TERM DATES
Term 1 classes complete week ending Saturday 5 April. Term 2 classes commence from Tuesday 22 April, with the Monday Extension class returning on 28 April.
The past 10 weeks of classes have seen a marked improvement in interesting decision making from the teen and adult advanced students and the Monday Extension class.
Also quick off the block this term were the Wednesday beginner/intermediate adults, most of whom were absolute beginners at the beginning of the term – and who now, only 10 weeks after commencing classes are working hard at turning in passionate and truthful performances.
Well done to you all.
Acting is all about character and expression, and for those of you less than happy with your body image, here are some timely words of advice (to all genders) from Kate Winslet…
VOICE, ARTICULATION AND MOVEMENT MASTERCLASS
The weakest link in the actors tool kit is most commonly the voice. Even A-Lister’s recognize this fact and have their voice and acting coaches handy on-set during production. The American Accents and Dialects masterclass in March highlighted the fact that many of our students are in need of substantial voice work; and to this end we’ve organized a challenging 4 session masterclass to dramatically improve voice and movement skills.
Voice, Articulation and Movement masterclass tutors Bill Pepper and Natalia Ladyko
This course is vital additional training for all actors, as having a strong and expressive speaking voice opens up opportunities for screen actors, both in theatre and in lucrative voice over work.
The 16 hour intensive Voice, Articulation and Movement masterclass will run over 4 x 4 hour sessions on consecutive Sundays, with the first 3 sessions dedicated to voice development and the final 4 hour session dedicated to movement. The course will be tutored by Australia’s leading voice and accents coach Bill Pepper, with the movement component tutored by choreographer and movement teacher Natalia Ladyko.
(For more information on the masterclass please refer to the course flyer attached to your newsletter link email)
AMERICAN ACCENTS AND DIALECTS MASTERCLASS REVIEW
The American Accents and Dialects masterclass, held over 2 consecutive Sundays in early March, gave the attending students the basic building blocks so they can work independently on perfecting the difficult Standard American accent. As noted in the column above, the masterclass highlighted the additional work many students need to put in to perfect their speaking voice, and this fact in turn led to the decision to run the Voice, Articulation and Movement course during Term 2.
Congratulations to the American Accents and Dialects masterclass students – Paul Millett, Meredith Cox, Caz Prescott, Tayla Brown, Jessica Robbins, Oscar Lin, Mona Bagherpour and Trevor Shipton for their hard work, dedication and application to the task at hand during the masterclass.
And remember, as tutor Bill Pepper instructed you: “now you have the building blocks, go and build the house.”
TVS DARK CARNIVAL SCREENING DATE: THE PEDDER FILE
The short film The Pedder File, starring students Paul Millett, Jessica Robbins, Lydia Dyhin and Tayla Brown screens on the award-winning TVS program Dark Carnival at 11:30 pm on Monday 21 April. Three films are traditionally screened during each episode of Dark Carnival and The Pedder File screens last in the headlining slot.
STUDENT NEWS
I received a very excited text message from advanced teen graduate Pangrum Tiangbangloung last week informing me that she was on her way to a red carpet film premiere in which she had a small speaking part over a couple of scenes. Pangrum was ecstatic and much appreciative of the time and effort I’d put into her training, which was greatly appreciated. Good work Pangrum. More details on the film and her role as they come to hand.
Former student Frank Stead continues to win regular work, with his latest achievement being a $7k plus TVC and a role in a musical theatre production of all things. Now that’s what I call expanding your craft Frank.
Hard working advanced adult student Tony Dreise has been steadily building his resume and recently had the golden opportunity of appearing in a scene in Rake (screened 23 February) acting with none other than Richard Roxburgh. R.R. is one of my favourite Aussie actors, and what can I say, but, I’m jealous Tony!
HOLLYWOOD SURVIVAL GUIDE FOR AUSSIE ACTORS
There are still a few copies of Kym Jackson’s excellent book available at the studio. Informative reading even if you’re not planning on having a go at the potentially lucrative Hollywood market – as many of the tips and info relate to the Australian side of the business as well. The book retails for $40 but Screen Actors Workshop students can pick up a discounted copy for $30. The Hollywood Survival Guide is an informative read and comes highly recommended.NEW WINDOW SIGNAGE
In late February we upgraded our main road window signage and the feedback has been very positive indeed! The old signage served us well but after 10 years it was beginning to look decidedly down-market and failed to reflect the school’s professional status.
The old signage
The new upmarket signage (which will look even better when we replace the white drapes with red crushed velvet cinema-style drapes over the autumn semester break)
PETER DEVRIES CINEMATOGRAPHY WORKSHOP
Award-winning cinematographer Peter DeVries is running another of his popular workshops for budding filmmakers at the ACS headquarters in North Sydney.
For bookings/further info go to www.peterdevries.com.au
FILMS ON DVD
Captain Phillips (USA: 2103) Directed by Paul Greengrass. Starring Tom Hanks and Barkhad Abdi. Based on the true story of the 2009 hijacking by Somali pirates of the container ship Maersk Alabama, Captain Phillips is a taught drama which focuses equal attention on the pirates and Phillips and his crew. The entire film is shot hand-held style which adds immensely to the drama of the situation. Extras feature a making-of, with a lively interview with the real Captain Phillips.Hanks, as usual, is outstanding in the lead role.
Silver Linings Playbook (USA: 2012) Directed by David O Russell. Starring Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence, Robert DeNiro and Jackie Weaver.A feel-good drama for teens and adults with strong performances from Cooper and Lawrence.
If you’re a Jennifer Lawrence fan (as many of you are, myself included) then you should also check out her breakthrough role in Winter’s Bone (USA: 2010)
Django Unchained (USA: 2012) Directed by Quentin Tarantino. Starring Jamie Foxx, Leonardo DeCaprio, Christoph Waltz, Kerry Washington, Samuel L Jackson and Don Johnston.One for the Tarantino fans. Despite its dark subject matter and realistic portrayal of the slave trade, this western gained major critical and commercial success, being nominated for 5 Academy Awards. A rollicking no-holds-barred tale with impressive period accuracy and a great cast. It’s good to see Don Johnson from the original (and best) 1980s TV series Miami Vice working on the big screen. An involving film and one of Tarantino’s best – but definitely not for the faint of heart!
CLASS SCENE DVDs
If you would like an edited copy of your past term’s scenes on DVD then see me in class or email me and I will organize it for you. Class scene DVDs are $40 per term’s on-camera workshops and are a very efficient means of improving your acting skills via further home study.
To wrap up the March-April newsletter, I’d like to extend a special thank you to all of our students for their hard work and application over the past 10 weeks of classes. We’ve had a lot of fun in class and learned a great deal. Keep up the good work and I look forward to working with you again next term.
Alan Nurthen (Director)