I teach a very involved process in my "Instinct" class at Krater Studios. I ask my actors to really develop a sense of who they are, what their point of view is and articulate their experiences in today's world.
It requires commitment, trust and an element of fearlessness in an actor's work. I also know, it gives freedom, purpose and deep satisfaction to those who take the journey.
So much has been going on in our world the past few weeks. I know that is always the case, but these days things seem heightened. I noticed that when my actors were coming into class, there wasn't an honest conversation going on about what was happening and so...the work had a feeling of suspended animation.
I challenged everyone to talk about their feelings regarding what had gone on in Ferguson and NY. At first people seemed reticent. I do understand on some level why. There is a fatigue that comes along with all the clamoring going on right now. And yet...I cannot help but feel we as the storytellers need to be able to process, express and speak to one another about how our world is making us feel. We need to communicate about what our world is doing to one another. We need to know if we are just going for entertainment or escapism that that is at least a choice and not by default.
You see, every time we act we are coming from somewhere. Whether we like it or not, we are impacted by what goes on around us.
When I encouraged the actors to just take the opening of their scenes with some kind of connection to what had gone on this week, the work was instantly better. The room had an excitement, tension and electricity to it. When I asked them to get political in their work, the scenes became brilliant I asked everyone if they were afraid to engage politically in their work. The room mumbled a "no we are not afraid."
"Are you sure?", I asked.
As actors shouldn't we at least be clear about what we are and are not willing to do in our work? I don't care what your point of view is. I just care that it is present. You see, it is up to us on some level to talk about things that other pockets of our communities avoid. In my opinion that is a big part of what acting is all about.
As actors we don't have the luxury of being lazy, uninformed or frightened. How can you play in a show like Homeland if you don't understand what is going on in the world today? How can your jokes be as funny as they might if you pretend the world isn't as complicated as it is.
The deal is that acting for the camera is about being private in public. You don't have to run around telling everyone every opinion you have about today's current events, but if you truly want to be an actor you should understand on some level that between the word action and cut there is a world of experience for you to reveal and share with your audience. I personally don't care to watch that exchange if it is neutered or dumbed down.
Just standing up and saying "This is how I feel", is on some level a political statement. Telling the truth which is a corner stone of acting technique goes against much of what is acceptable in many circles and cultures in our world today.
Knowing that on some level is essential. I guarantee it will make your work more dynamic and much more interesting to watch.
I do know that the actors went home thinking this week. For me that is what art is all about.
x
Jen
Monday, December 8, 2014
Monday, November 17, 2014
Opportunity
Getting older does have it's advantages.
One thing I have discovered is how precious your time is. We truly don't know how long someone will stay in our lives or what the next day will bring. Keeping that in mind, allows us to make the most of the opportunities we have at hand.
Making the most of those opportunities is what brings the work alive in our acting.
Each time we step in front of the lens, we have the opportunity to take a risk, fall in love, reveal a truth and discover something we didn't know before. We have the freedom to define a thought, articulate our experience and share in what it means to be human.
The unknown has the potential to be filled with magic and discovery.
We musn't let the mundane take away our appreciation and curiosity for what we do.
In acting exploration is everything.
When we focus on making a scene work, getting the line right or follow some type of rigid demand that the intellect makes of us, we loose our ability create. We cut off the most vital part of who we are as an artist. That kind of experience is limiting and at times frustrating, because on some level we have given our work over to someone else's way of thinking.
When we are young we want so much. We feel so much. We have energy reserves that literally propel us forward into our lives, our self discovery. If I could give advice to young actors everywhere (and I suppose young and old alike) it would be not to waste your time worrying so much about what everyone else is thinking. The present moment offers an actor the ability to experience whether we are speaking from a sense of truth or obligation. The actor him or herself, ultimately determines the worth of what it is they have expressed.
We must get past the fear, frustration and self consciousness when we work to that sweet opportunity of knowing this must be expressed. This moment is what I am feeling. I am giving my all to this experience and allowing myself to be revealed. This is who I am!
People settle all the time. The actors job is to rise above and remind everyone there is a beauty to being alive.
Leave the cynicism to the internet.
xx
Jen
One thing I have discovered is how precious your time is. We truly don't know how long someone will stay in our lives or what the next day will bring. Keeping that in mind, allows us to make the most of the opportunities we have at hand.
Making the most of those opportunities is what brings the work alive in our acting.
Each time we step in front of the lens, we have the opportunity to take a risk, fall in love, reveal a truth and discover something we didn't know before. We have the freedom to define a thought, articulate our experience and share in what it means to be human.
The unknown has the potential to be filled with magic and discovery.
We musn't let the mundane take away our appreciation and curiosity for what we do.
In acting exploration is everything.
When we focus on making a scene work, getting the line right or follow some type of rigid demand that the intellect makes of us, we loose our ability create. We cut off the most vital part of who we are as an artist. That kind of experience is limiting and at times frustrating, because on some level we have given our work over to someone else's way of thinking.
When we are young we want so much. We feel so much. We have energy reserves that literally propel us forward into our lives, our self discovery. If I could give advice to young actors everywhere (and I suppose young and old alike) it would be not to waste your time worrying so much about what everyone else is thinking. The present moment offers an actor the ability to experience whether we are speaking from a sense of truth or obligation. The actor him or herself, ultimately determines the worth of what it is they have expressed.
We must get past the fear, frustration and self consciousness when we work to that sweet opportunity of knowing this must be expressed. This moment is what I am feeling. I am giving my all to this experience and allowing myself to be revealed. This is who I am!
People settle all the time. The actors job is to rise above and remind everyone there is a beauty to being alive.
Leave the cynicism to the internet.
xx
Jen
Thursday, October 23, 2014
Your Word...
Many people think they want to act.
We have all heard the conversations...if only...
...I could get in the room
get the right agent
play the right role...
Yes, that is true and yet we need to be mindful that success comes to the people who work for it.
When you think about how much you want...how much you can do...how much you have to offer...make sure you put that talk into action. It is precisely in the moments when we think we couldn't do anything more that we must.
The people who come to LA to work, know what they want and go for it. Actors need to hold themselves accountable to deliver on good days and on bad. You cannot pull back when something is uncomfortable.
People who succeed at anything know they must show up rain or shine.
If you say..."I want to be an actor", than do the work. Everyday.
It is you, not anyone outside yourself, who claims that title. Choose wisely.
x
Jen
We have all heard the conversations...if only...
...I could get in the room
get the right agent
play the right role...
Yes, that is true and yet we need to be mindful that success comes to the people who work for it.
When you think about how much you want...how much you can do...how much you have to offer...make sure you put that talk into action. It is precisely in the moments when we think we couldn't do anything more that we must.
The people who come to LA to work, know what they want and go for it. Actors need to hold themselves accountable to deliver on good days and on bad. You cannot pull back when something is uncomfortable.
People who succeed at anything know they must show up rain or shine.
If you say..."I want to be an actor", than do the work. Everyday.
It is you, not anyone outside yourself, who claims that title. Choose wisely.
x
Jen
Tuesday, October 21, 2014
Creating the Moment
How much can you bring to a moment? Is listening and reacting in a truthful way enough? What about what your instincts are saying? Not mention impulses to move, to touch, to run...? How full can a moment be? When do you pull back? When do you give it everything you got? What happens if you fail or fall on your face? What risks are worth taking? How personal do allow myself to be? How much do I reveal? How often? How open should I be to the person across from me? Can I trust her? What if I put something out there and she doesn't respond? And so on and so forth...
One thing I am absolutely certain of: if you do nothing you will get nothing in return. Every moment is an opportunity to express yourself in some relevant and real way to what is going on with you personally and to what the script needs to say. Every moment is an opportunity to discover something new about the person across from you regardless of how the script wants to paint her. Every moment is an opportunity to risk revealing something about yourself that you otherwise wouldn't. Every moment counts. No matter how evanescent or never ending a moment may feel, to let a moment pass by without doing anything or giving it everything you feel it needs is an opportunity lost. Once a moment is over it never comes back. It never comes back. A moment is your opportunity to create and at the same time be transformed in the moment to what the moment demands of you.
Paolo.
One thing I am absolutely certain of: if you do nothing you will get nothing in return. Every moment is an opportunity to express yourself in some relevant and real way to what is going on with you personally and to what the script needs to say. Every moment is an opportunity to discover something new about the person across from you regardless of how the script wants to paint her. Every moment is an opportunity to risk revealing something about yourself that you otherwise wouldn't. Every moment counts. No matter how evanescent or never ending a moment may feel, to let a moment pass by without doing anything or giving it everything you feel it needs is an opportunity lost. Once a moment is over it never comes back. It never comes back. A moment is your opportunity to create and at the same time be transformed in the moment to what the moment demands of you.
Paolo.
Friday, October 10, 2014
Release
I think it's currently my favorite word.
Lately, in both my teaching and my acting life, I've been referring to this word a lot. When I'm working, I try to constantly remind myself to release the entirety of my talent into every moment. Everything I'm thinking, feeling, holding onto, worrying about. My fears and anxieties, my love and excitement. I strive to release it all into the work. I push my students to do the same thing. The mantra of my warm-ups could easily be "Take a nice deep breath in, and release it forward."
We can begin by releasing any idea or expectation as to how the work should look or feel, or how we should occur within it. The self-trust that is inherent here is major: "I am enough, and however I show up here is fine/good/exactly where I need to be."
Next, we can release everything we're feeling, moment by moment, out into the room. As artists, it can be so easy (and maybe slightly exciting?) to hold onto everything going on inside us. Our emotional life is fuel! Sometimes it can feel counterintuitive to take our experiences, let them go, and move onto the next one. But it's only through this energetic movement that our talent really starts to flow.
By surrendering, and trusting that right on the back end of all that feeling there's even MORE going--only then do we get a glimpse of how far we can take something, how fully a moment can be lived out, how varied and always truthful our experiences are. And by putting it out there, we show the room, the lens, and the audience our vulnerability, which is our most attractive trait.
From watching the work at the studio over the past week, I've also seen first hand how this release, this letting go throws an actor even further into their work. Suddenly we aren't worrying about our energy or focus or breathing--instead, we are headfirst in the work and everything is happening! When you throw everything that is going on with you in that moment onto your partner, I guarantee that your attention is where it needs to be, your energy is high, and your breath is moving!
Then, once we've done our work and the "scene" is done (as my actors know, I'm not a fan of that word), we can release our judgements. I like to remind my actors that if they were on the set, that would be take one. Everything that's coming up for you now? That's take two. Release that into the room!
Holding onto a moment in time cannot make it stay. Clutching at our feelings does not make them more seen. Only through releasing it all can we truly serve our talent and work at our highest level.
-Sarah Kohl
Lately, in both my teaching and my acting life, I've been referring to this word a lot. When I'm working, I try to constantly remind myself to release the entirety of my talent into every moment. Everything I'm thinking, feeling, holding onto, worrying about. My fears and anxieties, my love and excitement. I strive to release it all into the work. I push my students to do the same thing. The mantra of my warm-ups could easily be "Take a nice deep breath in, and release it forward."
We can begin by releasing any idea or expectation as to how the work should look or feel, or how we should occur within it. The self-trust that is inherent here is major: "I am enough, and however I show up here is fine/good/exactly where I need to be."
Next, we can release everything we're feeling, moment by moment, out into the room. As artists, it can be so easy (and maybe slightly exciting?) to hold onto everything going on inside us. Our emotional life is fuel! Sometimes it can feel counterintuitive to take our experiences, let them go, and move onto the next one. But it's only through this energetic movement that our talent really starts to flow.
By surrendering, and trusting that right on the back end of all that feeling there's even MORE going--only then do we get a glimpse of how far we can take something, how fully a moment can be lived out, how varied and always truthful our experiences are. And by putting it out there, we show the room, the lens, and the audience our vulnerability, which is our most attractive trait.
From watching the work at the studio over the past week, I've also seen first hand how this release, this letting go throws an actor even further into their work. Suddenly we aren't worrying about our energy or focus or breathing--instead, we are headfirst in the work and everything is happening! When you throw everything that is going on with you in that moment onto your partner, I guarantee that your attention is where it needs to be, your energy is high, and your breath is moving!
Then, once we've done our work and the "scene" is done (as my actors know, I'm not a fan of that word), we can release our judgements. I like to remind my actors that if they were on the set, that would be take one. Everything that's coming up for you now? That's take two. Release that into the room!
Holding onto a moment in time cannot make it stay. Clutching at our feelings does not make them more seen. Only through releasing it all can we truly serve our talent and work at our highest level.
-Sarah Kohl
Monday, October 6, 2014
Monday, September 15, 2014
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