Jeff wins Best Actor Oscar…another method actor!

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At long last Mr Jeff Bridges has finally won an Oscar! Congratulations to him. Well deserved. He also takes the percentage up again. What percentage I hear you ask…? The percentage of Best Actor Oscar winners since 2000 who are method actors. It’s now at over 80%. Coincidence? I think not. I like to call…

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Brian Timoney Actors Studio – Seven Days – Channel 4

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My students and I will be appearing in a new Channel 4, fly-on-the-wall , reality programme called Seven Days. You may have heard of it – it’s being heavily promoted. One of my students (Samantha Rowley) is participating in the programme and as a result they have done some filming at the studio. The first…

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Johnny Depp Lends A Hand

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One of the unsung qualities of successful actors is ‘helpfulness’. Time and time again I have observed this trait up close and personal, with great actors. It’s easy to dismiss this trait as perhaps not that important but believe me, the industry loves helpful people and as a result they get more work. Recently, Johnny…

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The Truth About Talent

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The truth about talent is that it is over-rated – or at least the concept is misconceived by many. Many seem to think that talent is ‘god-given’, but nothing could be further from the truth. Extensive medical and psychological research has been done and the evidence is overwhelming. Talent = hours practiced. Putting more hours…

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Recognition for De Niro and Wallach

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Leading Method Actors Robert De Niro and Eli Wallach are to receive industry recognition this year for their lifetime contribution to cinema, and boy have they contributed! De Niro is to receive a lifetime achievement award at the golden globes. Kevin Spacey announced this by saying that  De Niro, 67, was ‘universally acknowledged as one…

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Black Swan and Method Acting

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This post raises a very important point within acting that you need to know, so I would recommend reading it the whole way through. At the weekend I went to see the critically acclaimed film ‘Black Swan’. It was a very interesting film and I recommend you see it. Not only is it a great…

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Slumdog Millionaire and Successful Actors

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On Wednesday I met with Dev Patel at The Groucho Club. In case you don’t know Dev, he played the young male Indian lead in ‘Slumdog Millionaire’. It was interesting because very quickly it became apparent to me that he possessed many of the traits successful actors demonstrate. He was enthusiastic, positive, polite and a…

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Jeremy Piven of Entourage Comes To Town

I bumped into Jeremy Piven, who plays the hardnosed agent in the hit US TV series Entourage, at The Groucho Club in London. Very cool guy. As it happens, one of my Young Actors is working with him on his next project which is very different from Entourage. He is filming a rival series to…

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