aesthetics Archives — Page 2 of 7

The Great Acting Blog: “Disciplined Playfulness – Michel Simon In Jean Renoir’s Boudu Saved From Drowning”

Michel Simon plays Boudu, a Parisian tramp who attempts suicide by jumping into the Seine, only for his effort to be thwarted when a local bookseller rescues him. The bookseller brings Boudu into his household, giving him a place to stay as well as a...

The Great Acting Blog: “Truly Creative Acting”

05.12.2013 , The Great Acting Blog , 1 Comment

"The more ambivalent you are and the more uncertain you are, then you can get something that you cannot anticipate." Elia Kazan Kazan has been an important director for me not only because of his films but also because he unearthed a certain Mr Brando, who...

The Great Acting Blog: “Integrity Works”

29.11.2013 , The Great Acting Blog , 1 Comment

In response to my post on first principles, it seems that some have complained that integrity is impossible to define, that it means different things to different people, that it changes, and so how can one truly act with it? Well, the whole point is...

The Great Acting Blog: “Unlocking Your Creativity”

05.11.2013 , The Great Acting Blog , 0 Comments

Concrete acting technique not only breeds confidence, it is also the catalyst for the actor's creativity. The script is not the catalyst, nor is the director, it is technique. Technique helps the actor to take his attention off himself and focus it on something more compelling....

The Great Acting Blog: “Why Charles Laughton Is An Example To All Of Us”

03.11.2013 , The Great Acting Blog , 0 Comments

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The Great Acting Blog: “The Ultimate Humiliation”

11.10.2013 , The Great Acting Blog , 0 Comments

Humiliation is kissing the ass of someone who has threatened us in order to please them. The most common example of this of course, is the employer, who says "unless you do a b and c, you're out". Humiliation kicks in when the threat is...

The Great Acting Blog: “Great Work Is Done By Those Who Take Responsibility”

22.08.2013 , The Great Acting Blog , 3 Comments

I entered the theatre with some trepidation. I was worried it was going to be another one of those American movies about twenty-somethings moaning about non-problems, or a second rate episode of Friends shot in black and white. I hadn’t liked The Squid And The...

The Great Acting Blog: “How Critics Misunderstand Acting”

17.08.2013 , The Great Acting Blog , 44 Comments

Criticism of acting is a major problem. In my experience, critics have absolutely no clue about the aesthetics of acting. They have no proper way of assessing an actor's performance. Consequently, they latch on to anything the actor did in preparation or anything obvious in...

The Great Acting Blog: “Dedication Means Independence”

15.08.2013 , The Great Acting Blog , 27 Comments

Whether your career will be brilliant or not is not under your control. Whether you will be rich and famous isn't either. But being dedicated to craft is. If you come to acting just to take, this dedication will seem incomprehensible to you. You will...

The Great Acting Blog: “Stick It To Them”

13.08.2013 , The Great Acting Blog , 36 Comments

Xan Brooks has written a piece in The Guardian praising non-professional actors, noteworthy because it demonstrates once again, the breath-taking ignorance of mainstream media. He does though make some reasonable points, when watching a star such as George Clooney he says he often finds it...

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