advice for American actor wanting to move to japan?

Question

Hello I'm a 24 year old Black American Actor and I’m thinking about moving to Japan to become a movie star. I know it sounds crazy but I want to try something different to get in the industry. I don't know anyone there but I just feel that I have to make some crazy decisions to succeed in life I want to be a movie star. Odds are that I will fail but at the same time life hasn’t been getting any easy here and it’s hard to break into acting. Look point is if you have any advice about moving to Japan or know of any program please let me know. Like I said I know it sound crazy thank you.

Answer 1

Do you speak Japanese fluently with a great accent? If so, try sending letters and headshots to agents there and see if you get any bites. Plan a visit and let the agents know exactly when you will be there so you can go on interviews. If you have any appeal there then they may call you ni. If not, then you won't get any bites and you'll know it's a no-go. I would imagine it's the same there as it is here where you need to have a great look, talent, and marketability, etc. They certainly don't have an over abundance of Black American actors, but that doesn't mean you have more of an in.

Do you happen to sing and dance really well and live in Los Angeles or Florida? Disney sends actors to Japan all the time on 6 month performing contracts to the theme parks. Perhaps you could start that way, become accustomed to the environment and save some cash, then branch out to local commercials, etc. Another place you may want to check out is Hong Kong if you're going international. Just a thought.

Also, you may want to revise your job title from movie star to actor. Movie star sounds frivolous and just unserious. If you take it seriously, you're an actor.

Regardless, you need training. Get into classes for acting, dance (ballet and jazz for starters), and voice lessons. Build your resume with theatre and student and indie films. Get out there as much as you can. You can use backstage.com and actorsaccess.com for auditions or if those don't have much for you try doing an internet search for your state name and the word film and that should turn up sites for your state's film alliances, societies, etc. Those sites should have info on classes, local auditions, etc.

Once you have a good amount of training and several roles on your resume, then try getting an agent. http://www.sag.org/sagWebApp/application?origin=page1.jsp&event=bea.portal.framework.internal.refresh&pageid=AgentInformation. There are other places to find agents, but this is a good start. SAG also has good info for new actors.

Good luck,
Marianne

Answer 2

I guess the first thing you would want to try to do is learn as much Japanese as possible before you go. Perhaps also try to find some modelling agencies or talent agencies in Japan before you go. Email them with your resume, head-shots etc. See if they reply. Most likely they will start you off with commercials and things like that. There aren't many non-Japanese movie stars in Japan. Mostly they are talk show guests (talento) or comedians. In all honesty, I would have a backup plan just in case this doesn't go through for you. It isn't cheap to live in Japan so you will need some money when you get there and when you are looking for work.

I guess that's the best advice I can really give you. The movie stars there that aren't Japanese can speak good Japanese so you have to brush up on that first off.

Good Luck!

Answer 3

First of all, Japan is not immigrant country. They don't take immigrant policy. 98% of the population in Japan is Japanese. There are no racial diversity like the US.
People don't speak English like Hongkong and Singapore.
What you need to know is the most important thing to success in Japan is language.
Most famous foreign artists and TV personalities can speak Japanese fluently.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g5qhTeMUsiw

Answer 4

first you need a trade then apply for a job with a company over there.learn to Speak Japanese try enlisting in the service and take communication serve over there then you can see what it is really like good luck