Career Girls

Overview:

Actors express ideas and portray characters in theater, film, television, and other performing arts media. They interpret a writer’s script to entertain or inform an audience.

Actors typically do the following:

• Read scripts and meet with agents and other professionals before accepting a role
• Audition in front of directors, producers, and casting directors
• Research their character’s personal traits and circumstances to portray the characters more authentically to an audience
• Memorize their lines
• Rehearse their lines and performance, including on stage or in front of the camera, with other actors
• Discuss their role with the director, producer, and other actors to improve the overall performance of the show
• Perform the role, following the director’s directions

Most actors struggle to find steady work, and few achieve recognition as stars. Some work as “extras”—actors who have no lines to deliver but are included in scenes to give a more realistic setting. Some actors do voiceover or narration work for animated features, audiobooks, or other electronic media.

In some stage or film productions, actors sing, dance, or play a musical instrument. For some roles, an actor must learn a new skill, such as horseback riding or stage fighting.

Most actors have long periods of unemployment between roles and often hold other jobs in order to make a living. Some actors teach acting classes as a second job.

Compared with workers in all occupations, actors had a higher percentage of workers who belonged to a union in 2014. Many film and television actors join the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA), whereas many stage actors join the Actors’ Equity Association. Union membership can help set work rules and with benefits, and assist actors to receive bigger parts for more pay. Union dues can be expensive, however, for actors who are beginning their careers.

Work Environment:

Actors held about 69,400 jobs in 2014. They work in various settings, including production studios, theaters, theme parks, or on location. About 1 out of 5 actors were self-employed in 2014.

Work assignments are usually short, ranging from 1 day to a few months, and actors often hold another job in order to make a living. They are frequently under the stress of having to find their next job. Some actors in touring companies may have employment for several years.

Those who work in theater may travel with a touring show across the country. Actors in movies may also travel to work on location.

Actors may perform in unpleasant conditions, such as in outdoors in bad weather or while wearing an uncomfortable costume or makeup.

Education and Training:

Many actors enhance their skills through formal dramatic education. Many who specialize in theater have bachelor’s degrees, but a degree is not required.

Although some people succeed in acting without getting a formal education, most actors acquire some formal preparation through a theater company’s acting conservatory or a university drama or theater arts program. Students can take college classes in drama or filmmaking to prepare for a career as an actor. Classes in dance or music may help as well.

Actors who do not have a college degree may take acting or film classes to learn their craft. Community colleges, acting conservatories, and private film schools typically offer these classes. Many theater companies also have education programs.

Skills to Develop:

Creativity: Actors interpret their characters’ feelings and motives in order to portray the characters in the most compelling way.

Memorization skills: Actors memorize many lines before filming begins or a show opens. Television actors often appear on camera with little time to memorize scripts, and scripts frequently may be revised or even written just moments before filming.

Persistence: Actors may audition for many roles before getting a job. They must be able to accept rejection and keep going.

Physical stamina: Actors should be in good enough physical condition to endure the heat from stage or studio lights and the weight of heavy costumes or makeup. They may work many hours, including acting in more than one performance a day, and they must do so without getting overly tired.

Reading skills: Actors must read scripts and be able to interpret how a writer has developed their character.

Speaking skills: Actors—particularly stage actors—must be able to say their lines clearly, project their voice, and pronounce words so that audiences understand them.

In addition to these qualities, actors usually must be physically coordinated to perform predetermined, sometimes complex movements with other actors, such as dancing or stage fighting, in order to complete a scene.

Job Outlook:
Employment of actors is projected to grow 10 percent from 2014 to 2024, faster than the average for all occupations. Job growth in the motion picture industry will stem from continued strong demand for new movies and television shows.

Production companies are experimenting with new content delivery methods, such as video on demand and online television, which may lead to more work for actors in the future. However, these delivery methods are still in their early stages, and it remains to be seen how successful they will be.

Actors who work in performing arts companies are expected to see slower job growth than those in film. Many small and medium-size theaters have difficulty getting funding. As a result, the number of performances is expected to decline. Large theaters, with their more stable sources of funding and more well known plays and musicals, should provide more opportunities. 

Actors face intense competition for jobs. Most roles, no matter how minor, have many actors auditioning for them. For stage roles, actors with a bachelor’s degree in theater may have a better chance than those without one.

Earnings:

The median hourly wage for actors was $18.70 in May 2016. The median wage is the wage at which half the workers in an occupation earned more than that amount and half earned less. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $9.39, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $100.00.

Work hours for actors are extensive and irregular. About 1 out of 3 actors worked part-time in 2014. Few actors work full-time, and many have variable schedules.