Expert: Taylor Sheppard - 6/13/2007

Question
hey my name is juliana,im turning 16 in july and live in western australia,my dream is to become an actress and i feel like im more then ready to take everything that comes with it,i do modelling,and im going for miss croatia this year and i guess all this means been infront of an audience i love it! but the problem is where do i start with acting? how can i get noticed? it feels like theres so much involved to get there.

Answer
Hi Juliana,
Greetings to you down under!

I must say that OZ has it's share of lovely women!
Not sure about the Miss Croatia thing. ??? Wouldn't you be competing in Miss Australia?

Anyway, somehow we have been graced by the arrival of several actors from down under, so I don't think it's impossible! Nicole, Guy Pierce, Poppy Montgomery, Rick Springfield...oh yes, and Russell Crow (although he is a Kiwi). Poppy's bio is quite interesting, even if it's altogether true or not. (you have to take publicized bios with a grain of salt) Supposedly she came to the States to hook up with a guy she was in love with, and when that went South (or would that be North? lol.) She made her way to Hollywood and bugged an agent until he represented her. That, in spite of the fact she had no Screen Actors Guild card. (the illustrious S.A.G. card) He balked at first...

I'd say that appearing in high visibility events can help, but once you have their attention, you'll need to wow them with talent. I would recommend (I know I sound like a broken record here) taking acting classes, especially ones for camera, which will get you used to working with a camera and teach you how to not come off badly. There are many things about acting for the camera that aren't obvious. For instance, how to "open up your face" to the camera. When you are talking with someone on camera in a wide shot (where the camera is catching both of you from the front, you may appear to be looking into each other's eyes. In reality, if you are on the right and he is on the left of the screen, you are looking with your right eye at his left eye. HE is looking at your left eye with HIS left eye. Does that make sense? Basically, this "cheat" allows the appearance of you looking at each other's faces, but your faces are turned slightly toward the camera, revealing more of your features. (It is also helpful if you are like 3/4 of the people on the planet, and your profile isn't quite perfect!) Another "for instance": Do you know the difference between acting for a medium shot, or whole body shot, verses an E.C.U.? (ECU=extreme close up...your face) When you are being shot from head to toes, you can move around quite a bit. When you are being shot from waist up (medium shot) you have to hold still somewhat. When you do an ECU, you must hold very still, or tight, because if you move much, you will be out of camera frame (off camera)...not good. When you are talking to someone intimately (not sexually, just in close confidence) you often are placed with your noses close to touching! No way would that be comfortable in real life! -But on camera, it looks fine.
Here's another oddity: When they say they are shooting a shot "MOS" that means "without sound". ??? Well, that is due to a German director back in the day, who would say: "Ve vill do dis one mitout zound!" Seriously. It just stuck. There are many other odd terms in the film world to know, and THAT isn't even dealing with the real acting itself, which is another book by itself.
Funny thing is, when you get involved in acting classes, (at University, or wherever, you start to network and become aware of the different paths you have to get there. I did a WHOLE LOT of extra gigs and paid attention to what was going on with the crew/director/cast/etc. and with that, coupled with reading books on all of it, I became proficient. Even so, I still learn, because they are always coming up with new ways of doing things. Don't let this overwhelm you! Although you are young and impatience comes with that territory, (I was once, you know!) trust me! -It's like a ladder...look at one rung at a time. Don't look up, don't look down, just keep learning and climbing, and one day, when you DO look down, you'll be thinking: "Holy S! -how did I get here?"

I wish I could be more specific, but although I love OZ, I have no knowledge of specific schools or agents there to refer you. Just work at it with just as much desire as you have to be an actor, and it will repay you!

Best,

Taylor