What’s up? SOoooooooooo If you’re still reading you do want to become an Actor huh?
Lights, Camera, Action. three of my favorite words. I love being an actress I always have. I was a little 4-year-old girl playing a rich kid in a movie called Moonlight path. I said, “I want some money too because my Barbies aren’t sufficient.” I remember my dad practicing that line with me for over two months.
I knew back then it took hard work to become great. I got the role and let’s just say it changed my life forever. I no longer wanted to be a doctor or fashion designer. I wanted to be a movie star. My quest for movie fame began when my dad gave me $100.00 (he probably got more lol) and said I could buy whatever I wanted to buy because this was my money from the acting job I had completed. I thought to myself. “If I can get a hundred dollars for one line how much could I get for 400 lines?
Acting is much more than just memorizing your lines. You really need to live, breathe, and understand your character. How to get into character, there are many resources out there to get you started analyzing your role and breaking it down. Here are just a few acting basics:
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Script Analysis
You’ll want to read through your script many times, making lots of notes about what’s going on in the scene, what words you’re saying, what your character says about him/herself and others, and what other characters say about your character!
- Script Analysis for Actors – Five Steps to Building Your Foundation
- How to Approach Script Analysis?
- How to Analyze a Script? The Professionals’ Method…
What Does My Character Want?
Your character should always want something… otherwise, why are they there?!
(Note – the following links are from writing websites, but can definitely be adapted for actors!)
Verbing – Exploring the script/lines through action words (e.g. I bully, I praise, I push, I entice)
Go through each scene and line. What does your character want in the entire scene? What are they trying to achieve? Then write out a specific, strong verb (action word) that describes what you’re trying to do. For example, your character might say “Why are you doing that?” Are they questioning, blaming, inquiring, accusing? Always keep your overall goal in mind!
Yes, work and play are two vastly different things. Work requires exertion and effort in order to pay the bills and put food on the table, whereas play is all about fun and enjoyment. If you’re lucky, you’ll be able to incorporate some of that joy and passion into your daily routine. But, that definitely doesn’t mean that your entire career will be a walk in the park.
