Studying Method is not for the faint-hearted! It requires courage, will-power, perseverance, hard work and a willingness to face yourself head-on. It means making sacrifices and recognizing that some of the things you regard as important in your life may have to take a back seat for a period of time. Few first-year students have the drive to complete the year and even fewer go on to a second- third- and fourth year of study. It takes three to four years to complete the course. Only then can you call yourself a "Method Actor".
Once a student has worked his or her way through all the exercises over a period of time, s/he is fully prepared to go into an industry that eats actors and directors for breakfast and then spits them out! By then the actor will have all the qualities necessary to enter into the entertainment industry, however. The actor will know that s/he is fully trained, has solid technique and experience, the persistence to continue auditioning no matter how many rejections s/he faces and the ability to create original work and follow through on putting that work in front of an audience in whatever form - theatre, film or television.
Artists are not formed overnight. It takes time to shape an instrument which is capable of doing whatever is required as a character or to acquire the knowledge, maturity and experience to be a director of note. Many who wish to be actors believe that it's going to be easy to get into a position where they become "known" and get lots of work, to be famous ... which is really what they want. For them being an actor or director is secondary ... the means to an end ... and excellence in their craft is not a requirement. Being an inferior or mediocre "star" is fine, as long as the money-and-fame pay-off is there.
The true artist sees things differently. For him or her contributing to the art form is what it is all about. S/he has a powerful will and is powerfully possessed by one idea, working towards truly being an ARTIST in a chosen field. The true artist does not ask what acting, for instance, can do for him or her but what s/he can do to bring depth to the art form. Energy, hard work, time, struggle and self-questioning is part of the path towards true artistry. You need to stop saying "I can't" in order to be capable of doing anything you want to do. You cannot allow obstacles to get in the way.
At the Method Actors' Training Centre we train artists. That is our purpose. We wish to work with the small minority who share the dream of excellence, who want to give to the art forms of acting and directing with commitment and "gravitas", who truly wish to become the best they can possibly be at what they do.
Once a student has worked his or her way through all the exercises over a period of time, s/he is fully prepared to go into an industry that eats actors and directors for breakfast and then spits them out! By then the actor will have all the qualities necessary to enter into the entertainment industry, however. The actor will know that s/he is fully trained, has solid technique and experience, the persistence to continue auditioning no matter how many rejections s/he faces and the ability to create original work and follow through on putting that work in front of an audience in whatever form - theatre, film or television.
Artists are not formed overnight. It takes time to shape an instrument which is capable of doing whatever is required as a character or to acquire the knowledge, maturity and experience to be a director of note. Many who wish to be actors believe that it's going to be easy to get into a position where they become "known" and get lots of work, to be famous ... which is really what they want. For them being an actor or director is secondary ... the means to an end ... and excellence in their craft is not a requirement. Being an inferior or mediocre "star" is fine, as long as the money-and-fame pay-off is there.
The true artist sees things differently. For him or her contributing to the art form is what it is all about. S/he has a powerful will and is powerfully possessed by one idea, working towards truly being an ARTIST in a chosen field. The true artist does not ask what acting, for instance, can do for him or her but what s/he can do to bring depth to the art form. Energy, hard work, time, struggle and self-questioning is part of the path towards true artistry. You need to stop saying "I can't" in order to be capable of doing anything you want to do. You cannot allow obstacles to get in the way.
At the Method Actors' Training Centre we train artists. That is our purpose. We wish to work with the small minority who share the dream of excellence, who want to give to the art forms of acting and directing with commitment and "gravitas", who truly wish to become the best they can possibly be at what they do.
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