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

Thank you. This is helpful. Do you work? I think DC needs to do a bit more research before I get so involved on this or wait until they are 18 so they can do it alone; if it is a true passion they will put all the work involved.

Yes I do, but I have an extremely flexible job.

As an example, DD’s last TV role involved 4 train journeys to other side of the UK, dealing with over 80 emails many of which were time sensitive and 6 days off work over two weeks. We had 2 weeks notice from booking to shooting (which is pretty reasonable - lots can be less than a week)

Worth bearing in mind that the vast majority of U18 will never book a role. That’s the harsh reality. And even successful children can go years between bookings.

Thank you. It is good to have advice from people with kids on the profession

Thing is, the transition from child performer to properly trained mature adult actor is pretty rocky. Look at the Harry Potter kids. None of them are particularly successful as adult actors (just not very good actors IMO).

Daniel Radcliffe has won one of the must prestigious acting awards anyone can get - a Tony. But I agree with your main point.

this thread should be printed and given to all school students taking drama GCSE or appearing in school productions to show the sheer competitiveness and diffculty of getting into serious acting roles. Acting is more competitive than Oxbridge.

one of my fears with governments drive for vocational courses at school is that droves of kids are going to choose creative arts vocational options and there are going to be so many disappointed.......

For an extremely limited number of roles in this industry you have to remember you have to combat entrenched unashamed nepotism even excused by the phrase 'acting fanily'. Google actors and I guarantee half of them have parents who were actors or had links to the industry.

Another thing springing from this thread is how difficult it is good children from socially deprived backgrounds to make it in the profession without parental support including importantly money. The CVs of many actors include public school and high status know (often Oxbridge). Social equality has never quite reached acting and possibly never will despite the heart felt pleas of this like Vicky McClure.

always amazed with his many middle class kids put on working class accents for roles .....

Your YP needs to head to the Edinburgh Festival. Getting spotted up in Edinburgh can lead to a lucky break.....Robin Williams and Rowan Atkinson anyone?

Good luck! (You might be able to sort out accommodation in time!).

I think Billy Connolly hit the jackpot after his appearance at The Fringe in 1972. Don't give up!

The Edinburgh festival begins in a few days. Do you think possibly all the venues might have booked their shows months ago?

This is really irresponsible and unhelpful advice.

Safeguarding is rather different today.

Something for the future though when OP's YP turns 18 (for those who have a valid point about safeguarding).

After all the actors who have made it big from their appearances at the Festival I am genuinely surprised no one else has mentioned it first before I did. It's a great way to be spotted if you are talented. Many free shows in most pubs and clubs and up and down the High Street.

Please look into this for the future OP.

It may be free to watch but it's not free to perform.
The initial registration fee is over £200. Then you have travel, accommodation, food. Venue costs are £0-£10k

And that is supposing that the YP has a self-written show to present at the Fringe. Which is a completely different skill set from acting.

If a YP wants to do the Fringe then they are best to find a college or part time training college that regularly takes a group there to perform. Not to go it alone.

The days are being 'discovered' are long gone. Even kids like Owen Cooper had years of training behind him before Adolescence.

@mids2019 is also correct that there are an awful lot of roles that seem to go to the children of established actors. In one sense I get it - they've grown up in the industry, aren't fumbling around like most of us trying to find good training, good agents etc. That all helps.

But nowadays the routes for most are either:

• Start as a young child, train hard, get lucky and book enough good roles to get on the books of a top adult agent and have a cv that means you don't need drama school (unless you have a desire to go).
• Go to a top drama college (often 4k applications for 28 places - half of which go to the opposite sex and a big proportion to international students) and hope to get a top agent when you graduate,

If you want to see how depressingly hard it is, go to the alumnus pages of the top schools - RADA, Central, RCS, GSA etc and look at past graduates Spotlight profiles, that will tell you who their agent is, and what work they have booked since graduating. The odd one will have booked a few roles over a couple of years, but the vast majority have not.

My son is an actor. He and one other from drama school are the only people still in the business'. It's brutally hard.

Does your son enjoy it? Make a living out of it? How old is he?

He's just about managed to keep going but has had lots of other jobs over the years to supplement it. It's been very tough. He does enjoy it depending on what he's doing but the worry about money is ever present. He's 37

Good points from others about how it's difficult for those from working class backgrounds to break into this industry. It's basically because it's all so expensive.

In the early years it's just a money pit:
££ for drama courses in the teenage years
££ for audition fees for drama schools
££ for travel to second auditions in person for drama school

£20k-£30k for drama school degree
£500 for spotlight and headshots

Edinburgh fringe:
£££ to book a show (best to piggyback on someone elses)
£100 travel from London
£80-£100 night even in student accommodation during the fringe

Even as a working actor, DS is constantly shelling out cash:

• in person London auditions for commercials - £30-£40 travel & expenses a time (which is often not refunded) Yes, it's tax deductible, but that assumes there's some income to offset it against
• travel/food to unpaid London fringe/ pub theatre gigs (important for exposure in the early days)

DS says he saw how hard it was/is for his friends who were trying to juggle being an actor with having a full time job which paid their living expenses.

So true. Plus whatever the fee is for the job , there is a big cut for the agent. It's really hard.

Agree with all those saying it’s a very tough life. Several friends of mine went to drama school with lots of talent and big dreams - none of them are acting now.

On the flip side, I’m also friends with a household name-level actor - glamorous life, lots of money etc. But it’s still unreliable and I see the insecurity and stress fame brings. I don’t envy it!

Lots of decent universities have amazing extracurricular drama (think Cambridge footlights etc). I would be encouraging your DC to do that rather than drama school so they at least have a plan B!

We were watching a school soap called Waterloo Road and I wondered what happened the child (and even) adult actors after leaving the series? I just wonder how many actors fall though a back hole of no new parts and hence limited publicity?

do actors have to seek specific financial advice regarding pensions or funding themselves in periods of how work?.can actors mentally adjust about being forced to do more normal jobs?