Frequently Asked Questions
Inquiring minds want to know.
I try not to memorize my lines too early. For me it’s better to internalize them first. Actually hiding my character’s lines and saying what I think she’d say or want to say and not dare to say. This helps me discover subtext. And, by the end I usually end up knowing the lines. If I have to be exact on the text, as a last step, I’ll sometimes write down my lines from memory and then check it against the text.
I feel like I can answer this question two different ways so here are my two answers.
a. Show up relaxed and bring yourself to the role. No one can do it like you so don’t try to please them or be what you think they want, just make this your role. If it’s not what they’re looking for, that’s okay. They will remember you. They’ll bring you back. Uta Hagen said “Instead of losing yourself in the part, find yourself in the part”. Work on yourself in between auditions, in between roles. Your body is your instrument, learn how to work with it. Learn how to relax, breathe, move… Learn how to work with your mind, how to relax your mind, meditate, work on your confidence, your self-talk, if you need to. Treat the down period like an athlete treats the off-season- Training Camp. EXPLORE. LEARN. GROW.
b. Most of the time I have to audition and since I don’t live in LA, that means I tape myself at home. The +’s are, I can do it as many times as I want to. The -’s are, there is no casting director to give me notes, direct me. I don’t get to go in the “room” and meet people so there’s no energy, connection and I have to focus on technical things like lighting, framing the shot, picking the take, downloading it to vimeo, etc...
A coach I had said this to me once- “If the job is for you, there is very little you can do to mess it up. If the job isn’t for you, there’s very little you can do to get it.” That freed me!
Write your own playbook… and live it.
© STEPHANIE SZOSTAK 2026 | Designed by RE-TOOL®