Is Acting a Skill or a Talent? Let's Look at Both Sides
Sanford Meisner once said that acting is “behaving truthfully under imaginary circumstances.” When reduced to one sentence, it sounds easy. But anyone who has watched an unbelievable performance can tell you that crafting a standout role on stage or screen isn’t a simple process.
Does that mean acting is a natural talent? Is it something you either have or don’t? Is it possible to develop the skill through study and training? The answer lies somewhere between the two extremes: there are both inborn and learned elements to every actor’s arsenal. Keep reading for a deep dive into the debate.
Is acting a skill?
Is acting a natural talent?
Can anyone be an actor?
Is acting a skill?
Acting is a craft that benefits from learning about what makes a character feel believable, and there is no doubt that there are skills actors can learn to help them reach that goal. Whether you are an industry veteran or a first-timer, there are many avenues to explore to learn to act.
Do a cursory search for “acting schools” and you’ll find hundreds of options. Whether it’s Meisner, Method, Practical Aesthetic, or one of the many other acting systems and strategies, there are many people who are willing to teach you to act.
While there is no universally effective acting technique, it’s clear that there are benefits to looking at acting as a skill you have to consistently work at.
The foundation of nearly every school of acting thought is choice. A Method actor reads a script and chooses which memories to use as entry points to a character. Meisner technique involves putting the majority of the actor’s attention on their scene partners and reacting naturally; Jeff Goldblum has often credited his time studying under Sanford Meisner with giving him improvisation skills that have helped him both in acting and music. Even the Chekhov Technique, seen as one of the more spontaneous schools of thought, chooses what it calls “psychological gestures” to create characters. Any time there are choices, there are ways to learn how to make better choices. Read More...
