September 3, 2020
When you see a professional actor, flawlessly executing their craft on camera, it’s easy to assume that they are simply born with the talent and just have plain luck.
However, if you interview any successful actor, you’ll learn firsthand that there is hard work, persistence, and a lot of grit behind it. Yes, genuinely great actors are indeed born. However, they will not realize their true potential unless they train.
Practice makes PERMANENT
Acting is a skill with muscle memory that gets stronger as you practice and do the work like in any sport or trade skill. If you want to bring your dream to fruition, you must work hard and work smart.
Here are the 3 Key Principles to succeed as an actor.
Relaxation:
Destinations=Relaxation. In other words let the text play you. Surprise yourself. It's called a "PLAY" not a "serious". Relaxation will free your body, mind, and spirit to discover *justified* viewpoints that you can use as touchstones in the architecture of your storytelling.
Concentration:
In other words, you must be disciplined and focused. All actors are Psychologists, Sociologists, Archaeologists, and Anthropologists. Our bread and butter is profound observation and infinite curiosity about human *beings (*as opposed to human "doings"). But you must always begin your concentration from a state of relaxation in order to remain open to all of your creativity.
Imagination:
Possibly the one thing that officially delineates an Artist from any other human is the courage, bravery, and vulnerability required to imagine - making private moments public. You must believe that every character is YOU in that given set of circumstances. What would YOU do? Always be a person first. That will allow you to lean into YOUR unique perspective and point of view - truly bringing yourself to the role.
It is one thing to discover your acting talent, but to bring it out and nourish it to fruition takes commitment and craft. Let Relaxation-Concentration-Imagination be your mantra and empower yourself as an Artist. Remember: "I act to seek my own good opinion!"