Actors, directors, and producers create a visual and aural image based on written words of a script in theaters, film, television, and radio. They make the words come alive for their audiences.
Actors entertain and communicate with people through their interpretation of dramatic roles. Actors read scripts and decide how they want to interpret their role. Then they discuss their ideas with directors and voice coaches on how to portray their characters. They rely on facial and verbal expression as well as body motion for creative effect. In some roles, they sing and dance. They also may use props and costumes to help communicate their ideas. Actors memorize lines and stage directions. Most actors also put on their own makeup.
Only a few actors achieve recognition as stars on the stage, in motion pictures, or on television. A somewhat larger number are well-known, experienced performers, who frequently are cast in supporting roles. Most actors struggle for a toehold in the profession and pick up parts wherever they can. Some actors employed by theater companies teach acting in courses offered to the public.
In addition to the actors with speaking parts, extras, who have small parts with no lines to deliver, are used in almost all motion pictures, in many television shows, and in some theater productions.
Directors interpret plays or scripts. In addition, they audition and select cast members, conduct rehearsals, and direct the work of the cast and crew. Directors use their knowledge of acting, voice, and movement to achieve the best possible performance and usually approve the scenery, costumes, choreography, and music.
Producers are entrepreneurs. They select plays or scripts, arrange financing, and decide on the size of the production and its budget. They hire directors, principal members of the cast, and key production staff members, and they negotiate contracts with artistic personnel, often in accordance with collective bargaining agreements. Producers also coordinate the activities of writers, directors, managers, and other personnel.
Employment in motion pictures and films for television is centered in Hollywood and New York City.
Acting demands patience and total commitment, because actors must wait for parts or filming schedules, work long hours, and often travel. Evening work is a regular part of a stage actor's life. Flawless performances require tedious memorizing of lines and repetitive rehearsals. On television, actors must deliver a good performance with very little preparation. Actors need stamina to withstand the heat of stage or studio lights, heavy costumes, the long, irregular hours, and the adverse weather conditions that may exist on location. When plays are on the road, traveling is necessary. Actors often face the anxiety of intermittent employment and rejections when auditioning for work.
Directors and producers often work under stress as they try to meet schedules, stay within budgets, resolve personnel problems, and put together a production that will appeal enough to the public to succeed.
In 1992, actors, directors, and producers held an average of about 129,000 jobs in motion pictures, stage plays, television, and radio. Many others were between jobs, so that the total number of people actually employed as actors, directors, and producers over the course of the year was higher. In the winter, most employment opportunities on the stage are in New York and other large cities, many of which have established professional regional theaters. In the summer, stock companies in suburban and resort areas also provide employment. In addition, many cities have small nonprofit professional companies such as little theaters, repertory companies, and dinner theaters, which provide opportunities for local amateur talent as well as for professional entertainers. Normally, casts are selected in New York City for shows that go on the road.
Employment in motion pictures and films for television is centered in Hollywood and New York City. However, studios are also located in Florida, Seattle, and other parts of the country. In addition, many films are shot on location and employ local professionals and nonprofessionals as day players and extras. In television, opportunities are at the network entertainment centers in New York and Los Angeles and at local television stations around the country.
Aspiring actors and directors should take part in high school and college plays, or work with little theaters and other acting groups for experience.
Formal dramatic training or acting experience is generally necessary, although some people enter the field without it. Many experienced actors get formal training to learn new skills and improve old ones. Training can be obtained at dramatic arts schools in New York and Los Angeles, and at colleges and universities throughout the country offering bachelor's or higher degrees in dramatic and theater arts. College drama curriculums usually include courses in liberal arts, stage speech and movement, directing, playwriting, play production, design, and history of the drama, as well as practical courses in acting.
The best way to start is to use local opportunities and to build on them. Local and regional theater experience may help in obtaining work in New York or Los Angeles. Modeling experience may also be helpful. Actors need talent, creative ability, and training that will enable them to portray different characters. Training in singing and dancing is especially useful. Actors must have poise, stage presence, and the ability to affect an audience, plus the ability to follow directions. Physical appearance is often a deciding factor in being selected for particular roles.
Many professional actors rely on agents or managers to find them performing engagements, negotiate contracts, and plan their careers.
To become a movie extra, one must usually be listed by a casting agency, such as Central Casting, a no-fee agency that supplies all extras to the major movie studios in Hollywood. Applicants are accepted only when the number of persons of a particular type on the list for example, athletic young women, old men, or small children is below the foreseeable need. In recent years, only a very small proportion of the applicants have succeeded in being listed.
There are no specific training requirements for directors and producers. Talent, experience, and business acumen are very important. Directors and producers come from different backgrounds. Actors, writers, film editors, and business managers often enter these fields. Formal training in directing and producing is available at some colleges and universities.
As actors', directors', and producers' reputations grow, they work on larger productions or in more prestigious theaters. Actors also advance to lead roles. Some actors move into acting-related jobs as drama coaches or directors of stage, television, radio, or motion picture productions. A few teach drama in colleges and universities.
The length of a performer's working life depends largely on training, skill, versatility, and perseverance. Some actors, directors, and producers never retire, but many leave the occupation after a short time because they cannot find enough work to make a living.
Employment of actors, directors, and producers is expected to grow much faster than the average for all occupations through the year 2005. In addition, workers leaving the field will create as many job openings as will growth. Nevertheless, the large number of people desiring acting careers and the lack of formal entry requirements should cause keen competition for actor, director, and producer jobs. Only the most talented should continue to find regular employment.
Rising foreign demand for American productions, combined with a growing domestic market fueled by the growth of cable television, home movie rentals, and television syndications should stimulate demand for actors and other production personnel. Growth of opportunities in recorded media should be accompanied by increasing jobs in live productions. Growing numbers of people who enjoy live theatrical entertainment should continue to go to theaters for the excitement and aesthetic appreciation.
Minimum salaries, hours of work, and other conditions of employment are covered in collective bargaining agreements between producers of shows and unions representing workers in this field. The Actors' Equity Association represents stage actors; the Screen Actors Guild and the Screen Extras Guild cover actors in motion pictures, including television, commercials, and films; and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA) represents television and radio performers. Most stage directors belong to the Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers, and film and television directors belong to the Directors Guild of America. Of course, each actor or director may negotiate for a salary higher than the minimum.
The minimum weekly salary for actors in Broadway stage productions was $950 in 1993. Those in small off-Broadway theaters received minimums ranging from $340 to $579 a week, depending on the seating capacity of the theater. For shows on the road, actors receive an additional $80 per day.
Eight performances amount to a week's work on the stage, and additional performances are paid for as overtime. Actors usually work long hours during rehearsals. Once the show opens, they have more regular hours, working about 24 hours a week.
In 1993, motion picture and television actors with speaking parts earned a minimum daily rate of $485, or $1,685 for a 5-day week. Those without speaking parts, extras, earned a minimum daily rate of $99. In addition, actors receive contributions to their health and pension plans and additional compensation for reruns.
Earnings from acting are low because employment is so irregular. According to data from Actors' Equity Association, about 60 percent of their members had no earnings from acting in 1991, and only 918 members earned more than $35,000. The median earnings for stage acting in a course of a year was approximately $5,200. The Screen Actors Guild reported that the average income its members earned from acting was $1,400 a year, and 80 percent of its members earned less than $5,000 a year from acting. Therefore, many actors must supplement their incomes from acting by holding other jobs.
Some well-known actors have salary rates well above the minimums, and the salaries of the few top stars are many times the figures cited, creating a false impression that all actors are highly paid.
Many actors who earn more than a set minimum per year are covered by a union health, welfare, and pension fund, including hospitalization insurance, to which employers contribute. Under some employment conditions, Actors' Equity and AFTRA members have paid vacations and sick leave.
Earnings of stage directors vary greatly. The top money is on Broadway $36,750 for a rehearsal period, which usually lasts 5 weeks. Regional theaters paid directors from $3,415 to $13,595 for a 3 to 5 week rehearsal period. Small dinner theaters and summer stock pay much less $685 to $1,311 per week but offer the most employment opportunities.
Producers seldom get a set fee; instead, they get a percentage of a show's earnings or ticket sales.
People who work in occupations requiring acting skills include dancers, choreographers, disc jockeys, drama teachers or coaches, and radio and television announcers. Others working in occupations related to acting are playwrights, scriptwriters, stage managers, costume designers, makeup artists, hair stylists, lighting designers, and set designers. Workers in occupations involved with the business aspects of theater productions include managing directors, company managers, booking managers, publicists, and actors', directors', and playwrights' agents.
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Reprinted with Permission of U. S. Department of Labor