Ubiquitous I know, but can anyone offer advice on how to become an actor?

Question

I'm 14 years old and from Staffordshire. I have won several awards for both my work in Drama and English. I am taking GCSE Drama soon.
I am interested in script writing (I am currently writing a police drama that I will submit to the BBC)- but mainly I am interested in becoming an actor. Any advice for someone my age?

Answer 1

How can you become an actor?

Hi there,

This is a question I get almost daily....how to get started in acting. In fact it is a question that I have seen young actors have over the last three years and it is one that inspired me a lot to try and help, while at the same time learning myself. Consequently, I’ve learned a lot over these past three years.

It's important to know what it really means to be a working actor. Maybe you already know. I don't have much information about you other than what you wrote.

Here are some of the issues that actors face before they even get close to working. Go to this link to see them: http://www.actingcareerstartup.com

There are certainly more issues that actors face. At any rate, this is the reality. I certainly don't want to rain on your parade, but I say all this to let you know, something that you already know which is that there will be a lot of things to do before you get there. You will need clarity about what it is you really want in your life and in your acting career, motivation, determination, thick skin, a method of planning, business skills and you will need to see how real, working actors put these things into practice.

After you've started to think more about the mission on which you are about to embark, you need to study, study, study acting. I would advise you to get information about the different acting techniques and methods that there are and then choose one. To help, look up books by:

Uta Hagen
Lee Strasberg
Sanford Meisner
Stella Adler

Then one of your number one priorities if you are serious about becoming a good actor, a working actor will need to be getting into a good program of study. It is essential to your career! Essential! Here is some other information in the following link that can help you in choosing classes:
http://www.actingcareerstartup.com/acting_classes.html

If you were in the US, I would tell you to start studying the trade papers to get a feel for the industry, what's going on, what's hot, what's not, issues, casting directors who cast certain projects, agents and what they are looking for, etc. These are the trades in the U.S. Have a look at them anyway and see what kind of info you’ll want to look for in your country.

Backstage (or go to their website www.backstage.com)
Show Business (www.showbusiness.com)
Hollywood Reporter
Ross Reports
Theatrical Index
New York Agencies
Check out www.sag.org , www.aftra.com , www.actorsequity.com for information about the three major unions.

Lastly and maybe most importantly, you MUST realize that the person who will embark on this new mission of becoming an actor is YOU. Whether or not you are successful (and only you can define what success means to you) will depend a lot on how the industry treats you, but it also will depend largely on you. By that I mean, your attitude, your talent, your willingness to learn and be curious, your perseverance, determination and method, your clarity around what you want out of your career, your capacity to find creative solutions and creative ways to promote yourself and set yourself apart from the rest, your ability to first create a financial base so that you can concentrate fully on your craft, your ability to motivate yourself and to handle rejection, your capacity to be disciplined and plan for your success and it will also depend on your capacity to sell and market your acting ability.

I say this to say that you will need to develop and work on yourself. This is true for anyone. These aforementioned things are what many, many, many young actors overlook and thus find starting an acting career to be a difficult endeavor.

So what could your next steps be?. Find a good acting class and a good teacher. DEVELOPING YOUR SKILL AS AN ACTOR should be your number one priority while you do your homework on the industry! Without that skill, you probably won't go very far in this very competitive field.

Gather some information and talk to actors about what it really means to be a working actor, not the Brad Pitts and Julia Roberts', but the average Joe, out there pounding the pavement, getting jobs that last a few days at a time and who are piecing their work together by doing student films, commercials, looking for an agent, auditioning, getting rejected, doing mailings, preparing for auditions, going to class, saving up for months just to be able to get those new headshots, etc. Talk to actors who are working regularly and learn from what they’ve done. Also talk to actors who are struggling and learn from them what not to do! You'll be surprised at the number of people you talk to who are complaining about not getting work or that they don't have an agent, who after months or even years still don't have a plan! Compare your findings and put together your strategy. Have a look at this link in which you can see what a typical day looking for work could be like:
http://www.actingcareerstartup.com/working_as_an_actor.html

One last thing. Be aware of all the other types of acting possibilities there are:
Film, television, theater are the obvious ones and even within them there are subdivisions. There is also hosting, industrials, on-camera commercials, commercial print, student films, independent films, spokesperson, stock photography.
Community Theater, student films, commercial print work and stock photography shoots could be some things you could do to get your feet wet while you are starting out.

I hope this gives you some insight and I hope to have made you think.

Best of luck!

Tony
http://www.actingcareerstartup.com

Answer 2

Do not answer ads you hear on the radio, they are not legitimate. So many people want to get into this business, agents do not need to advertise. Also, do NOT pay any agent up front. They get paid after they help find you a job.

I suggest you get involved in theatre and acting classes and it sounds like you already are so that's great. Try diversifying. If you've taken drama, try acting forthe camera or other techniques. In theatre, get a few roles under your belt. If your parents are supportive, try to get an agent once you've built a resume. Then you will be going for tv and film roles :-)

Most of all, stay in school. Your education is very important! The more intelligent you are, the less likely someone will take advantage of you.

Good luck!

Answer 3

I would strongly advise against this. You will be entering your thirties soon and your looks will go downhill. You will be a has-been by 33-35. Too old to be an "escort" although some might still want you. And then think of further job opportunities. How are you going to explain previous employment to potential employers in the next 3-5 years? Being an escort might solve a few financial wounds now but in reality, it is nothing more than a Band-aid over a gaping wound. You will just be temporarily slowing down the leak caused by excessive bills. Find a more suitable place of employment and work on learning to budget while also eliminating unnecessary bills and shopping sprees. You can get yourself out of debt with a few simple changes. I only make $10 an hour and do surprisingly well. Please rethink this. There are more respectable job opportunities out there.

Answer 4

You should see if there are classes in script writing near you. Also, enrich yourself in as many classes for acting as possible. Also joining a Shakespearean club or a poetry club will expand your range in drama. Practicing a whole lot in front of friends, family, and classmates in talent shows or school plays will help you a lot. Or try a musical hobby such as an instrument or singing. It will get you more involved in the performing arts, which is key in acting and script-writing. You will need to devote a lot of time to your hobbies, so make sure that you really love what you are doing. Oh yea, and before I forget, yoga will de-stress you and make you feel better before a competition. And also, reading monoluages will help you prepare for auditions. So will speaking extra loud and emoting more and showing more emotion when you speak. Well, good luck!

Answer 5

well it's great to get a lot of experiance, like in school plays, and locla theatre companys. but most jobs you will get are in NYC, or LA. when you get older, try to go to an acting college in one of those places, or maybe move there, but i'm serious, loads of opurtunities will come to you in NYC or LA. but when you've had lots of expeiance, then maybe try to get an agent, which is hard, unless you know someone who knows someone (if you know wat i mean), but if you're known in the buisness, and meet other actors, or people involved in theatre, you can posssible find an agent, but you have to be in the buisness first. you can use

www.backstage.com

i highly recommend it for finding jobs, but they're mostly for the nyc area, and some la!

good luck!

Answer 6

Try honing your skills by getting ionvolved with community theatre, at least until you finish school. The only way to get good at something is to do it! Break a leg!

Answer 7

You can go to StarSearchCasting.Com its the #1 site where industry professionals come to find new Talent.You can go to California,or you can just hire an acting Agent.

Good Luck!!

Answer 8

I hear on the radio all the for agencies looking for models and actors. Listen to your local radion station or call they may have a listing of the commericals they have been running.

Answer 9

I agree a lot with Marianne D (the top contributor)