Acting is a challenging career with a high level of failure, so extensive training and backup plans are necessary. Actors should take lessons, practice their craft, find an agent, and develop another skill to earn money.
An acting career is certainly an exciting prospect. From a distance, acting looks fascinating and fun, whether on stage, on TV or on a movie screen. However, there are many things to consider if a person wants to pursue an acting career and the first one is that not many actors achieve recognition in their field. It’s a career where the level of failure is high, and its uniqueness suggests some backup plans, as well as fully preparing yourself to be a success through extensive training.
While the dream of being discovered without acting training is pleasant, actors are generally better off if they have skills in their craft, honed through a variety of lessons. People can take lessons from acting coaches who are well known, or many go to college to get at least a bachelor’s degree in theater. College choice can be important and prospective students may want to choose schools that specialize in certain ways of acting. It would make no sense to participate in a theater-focused drama program if television or film acting was the goal; some people find programs that focus on all three types can be good for complete training.
In addition to studying acting, those desiring a career in acting should take every opportunity to practice their craft. This could mean taking part in school plays, auditioning to be extras or playing roles for things being filmed locally, and taking opportunities to be a part of local theater ventures. Every time a person takes action, they add something to their resume, and over time, a resume can start to look impressive, suggesting that the person has a lot of experience.
When training for an acting career, it’s not a bad idea to find an agent as well, and this will have to be done eventually. People will need to pay for headshots and will likely interview multiple local or non-local agents. These people must not charge for their services and are only paid by booking paid jobs for their clients. Even if a person is still in school, it doesn’t hurt to have experience working in commercials or elsewhere, and those experiences can help fund more tuition or basic living expenses. A strong agent can help deliver these experiences by getting auditions for clients.
Going out on auditions also gives people an idea of what it’s like to do this for a living. It can help to learn to accept rejection, which is a common actor experience, and auditions give potential career actors a sense of the difficulties involved in getting work. This leads to another suggestion for anyone considering this career path.
Mathematically and as a percentage, most actors will not be able to make a living from their craft. Whether in school or acting classes, it is highly recommended that people develop another skill that can earn money. This could be learning accounting, bartending, secretarial work, business management, or many other things. Sometimes those who can’t act learn to teach and become passionate acting teachers in schools or colleges.
That substitute job pays the bills. This does not mean that people give up on pursuing an acting career. Finding work with good flexibility can be helpful for some people, helping smart artists avoid going hungry as they work towards fulfilling their dreams.
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