Becoming an Actor

If you are planning to become an actor make sure that you have a passion for the craft and the patience for waiting until you get the big break. The task of actors is to ensure that you will have to wait until you can reap the rewards although this can be a tough as well as a challenging job in itself. It can also be difficult to come across actor jobs as it is a profession that takes into account a lot of commitment and fortitude. The audience feels that the job of acting is glamorous, although this is a profession that requires a lot of talent as well as study and training.

The job of actors is one that comes with a minimum amount of security and is both intellectually as well as physically demanding. The responsibilities of an actor are many and it is a job that entails a god deal of satisfaction, irrespective of the medium you are acting in whether it is plays, films, or on TV. Few actors become stars and many of them are successful in finding steady employment. The role of the acting professionals includes the following:

• Working in regional and local acting companies
• Appearing in industrial and commercial shows
• Narrating films
• Reading stories and plays for the audio books
• Playing minor parts in movies, radio, or TV commercials

Actor jobs also include finding jobs of the following designations

• Dramatic coaches
• Directors
• Acting teachers in schools, colleges, and local theater groups

The academic requirements for actors do not include any particular field or discipline, although as formal training you are required to enroll in an acting school or class. A good actor is required to study all their lives and choose a good class with the help of friends as well as professionals in the field for references. Extra curricular drama programs and education is often offered in high schools in the field of the theatrical arts.



Other than developing the best of acting skills, the job of the actor is to study the following:

• Speech
• Voice
• Pantomime
• Dance and movement
• Period styles
• Improvisation

Some of the other skills that are inherent in many acting jobs include the following:

• Juggling
• Fencing
• Playing a musical instrument
• Knowledge of theater history and film production
• Psychology courses

Generally, actors are required to be formally trained, although what is most important in actor jobs are practical training. Special training sessions are available in the dramatic arts at professional studios and schools for actors. Training courses are available in Los Angeles and New York City. There are over 600 colleges and universities offering people with drama schools as well as theater arts programs.

The more the actor's experience in the acting job, the better it is for them to get new projects. You can join a theater group or participate in public speaking or the school plays or view plays and films avidly. When training is coupled with practical experience, it helps the actor sample a diverse range of employment possibilities.

The global career prospects for acting professionals are good, although this is an extremely challenging job, since the very nature of it is extremely creative. Once you are ready to spend hours on it, you can make a head way. Rehearsing your parts over and over again will give you expertise and help you make a good start with fair possibilities of advancement.

According to the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average salaries for actor jobs in Broadway on an annual basis as of May 2004 are $1500 a week. A majority of the actors of the Screen Actors Guild make millions of dollars a year. An off Broadway actor earns between $494 and $859 a week, depending on the seating capacity of the theater. On tour acting can get you $770 a week for food and accommodation expenses for the requirements of the profession.

The actors spend their time studying their lines, rehearsing their parts as well as learning the basics of the movement as well as gestures, deliveries, cues, and expressions. The actor also keeps in mind projecting the characters they are portraying in the best manner possible to the audience.