Good acting -- are you born with it, or can it be learned?

Question

Do you think good actors are born with talent, or does talent stem from studying and practicing? Or both?

I obviously have my own opinions on this, but the best answer won't necessarily be one that I completely agree with - it will be the one that is the clearest and most convincing.

Answer 1

Good acting remains dependent on the actor's talents AS WELL as the actor's work. (Just as in anything, talent can be wasted by laziness). Above all an actress or actor should practice, practice, practice. Whether this kind of practice comes by way of observation when not acting a role or in acting itself, practice is necessary. I would also argue that it depends on the other actors and director with whom the actress is working as well--a good director can get an actress or actor to know their character in ways they never thought possible through explanation, exploration, and the work that the actor does with the director and other actors on stage. If the other actors are not acting their parts well, how can the actor take the reactions and actions that she or he wants to the fullness of their potential. We must be given something to work with from those who work with us.

Answer 2

I believe some people are born with not neccisarely talent but an understanding. I mean, some young kids have more of a sense of how to act, more of a presence while others are I suppose more shy and aren't that confident.
Of course, I don't think any person is born with a pure talent. Talent takes time. To be in maybe a school play, you could rely on your natural ability alone but when it comes to the Oscar winning actors, I believe you need to have been trained and worked hard.
That's just my opinion.

Answer 3

In my opinion, an actor is like a singer, you can make a mediocre singer, but not an excellent one. It's just the same with actors. You need to have something to begin with. Classes will just make your craft better, give you some tricks, but it will never completely teach you how to act excellently. Great actors are born, not made.

Answer 4

Actors are born, not made. Acting is refined through experience acting. Classes for actors only present certain viewpoints, they do not teach one how to act. Most acting classes and schools are frauds that take credit for a successful actor who may have gone there once,but do not take blame for the 100's of non successful actors who have gone there. Same is true of colleges. Certain skills like clarity in speech can be developed in classes, but the acting is only improved by acting.

Answer 5

We are all naturally actors - portraying ourselves in different aspects depending on our audience - our family, our loved ones, our friends, our employers .....
to be a good actor you need to be convincing ... you need to get your audience on side to understand you and to feel for you and your situation ....
in 'acting' terms .... to portray your 'persona' and 'situation' convincingly so that your audience can identify with you ...
to act at all you have to feel your role and your situation at that moment .... my experience is you cannot convince another if you cannot convince yourself .....
My view is that some people are better actors than others ... some have an instinct about their audience and can appeal to their audience better than others ....
I think there must be an element of 'actor' in all of us, perhaps instinct and life experiences are what produce actors ....
training can only further and enhance that instinct and ability - not produce it in the first place ....

Answer 6

Some people are just really talented, but still, everyone needs some kind of training to be able to harness their talents and use it to reach their potential.

Answer 7

There are actors, and there are mediums, actors study the parts they want to play, medium live the part they want to experience. Life is a stage. just be true to yourself and it will flow beautifully.

Answer 8

It can be both. You can't be trained to be a good actor without inate abilities, but you can learn tricks that work.