Ken Grant’s observations on the stupidity of actors being advised to “Just Be Yourself”

Acting Tips: Working all the time is NOT an indicator of career advancement. Ken shares thoughts on a realistic way to gauge an actor’s career advancement.

Ken Grant gives Sensible Acting Tips on creating ‘The 4 Basic Character Types’ necessary for Storytelling. How to create clearly defined characters quickly and easily for cold readings, auditions and polished performances.

Anger is not a PLAYABLE emotion… it is the attempt to hide or cover one’s vulnerability. The key to playing anger is to identify the specific pain or vulnerability being experienced, then know WHY the character does NOT want anyone to see it!

Understanding and effectively dealing with the 3 Conflicts in any given scene will dramatically increase your confidence and decrease your preparation time during auditions.

The term ‘Cold Reading’ has been equated with a ‘running of the lines’ without the full effort of a finished performance. Why would anyone want an actor to do less than his best on ANY performance for ANY reason? More to the point, why would an actor ALLOW anyone to see him doing anything at a level that is less than his best?

A modeling job post goes out – “we need models, a certain weight, height, and ethnicity then…. the bomb shell: in a certain age group”! The question is, WHY does age matter? Now, I’m not talking about needing babies and a teenager shows up. If a 40 year old looks 25, has the right weight, height, skin tone, can deliver lines, or poses like a 25 year old and unless asked, you couldn’t guess he/she is older than 25, why would he/she not be considered for the job because of his/her “age”? ‘Would love to hear your take on this – Have a Great Day!

The answer is very simple. You are what you APPEAR to be! I have been training and coaching actors for many years, and this question is one of the most troubling ones to those who have not come to terms with the concept that ‘THEY are only concerned with what you appear to be’. If the 40 year old actor appears to be 18 to 23 years old, why would that actor say anything to the casting director, their agent, even their peers about ‘really’ being 40?
Your job is to know what you sell best and sell it (that goes for upscale-vs-downscale and selfless-vs-selfish characters as well as age of character). It is not your job to let everyone know that you are really NOT what they think you are. They will feel like they can’t trust you to deliver the goods if you are not what you appear to be.
Consider the casting director who sees your head shot or composite, likes what they see (meaning they identify your type, your age, your socioeconomic status, your degree of education etc. and you fit the part perfectly). They call you in, and you (or your agent or another actor ‘friend’ of yours) make it a point to tell them you are NOT what they assumed you are. No one likes to be proven wrong, so the CD will simply hire the actor who is in line right behind you or in front of you because they really ARE (at least as far as the CD knows) what the CD assumed they were when the CD viewed their pictures.
The bottom line, is simply: You are what you appear to be in this business. Save all your truthful secrets for that special someone who will love and accept you for who and what you are, no matter what….

For specific help or additional comments, you can contact me personally at:
Ken@SensibleActing.com

Many Actors find that traditional acting techniques such as Meisner, Adler, Strasberg and Hagan are based on the demands of stage and theater performance, and can be unclear, ambiguous and difficult to apply to the demands of film and television acting.  In many ways, it is like studying ballet in order to get a job as a hip-hop dancer!  This does not mean that theater training is wrong, it simply means that it may not cover all the answers and techniques you need for the kind of work that you want.

Luck = Preparation + Opportunity

“Lucky Actors” are the ones who know their stuff when an opportunity comes along.

It seems that today, everyone is looking for Instant Gratification.  Many actors want to believe that a lucrative performing career is simply a matter of ‘being discovered’.  They think that it is simply a matter of ‘being in the right place at the right time’ or meeting the ‘right people’.

In their haste to attain fame and wealth without bothering to acquire skills and techniques, they usually waste a lot of time and money trying to find an ‘agent’ or ‘manager’ who can “make them a star” BEFORE they learn how to act.   Of course, there are plenty of so-called agents and managers who are happy to praise and feed false hopes to these misguided actors and their parents so they will buy-in to the concept of – ‘It’s Who You Know, Not What You Know’.  They are very good at convincing the starry-eyed novice that they can introduce you to the ‘right people’ for a fee or services that you pay for up front.

The Sensible Actor knows that this is a profession like any other.  They realize that there are skills to be mastered. The Sensible Actor will invest in training as any  doctor, accountant or any other professional does. In other words, THEY PREPARE!!

It is a business that must be promoted. The Sensible Actor will network with those who are already established in the business.  They will join networking groups, volunteer for student films, community theater, join speech clubs, and anything else where they will mingling with others in the profession. In other words, THEY PROMOTE!!!

Sensible Actors know that performing for free in community theater, student films, school and church presentations, and doing extra work is the most effective means of promoting one’s skills.  No one will hire an actor because they SAY they can act.  You have to SHOW them!  Performing is the ONLY way to get more  performing work, so THEY PERFORM!!

Sensible, trained actors learn how to establish contact with legitimate professionals in the industry.  They learn how to maintain those relationships and how to avoid being ripped off.

Sensible, trained actors know that ‘Who You Know’ can only open a door.  Once you open that door and step in, it’s ‘What You Know’ that transforms an ‘opportunity’ into ‘success’.

Sensible Actors know that:

Preparation + Opportunity = A Very ‘Lucky’ Actor