Tips for Working as an Off-Camera Reader

From time to time, stand-ins might be on set and suddenly asked to act as a reader during a scene.

• This will happen more often during a phone call scene, where one actor is being shot, and the actor on the other side of the phone is, well, not working that day.
• This could also happen on turnarounds, when one actor is on camera talking to another actor, but the other actor is off camera and not available for the scene.

Most of the time, the script supervisor will handle reading off-camera lines, which is a duty also shared (probably more appropriately) by an assistant director, like the 1st AD or the 2nd 2nd AD.

But from time to time, stand-ins will be asked to read the off-camera lines.

Here are some helpful tips to handle work as an off-camera reader!

Generally, Ask for a Bump in Pay

Let’s get this out of the way first.

Being asked to work as an off-camera reader when you are standing in may be an exciting opportunity for you. You may jump at the opportunity to be doing a scene with the first-team actor, even though you are not being filmed and your audio won’t be used in the final cut.

However, consider this. Those on set who typically handle reading off-camera lines — an assistant director or a script supervisor — in most cases are earning considerably larger paychecks than stand-ins are.

So if a stand-in is being asked to work also as a reader (Note: which is not stand-in work!), there is someone on set who is working at a much higher pay grade than the stand-in.  Not compensating the stand-in for doing what is arguably another person’s work isn’t quite right.  It would be like passing their work onto the stand-in for free.

Also consider that bringing in the actor for off-camera lines is expensive, so production is saving money when it doesn’t pay a principal actor to come in.

While SAG-AFTRA’s Television/Theatrical Agreement does not mention working as an off-camera reader, and thereby does not dictate any kind of compensation for stand-ins when working as an off-camera reader, it falls on the shoulders of stand-ins to negotiate for themselves for additional compensation when they work as an off-camera reader.

Remember: Working as a reader is outside the job description of a stand-in. It is additional labor, and it is labor that is typically handled by an assistant director or a script supervisor, both of whom make more money than stand-ins. And it is labor a principal actor theoretically should be doing. So any time production is not paying a principal actor to come in, production is saving money when it has someone else do that work at anything less that the actor’s rate.

If you don’t want to do work as an off-camera reader, you are in a position to refuse. But if you do want the work, you’re immediately in a position to ask for additional compensation for yourself.

If you skip over that discussion when you’re asked to be a reader, you are likely missing out on your leverage to get fair compensation for yourself. So make sure you discuss a bump in pay before you do any work as an off-camera reader.

What Kind of Bump in Pay?

While we can’t say what the bump should be (each situation is different!), we can share a few perspectives on what that bump should be.

Day-Playing vs. Long-Term Stand-In Work

If you are a day-playing stand-in who might not be on this production again, you may be better positioned to ask for a respectable amount for yourself.  This is because you don’t expect to be working again on this production, and production doesn’t need to consider long-term what it might need to pay you if it’s going to keep asking you to work as a reader.

But if you are standing in long-term on a production, you might want to consider that the rate you settle on today may be the rate you get if they ask you again to work as a reader in the future. So, in such a case, make sure you ask for a respectable rate for yourself, but consider that you might want to come down a little from the ideal if it might mean more reader work on the production down the line.

Don’t Undersell Your Value!

Avoid asking for just a little bump in pay. Working as an off-camera reader often requires rehearsal, focus, attention, precise timing, understanding of the scene, and more involvement in the production process than stand-in work does.

Working as a reader is not just reading words, and occasionally it involves doing blocking while also reading.  Plus, you may find you sacrifice some of your breaks as you go from standing in straight to being a reader in a scene, then back to standing in. When are you going to get something to eat or drink? When are you going to pee?

So, asking for a $10 bump in our mind is not appropriate and much too low. Considering that principal actors are paid about at five to six times and often much higher than what a stand-in makes, it might be worth asking for double your rate when asked to do off-camera reading.

For example, if your 8-hour rate is $204, asking for a $200 bump to work as a reader is reasonable, especially if production really needs a dedicated reader.  Stand-ins who have worked as off-camera readers have made more than double their rate with a reader bump, and of course some have made less — considering that some stand-ins no doubt didn’t ask for more compensation for the additional work.

In some cases, it might be more lucrative to ask for an adjustment in pay, rather than simply a bump. An adjustment is an increase in your hourly rate, while a bump is a lump sum payment. The difference is that when you get an adjustment, not just does your hourly rate increase, but also do your overtime rates. When you have a bump, it is simply a lump sum payment outside your hourly rate.

When you negotiate, consider whether to ask for a reader bump or instead an adjustment for when you also work as a reader. When making your offer, asking for a bump is an easier request than asking for an adjustment.  Plus, it’s easier for production to understand exactly how much more it will cost them to ask you to work as a reader.

And if production won’t pay you to work as an off-camera reader, our general advice is not to accept working as an off-camera reader. Again, recall that there are people on set who make more than you who typically handle the responsibility, and not being compensated for the additional work is inappropriate. But of course, if you want to do the work for free — maybe because you’re also an actor and you are excited about the opportunity to play a scene with the actor in the scene — it is your prerogative to accept the work. (But it’s still better to be compensated.)

Let’s Read!

There are a lot of different situations where an off-camera reader might be used, so we can’t consider them all.

But say that you are hired as an off-camera reader. What are some general tips?

Try to Understand the Scene

If you are new to a production and you’re handed a script, you might read the scene but not understand the context. You might not know the relationships between the characters, the tone of the scene, how the actors play the characters you’re supposed to play, etc.

If you have the time, try to learn as much as you can. Ask the background PA or an AD for some basic information on the scene and the characters so that you understand the gist of it. You would hate to come in thinking the scene is a comedy, when you find it is actually very serious!

Watch a Rough Cut

If you are shooting a phone call, with you reading the lines on the other side of a phone call, you probably won’t be able to see footage from when production shot your actor’s lines.

But if you do have that opportunity, you’re in luck! When production offers to show you the rough cut, watch the scene a few times to see how the actor plays the character, taking note of the actor’s emotional state, timing, etc.

If you tried to understand the scene first, when you then watch the rough cut, you should be better positioned to make small adjustments to your performance to better approach what your actor did, rather than have to learn all of your actor’s choices from scratch.

Note Any Script Changes

If you get to watch a rough cut, follow along in the script to see if the actor says something different than what is in the script. If at all possible, write those line adjustments down, and you’ll probably want to say them when you are being a reader. This is because the rough cut theoretically is the dialogue chosen for the final cut, so in a way that dialogue has been “approved.”

But if you’re not sure whether to read the script as-is or how your actor said it in the rough cut, simply ask.  The script supervisor may be a good place to start, as might be an assistant director.

If you don’t get to watch the rough cut, but if you get to work with the actor in rehearsal, note any script changes. This includes noting any changes to the other actor’s lines. This is because it may affect the timing of when you speak in the scene.

For example, if the actor in the scene with you is scripted to end his line “And that’s it!,” but in rehearsal that line is extended to “And that’s it! Bye!,” you might speak too soon if you start speaking before the actor says “Bye!”  If you speak too soon, you might “poison” the audio of the actor for that line.

Do Not Speak on Top of the Actor’s Lines

Speaking of “poisoning” the audio, make sure you don’t speak at the same time the actor in the scene with you is speaking.  In other words, don’t overlap lines.

While it might feel more realistic to overlap lines, that would end up meaning your audio and the actor’s audio would end up recorded at the same time. Since your audio is not supposed to be used, production would have a nearly impossible task of removing your audio from when the actor speaks.

It’s better to avoid overlapping and making sure not to talk until the actor has finished speaking.

But Keep the Timing!

When actors in a scene are supposed to overlap lines, you still should not do that (unless production for some reason says it’s okay to do so).

Instead, wait until the other actor ends the line, and speak as close to the moment after that line as possible.

In other words, if a scene is a quick back and forth between two characters, keep that timing but avoid actually overlapping so that your audio can be easily removed from the recording.

Similarly, if your actor or the other actor in the scene pauses, think of those pauses as lines. Respect the pauses. They affect the timing of the scene as much as nearly overlapping dialogue does.

Turn Off Your Phone

It should be said to turn off your phone, because if you are working in a scene, its going off not only could mess up a take, but it could be distracting to you and to the other actor if it rings or buzzes.

Have Fun (But Get Paid!)

Off-camera reading can be a fun and challenging addition to stand-in work. If you’re an actor, it can be an especially memorable experience. But avoid letting production save money it has by not compensating you appropriately for your off-camera reading.

Have you worked as an off-camera reader? What do you think is an appropriate rate for off-camera reading? Do you have any additional tips? Share your thoughts in the comments below!