# How to Audition for Motion Capture and Video Game Roles

> What motion capture and performance capture auditions ask for, from secret scripts and NDAs to full-body self-tapes, how to play to an empty room, and why you should be off book, with advice from game casting directors and working performers.

- URL: https://www.offbook.com/blog/how-to-audition-for-motion-capture
- Published: 2026-10-27
- Last updated: 2026-10-27

Your agent emails about a video game audition. The project has a code name. The character has a one-paragraph bio. The sides are two pages of dialogue with a note at the top: "performance capture, filmed audition." You've done plenty of on-camera work, but you've never acted in a suit covered in dots, in an empty gray room, to a scene partner who might be a stand made of pipe.

Here's the reassuring part. A motion capture audition is still an acting audition. The people casting it want the same things every room wants: truthful choices, connection, and someone who takes direction well. What changes is that your whole body is the camera's subject, the world around you is imaginary, and you'll often be working with less information than usual.

The short version: learn the sides until you're off book, because your hands and eyes need to be free. Read the character bio closely and decide how this person moves, not just how they sound. Practice playing to imaginary objects with real weight. For a self-tape, frame wider than you normally would. And in the room, expect to be redirected.

## Know which kind of audition it is

"Video game audition" covers a few different jobs, and they prepare differently. Some roles are voice only, recorded in a booth. Some are full **performance capture**: your body, face, and voice recorded together, often with a head-mounted camera rig. And some are body only. Mocap performer T.J. Storm told [befores & afters](https://beforesandafters.com/2019/08/19/life-as-a-motion-capture-performer/) about a job where he performed the movement to voice tracks William Shatner had already recorded.

Even within one game, sessions differ. Henrik Håkansson, animation director at MachineGames, explained in an [interview with Impulse Gamer](https://www.impulsegamer.com/henrik-hakansson-interview-animation-director-at-machinegames-wolfenstein-youngblood/mocap07/) that story scenes capture "the voice, face, body and the props," while gameplay animations usually have no dialogue, so voice and face aren't recorded for them.

Why it matters for you: the notice, your agent, or the casting email should tell you which kind of audition this is. If it says filmed or performance capture, prepare the way the rest of this guide describes. If it's voice only, our [voiceover audition tips](https://www.offbook.com/blog/voiceover-audition-tips) are the better place to start.

## Expect secrecy and short slots

Games are guarded closely, and auditions reflect it. Martin Vaughan, a casting director at SIDE, a studio specializing in character performances for video games, described the process in [an interview with Spotlight](https://www.spotlight.com/news-and-advice/the-industry/videogame-casting-with-martin-vaughan/). Selected actors get a character bio and an audition script in advance. Titles and plot details are often held back until an actor signs a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) at the audition.

That means you'll often prepare with less context than a TV audition gives you. You may not know the genre, the story, or who the other characters are. Work with what you have. The bio usually tells you the character's age, history, and attitude, and the sides tell you what they want in this moment. Our guide to [reading a casting breakdown](https://www.offbook.com/blog/how-to-read-a-casting-breakdown) shows how to pull choices out of a few lines of description.

Vaughan also notes that sessions can move fast, with actors seen in 15-minute intervals, and that actors are often redirected toward what the game needs. So save your time for the work. If something in the material is unclear, he suggests asking questions beforehand rather than guessing.

## Be off book: your hands are busy

Do video game actors need to memorize lines? For a filmed audition, plan on it. Vaughan says it plainly: "I like actors to be off-book for filmed auditions." For voice-only auditions, he says actors wouldn't need to be. Voice One instructor Walt Gray IV, discussing [self-tapes for mocap](https://www.voiceone.com/verve-posts/instructor-interview-walt-gray-iv-and-self-tapes-for-mocap), also talks about sides you have "hopefully memorized."

It makes sense once you picture the work. In a performance capture audition, you might be miming a rifle, crouching behind an imaginary wall, or reaching for a door that isn't there. You can't do any of that with pages in your hand, and you can't look at a scene partner who's really a stand if your eyes keep dropping to the script.

Offbook helps with this part. Upload the sides and run the scene out loud while realistic voices read the other characters and wait for you to finish each line before giving the next cue. Start with first-letter cues, then hide your lines, then hide the whole script for a final test. Our free [first-letter memorizer](https://www.offbook.com/tools/first-letter-memorizer) also turns your lines into cues without an account.

Video: [Hide your lines](https://www.offbook.com/learn/hide-your-lines) (1:07)

Learn the cues, not only your words. In a game scene you may be moving on another character's line, and knowing exactly where their sentence ends tells you when to turn, duck, or run. If you have only a day or two, our guide to [memorizing lines fast](https://www.offbook.com/blog/how-to-memorize-lines-quickly) has a plan.

## Train your imagination for an empty room

The capture stage is called the **volume**: a large open space ringed by cameras. There's no set, no costume, and often no props beyond rough stand-ins. Ned Luke, who played Michael in *Grand Theft Auto V*, told [Popverse](https://thepopverse.com/gaming-rockstar-grand-theft-auto-v-gta-5-motion-capture-acting): "it's all imagination. Nothing is really there." For one heist scene, the crew strapped 25-pound weights to the actors' ankles to suggest the weight of armor.

Ashley Johnson, who played Ellie in *The Last of Us*, described the suit to the [PlayStation Blog](https://blog.playstation.com/archive/2013/05/31/the-last-of-us-ashley-johnson-on-bringing-ellie-to-life/): your hands are covered and "you have a sock on your head." Her takeaway: "You have to expand your imagination a little bit more." The director helped by showing the cast pictures of the world they were in.

You can practice this at home. The Playground acting conservatory's [guide to preparing for motion capture](https://theplayground.com/preparing-for-motion-capture-acting-character-performance/) suggests exercises like these:

- Pick up imaginary objects and give them real weight.
- Mime drinking from cups of air, then water, then molten lava, and notice how your body changes with each one.
- Perform a short scene with imaginary weapons, pets, or magic, film it, and watch it back to see if it reads.

Filming yourself is the key step. What feels clear from the inside can look vague on screen. If you've done green-screen work, a lot of this will feel familiar. Our guide to [acting to a tennis ball](https://www.offbook.com/blog/acting-to-a-tennis-ball-green-screen) covers keeping your eyeline steady on something that isn't there.

## Build the character's body

In a voice audition, the character lives in your voice. In motion capture, the animators will use the way you walk, stand, and react. So when you read the bio, ask physical questions. How old is this body? Is it tired, injured, trained, cautious? What does this person do with their hands when they're nervous?

Genre matters too. T.J. Storm told befores & afters that "lots of people fail an audition just because they can't hold the gun," and that performers need a set of physical skills. He also pointed out that "nobody stands like a superhero in their normal life," so it helps to know the poses a genre expects. If the game looks like an action title, learn basic, safe weapon handling from a qualified teacher. If it's fantasy, think about how armor or a cloak would change your walk.

Formal training exists if you want it. Royal Central School of Speech and Drama runs a two-day [introduction to motion capture for performance](https://www.thestage.co.uk/training-directory/courses/introduction-to-motion-capture-for-performance) that covers working in the volume, a suit-up workshop, and building character "idles" and "walk cycles." An idle is how a character stands and breathes when they're doing nothing, and it's a useful thing to have decided before any audition.

## Shoot a mocap self-tape that shows your body

Vaughan mentions using self-tapes where appropriate, and a mocap tape differs from a standard close-up. Gray says casting "want to see physically how you move." They might ask for a full-body shot or a bit of movement, and for a lead in an action game, the ask might be as physical as vaulting over something.

- Read the instructions twice and do exactly what they ask for framing and movement.
- Frame wide enough to keep your whole body in shot if they ask for it, with room to move.
- Clear the space so you can move safely, and test the move before you roll.
- Wear what the instructions ask for. If they say nothing, choose clothes that suit the character and let you move freely.
- Keep the scale honest. Gray warns that some choices can look too big on camera, especially for actors trained in theater.

Under all of that, he names what casting is really asking: "Are you connecting to what you're saying?" The movement supports the scene. It doesn't replace it. For the technical basics of a home setup, our guide to [a self-tape setup on a budget](https://www.offbook.com/blog/self-tape-setup-on-a-budget) walks through it.

## What happens if you book it

Knowing the job helps you audition for it. Håkansson said MachineGames normally has "one day of rehearsal for two days of shooting," and that rehearsals are filmed so the decisions made there can be recalled on the day.

Scripts can keep moving. On *Uncharted 3*, creative director Amy Hennig told the [PlayStation.Blog](https://blog.playstation.com/2011/05/20/uncharted-3-a-peek-behind-the-digital-curtain/), "we write the scenes as we go," shaped to the actors' voices. Takes can also run long. Debra Wilson told [GameSpot](https://yahoo.com/entertainment/celebrity/articles/isn-t-debra-wilson-fault-191810402.html) that a performance-capture scene might run about three minutes, with two minutes of dialogue, but on *Death Stranding 2*, Hideo Kojima would shoot takes of seven to ten minutes.

So the habit of learning lines quickly pays off long after the audition, when pages change during a shoot. When the casting email arrives, start learning the sides that day.

## Questions actors ask

### Do I need special training to audition for motion capture?

Not always. You're cast as an actor first, and performers often come from stage and screen too. Physical skills help, though, especially for action roles. Movement classes, stage combat, and a short mocap course can all make you more confident in the room.

### Do video game actors need to memorize lines?

For filmed motion capture or performance capture auditions, plan to be off book. Casting director Martin Vaughan says he likes actors to be off book for filmed auditions, though not for voice-only ones. On the job, scenes can also change during the shoot, so quick line learning remains useful.

### Why won't they tell me the name of the game?

Game titles and stories are closely guarded before release. Vaughan notes that titles and plot details are often withheld until an actor signs an NDA at the audition. Prepare from the character bio and sides, and ask questions about anything unclear.

### What should I wear to a mocap audition?

Wear what the instructions ask for. If they say nothing, choose clothes that suit the character and let you move freely and safely. For a self-tape, follow the framing and wardrobe notes in the request.