Am I 2 Young 2 Act?

Actually, the real answer to this question should be, can I become an actor at a young age and still keep up my school grades?  Ah yes, I remember when I first started acting at the tender age of 8.  Probably long before most of you who are reading this were born.  Listen, I’m not some 82 year old man here.  I just turned 32 and I can certainly tell you that you can become an actor at any age. You’ll definitely have to keep your grades up in order to work as a young person in the entertainment business.

Get Good Grades!

Even all the young stars you see on today’s Disney Channel shows like “That’s so Raven”, “The Famous Jett Jackson” or “Lizzy McGuire”... all of them have to maintain good grades not to mention they have to go to school on the set.  The one good thing about being a young person and being a professional actor is you get to go to school on the set for only 3 hours a day!  I know, I know it beats public school, huh?  Well don’t get excited so fast…what about all your friends you’ll leave behind in school?  Sorry, they won’t be able to come see you on the set shooting your big scene because they’ll be in "regular school". Or Maybe not.  What if you get to become a regular on a TV series?  A “regular” role is when someone stars on a TV show and is on TV every week.  If you get a regular role, you’ll to be on TV on a more consistent basis but you’ll have to sacrifice your time with your best friends and ladies…that includes your boyfriends, lol.  Is that cool with you?  Okay, so let say you're okay with that, ah but can you act though?

Do You GOT the Skills?

That’s not actually correct English but you get the picture.  Attention! Young person!  Guess what?  If you've GOT the skills, you can GET on television or in the movies!  You can make it as an actor!  But how do you know if you can act or not?  Here are some great signs that you’ve GOT what it takes to be a young professional actor.  Remember, just because you think you want to act doesn’t mean you have what it takes to become a successful working actor. It is great that you have the desire, though.  That is a ‘key” issue in becoming successful in this business.  Here’s my take on signs you’ve got acting skills:

1. You make your friends laugh all the time

2. You do a lot of “impressions” = pretending to be someone else

3. You stare at yourself in the mirror all the time pretending to be a movie star or in a movie or TV show

4. You can recite lines verbatim or “word-for-word” from characters of your favorite show or movie

5. People always tell you or your parents that you should be on TV

6. Deep in your heart you feel that you are destined to become an actor one day

If you answered “yes” to 3 out of the 6 questions then you have what it takes to make it as a young person.  If you’re cute that’s good too.  I didn’t want to really mention that because its not the most important thing but of course as you see on TV, Hollywood loves cute kids.

Keep Doing What You’re Doing!

If you can memorize lines from you favorite movie or TV show that’s a great sign that you can act professionally at a young age. However, doing it "on camera" is another story. I encourage you to stick around this site.  I like to work with young people and have great experience in helping young people fulfill their dreams.  I encourage you to do good in school and learn all you can about acting.  If you don’t have too many people who will encourage you…stick around and I’ll get you excited about life and your future acting career.  Remember, the most important thing for you right now is to do good in school.  That’s the first thing you have to accomplish so if your grades aren’t all that great…get your grades up quickly!  Your great acting career lies ahead! 

For more acting tips and advice check out: ActorGuru.com