That One Audition with Alyshia Ochse

David Denman's line from this week's episode, "the second you need a job, you will never book that job," applies to more than just the audition room. This week: why desperation reads on camera, the negotiation moves to use when an offer comes in low, and how to actually build the "enough" underneath the mindset so it's not just a trick you're playing on yourself. Subscribe now for insightful discussions, empowering interviews, and practical advice to enhance your career longevity and satisfaction. Connect with That One Audition: PUBLIC POP UP NOVEMBER 10th: FREE WHAT'S MY FRAME THE BRIDGE FOR ACTORS: Become a WORKING ACTOR - 50% OFF THE PRACTICE TRACK: Membership to Practice Weekly CONSULTING: Get 1-on-1 advice for your acting career from Alyshia Ochse COACHING: Get personalized coaching from Alyshia on your next audition or role INSTAGRAM: @alyshiaochse INSTAGRAM: @thatoneaudition WEBSITE: AlyshiaOchse.com APPLE PODCASTS: Subscribe to That One Audition on Apple Podcasts SPOTIFY: Subscribe to That One Audition on Spotify Subscribe today and be part of a community that celebrates resilience and passion in the world of acting! #ActorsResilience #RecoveryMindset #ThatOneAudition #PodcastJourney CREDITS: Host/Producer: Alyshia Ochse WRITER: Alyshia Ochse WEBSITE & GRAPHICS: Chase Jennings SOCIAL: Alara Cerikcioglu

Today we're sitting down with David Denman, the Juilliard-trained actor the world met as Roy on The Office, a role he only auditioned for because a friend called and told him to watch the British version. His agent didn't even think he did comedy. Thirty years in, David pulls back the curtain on the business side nobody talks about: why he turned down a role on Kate Winslet's Mare of Easttown, how he pitched his way into the part he wanted, and what happened when HBO came back with the lowest offer of his career. He also shares how he self-taped for James Gunn's Brightburn while his newborn son was in the NICU, the "awkward blind date" with Elizabeth Banks that sealed the deal, and how a one-day job with Antoine Fuqua on Emancipation turned into The Equalizer 3. Plus, the advice that's kept him working: own your choices, keep all the plates spinning, and never audition from a place of need, because "the second you need a job, you will never book that job." These are the unforgettable stories that landed David Denman right here. Credits: The Night Agent The Five-Star Weekend Peacemaker Rebel Ridge The Equalizer 3 Emancipation Mare of Easttown Greenland Brightburn Puzzle Logan Lucky Outcast 13 Hours The Office The Replacements Guest Links: IMDB: David Denman, actor INSTAGRAM: @david_denman THAT ONE AUDITION'S LINKS: For exclusive content surrounding this and all podcast episodes, sign up for our amazing newsletter at AlyshiaOchse.com. And don't forget to snap and post a photo while listening to the show and tag me: @alyshiaochse & @thatoneaudition PUBLIC POP UP NOVEMBER 10th: FREE WHAT'S MY FRAME THE BRIDGE FOR ACTORS: Become a WORKING ACTOR (50% off special) THE PRACTICE TRACK: Membership to Practice Weekly CONSULTING: Get 1-on-1 advice for your acting career from Alyshia Ochse COACHING: Get personalized coaching from Alyshia on your next audition or role INSTAGRAM: @alyshiaochse INSTAGRAM: @thatoneaudition WEBSITE: AlyshiaOchse.com APPLE PODCASTS: Subscribe to That One Audition on Apple Podcasts SPOTIFY: Subscribe to That One Audition on Spotify EPISODE CREDITS: HOST/PRODUCER: Alyshia Ochse WEBSITE & GRAPHICS: Chase Jennings SOCIAL: Alara Cerikcioglu

Wendy Braun is a working actor, mindset coach, and creator of the Success Breakthrough workshop featured in Forbes — but this episode is really about the moment she sat in her car outside a preschool, ready to quit the business, and chose to stay. Working since 1995 with credits on Grey's Anatomy, This Is Us, Atypical, and Criminal Minds, Wendy built a parallel life coaching actors through the inner game of auditioning — writing and recording her own guided meditations, building workshops, and helping thousands of actors shift from proving to playing. Now she's on Jury Duty Season 2 as the villain, and her audition story is a masterclass: a 24-hour self-tape turnaround the day after a 10-day meditation retreat, a live callback where she brought apples with lime and Bristol Farms chicken, and a booking that arrived 30 years into her career — when she finally stopped needing it. We also talk about self-tape vs. in-person prep, memorization, motherhood and ambition, and why "nerves are just excitement without the breath." These are the unforgettable stories that landed Wendy Braun right here. Credits: Jury Duty Presents: Company Retreat Grey's Anatomy This Is Us Atypical Criminal Minds Lost The West Wing Castle It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia The Mentalist Guest Links: IMDB: Wendy Braun, actress THAT ONE AUDITION'S LINKS: For exclusive content surrounding this and all podcast episodes, sign up for our amazing newsletter at AlyshiaOchse.com. And don't forget to snap and post a photo while listening to the show and tag me: @alyshiaochse & @thatoneaudition PUBLIC POP UP NOVEMBER 10th: FREE WHAT'S MY FRAME THE BRIDGE FOR ACTORS: Become a WORKING ACTOR (50% off special) THE PRACTICE TRACK: Membership to Practice Weekly WENDY'S SUCCESS IN THE AUDITION ROOM: 5 min FREE MEDITATION CONSULTING: Get 1-on-1 advice for your acting career from Alyshia Ochse COACHING: Get personalized coaching from Alyshia on your next audition or role INSTAGRAM: @alyshiaochse INSTAGRAM: @thatoneaudition WEBSITE: AlyshiaOchse.com APPLE PODCASTS: Subscribe to That One Audition on Apple Podcasts SPOTIFY: Subscribe to That One Audition on Spotify EPISODE CREDITS: HOST/PRODUCER: Alyshia Ochse WEBSITE & GRAPHICS: Chase Jennings SOCIAL: Alara Cerikcioglu

In this episode, 23 years as a SAG-AFTRA member, and I'm watching eight-page, plot-driving roles get labeled "Large Co-star" by CBS, ABC, HBO, Netflix, and Apple — a mislabel that's the difference between needing 23 TV bookings a year to qualify for health and pension versus needing 3. This week, I'm breaking down SAG's actual co-star definition, the pattern I'm seeing across every platform, and why it matters for every actor trying to build a real career. Subscribe now for insightful discussions, empowering interviews, and practical advice to enhance your career longevity and satisfaction. Connect with That One Audition: SAG PETITION SIGN: Protection for the Working Actor THE BRIDGE FOR ACTORS: Become a WORKING ACTOR - 50% OFF THE PRACTICE TRACK: Membership to Practice Weekly CONSULTING: Get 1-on-1 advice for your acting career from Alyshia Ochse COACHING: Get personalized coaching from Alyshia on your next audition or role INSTAGRAM: @alyshiaochse INSTAGRAM: @thatoneaudition WEBSITE: AlyshiaOchse.com APPLE PODCASTS: Subscribe to That One Audition on Apple Podcasts SPOTIFY: Subscribe to That One Audition on Spotify Subscribe today and be part of a community that celebrates resilience and passion in the world of acting! #ActorsResilience #RecoveryMindset #ThatOneAudition #PodcastJourney CREDITS: Host/Producer: Alyshia Ochse WRITER: Alyshia Ochse WEBSITE & GRAPHICS: Chase Jennings SOCIAL: Alara Cerikcioglu

Today we sit down with Luke Tennie — the Shrinking, Abbott Elementary, and Nickel Boys actor whose path to Hollywood began not in an acting class but on a football field, where being "too small" for the O-line turned out to be the best thing that ever happened to him. Luke takes us inside his jaw-dropping first week out of AMDA, when he pinned both Jumanji and Shock and Awe simultaneously — and chose Rob Reiner. He shares the hard-won lessons from the lulls between jobs, including two pilots he booked that never shot, why he slept on a rolled-up mattress topper until 2019 to protect his audition time, and how starting to write his own material completely changed what he books. Plus, a masterclass on self-tape strategy from the guy who literally taught audition technique back at his alma mater. These are the unforgettable stories that landed Luke Tennie right here. Credits: Shrinking Abbott Elementary Nickel Boys Players On the Verge Deadly Class Shock and Awe Snowfall Guest Links: IMDB: Luke Tennie, actor, writer THAT ONE AUDITION'S LINKS: For exclusive content surrounding this and all podcast episodes, sign up for our amazing newsletter at AlyshiaOchse.com. And don't forget to snap and post a photo while listening to the show and tag me: @alyshiaochse & @thatoneaudition PETITION for SAG: Working Actor Protections THE BRIDGE FOR ACTORS: Become a WORKING ACTOR (50% off special) THE PRACTICE TRACK: Membership to Practice Weekly CONSULTING: Get 1-on-1 advice for your acting career from Alyshia Ochse COACHING: Get personalized coaching from Alyshia on your next audition or role INSTAGRAM: @alyshiaochse INSTAGRAM: @thatoneaudition WEBSITE: AlyshiaOchse.com APPLE PODCASTS: Subscribe to That One Audition on Apple Podcasts SPOTIFY: Subscribe to That One Audition on Spotify EPISODE CREDITS: HOST/PRODUCER: Alyshia Ochse WRITER: Maddie McCormick WEBSITE & GRAPHICS: Chase Jennings SOCIAL: Alara Cerikcioglu