Casting Networks article by casting director Terry Berland. It reflects her professional commercial casting practice, not a universal rule or a promise that you will get an audition.
1. Match the lead photo to the role
Print the breakdown and place it beside your headshots. Terry Berland advises choosing a feature photo that helps casting imagine you in the requested role. If the brief describes an approachable colleague in a London café, compare your images with that situation instead of automatically picking your favourite portrait.
She also stresses distinct expressions. Three jackets with the same smile reveal less than portraits where your face and energy genuinely change. You are not inventing five characters against a white wall. You are making different parts of your range visible.
2. Write a note that saves time
Use a sticky note to draft only what answers the brief. According to Terry Berland, a useful submission note can identify a directly relevant skill, local-hire status or requested language. “Fluent Spanish, London local hire” is easier to use than a paragraph about ten years of passion when those are the two facts being sought.
Be accurate about your level. Name the dance style, vocal range or type of yoga, then state your real proficiency when it matters to the scene. A surfboard in the garage is not proof of expert surfing. If the next step arrives, keep the audition prep guide beside your sides.
3. Add movement, voice and improv
A short video shows what a still photo cannot: movement, voice and energy. Frame yourself against a clean background and check that the video adds information rather than repeating the headshots.
List genuine improvisation training too. Terry Berland notes that it can matter in commercial work. A certificate hidden in a drawer cannot help if the training is missing from your profile. For a clean recording setup after an invitation, use the self-tape prep guide.
Practical exercises
Exercise 1: the headshot sort
Objective: check whether your lead photo serves the role rather than your personal taste.
Steps: place the role brief in the middle of a table and arrange your headshots around it. Turn over any images that repeat the same expression. From the remaining group, choose the one whose energy most directly fits the situation on the page.
Result: you have a lead photo justified by visible details in the brief and a set in which each face adds different information.
Exercise 2: the sticky-note edit
Objective: remove anything from your note that does not help this submission.
Steps: write one sentence on a sticky note containing only the directly relevant skill, language or local-hire detail. Compare every word with the printed brief, then check that any skill level is stated without inflation.
Result: your note fits a small space and the useful evidence is visible without a search through your profile.
Exercise 3: the video audit
Objective: identify what your short video adds beyond the photographs.
Steps: play the clip on a laptop once without sound to watch movement and energy, then again with sound to hear the voice. On paper, note one lively moment and one redundant passage. Finally, confirm that your improv training and defined skills appear in the correct profile fields.
Result: you can name exactly what the video and profile details contribute to the submission.
Using La Réplique to prepare your video
La Réplique is a web app. On your computer, import text or a PDF, select your role, and assign AI voices to the other characters in French, English, Spanish, German or Italian. Speech recognition validates your lines, automatic prompts keep the scene moving, and progressive masking helps you move away from the page.
In the self-tape studio, you can record a take, create a share link and track its views. That gives you material to review your voice, movement and energy before sending a requested file. La Réplique does not replace a coach or a human scene partner. Available options are listed on the pricing page.
Three frequent mistakes
- Changing only the outfit. The contact sheet shows a different shirt but the same smile in every frame. Keep expressions that reveal genuinely different energies.
- Writing a biography in the note. A dense paragraph buries the requested language or skill. Put the directly relevant fact into one concise sentence.
- Inflating a special skill. “Expert surfer” beside a dusty board creates an expectation your footage may not support. State the discipline and your level accurately.
Summary
Before submitting, put the role brief beside your screen. Check the relevance of the lead photo, the range of expressions, the note’s brevity, the accuracy of every skill, the value of the short video and the presence of genuine improv training. This audit makes the submission clearer, but it cannot guarantee an audition.
FAQ
How many headshots should I submit?
Terry Berland’s point is that the expressions should differ. At your contact sheet, remove facial duplicates and keep images that each contribute a useful energy.
Does my outfit need to change in every photo?
No, not as the main distinction. Two shirts on a hanger say less than two genuinely different expressions that fit the kinds of roles you pursue.
What belongs in the submission note?
Include information that answers the brief directly, such as a language, a defined skill or local-hire status. Read the sentence beside the breakdown and cut everything else.
Is a short introduction video enough?
It can add movement, voice and energy when you lack other relevant footage. Watch the clip on your laptop and make sure it genuinely complements the headshots.
Should I list improvisation training?
Yes, if you have actually done it. Put it clearly in the training section because Terry Berland notes that improvisation can matter in commercial work.
Sources
Article opened on a laptop to compare the checklist with the original professional advice: