How to become an actor?

The acting profession has attracted every third person since early childhood - little girls dream of playing in Hollywood movies of fairy-tale princesses, and boys strive to embody the image of a superhero. And already at the age of 13-17, the child declares to his parents that he would like to devote his life to acting.

Where and how to learn this profession, how to go through the casting and get the cherished role - we will talk about this in our article.

In order to become a successful actor, first of all, an action plan should be outlined; it involves several basic steps. You need:

• prepare a portfolio and fill out an acting application form;
• get into the database of famous acting agencies;
• keep your body in good physical shape;
• to improve acting skills - to learn monologues of various subjects and different emotional levels, if you want to work in the USA, it will not be superfluous to practice reading in a foreign language;
• participate in acting master classes and other events aimed at professional self-development;
• communicate with people of creative specialties or those actors who have already taken their confident steps in the cinema;
• Attend meetings with directors and screenwriters, workshops within the acting environment
• participate in open castings for roles in films, commercials and television programs;
• act in extras.

Remember, in order to start an acting career, a young man or girl must have certain data relevant to this profession.

• Appearance. It is not necessary to amaze others with their beauty - a good figure or perfect facial features are not so important for the actor. Natural charm and charm are much more relevant; people should be pleased to look at you. Nowadays, many girls go through one or even several plastic surgeries in order to get movie roles. They naively believe that resemblance to a star will bring them success. But this does not always work - in any case, it is better to remain by itself, nobody needs clones.
• Charisma - This is a combination of qualities, including external attractiveness, charm, unobtrusive sexuality and, of course, intelligence, the ability to lead. Charismatic people are fascinating and often become objects of increased attention. In order to develop these qualities in yourself, you need to "try on" the most diverse images - dramatic, comedic, or even the roles of genres such as thriller and horror.
• Tenacity. Any aspiring artist should be clearly aware that nothing happens right away. In order to get a good role, you may have to spend several years, so only a person with a strong will and unbending character will be able to withstand all the loads and overcome the obstacles encountered on the way.
• Contact. This is one of the main qualities of the actor, if you are already 12, 14, 15 years old, and you are still embarrassed to communicate, then this must be corrected as soon as possible. A shy person will be quite difficult in an acting environment. Sociability is needed in order to make the necessary acquaintances, communicate with popular directors and scriptwriters, present yourself at auditions and auditions. To develop all these qualities in oneself, one should attend public speaking courses or constantly engage in dialogue with strangers.
• Clear speech. Good diction and delivered speech is the foundation of the acting profession. To get into the cinema, you need to be able to clearly state, clearly articulate thoughts and have a good pronunciation.
• Expressive facial expressions. This will allow a novice artist to better demonstrate the character he portrays. You should constantly work on facial expressions and improve it.
• Good memory. It is difficult to overestimate the importance of a good memory for an actor, since you need to know the roles by heart, and most likely you will have to learn a lot and quickly. Therefore, everyone who wants to master the profession should constantly work on memory training.
• Positive outlook on life. It is no secret that with an optimistic attitude, it is much easier to overcome obstacles, solve the tasks set for yourself and go to the goal.

It is difficult to answer the question of how many years you need to study in order to become an actor. Probably easier to say, all my life. An actor is a constant work on himself, his personal qualities and professional skills.

Learning this at home is not easy, it is best to study at such famous universities as VGIK, GITIS, as well as the Moscow Art Theater. These are the largest universities in Russia, which have released most of the famous domestic movie stars. However, in many large cities there are no less famous theater studios, schools and acting courses, which are highly rated in the film industry. If you are determined to become a movie star - choose the best education.

However, there is a fairly significant limitation. The fact is that theatrical universities will not work at any age. So, men are accepted up to 24-26 years, and women at all up to 22, up to a maximum of 23 years. Adults in 30-40 years old have no access there. If you encounter such an obstacle, it is better to search the opportunity to get education at commercial institutes and professional acting courses, where almost everyone is accepted.

Adolescents are quite difficult to enroll in a theater school - at the age of 14-15 they have too many complexes, they poorly tolerate failures and easily become self-contained. Individual lessons with a tutor will help them open up, this form of teaching the basics of the acting profession is especially relevant in small towns where there is no opportunity to attend an acting studio.

By the way, many theaters open in the summer camps for future actors. Such events can and should be attended by any child who wants to enter the theater institute in the future.

So, if you are determined to enter a theater university, then you need to pass the entrance tests. By the way, many famous actors in their memoirs call the exam one of the worst moments in their life. Competitions in such institutions are going through the roof, so it is best to submit documents to several places at once. The chance to enter the training falls only once a year and it is very important to try not to miss it.

As a rule, applicants pass several tests:

• creative number;
• interview:
• Russian language test;
• literature exam.

Particular attention should be paid to preparing the issue for the creative test, it must be selected individually, taking into account personal abilities, temperament, strengths and weaknesses. The minimum set is verses, a fable and prose. It is advisable to prepare several numbers, as members of the commission often ask to present something else in another genre.

Even if you do not plan to become a singer or dancer, be sure to prepare a simple dance and easy song. With a high degree of probability you will be offered to demonstrate their choreographic and vocal abilities.

Many people care about the question of whether it is realistic to become an actor without a special education, from scratch. It is possible, history knows dozens of famous artists in our country, and indeed in America, who have not received special education at all. Today they play major roles in movies and TV shows, dubbing cartoon characters and performing in the theater. They were able to take their place under the sun with the help of their incredible talent and a happy combination of circumstances. However, it is not worth hoping that luck will smile specifically for you. It is much more reliable to rely on oneself, and not on a happy star.

In order to become a real actor, it is very important to “light up” before people important in this environment. For this, castings are conducted. They can be both professional for artists with experience in theatrical and cinematographic projects, and amateur - for those who are just taking their first steps in the profession.

Keep in mind that Listening is usually associated with strong nervous tension, any participant in this selection will certainly be worried and worried, since the results of listening in many respects depend on whether he will be given a chance to prove what he is capable of.

In order to succeed with minimal stress, you should prepare for the selection.

To start Gather the maximum listening information. It is important to know everything: who organizes the event, which director will be present at the selection. If someone from your friends has already passed such an audition, be sure to talk with him and ask what is better to focus on.

Prepare a portfolio in several ways, it will say about the actor much better than a thousand words. A successful shot will be able to show how the camera perceives you, and whether you know how to transform in different environments.

Try not to be nervous. Yes, this is not easy to do, but the excitement does not make the best impression during the casting. Learn to concentrate, abstract from unnecessary thoughts and focus on the chance to show yourself in all its glory.

Never Forget Ethics: turn off the sound on your mobile phone, do not be late for listening, show courtesy in communication with other participants in the selection. Listen to everything that is told to you and try to fulfill the requirements of professionals. Do not interrupt the jury, take criticism with calm, be sure to correct your mistakes taking into account the recommendations made.

Try to be different from the rest. Many participants come to the casting, and the director is unlikely to remember everyone, so it’s better to prepare some unusual monologue.

If you intend to become a famous actor, then you should find out Three not very pleasant facts about the profession:

• The theater environment is a fairly highly competitive industry. The number of theaters and film studios is not so great, but there are many who want to become a star. Every minute in the profession you will feel pressure from your competitors. Popular artists will crush authority, and young talents will literally step on your heels.
• Only a few become stars, and when it comes to Hollywood stars, the number of lucky ones is even less. Moreover, often success becomes not the result of hard work, but a happy coincidence. It is possible that you will not be able to achieve recognition at all, or it will happen much later than you wish.
• This is a very unstable profession. Actors, unlike officials and office workers, do not receive a monthly salary; their earnings directly depend on employment in projects. In your career, there will certainly be periods when you get tired without offering roles, and then you will have to save a lot of money. Therefore, you need to think in advance about what you will live on during the downtime. It will be useful to master the second specialty with more regular incomes.

And in conclusion, we want to warn you that Nowadays, a huge number of scammers have appeared who are trying to "make money" on gullible boys and girls who dream of a brilliant career. Most often, they operate according to the following scheme: they submit an advertisement for a casting for a role in a movie for beginner actors, possibly even without work experience. As a rule, the emphasis is on the age of 18-25 years - those who are older have already filled their cones and do not peck at such tricks.

Well, then everything is simple, young people are invited to a casting to the "famous" producer, they listen and after a couple of days they report that they are ideally suited for a small role, but for this you need to compose a portfolio. Moreover, the portfolio is from a specific agency, where they allegedly make the photos ideal for approval for the role. Of course, not for free. Actually, this is where the story ends - Further, young people are waiting for a call from the casting director, but in vain.