We have found 19,445 posts across 4 actor forums:
NYC or LA? by CaptainMarvellous_98 • last post Oct 3rd
Hey fellow Backstage peeps! I'll be finishing university soon (May 2020) and would like to buckle down on my acting career after graduation. I enjoy theatre, but really love (and prefer) film and TV. I've heard some people say that you should move to LA if you want to break...
How do you think actors are able to become famous? by wingsith19 • last post Oct 3rd
Now I know there’s a lot of actors who were born into the industry (had famous parents) or started off as child actors, but it seems for the majority of relevant actors today, they were neither born into the industry nor were they child actors. For a lot of them it seemed as if they were born to a family that had no connection to the show business and had to work their way up and get to where they are by themselves. How do you think this is possible? Does it really boil down to just pure luck? Does it boil down to just being a really good actor? Is it a little bit of both?
I have twice the ammount of lines to memorize and I'm lost by Whelsey • last post Oct 3rd
Our director decided to give me a role that was previously assigned to another actor, knowing I'm not prepared and I have a hard time memorizing lines. I'm lost and I don't know if I can memorize everything in time! I'm fairly good at improv. Please, give me tips on how to do it! I won't be able to improv an entire character
Psychologists specializing in helping Actors/Performers? by LockTheUniverse • last post Oct 3rd
I've had this recurring thought over the past few weeks. There are Psychologists that specialize in Athletes/Sports (and even E-Sports) that are employed by teams to help them play better. Is there a place, or a niche, for Psychologists that specialize in Actors/Performers? I've looked high and low and can't find much in the way of material for this area. So many actors, I find, are struggling with mental health, either because of the stresses of the job/industry or because of the effects on their personal lives (financial stress, relationships), so I was wondering what everyone's thoughts were. Thanks!
No idea what to do know, does that mean giving up? by actresssu • last post Oct 3rd
Hey! This is my first post on reddit and I'm really hoping that someone has advice for me. Even if the truth is going to be painful. I am an actress and I started with stage acting, when I was 12. I am 20 now. Growing up in Germany, I was signed up with two agencies, but unfortunately I got almost no casting calls. I don't think, that it has anything to do with my talent. Being mixed-race (African and European) with a bunch of freckles, I'm not a type that is presented in the German media. Now I moved to LA on a student visa, but here I don't have work visa. So I'm kind of at a loss right now. I am thinking about giving up my dream of being an actress, but I am so passionate about it and it's my favorite thing today. I also know that I'm good at it, I've only gotten positive feedback and I always work hard on improving myself. I just don't know what to do anymore, either being in a country without roles or being in a country without a work visa. Does anyone have any recommendations or tips? I just don't know what to do. I can send pictures and my videoreel over pm, if someone wants to see it.. Thank you so much!
Should actors be morally and ethically responsible for the roles they play? by jackmagnetlord • last post Oct 3rd
So, I was wondering what all of you thought of this. Should an actor get any personal heat for playing a character or should they be fully absolved of what that character is and does at a cultural and societal level? Clearly, actors are acting, but at a cultural level, are they responsible for what their performance of a character does? For example, Joaquin Phoenix and the Joker, what if it were to pry negativity from what would otherwise be stuck in the basement? I recognize his job is to act, to play a role, to preform and I think he's wonderful and by all accounts he's done an incredible job as the Joker. Let's see Tropic Thunder and go to RDJ wearing black-face, or further back without any satire when actors wore blackface seriously? At what level are actors responsible for their roles in a cultural and even societal sense?
LA film culture made me a little uncomfortable. by Robert_de_Saint_Loup • last post Oct 3rd
I recently came back from a trip to LA with my friend Melissa who is an actress. She is in SAG so she is professional, but nothing really famous. My experience of LA film culture really opened my eyes to such a bleak and intense world. For example, I had no idea that teen actors in Nickelodeon and Disney Channel drank, smoke, and had a very 'adult' life. I go to this Malibu party with Melissa and I was just very surprised at how the teens there are all pretty damn adult-like. Im 22 by the way. Also, I learned the term 'chore whore' I can't believe how vulgar that term is. And the truth is that many of these 'chore whores' are young people who are likewise interested in entering the trade. Not slaves or robots. Also, the amount of "favors" are immense. I can't believe that casting directors and producers try to use their power to get into people's pants. I have always known about that, but the way it happens nobody really sees. The public doesn't really see the mechanisms, nuances, and exchanges. Another thing was the stress that celebrities deal with when it comes to their contract with a film. I noticed so many actors can be so helpless without their agent or manager. There's also a ton of fake people. So many fake 'congratulations' and 'you're amazing'. God, what a storm it all was
Headshot-Age Range-Character Type Post - Oct 3 by AutoModerator • last post Oct 3rd
Use this thread to post your headshots for feedback, get info on your age range/type, find good headshot photographers, ask any questions you may have about headshots. If you are posting a DIY headshot for feedback, and not just a snapshot in order to get feedback on your age range/type/etc, it is advised that you do at least some basic research on what actor headshots look like--composition, framing, lighting. You will find a Google Image search for "actor headshots" to be very helpful for this. Non-professional shots are fine for age/typecasting; please keep in mind that one picture is a difficult way to go about this. Video of you moving and speaking would be ideal, but understandably more difficult to post. For what it's worth, the branding workshop at SAG-AFTRA recommends a five-year age range. That's inclusive, so for example 19-23, 25-29, 34-38, etc.
Acting course gives me anxiety by BJThrowacc • last post Oct 3rd
Throwaway because this is very personal. I am an 18-year old actor not based in the US although it is my goal to go there in a couple of years. I recently decided to go for the dream I have had for 10 years and try to become an actor. Through contacts I was able to pretty much immediately book a leading role in a short film that we filmed this summer. I had never really worked hard at anything in my life but I worked really hard making the movie. And I absolutely loved every second of it. I got injured, I almost fainted, I almost threw up a few times (due to stunts), but I still absolutely loved it. Which really made me make my mind up. I also heard from the director that I was apparently really good, which he had heard from a person in the business that had no connection to me whatsoever. However I’m currently having a hard time with a course I am taking. It feels weird to open up to a bunch of people on the internet about this but I am very depressed and have a lot of anxiety. This makes it hard for me to do anything. I have a rough time getting up in the morning, cooking, cleaning, answering calls, you name it, I get anxiety from doing it and often I can’t do it at all. I really wish I was just lazy because that would be easier to do something about, but it is as if my whole body stops myself from doing these things. This is currently tough in my course because I just can’t do the homework, and I can’t get out of the door and go to the course. I am supposed to prepare a monologue but I just end up spending hours doing nothing because I just can’t do it. I have missed a few classes now and the entire thought of the course just gives me crippling anxiety. This also makes me feel like shit because I know how incredibly lucky I have been to book the short film this summer and another one that we are filming in a few weeks, and it feels like there are a lot of people who want that as well and who are actually able to get up and do something about it, so it feels like I am kind of taking up their place as well, I suppose I feel guilty. This became a lot longer than I first imagined so I’ll just ask the question now. Should I drop the course? Acting should be fun right? And not fill me with anxiety every time I think about it. Or should I at least try to power through with this one? Or maybe acting isn’t even for me? Whatever answer you have I will respect it and I will be very happy that you read and responded, thank you very much for that and your honesty <3
Getting beyond frustrated with barriers to the industry UK (Spotlight) by Saskiaaaa • last post Oct 3rd
I’m a 26yr old female actor in the UK desperately trying to advance in the industry I didn’t go to drama school, but am currently taking acting classes every week We have agents come in all the time but they won’t sign me because I’m not on Spotlight But I need professional credits to get on Spotlight but need an agent to get roles The agent I wanted to sign me said she needs me on spotlight so she can start getting me walk on roles But walk on roles don’t count towards Spotlight I did student films to build a showreel These also don’t count towards Spotlight The agent I wanted has recommended me an agent to get in touch with as they’re ‘a good place to start’ but they mainly do extras and commercial work these also don’t as Spotlight credits... like it’s starting to seem impossible It just seems crazy that; Commercials, idents, short films, corporate films, student productions and any work as an extra or supporting artist all do not count as Spotlight credits!!!! All these barriers punishing people for having the audacity to be over 25 and/or not going to drama school This was a bit of a rant but any advice would be greatly appreciated!
Would you say Orlando or Tampa is better for new actors? by GussOfReddit • last post Oct 3rd
I plan on attending UF Online for University. I will be 17 at the time as I am graduating early. One of the perks of attending UF Online is that you can live wherever you want in Florida. I want to work on myself as an actor so that I can eventually move to Los Angeles once I finish my degree (I have quite a few college credits and plan on graduating in 3 years). I'll be living with my mom as she is quite ill (the same goes for when we go to LA). She will be my dependent eventually. Anyways, we cannot live in South Florida due to health concerns regarding the climate and hurricanes. Anywhere in Central and Northern Florida is fine? Do you guys happen to know which cities are better for training as an actor and starting a career? (I hope to act in TV Shows eventually). I've heard Orlando is good as a lot of commercials are filmed there that can be used for SAG-AFRA? But I've also heard Tampa has a better market. Do y'all have any recommendations?
Looking to hire male and female English native speakers actors for a voice over by rrzibot • last post Oct 3rd
Hi, We are doing an online platform with tutorials for children. We are looking for a male and female actors to voice over the roles of 9-14 years old boy and girl. We also need a male teacher/parent and a female teacher/parent. The tutorials will be animated. Each tutorial will be about 5-10 minutes. It will be a dialog between the boy and the girl and sometimes the parents/teachers. We want to start with a few tutorials and then build this into a more long-term project with a few hours of recording each month. Tutorials would be available internationally so thick accents is not something that would work for us. Previous experience for us is that partners were trying to charge us by word which is not working for us. It might be suitable for 30 seconds tv/radio/youtube commercials with 100 words in it, but this scheme is not working for us because it is getting very expensive very quickly. A tutorial could contain hundreds (1-2 pages) of words in 10 minutes. We are looking for a pricing of produced 1 hour of recording. Nothing more would be required except to record in a quite environment without external noice and send the raw recording files to us. Sound editing would be done on our side. Script is prepared on our side. Video is prepared on our side. You will not be recording any video. What you could do to help us is prepare a sample reading out the first 10-20 sentences of the following wiki page https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer and direct message me for details. I will provide you with an email address to send the recording to. If you have a portfolio it would be great to send us examples from there, but it is not required. Thanks.
True Crime Reenactment? by HiImBeef • last post Oct 3rd
I am a relatively new actor, non-union with only a few credits. I have an agent. Should I take a speaking role on a true crime Reenactment show? It's a long drive for not much money, and I'd lose money on by missing work. I'm ok with these things if it's a chance to flesh out my resume, but I don't know much about these types of shows and how they're perceived on a resume. Will it help me or hurt me, or neither? I'm not sure what to do.
[REQUEST] Venezuelan voice over actors needed for adult animated cartoon proof of concept/animatic (English and Spanish) by nalgas4u • last post Oct 3rd
Paid but low budget. -- Hey everyone, I've created an 11 minute proof of concept animatic for an adult animated cartoon about two anthropomorphic Venezuelan foods learning how to adult in the streets of Caracas, Venezuela. Imagine a Venezuelan Rick and Morty or Apple and Onion. I am Venezuelan, the artist who created the boards is Venezuelan as well, and the plan is to find voice over talent that is Venezuelan also. The catch is, I'm producing this animatic in English and Spanish so you would have to be bilingual. A variety of voices are needed for all characters. The Animatic is almost "done," with temp VO, with the artist on hold if we need any changes. So if I were to get all the voices I need today, I can see the project being finished in less than a month. That's exciting! This is a self-funded passion project, the plan is to pitch it (using the animatic) to producers and try to turn it into an actual show. However, let's be realistic, chances are slim and the animatic is probably just gonna end up on YouTube, demonetized, as something cool we made. If you're interested, DM me your reel and we can talk about plans and rates. Please share with any Venezuelan voice over actors you know! Thanks!
Staying up late as a bartender but working early as an actor? by barfingclouds • last post Oct 2nd
I’m wondering if I should become a bartender to pay my bills, but can anybody speak to the insane discrepancy between staying up late as a bartender and having to wake up early for set jobs? I’m naturally a late night person, and recently I had some background actor jobs that I had to wake up at 6 am, and while I kind of made it work, if I’m a professional actor I don’t want it to be running on next to no sleep before a job, which would be the case every time for me if I was on a bartender’s sleeping schedule. Idk, I’d just love to hear some insight
Can you post pictures of your favorite male animated/drawn characters to help with a project? by a-goat-boi • last post Oct 2nd
I'm a voice actor doing something with a few friends called Actober. It's similar to the artists Inktober where the goal is to produce one finished thing a day for the month of October. My goal is to take pictures of characters and write short little 30-60 second monologues for them and come up with a voice for them, entirely by how they look. If you have a second, please post an image of one of your favorite male characters from something animated/drawn. It can be a game, show, movie, book, anything. I don't need context, just pictures of characters to form a voice concept for. Bonus points if I don't know the character or where they're from. Thanks for your help! ♥️
Where can I find actors? by tyler_finch • last post Oct 2nd
Hi, all. I need some advice when it comes to finding actors for my various film projects. I’ve never really considered reaching out into the community like this before. Should I put up fliers? Put an ad on Craigslist? What are your suggestions? (And yes, I am planning on paying my actors- obviously.) Thanks!
I have an immediate gig for a voice actor good with Excel by OMG_iLikeSaunas • last post Oct 2nd
I have an immediate gig for a voice actor good with Excel
How many auditions have you done this year? by ifeelpeachy • last post Oct 2nd
Asking for people who consider themselves professional actors, and especially looking to hear from NYC based actors. I had a goal to go on a certain number of auditions this year, and I've basically only hit a quarter of that goal. I'm trying to gauge if I was being a little unrealistic, or if I've been slacking. Think it might be a mix of both, but really want to hear how many auditions the general community goes on per year. Feel free to respond no matter your location, but for the sake of the poll say where you're located! Also please specify if it was mostly theatre, film, commercials, or a mix etc.
Moving agents in London? Etiquette, reasons etc. by poppyness • last post Oct 2nd
Hi all. I'm a British actor, currently represented by a nice bloke as a part of an agency he started. I get very few auditions from him & while I must keep in mind the possibility that I'm just not as good as I want to be... I'm starting to feel that I'm not being 'pimped' enough. I'm really tall, taller than average and know that it'll exclude me from many roles, but not ALL of them? Many, if not most of my emails to him go unanswered. I've asked to meet up to chat about the way forward but nearly 2 years, still nothing. So questions: How often do you meet up with your agent? Spotlight submissions.. I only have 'nudge'. Is that normal? Does being 6'6" really mean I'm not suitable for regular roles. How do I approach prospective agents, while being repped by another? Just an insecure moment before I go shopping for agents... I like mine, but also like my career more...