An Actor's Guide—Making It in New York City, Third Edition


Book Description

A Step-by-Step Guide for the Actor Pursuing a Career in New York A great deal has changed in the industry in the last decade. In this new, third edition of An Actor’s Guide—Making It in New York City, Glenn Alterman provides everything actors need to know. You’ll discover the ten things that it takes to make it as a successful actor in the city, how to support yourself, where and how to start your life as a New York actor, understanding and marketing “your brand,” the best acting schools and conservatories, effective ways to contact agents and casting directors, and more. The author, a successful working actor, also shares many insider tips on topics such as: how to network effectively headshots, photographers, and how to have a successful photo session creating your actor websites the best Internet resources and casting sites how to give winning auditions and interviews finding and developing great monologues off and off-off Broadway opportunities TV and film opportunities voice-overs commercial print modeling commercials survival jobs appropriate behavior in the business scams and rip-offs to avoid information for actors with disabilities information on diversity and LGBTQ concerns a listing of agents, casting directors and theaters Among the book’s many interviews are legendary show business figures, such as actors Henry Winkler, Alison Fraser, Dylan Baker, Lisa Emery, and Charles Busch, as well as casting directors Juliet Taylor, Ellen Lewis, Jay Binder, Donna DeSeta, and Liz Lewis, among many others. With Alterman’s essential guide, you’ll be prepared to launch and maintain your dream career in the city that never sleeps.




The Map


Book Description

The MAP: An Actor's Guide to On-Camera Acting teaches on-camera acting in a practical and technical way—helping new actors understand the rules of on-camera acting as if they are learning a foreign language and applying that language to their acting skill set. The book gives actors a step-by-step technique on how to audition for on-camera acting jobs and what to do on set after booking them. Many on-camera acting books are written by established movie stars and aren't geared toward actors in an undergraduate acting program or those who are just starting to audition for on-camera jobs for the first time. Stef Tovar teaches his proven on-camera acting technique, shows actors how to make the perfect self-tape, and prepares them for life on set—detailing the differences between working in the theater vs. working in television and film. The author peppers the text with his own stories from set as examples, including auditioning for Lee Daniels and working with Matt Damon, Steven Soderbergh, and many others. The MAP is a funny and encouraging perspective from a seasoned actor who shares with aspiring actors things no one tells you before booking your first on-camera acting job.




Auditioning On Camera


Book Description

To win a screen role, an actor must learn to contend with an on-camera audition. Understanding how to make the crucial adjustments to one’s craft that this kind of audition requires is vital to the career of any screen actor. Auditioning On Camera sets out the key elements of a successful on-camera audition and explains how to put them into practice. Joseph Hacker draws on 35 years of acting experience to guide the reader through the screen auditioning process with an engaging and undaunting approach. Key elements examined include: textual analysis knowing where to look dealing with nerves on-camera interviews using the environment retaining the camera’s focus The book also features point-by-point chapter summaries, as well as a glossary of acting and technical terms, and is a comprehensive and enlightening resource for screen actors of all levels.




The Art of Film Acting


Book Description

This guide for actors and directors develops a valid method for training performers to act from their core--whether they are cold reading, auditioning, or performing for film or television. This book teaches actors how to achieve and respond to believable and honest emotions before the camera, and it maintains that the key to a successful performance lies in how the actors relate to one another and to the circumstances. Exercises, including script examples, throughout the book give readers an easy resource for practicing the principles outlined. The Art of Film Acting applies a classic stage acting method (Stanislavsky) to the more intimate medium of performing before a camera, teaching readers to experience an emotion rather than to indicate it.




The Actor's Guide to Creating a Character


Book Description

William Esper, one of the most celebrated acting teachers of our time, takes us through his step-by-step approach to the central challenge of advanced acting work: creating and playing a character. Esper’s first book, The Actor’s Art and Craft, earned praise for describing the basics taught in his famous first-year acting class. The Actor’s Guide to Creating a Character continues the journey. In these pages, co-author Damon DiMarco vividly re-creates Esper’s second-year course, again through the experiences of a fictional class. Esper’s training builds on Sanford Meisner’s legendary exercises, a world-renowned technique that Esper further developed through his long association with Meisner and the decades he has spent training a host of distinguished actors. His approach is flexible enough to apply to any role, helping actors to create characters with truthful and compelling inner lives.




The Stage Actor's Handbook


Book Description

An invaluable guide to the traditions and best practices of the professional stage actor, from first rehearsal to final curtain. Professional stage actors are expected to have ready knowledge of a multitude of unwritten yet well-established protocols. Traditionally, this knowledge was passed along from one generation of stage actors to the next via word of mouth, or were learned by having one’s missteps corrected—until now. In The Stage Actor’s Handbook, these protocols have finally been assembled into one volume, allowing theatre artists to know in advance what is expected of them. A definitive guide for professionals and aspiring professionals alike, this book details best practices on everything from rehearsal demeanor to backstage etiquette. It also shares the theatre’s unique vernacular and revered superstitions, as well as field-tested guidelines on touring, interactions with the public, and more. Written by established theatre pros Michael Kostroff (The Producers, Les Misérables)and Julie Garnyé (Cats, Come From Away), The Stage Actor’s Handbook features bits of wisdom contributed by legendary stage actors, including Bebe Neuwirth, John Lithgow, Chita Rivera, Alfred Molina, Billy Porter, Betty Buckley, Harvey Fierstein, Sam Waterston, Jason Alexander, Cynthia Nixon, and Sir Patrick Stewart.




Acting in Film


Book Description

(Applause Books). A master actor who's appeared in an enormous number of films, starring with everyone from Nicholson to Kermit the Frog, Michael Caine is uniquely qualified to provide his view of making movies. This revised and expanded edition features great photos, with chapters on: Preparation, In Front of the Camera Before You Shoot, The Take, Characters, Directors, On Being a Star, and much more. "Remarkable material ... A treasure ... I'm not going to be looking at performances quite the same way ... FASCINATING!" Gene Siskel




Acting Face to Face


Book Description

Acting Face to Face: the Actor's Guide to Understanding How Your Face Communicates Emotion for TV and Film is the first book to define the significant difference between acting for the stage and acting for the camera. That difference being how your face communicates thought, feeling and emotion. The actor who has the tools and skills to create and control how and what their face communicates is the actor most suited to work in front of the camera. Acting Face to Face is also the first book in a series about the "Language of the Face" - or how the face communicates nonverbally. The book is particularly useful for actors transitioning from stage to screen, by clearly defining the difference. On stage, you communicate with your body and voice; on camera you need to add a third means of communication - your face. When you understand this difference, you also understand why only a small percentage of actors get the majority of on-camera work. Acting Face to Face reveals the tools you'll need to level the playing field.Acting Face to Face exposes the myths and misconceptions about on-camera while addressing some of the major challenges most actors face when relying solely on their stage acting training to work in front of the camera. The book contains detailed photos and experiential exercises; it also helps you understand how you personally communicate and what's missing or misunderstood about your facial expressions, so you can take your acting to the next level.After working with thousands of actors and studying the work of leading researchers in the field of emotions for over 10 years, John Sudol - a veteran actor, director, casting director, Hollywood acting teacher and audition coach - has developed this book series, which stands to change the face of acting.Though developed specifically for actors, this book is also helpful to anyone in the communications business who would benefit from knowing how their face nonverbally speaks to others.* The second book of the Language of the Face series, Acting Face to Face 2, How to Create Genuine Emotion for the Camera is now available. Whereas the first Acting Face to Face defined the challenges of On-Camera Acting, Acting Face to Face 2, reveals a step-by-step process to overcoming those challenges.




Know Small Parts


Book Description

Based on 20 years in the industry as an actor, producer, writer and director, Know Small Parts is real life advice from someone who's lived it. The Foreword is written by Academy and Golden Globe Award winner Richard Dreyfuss and the book contains behind-the-scenes stories of Quentin Tarantino, Leonardo DiCaprio, Shirley MacLaine, David Carradine and Tony Scott, among many others. This clear-eyed, realistic step-by-step guide offers wisdom on breaking down a scene, standing out at an audition, talking to celebrities, how to work without representation, developing marketing materials, landing commercials, creating your own momentum, what to do when it all goes wrong, working outside Los Angeles, surviving rejection, how to get clothing for the red carpet and much, much more. With information for beginners and pros alike, it's not just invaluable insight for actors looking to mark their mark in the industry, it's great advice for anyone looking to take control of their destiny. Filled with specific examples from movies and television, the book also reveals personal, often funny, stories from the author's own journey through successes and blunders turning minutes into moments and moments into a career. "She is a role model... and a true leading lady. Enjoy what she has to say and see if you can see yourself in her journey." Kevin Costner (Academy and Golden Globe Award Winner) "She's nailed the daily life of an actor in LA about as perfectly detailed as it gets." Richard Dreyfuss (Academy and Golden Globe Award Winner) "She has literally figured out a way to bottle lightning. I'm sure that her observations and guidance will be invaluable to the actor who is looking to make his or her mark in the film world and to build a career, moment by moment." Lou Diamond Phillips (Golden Globe Nominee) "She knows what a director wants and what an editor needs to tell the story. She's the real deal." Dennis Christopher (Golden Globe Nominee) "Laura has strength, courage and the conviction and - pardon my French but, the balls - to hold on to her place in this business. Read her book and you'll find out how." Joanna Cassidy (Golden Globe Winner) "After 30 years in casting....I feel like Laura was sitting on my shoulder all these years. She has expertly explained key notes for an actor to know and understand pursuing their career. An Actor is in "SHOW" and 'BUSINESS." This book helps the Know How!" Victoria Burrows (Casting Director: Lord of the Rings and Hobbit trilogies, Cast Away) "Laura Cayouette is a working actress that also has a happy, well-balanced life. Figuring out how she manages this feat is certainly worth a read." Reginald Hudlin (Producer: Django Unchained; Director: Boomerang) "I write off most of these books. But this one I can't. It stands far above most giving smart, logical, realistic and poignant advice." George W. Perkins (Executive Producer: Desperate Housewives, 3-time Emmy Nominee) "Laura's smart, sensible and no nonsense step by step approach to achieving a career as an actor is certain to be the new bible for everyone yearning to break into the biz." Adam Rifkin (Writer/Director. Showtime's Reality Show, Detroit Rock City, Mousehunt) "A must read gift for actors. Laura Cayouette, a successful actor and renowned journalist thoroughly lays out a path to artistic fulfillment and success. Bravo! The Dude Abides." Jeff "The Dude" Dowd (Producer, movie marketing maven) "A clear eyed, detailed, no nonsense guide to the often mysterious world of TV/Film auditioning and performing. Laura's experience as an actor and producer gives her a 360 view of the process which she shares in the voice of your audition guru; she's been to the mountain and returned with all the wisdom you'll ever need." Alicia Ruskin (Agency Partner: Kazarian/Spencer/Ruskin & Assoc.)




The Actor's Business Plan


Book Description

The Actor's Business Plan is a self-directed practical guide for actors graduating from formal training programs, as well as for those already in the business whose careers need to move ahead more successfully. Using the familiar language of acting training, the book offers a method for the achievement of dreams through a five-year life and career plan giving positive steps to develop a happy life as an actor and as a person. It assists performers to flourish using the same kind of business/career planning that is a necessary part of life for entrepreneurs and business people. This introduction to the acting industry provides essential knowledge not only for how the business actually works, but also describes what casting directors, agents, and managers do, demystifies the role of unions, discusses how much things cost, and offers advice on branding and marketing strategies. It differs from other such handbooks in that it addresses the everyday issues of life, money, and jobs that so frequently destroy an actor's career before it is even begun. While addressing NYC and LA, the guide also gives a regional breakdown for those actors who may wish to begin careers or to settle in other cities. It is loaded with personal stories, and interviews with actors, casting directors, and agents from throughout the US. The Actor's Business Plan is the answer to the common complaint by students that they were not taught how to negotiate the show business world while at school. It is the perfect antidote for this problem and can easily fit into a ten or a thirteen-week class syllabus. Offering support as a personal career coach, empowering the actor to take concrete steps towards their life and career dreams, The Actor's Business Plan: A Career Guide for the Acting Life is a must-have book for actors who are determined to be a part of the professional world .