Doug Warhit's Acting Blog

“if you want to work on your art, work on your life.”
-Anton Chekov

Josh Hutcherson who played the teenage son in “The Kids are Alright” with Annette Bening and Mark Ruffalo was initially quite intimidated. “Crap, how am I going to stack up?” But when he started shooting, “I would be doing a scene they’d just be listening, but they were really listening.” It reminded him to put his attention on the other person and to really connect.

“When I see younger actors getting all this publicity, I say to myself, Well they’ve been given a great opportunity. I hope they know within themselves that all that matters at the end of the day is the work.”
-Leonardo DiCaprio

“There is so much I still have to learn, so many things I have to get better at.”
-Kevin Kline Academy Award Winner

Robert Duvall: “Within each character, I like to find the contradictions. Even when I played Stalin, I tried to find a vulnerable point for that guy.”
Sissy Spacek on Robert Duvall: “Every actor has their own process, but his is seamless. He just becomes.”
“His technique balances intense preparation and spontaneity.”

If you’re an actor, you must work on your skills everyday. (Not just once a week in class) Get together with friends and do some cold readings. Do sensory work and repetitions. Learn a new monologue. Create an original character. Find your own projects. Watch a scene from a film. Watch it again and again. Did it work? What would you have done differently. There’s always more to do. Don’t just sit around waiting for the phone to ring.

If you are intimidated by the camera, (and even if you’re not) set up a camera on a tripod and spend ten minutes a day reading scenes, singing, doing monologues, creating a video diary, doing sensory work. Do activities that inspire and excite you so when its time to actually shoot a project you won’t be able to wait to get on the set and play.

Many actors find something to distract them from the work. Their height, their nose, their voice, their memorization skills, their age etc. This is a way to control the process so the actor can reject themselves before anyone else can and often this makes failure a self-fulfilling prophesy. Focus on what is in your control: the exciting choices you can make for your character. Your passion and commitment to your art, not the bullshit in your head.

If you get the audition sides in advance, it is always beneficial to run the material with someone else. If no one is available, email the material to a fellow actor and run your lines on Skype. (Or at least over the phone) Remember the work is about your relationship with the other character, not that piece of paper in your hands.