The Great Acting Blog: “Follow Your Heart Not What You Think People Want”
“What the public criticise in you, cultivate. It is you.” – Jean Cocteau
The problem with striving to please others, is that it creates a tendency to erase that which makes each actor interesting, namely his individuality, or, put another way, his art.
When trying to win a role, actors often try to pair themselves down. They stop making thriling acting choices, and instead go for the safest, blandest, most inoffensive option, the one they think is least likely to generate criticism, as oppose to the one that is most expressive. If it continues over time, then they become just another meaningless, general actor.
To change yourself because you think it’ll please others, to chop away the most provocative elements of yourself and your work, is not only bootless but it’s a betrayal of the self, it’s a betrayal of who you are.
Further, the public will see that betrayal on the stage and in front of the camera – they will see a shadow treading water.
In a recent interview, Jeremy Thomas, producer of films such as Only Lovers Left Alive, The Hit, and The Last Emperor, said that when selecting his projects, he “couldn’t give a shit” about the market, he follows his heart instead. Actors may find it productive to pursue a similar line of thought.
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