The Misunderstood Art of Acting is a blog about the real world of acting and the different people who make it happen. We will cover all aspects of the industry, from how an actor gets discovered, to what it’s like to do regional theater in Arkansas. We’ll talk about managers, agents, casting directors and directors. We’ll discuss everything from how much an actor makes in an Off-Off Broadway production to what happens at a table read for a new film.
We will interview actors, producers, directors and casting directors as well as others involved in the business. We’ll also feature interviews with actors who have worked on “The Wire,” “Law & Order,” “Six Feet Under,” “Sex and The City” and many other shows. In addition we’ll interview playwrights whose work has been produced at such New York institutions as Playwrights Horizons, Manhattan Theatre Club and Second Stage.
We hope this blog will help you understand the art of acting and how it is created by some very talented people. If you’d like to interview us or contribute an article, please email us at misunderstoodartofacting@gmail.com
The Misunderstood Art of Acting is a blog about the real world of acting and the different people who make it happen. It will explore the many facets of acting and the many different roles that actors play in our society, as well as all of the different people who have to work together to make movies and television shows a reality. It will also put into perspective the countless hours that actors put into their craft and how this can affect them personally.
The Misunderstood Art of Acting was created by three students in a Blogging course at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill: Mark Friedlander, Avery Langan, and Gabrielle Wainwright.
You can see how it might be misinterpreted as a statement of purpose. But it isn’t. It’s just a fact, and the fact is that if you want to make a living as an actor then you are probably going to have to make some TV shows or movies at some point.
But what is really interesting here is the attitude of the actors themselves. They think they are doing something wrong or somehow cheating if they do commercials or network television shows. This is what I mean by misunderstood art: there are a bunch of people who make their living at this job and yet they don’t know what the job actually is. They think it is something else.
It’s not that these actors have a misunderstanding about their career path; it’s more like they have a misunderstanding about what acting actually is.
The truth is that acting is not an art form but rather a craft form and it is practiced by craftsmen who do jobs that need to be done in order for art to happen. The craftsman may be talented and creative, but they are also practical people with practical skills who get paid to do things or solve problems.
I have been an actor for over 30 years and have seen many changes in the business but one thing has remained constant and that is the misconception about what acting really is.
It is a common belief that if you take a bunch of people with little or no experience, give them some basic training and send them off to Hollywood they will become stars. The truth is, most will struggle for years to get their big break and even then, often it doesn’t happen.
One reason for this is because many people do not fully understand what acting really is. They see the glitzy life on the red carpet or on-screen and think how amazing it would be to be part of such a glamorous lifestyle. They also see the money these successful actors make and long for a piece of it themselves; I know because I’ve felt this way myself.
But reality is rarely like that in any job or industry and acting is no different. It takes hard work, dedication and sacrifice to succeed as an actor whether you are working on stage, in film or television or even on the radio.
It is a little confusing to try to figure out what actors are supposed to do. We are caught between two roles, neither of which has much to do with the other.
One actor is an artist, or at least an artiste. This is the actor we see on the stage and on camera. He makes choices about how to play his role, and he does it with talent and imagination and insight. The more interesting he is to watch, the more talented he is; we use artistry as a measure of his ability.
This kind of actor tends to be very sincere (though not necessarily original) in whatever he says about acting. He believes that “acting is reacting” and “there are no small parts” and so on; if he didn’t, we wouldn’t want to pay attention to him.
But there’s another actor inside every artiste, who doesn’t show up on screen at all but who plays a much bigger role in the business side of acting. This actor has many roles: performer, marketer, entrepreneur, agent, etc.
You’d expect these roles to be contradictory–if you’re marketing yourself as a great dramatic actor who’s willing to take risks, for example, you can’t also market yourself as a cheerful
Actors are the strangest of all creatures. They constantly talk about “wanting to be real,” and yet they are often at their best when they are not themselves. They want to be real, but they also want to be someone else. They seem most real, but they are also the most deceptive of people. How can this paradox possibly exist?
The truth is that actors understand the human condition far better than most people. In order to become someone else, they must first know themselves better than anyone else could possibly know them. They must be able to see their own faults, but not be haunted by them. They must have a great deal of empathy for others, and yet not allow themselves to become envious or jealous or competitive with those around them. And most importantly, they must believe in themselves so fully that nothing can shake their confidence or make them doubt their abilities for even one second.
Actors have a unique perspective on life because they are constantly looking at it from someone else’s point of view. They view life as a reflection of what other people might be thinking or feeling about them at any given moment; and in doing so, they become extremely sensitive to everything that happens around them.
It’s a common occurrence for actors to complain about the lack of work. “There’s nothing out there”, “there are no good parts”, “I can’t get an agent”. The list goes on and on. Just when it seems like things are at their bleakest, I get an email or a phone call from an actor who has secured an agent or landed a major role.
“I don’t know how I did it. I just kept at it. Things finally started happening.”
One of the biggest mistakes actors make is giving up too soon. It’s easy to sit around, waiting for something to happen, especially in a place like Los Angeles where the phone doesn’t ring that often. Some people think that if they believe strongly enough in themselves or visualize success hard enough, the phone will ring and they’ll be discovered — magically! But the truth is that believing in yourself is only part of the battle. You need to take action.
As with all art forms, acting is not for everyone. A lot of people try acting but very few make it all the way to Broadway or Hollywood because they never really give themselves a chance to succeed. They’re so wrapped up in their own self-doubt and negativity that they can barely muster up the
