Survivor casting tips: When in doubt, keep it simple with your audition tape

You don’t need to own a Masters degree in video editing in order to get cast for Survivor from an audition tape. Sometimes, you can keep it simple.

There’s no “correct” way to make a Survivor audition tape. You can do everything right and have your audition tape not accepted for a number of reasons, ranging from personality issues down to not sending it in at the right time. The person who sees your video could be at the end of the line, and they weren’t compelled, or maybe there is an influx of your archetype who auditioned this year.

The point here is that I cannot tell you what type of Survivor audition tape is right for you. Many adventurous types seem to add a bunch of jump cuts between doing daring tasks, as it highlights the kinds of things they’ll do on the show or how athletic they are. Some are professional photographers and videographers and get their Sports Illustrated swimsuit friends to vouch for them, highlighting their social capital.

However, if you don’t have the time or that doesn’t reflect your personality style, don’t feel like you have to be something your not. When in doubt, keep it simple, and if you have a winning personality worthy of being on reality competition television, with a bit of luck, you could find yourself in contact with a casting associate.

This is reflected well in Wendell Holland’s Survivor audition tape, which can be viewed above. Here, he does a bit more than stand in a room and point a camera at himself, as he does change up the perspectives and even put on other clothes. However, most of what he does is talk about himself, his life, why he’d be great for Survivor, and his views on how he’d navigate where the game was headed.

There are a few added elements of production value to his audition tape, but for the most part, you understand why Wendell was cast to be on the show. He has a winning personality that shone through the video, which is understandable considering how he finished in Ghost Island. Now go out there, film yourself with a smartphone and hope to have as much charm as him in whatever walk of life you hope to represent on the show!