If you’ve seen a movie, you know what performers do. They invest themselves in their roles and create indelible moments. But there’s a lot of work behind the scenes.

Actors study for years. Drama school teaches techniques and approaches that add emotional depth to performances. Actors also study scripts intently not only to learn their lines but also to understand their characters and decide how they will play their roles.

Actors can also lend their talents to animated characters or video games. They also work in motion capture, which helps bring video game characters to life.

This department is represented by ACTRA.

Take direction

Actors work closely with directors. It’s important to take feedback and adjust the performance accordingly.

Acting

Good actors make it look easy, but there is a real skill to being natural and compelling on camera.

Flexible

Scripts often change during production. Performers must sometimes learn new scenes on short notice.

Team player

We’ve all heard stories about prima donnas, but acting is collaborative. Everyone has to work together to pull off a scene.

Patience

Background performers often face long waits between scenes. They have to be patient and then hit their marks.

If you like being in the spotlight, then performing is for you. The discipline calls for outgoing people prepared to work hard and help the director achieve their artistic goals.