Art School Models
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I just recently started theatre arts at school and i am really actually getting interested… help!?
I wanna actually make it to the big time. I understand that there is a lot of work considered but i can handle it. I am ready to do whatever it takes and do what i can. We have a community theatre and i want to start doing plays and musicals in that. I’ll take any part that they give me. I also want to start doing school productions that we are very known for at our school. And after about a year of doing this i would like to start going to a modeling and acting school for young teens. I just started ninth grade. Any tips for this? For trying out? Anyone who is in the business? Works with plays? Any help is greatly appreciated and i am so excited for doing this and pursuing it. I also love to dance and i am on a competitive cheer team. So anything with any help on any of this would be great. Thank you so much!!! Oh and any schools that are very great in houston would be a great help also thank you
Hey I’m an actor in Texas myself. I’ve done tons of commercials and theatre, some small movie roles.
Look, I’m going to answer your question broadly first and then give you some details. The broad answer will be the most important one because it contains the fundamentals, and when nothing you’re doing is working, the fundamentals always do.
So, fundamentally, you’ve already got a good start. You just said “I’ll do whatever it takes” and that’s a good attitude. The next piece of advice is to “connect to your dream.” What the hell do I mean? I mean describe exactly what you want in detail, every nook, every cranny, even if it seems bizarre or ostentatious, describe everything you want to achieve and exactly how you want to experience it. Do you want to act in movies? If so by what age? Do you want to win an Oscar? Terrific, by what time, in what category. What is your dream? What does it look like and feel like? Step into it right now and define how it feels. Feel it, now. I’m not kidding, do it now. Good. Now that is what you are to experience in real life and you hit the nail on the head. It’s gonna take work. It’s gonna take a sh–load of effort. But if you really love this if you really love expressing yourself in this way you will, as you said, handle it. You can do this, you absolutely can do this. How committed are you willing to be when it gets tough though? When things don’t seem to be working out? When it seems like you’re making no progress? If you have the attitude that come what may, no matter what obstacle gets thrown in your path, you’ll make it and EXPERIENCE exactly what I just had you experience, you’ll never be deterred. Always go back to that dream. Step into it. Feel it, know it, live it a thousand times before your experience it in real life. Make it so real you can touch it, and it will be that real. The reason you need to connect to this over and over is that that emotion you feel when you’re in it is the very fuel you’ll need to achieve your dream. That crazy drive you’re feeling right now is what you’re gonna need to overcome the obsaceles, the times when it’s not going so hot. But maybe you’re different, maybe you’ll have no obstacles (remember an obstacle is ANYTHING that stands in your way, ANYTHING) and if you don’t have obstacles, good for you, some people are lucky. Connect to that dream. Keep that excitement. The only other thing I can say in this philosophical answer is I highly suggest you also do this for LOVE, not fame. Fame is awesome, don’t worry if you want it, great, lots of people do and they get it. But if you don’t have something in addition which I define as contribution, then you may burn out. I wish someone would have told me that when I was in ninth grade. Know why you’re doing this. What are you contributing to the world by acting? You are contributing alot. You are contributing yourself, and that is what we all want to see on the stage, YOU. The real you. Not an actress, we want to see you! we want to see a human being up there so we can feel human as an audience. You’ve chosen the most amazing profession possible, you’ve chosen to share your humanity with us. Good for you.
Specifics:
1. Get into acting training. Those courses that are like “learn modeling in this three day seminar” are kind of crap. They don’t really teach you anything. Get in an ongoing training program that makes you grow. How do you know you’re growing as an actress? You feel it. You know it in your gut. You can feel yourself getting better and better. The audience gets quieter and quieter as you act. They start believing you. they see that human up there, they start crying because you’ve bared yourself, you’ve done it and you’ll never stop doing it because you’ll get better and better. Get into a training program with someone who will actually challenge you to get better. FYI though a lot of it sucks. it’s hard, you have to get in touch with emotions and it blows a lot of the time. You have to get control of your emotions so you can use them on stage, in front of camera. Choose an ongoing class (one that meets regularly), meaning get an acting coach and tell him/her “i really want to grow” I want to get better and better at this. I’ve decided to dedicate my life to this and nothing will stop me.” Keep going till you get one
Other piece of advice regarding teachers. DON’T GET HOOKED ON ONE OF THEM. So many actors become what I call flag-defenders, they make what method of acting (you’ll find there’s like 800 methods out there) more important than if they’re getting better or not. I don’t care what method you use, what style of acting this guy is telling you to do. It doesn’t matter. You always have to ask yourself am I getting better or not? if the answer is no, you ask What do I need to do to get better? It will be hard sometimes. I had to leave a lot of teachers i really liked just because I wasn’t growing. it was tough. Some of them got pissed off. But in the end I realized that it was them, not me. Take responsibility for your own success. Everyone, teachers included, should be ecstatic for your improvement, if they’re real friends they won’t care who you go to to improve.
This is long. Hope you’re still with me. So RESULTS ARE KING. You must grow, you must get better if you want to live that dream we talked about. Live that dream every day. Step into it. Feel it know it. It will prepare you it will become more and more real every day as you get better and better.
2. You’ve got training, you’ve got an acting coach who is really making you grow, or maybe you’re in a class. STAY AWAY FROM PEOPLE WHO AREN’T AS COMMITTED AS YOU i don’t mean like dump friends who aren’t actors, I mean don’t make going to acting class social hour. I’ve been in so many classes with people who were just doing it to screw around. If there are these types of people in your class, that’s okay, just don’t you become one of them. YOu’ve got a mission. you don’t have time for BS. SO NOW……
start acting
A friend of mine met Billy Corgan (jeez I hope this isn’t before your time or I’ll feel really old, BC is the lead guitarist/singer of Smashing Pumpkins) and he said “hey billy I really want to become a musician, what should I do” “Play music,” he said.
And he’s right, if you wan to be an actress, act. Act in every possible thing you can. Don’t become a school-junkie. I’ve got so many friends that seek the comfort of class and school and never get out in the real world and act. Act and act and act and act and learn and learn and learn from your mistakes. Get better and better and better. This may seem like I’m going against what I said but i’m not. School is great, but you need to have the actual experience to have something to compare it to. One thing is to cry in an exercise in class and another thing is to cry on stage really beleiving in the situation. Class is easier than life. So make sure life is the mainstay of what you’re doing. Get out in the real world and act in as many things as possible. Then use your class to tweak, to get better, to make new distinctions. Class is invaluable but LIFE is ESSENTIAL. How many friends do you have who talk about things but never do them? Those are the worst. Well, a step up from that is the guy or gal who learns about how to do things but never puts the knowledge in his head into real life. I’m sure you know some like that. They have all the knowledge in the world about how to do this and how to do that but can’t actually do it themselves. So how do you learn how to do something. I’m sorry to say, you go out and screw it up and learn from it. You’ve got to know this from cheering. Don’t be the type 1 and 2, be the type 3 who actually produces results in the real world, who actually becomes that actress. Who can actually perform those skills in front of a live audience or camera. Be the one that can actually do it and doesn’t just talk about it.
Whatever it takes is right. Focus on your end result and do whatever it takes. Don’t stop. You can do this.
3. An agent. Well so you go to school and you got in some plays, well now GET PAID!!!!!!!! Start getting paid for your work as quickly as possible. I know there are agents in the Houston area. Call them up and ask them exactly what they want in their “actor submission” That’s what it’s called. They’ll usually want a head shot or 2 and a cover letter stating what your intentions are and a resume (stuff you’ve been in) on the back. If you don’t have that much experience yet don’t worry. You’ll have it. Just put whatever you have done even if it’s small like you did a promo event for a school car wash. Get as much real stage time and camera time as quick as you can but don’t let not having that stop you from contacting an Agent right now. Get on the net yellow pages for houston and type in TALENT AGENTS call them all and interview them all. They’re waiting for you because you will make them money. Start earning money for your work. There are so many people that call themselves actors that don’t get paid. I would tell people i acted in plays with that I just made 3 grand on a commercial and they’d say “no way, you can’t do that” D o not listen to these people, you can do whatever you want. Also if making millions of dollars is part of your dream, put that in there. Feel what it would feel like to earn millions and have people pay you for your work because its so good. There you go. You’ve got it.
So if you want to boil my advice down
1.Know what you want
2. Live it in your mind and then make it a reality doing whatever it takes, don’t stop, don’t ever stop
3. Get a teacher
4. Get experience
5. Get an agent so you can get paid
Dream big. What the hell else are we on this earth for if not to make our dreams come true. Don’t stop, don’t you ever stop.
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