Acting in Columbus Newsletter | April 2011

Acting in Columbus presents 'BEYOND A REASONABLE DOUBT'

2011-03-27T13:44:00.000-07:00

Acting in Columbus presents the Advanced Acting for Film Student Project 'BEYOND A REASONABLE DOUBT' Sunday April 10, 2011 6:00pm at the GATEWAY FILM CENTER.

On Sunday April 10, 2011 at 6pm ACTING IN COLUMBUS will screen the short film 'BEYOND A REASONABLE DOUBT' featuring the students from the Advanced Acting for Film class at the GATEWAY FILM CENTER (http://gatewayfilmcenter.com/). This film is based on 12 Angry Men, the 1954 teleplay by Reginald Rose.

Following the 6:00pm screening there will be a Reception in the lounge. Tickets are $5.00 - Seating is limited. Tickets are available at the door or in advance.
BUY TICKETS
For more information about Acting in Columbus and the classes and workshops we offer, visit our website: http://actingincolumbus.net

UPCOMING AUDITIONS

2011-03-27T12:27:00.000-07:00

Mantis and Moon Casting Call

Mantis and Moon Moving Pictures and Sound announces auditions for an upcoming feature film to be shot in Toledo.
Our first full length Feature film (Out of the Shadows) won the award for “Best Drama Feature” at the 2005 Hollywood International HD Film Festival, and was placed on the Internet Movie Data Base, here. The “Thunder Series” are our nature documentaries which play nationally on PBS which can be foundhere and here.

In an effort to always remain on the "cutting edge" of high definition cinematography, Mantis and Moon has recently moved from shooting in DVCPRO HD to Red Cam. Some examples of movies shot with a Red camera include 'The Social Network', 'District 9' and 'Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides'. We are excited by this and are hopeful that it will take us to the next level in movie-making.

Interested parties for the Cast and Crew member positions should contact Chuy at (419) 535-7482 and/or e-mail your Head-Shot and Resume to: chuy@mantisandmoon.com

Good luck, and thanks for your interest.

Chuy DeLosSantos

Acting for Film Students' Final Scenes

2011-03-27T12:10:00.000-07:00

Acting in Columbus presents the final scenes from the Acting for Film for Beginners class - Winter 2011 Sessions.

ACTING FOR FILM EIGHT-WEEK SCENE STUDY
Acting Fundamentals for beginners
Wednesdays, beginning April 6 - May 25, 2011 7:00pm-9:30pm. $200

This class is limited to 12 students.

This class offers a focused introduction to the acting process. Beginning actors work, stage, and shoot several film scenes during the eight-week session. We work in depth on concepts central to the actor's role development for film. We use Shurtleff's 12 Guideposts as our basic text to help students make strong choices with a wide variety of scenes and monologues. Your ability to make active, personal choices is essential for dynamic auditions and performances for stage and film.

UPCOMING WORKSHOPS

2011-03-27T12:08:00.000-07:00

Acting in Columbus students Beth S and Kyei A.

Classes for adults in:

Acting for TV Commercials - Introduction to Acting for the Camera - Sunday, April 17, 2011 1:00-8:00pm. $175

Acting for Film for Beginners -Wednesdays, beginning April 6 - May 25, 2011 7:00pm-9:30pm. $200

Advanced Acting for Film: Shooting a Film/Demo Reel - Mondays, beginning April 11 - May 23, 2011 7:00-9:30pm. $250

MASTER CLASS: Audition Monologues and Scene Study - Thursdays, April 7, - May 26, 2011 7-9:30 $200

Classes for young performers (teens ages 12-16):

ACTING FOR TV, FILM and COMMERCIALS - Saturdays, beginning April 2 - May 21, 2011 10:00am-12:00pm $150

Advanced Acting for Teens: ACTING IN A MOVIE! -Saturdays, beginning April 2 - May 21, 2011 2:00pm-4:00pm $250

__________________________________________________________

Improv Workshop at the FUNNYBONE

with JEFF GAGE local actor/ teacher with over 20 years of experience.

Classes will meet every Sunday, 1- 3:30 p.m. Starting Aril 10th, 2011 at The Funnybone Comedy Club located in the Easton Town Center.

Graduation performance for your family and friends at The Funnybone.

Jeff Gage began his improv career in 1986. Then as a founding member of Midwest Comedy Tool and Die he toured the US and Canada performing for Comedy Clubs, colledges and corporate events. He's trained with Paul Sils. Founder of The Compass Players and Second City and improvisation as an american theatre form. He still teaches and performs corporate theatre with Say What? ! Improv Group.

Class size is limited, call now to reserve your spot!

For more information Call Jeff Gage:
614-638-8711 or 614-946-6802 or by

Email: MCTDSHOW@hotmail.com

Advanced Marketing Techniques for Actors

2011-03-27T12:05:00.000-07:00

The headshot (an 8 x 10 photograph of an actor), cover letter (a brief letter introducing an actor) and résumé (a listing of training and experience in the performing arts) are the traditional tools that actors use to market themselves. Actors send them to casting directors, talent agents and other industry professionals in an effort to obtain work and representation.

But these tools are not the only tools at an actor’s disposal. Sophisticated actors know that there are many other tools an actor can use to get his face, name and talents in front of decision-makers. Sophisticated actors use an array of postcards, business cards, thank-you notes, greeting cards, and performance invitations to sell themselves to directors, producers and agents.

Actor Postcards

Postcards, small and inexpensive pieces of mailing, are a great way for actors to keep in touch with casting directors. Postcards can also be sent as thank-you notes. Actors can put their headshots and contact information on these postcards. Later, if a casting director is auditioning actors for an upcoming movie, the postcard may help the actor gain consideration for an audition.

Business Cards

Actors can use their headshots to produce business cards. An actor's business card is similar to a traditional business card, except that an actor’s business card will contain the actor's headshot and contact information (or the contact information of his or her agency).
Actors can use their business cards to market themselves. Instead of carrying around a bunch of 8x10 headshots, actors can carry their business cards in their wallets and pocketbooks. They can then pass out these business cards to network with industry professionals or other actors.

Thank-You Notes

A thank-you note is a note of thanks that an actor sends to a casting director, perhaps thanking him for the opportunity to audition. Actors usually send thank-you notes in the form of a postcard. The postcard contains the actor's headshot and contact information (or his agent's contact information). Thank you notes are a great way for an actor to establish a relationship with a casting director, increasing the actor's chances of getting more auditions and future consideration for acting roles.

Greeting Cards
Greeting cards are tools that sophisticated actors use to maintain relationships with casting directors and other decision-makers. When important holidays come around, such as Christmas or Thanksgiving, an actor can send a greeting card. The greeting card might contain a “happy holiday” message along with a more personal message, such as “Thanks for giving me the chance to audition last month”. It’s a great way to use the holidays as an excuse to contact decision-makers without being a pest about it.

Performance Invitations

When an actor is performing in a play or film, it may be a good idea to let directors and producers know about it. This way, the actor essentially gets a “free” audition, using that performance as a way to get directors and producers interested in the actor. Therefore, the actor might send an invitation to decision-makers, identifying when and where a performance might take place.

To be sure, traditional forms of marketing are always the most effective way for an actor to get noticed. But sophisticated actors know that you must use every available resource—greeting cards, thank-you notes, business cards, postcards, invitations—and other tools to give yourself that extra edge.

CRAFT NOTES by Ed Hooks

2011-03-27T11:46:00.000-07:00

"...LISTEN, LISTEN, LISTEN, REALLY LISTEN ..."

Vanessa Redgrave, currently appearing on Broadway in Driving Miss Daisy with James Earl Jones, sat for a rare interview recently ("A Reluctant Redgrave, On 'Daisy' And More" by Patrick Healy, New York Times, February 16, 2011). Asked about her craft and the challenges of working in a two-character play, Ms. Redgrave offered this about the importance of listening. "I've certainly taken it as something I've worked on myself - listen, listen, listen, really listen. You think you're listening, but you really have to work at it." Of course she is correct about that, just as it would be good advice that one "...see, see, see, really see..." and "...touch, touch, touch, really touch...". But it is worth pointing out that the kind of listening we do while in a conversation is more complex than it might seem. Let me explain:

In a conversation, we do not take turns listening; we take turns talking. Roger Schank, a former professor at Yale and Northwestern Universities, wrote a book entitled Tell Me a Story -Narrative and Intelligence - (Northwestern University Press, 1990. ISBN 0-8101-1313-9, US$23 on Amazon.com) in which he talks about us being "story based". We tell stories to ourselves and to one another. I am over-simplifying now, but the process basically works like this: Beginning as an infant, you experience things and tell yourself stories about them and, throughout your life, you expand, update and revise those stories. By the time you are an adult, the stories are densely cross-referenced. If, for instance, I tell you in conversation about the wonderful Thai restaurant where I had dinner last night, the moment you hear "Thai restaurant", you will start mentally running through your own stories, cross-referencing to Thai restaurants you have enjoyed (or not), which may in turn cross-reference to your trip to Thailand. This process happens faster than the blink of an eye, and you immediately have a story to tell me as soon as it is your turn to talk. You are only partially listening to the rest of what I am saying because you have that story ready, and you are deciding not to interrupt.

New actors spend a lot of time doing sensory exercises, especially listening. Everybody in class sits very still while listening to sounds outside on the street; you count how many different sounds you can name if you really listen; you listen to the sound of your own breathing and that of your fellow students. The Meisner Technique, a popular approach to acting training in the U.S. includes practice listening in conversation. In "the repetition exercise", two students sit facing one another and proceed to listen and repeat, not as characters but as themselves. Listen, repeat, listen repeat, which is actually the same thing as listen, react, listen react except that the actor is more mindful of the reaction. The repetitions become a kind of organic communication in which both students are reacting honestly.

Some new actors have initial difficulty with the repetition exercise, and I think the reason is because it is counter-intuitive. Our impulse, as Mr. Schank points out, is to talk, not to listen. You listen to the other person long enough to come up with your story. Don't get me wrong, I think the repetition exercise is swell. I have no problem with it at all. I simply think that the exercise is not really teaching an actor to listen so much as it is to be "present", "in the moment".

With respect to Vanessa Redgrave, listening - in and of itself - is not really going to do much for an actor. Ms. Redgrave's special talent is that she allows what she hears to stimulate her emotionally, which propels her into doing something. Listening is not an end in itself, no matter how truthful it may be. Acting is "doing", which means you are playing an action in pursuit of an objective while overcoming an obstacle. Theatrical reality is not the same thing as regular reality. It is compressed in time and space and has structure. By all means, listen carefully. Then do something. One more time: We take turns talking; we don't take turns listening.

BOOK OF THE MONTH

2011-03-27T11:40:00.000-07:00

Smart Actors, Foolish Choices: A Self-Help Guide to Coping with the Emotional Stresses of the Business

By Katherine Mayfield

Here is the first and only book entirely to the emotional side of the performing arts. Smart Actors, Foolish Choices is a resource for anyone who needs to know how to deal with ego-bruising rejection, with anxiety and fear, and with the numerous other challenges of staying happy--and sane--in the turbulent world of show business.