I met Jess Greenberg through a one-off workshop at Montreal’s Triple Threat Academy. The objective was very specific: prepare a self-tape as close as possible to a real audition situation, then get a casting director’s perspective on what actually works on screen.
What stayed with me most was the pragmatism of the training. No magic formula and no theory made more complicated than it needed to be. Jess kept returning to simple questions: Can we see the actor properly? Can we hear them clearly? Does the background help or distract? Is the scene prepared? And once direction is given, can the actor integrate it without losing everything they had already built?
A casting director grounded in the actual work
The Greenberg Casting website presents Jessica Greenberg as a Montreal-based casting director and acting coach with close to two decades of industry experience. Her work spans film, television, commercials and video games. She is also a member of the Casting Directors Society of Canada, which lists her in Quebec under Greenberg Casting.
That gives a self-tape workshop with her a particular kind of weight. Her perspective is not that of someone imagining how an audition might be received. She works on the other side of the process, where auditions are watched, compared and used to build a cast.
I am not trying here to summarize her entire career or build a list of credits. What interests me is more directly useful to an actor: understanding what a casting director notices when a recorded audition arrives, and what allows the acting to be seen without avoidable presentation problems getting in the way.
A workshop built like a real audition invitation
A few days before the workshop, each actor in the group received a scene to prepare. The assignment deliberately followed the logic of a real self-tape invitation: receive the material, make your choices, arrive prepared and present a first version that belongs to you.
On the day of the workshop, the scenes were filmed in the studio with a professional camera, professional lighting and professional sound. The whole group watched the work. We could see one another in front of the camera, observe what different choices produced and hear Jess’s comments after each take.
That setup had one important advantage: we were not discussing self-tapes in the abstract. We were doing them. The image was there, the sound was there, the scene was ready, and the result could be observed immediately.
Three takes to measure more than a first impression
Each actor performed the scene three times. The first take was done without direction from Jess. It showed what the actor had prepared on their own: their understanding of the scene, their choices, their rhythm and the way they had decided to approach the character.
After that first version, Jess gave feedback and direction. The actor then had two more opportunities to do the scene while incorporating her notes.
For me, that was probably the most interesting part of the exercise. An audition does not only show whether you can arrive with a proposal. It can also reveal whether an actor can listen to direction, quickly understand what is being asked and change something specific without dismantling everything else.
Between the first and third take, you could see very concretely what it means to be adjustable. The idea was not to throw away the original preparation, but to remain available enough for a note to genuinely transform the scene.
Pragmatism before gadgets
Jess approached the technical side of self-tapes with the same practical logic: good lighting, clear sound, a uniform background and an image that keeps the viewer’s attention on the actor. These are simple elements, but their function is fundamental. The technology is not there to make an audition spectacular. It is there to keep a presentation problem from preventing the acting from being seen.
I found that distinction especially useful. It is easy to get lost in equipment, accessories or the search for a “perfect” image. The workshop kept bringing the question back to the essential: does this choice serve the audition, or does it draw unnecessary attention to itself?
The fact that we were working that day with a professional camera, lighting and sound did not mean an actor needs to recreate a full studio at home. The professional setup mainly removed technical variables during the workshop so we could look more precisely at the actor’s work and their response to direction.
What I took back to my own self-tapes
The workshop reminded me that a good self-tape depends on two kinds of preparation working together. There is the preparation of the scene: understand the text, make choices and arrive with something to offer. Then there is the preparation of the frame: make sure the image, sound and background allow that work to come through clearly.
But the workshop added a third dimension that is easy to forget when you work alone in front of your camera: the ability to change. The first take shows what you prepared. The following takes show what you can do with new information.
That is where Jess’s perspective felt especially valuable to me. Her approach was entirely oriented toward the real use of an audition. What helps? What gets in the way? What is clear? What can be adjusted? That pragmatism made the feedback immediately applicable.
A one-off collaboration with Triple Threat Academy
The workshop I attended was a one-off collaboration between Jess Greenberg and Triple Threat Academy, not a regular weekly class. Jess does return there from time to time to offer workshops.
So if you are interested in a future session with her, the simplest approach is to contact the Academy directly rather than rely on an old date or a schedule that may have changed.
Training with Jess Greenberg
For information about upcoming workshops or collaborations with Jess Greenberg, contact Triple Threat Academy directly.
Triple Threat Academy
7927 Newman Boulevard, LaSalle, Quebec H8N 2N9
Phone: 514-366-7927
Email: info@danse123.ca
Website: triplethreatacademymtl.com
I recommend checking directly with the Academy for upcoming dates, the workshop format and available spaces whenever a new session with Jess is announced.
