Pursuing a career in acting

[Treeabove]

Looking for advice from people on the same boat.

DC is coming to the end if year 11 in a performing arts school studying theatre. I have a few questions:

They will get UAL level 2 Diploma in theatre: How useful will this be?

They said they need professional photos taken and an agent. How do they go about doing this?

How important are theirs GCSES grades for their future ?

How do they go about applying for jobs? They would prefer screen acting but conscious competition is fierce.

What about further education? How hard is it to get into acting schools? Which ones should they apply to? Do they need this or can they just start auditioning for jobs.

We want to be supportive but the reality of a career in acting is hard.

Noone in my family is on this field

Oh the naivety…

Are you in the industry? Can you provide more information please?

Agree it is though career but you can always dream; if you don’t try you would never know. Have a go and find out for themselves; as long as they have a backup plan.

They may end doing something else in the industry or use the transferable skills for something else.

My partner is an actor, mainly theatre with some TV. He has not got any qualifications in acting though did go to drama school in the evenings whilst in work.

He has never been asked what training he's had - you need to get to auditions and to do that you need an agent. To get an agent the easiest way is to get spotted at a show case run by drama schools. The more prestigious the drama school the better the agent.

So that is really the point of drama school is to get access to agents.

He has been acting full time now for about 20 years, some years are very lean others less so. He could not have persued this career if it wasn't for my steady income.

A very very difficult career choice but good luck to your DC.

A lot of actors don’t get into formal drama school until mid twenties. Has your dc done any workshops, National Youth Theatre et al? Are they only into acting or singing and dance too? Do they attend any formal classes or theatre groups as their teachers may be able to advise on suitable progression. What performing have they done to date? It is rare that anyone gets randomly spotted and competition is tough so he needs to build a good cv, Spotlight profile and an agent. Unfortunately a single level 2 qualification won’t really help. Some PA schools/colleges have their own agency and network to line up auditions. He needs to be realistic and have a fallback for the voids in work even if he were to have successful auditions as contracts can be short.

Thank you. How did your husband got into acting? Did he get spot by an agent in Drama School? Which evening school did he attend?

@Treeabove acting was something he fancied giving a go, so at the age of 36 he went to a drama school in Kings Cross London (closed down now) and did evening classes whilst working full time. He was by far the oldest, but it was his age that made him stand out. There are loads of young people straight out of drama school who are all very similar.

They did a showcase at the end of the course to which they invited agents. From this an agent asked him to join their books. His first jobs were musical theatre as he can sing (despite not being able to read music) then more straight acting.

Was that the Poor School, @AuntyBulgaria? I used to pass it on my way to work at the BL and wonder about it. I no longer live in London and hadn't realised (till I looked it up just now) that it had closed.

Having just clocked your username, I'm also amused to think of Great Uncle Bulgaria having to get an agent for his TV wombling.

Interesting to think of someone starting to act professionally out of evening classes in their late 30s. What kinds of theatre roles does he get now? Presumably living in London is key?

This is useful. Thank you.

To emphasise the advice in this thread, and add:

• be very very very wary of actor training schools which charge private -school type fees. The acting school mentioned above (evening at Kings Cross - was it The Poor School?) is an exception - if it's the place I think it is, it was run by highly-experienced people in the industry.
• be very very wary of the "must have a headshot" - there is a current dispute over Spotlight, the industry bible fgor casting. That's where a headshot is needed, but, as far as I can recall from students of mine, you need an agent first
• be very very wary of agents who promise the world

What comes through your posts is that you don't know much about the industry, nor does your DC.

What performing do they do outside of school? Are they in the National Theatre for Young People, for example?

The point about drama school (conservatoires in the official language) is that you get proper training, and you get seen by reputable agents.

The even more important point is that to get in to the most influential & competitive conservatoires, you have to audition against 1,000s of others. You soon see where your talent level is.

The most reputable conservatoires now run degree level programmes, so student tuition & maintenance loans are available. So A levels are a must. Competition for places is very fierce. But start with looking at
RADA
LAMDA
CSSD
East 15
Guildhall
LIPA (great for musical theatre)
Royal Welsh
Royal Scottish Conservatoire

There are post-92 universities which try to run conservatoire style Theatre degrees, but they're much more patchy: Chichester Musical Theatre can be OK, for example, but I wouldn't pay the money ti go to Falmouth.

A young boy will have an initial advantage; there are many thousands of pretty, moderately talented young women; not so many young men, but enough that it's still competitive.

In some conservatoires, it'll help if you can move or even dance, and hold a tune. In a career, these things also help!

So some dance classes, and some singling lessons are good things to throw in the mix.

Wishing your DC all the very best!
If acting is something they’re serious about, I’d honestly recommend starting now and getting them an agent.
I know a couple of actresses you’ll definitely recognise from Netflix and major films, and in their cases their parents already worked in the industry—either as actors or behind the scenes as scriptwriters and costume designers. Another family of well-known celebrities we know come from an aristocratic background and work as models and actresses.
The reality is that breaking into acting can be more difficult if you come from a middle- or working-class background, as the industry often relies heavily on connections and networks. That said, it’s certainly not impossible. Claire Foy, Jenna Coleman, and Gemma Arterton are all examples of successful actresses who didn’t come from established acting dynasties.
Oddly enough, two actresses I know both got their start on Casualty when they were younger, so it might be worth trying to get an audition for that as well!

Thank you. Maybe DC will change their mind in the next few years. We really don’t know much about the industry apart from what they see/hear at their performing arts school

My BIL’s kids act. They have an agent who sets them up for auditions (a self tape). They’ve been in commercials and a couple movies. The commercials are often shot in Europe but a parent has to go with them.
So getting an agent is key and I guess that’s a matter of getting signed. Yes they’ll need photos (they don’t have to be professional) and a tape. There are ones who specialise in under 18s or 21s as there are special legalities around child labour. Do your research. It takes a big commitment and they’ve missed out on holidays and they get rejected far more than they get jobs.
The theatrical route requires even more commitment!

It is true I don’t know anything about the industry and have no idea how to support them. They keep saying they need head shots and an agent. Perhaps they will change their mind or maybe they get lucky in the evening acting school and get spotted by an agent 🤩 .

Thanks. How did he get an agent? And where do they get the head shots?

Sorry for irrelevant/stupid question, but who is Jon Cake?

They really DON'T need head shots etc, unless they're going for jobs now. But you need to be very careful - it might seem like a child doing adverts or bit parts in television/films is "acting." It really isn't. You only have to look at how awful Emma Watson was as an adult actor (her vocal technique, her breathing, her non-use of modulation were all just terrible - unwatchable).

The transition from child doing adverts to actual working / jobbing actor is not an easy one.

Your DC can slow down (unless they're a classical ballet dancer in training). S/He has time. Very few 18 year olds are accepted straight into reputable conservatoire degree programmes,, especially if they're female. They need time and a bit of rattling around in the world. I don't think parents realise just how talented someone has to be (and I come from a family of performers over 3 generations).

Get your DC into some sort of youth theatre programme - the National Youth Theatre one is good. Or even am-dram although there's a risk of picking up bad habits! Get them involved in all aspects of theatre making, including the technical side. The family member who has made an actual full-time living from the theatre is a production manager & travels all over the world, paid to sort out stuff on big shows.

Thank you all. I know is a though competitive world and I would rather they change their mind and choose a different career but I don’t want to kill their dreams either, I want to be supportive and encouraging.

They will do part time acting school alongside a different course a college so hoping this will give them a bit more choice; and help them find out if they really want to do acting or whether is just a childhood dream. 16 is young to decide what you want to do for a living.

I definitely don’t want to kill their dreams; it is good to have dreams, ambitions and the training may lead them to something else.

Having just clocked your username, I'm also amused to think of Great Uncle Bulgaria having to get an agent for his TV wombling. @TepidBathwater I love this!

OP - it’s definitely always good to have dreams. DS2 has acted for a good few years and we know quite a few young people at drama school (most are MT rather than specific acting). DS has an agent and is on Spotlight (PPs are correct that you can’t be on Spotlight without an agent) but hasn’t had much professional work. We usually get his headshots from a very good local photographer but on one occasion my DH did them himself when DS decided to shave his head at surprisingly short notice. 🙄 (I should say that DH is a very good amateur photographer so it wasn’t the equivalent of me snapping away with an iPhone.)

DS is (hopefully) going to one of the best unis for drama and production, direction etc rather than just going down the acting route. It will hopefully keep him in that world whilst getting an academic degree and specific industry skills. What I think is particularly important is he does a huge amount of local theatre and is now well known enough to be contacted about parts.

Good luck to your DC.

For those saying you need A levels to get into a good drama school, they do also accept Level 3 BTEC Performing Arts qualifications.

Thank you. How dd your son get his agent? Do you pay anything for it? And how much you pay for the professional head shots? What are they used for? For the agent to send to potential auditions? Has your son done many auditions?

And which university is he going to study at? If you don’t mind me asking?

I am very clueless about the performing world 🙈 but I want DC to have a go if that os what they want. Maybe they struck luck or maybe they decide for themselves is not for them.

Does your DC do any acting @Treeabove ? I am thinking amateur performance or have they looked into the National Youth Theatre as a PP suggested (since you are in London it's a great opportunity) https://www.nyt.org.uk/support-us/individual-supporters/hub-sign-up-page

Are they male or female – as a PP said that makes quite a difference. There are unfortunately a lot more women trying to make it as actors, and fewer (good) roles as well. So if DC is a boy then they may have a better chance.

To answer your question, there should be no charge to have an agent – they will take their fee from the work they find for you. I would think your DC's PA school would support with this kind of info?

Never EVER pay for an agent. You pay them in commission for work they get you not in fees. Agents who charge a fee are ripping you off.

What kind of acting work does your child believe they're going to get at age 16?

My daughter did musical theatre. She went to a really top school in London when she was 20. When she was at school I insisted she gets her highest and advanced highest.
She had 2 agents. The first one picked her from the MT schools showcase she did at the end of third year. The second she got by approaching them when the first agent wasn't bringing in the jobs.
She did a few jobs but never made it into the big west end jobs. She finally decided to do a law degree and is now an employment lawyer.
Being a tall female where dance wasn't her strongest thing meant she never got into ensemble roles.

She has friends from her year who are still doing really well in the west end and touring but a lot of her year have gone on to other things. One of her flatmates has also done law.
Many if them now are hitting their early 30s so the younger ones are coming through.
Good luck to him but be prepared to change direction

@Treeabove are you actually processing the advice? You keep coming back to agents and head shots. This is not what you should be focussing on. You don’t seem to be responding to advice about National Youth Theatre, or a dram, or specific lessons in singing and dance.

if you want your DC to have the best chance of a career, there are far more important things at age 16 for a child to have /do if they are ambitious for a career as a performer, than head shots.

I’m really surprised at a legit performing arts school that isn’t trying to educate you and your DC about the industry. Your DC needs to be testing him/herself beyond the performing arts school - by auditioning for the National Youth Theatre, or other amdram, or entering the Poel competition, or just seeing where they stand in relation to his/her peers.

And the sex of your DC really can make a difference, sadly. But just forget about head shots. Get your child some decent training!

Yes @Treeabove I agree with @Wadsworthy who clearly knows their stuff as well.

I am assuming your DC has left the PA school but surely it must have offered advice on next steps? And yes, why are you so focused on headshots? I would be more engaged tbh in encouraging my DC to do some acting as many PPs have suggested (you don't say if they do but I infer not?) as a way of working on their craft and seeing how good they are.

You keep mentioning luck as though there is such a thing; but making a living out of the performing arts involves huge amounts of dedication, hard hard work on your technique and also on getting yourself out there and noticed. It really has to be the only thing you can imagine yourself doing, otherwise you might start to resent the commitment needed and the low wages.