How To Get Into Acting

Many people have wanted to know how they can get into acting. Sometimes a model realizes that he or she cannot make a full-time living with a modeling career. Other models are aware of their limitations such as height and bone structure. They know that beyond print work, it can be real tough to get into modeling. So they choose to step into the broader acting field.

Acting requires more specialized training than modeling does. Most actors and actresses get into acting by getting involved in theatre, dramas, plays and stage productions. Many actors and actresses also get into acting through an acting coach. An acting coach trains you much like an athletic coach does, except the muscle that is trained is your “acting muscle”. You are trained in learning improvisation, cold reading, and acting methods. These are generally the basics for a beginning actor.

The range of skills that an actor must have to be effective is very wide. You need to have a mastery of your body for movement that can include fighting, dancing, or evocative expressions. Your voice, too, must be clear enough to be understood from a distance, and you might also need some talent in singing or putting on accents. The most difficult aspect by far, though, is the emotional one, as you must be able to assume different emotions at will - crying on demand, for example, or being able to give an effective illusion of happiness or excitement.

One of the most widely-used means of portraying realistic emotions is Stanislavski's theory of method acting, which you would do well to study if you wish to become an actor. Basically, the idea is that when you are acting, you think of a time when you felt the emotion you wish to portray. For example, if your character is sad over the death of their mother, you might think of the time when you were small and your dog died, and so start crying. There's more to it than that, but that's the basic theory, and it can give a very convincing performance when done correctly.