I’m a mom of an actor (my D17, who has for now switched focus to directing and screenwriting) and have been trying to educate myself on this stuff for the past 7 years! I have to say that all of Gyokoren’s insight and advice are spot on. Especially the part about what name of school is on the resume. That doesn’t, in itself, matter. What matters is the quality of the training (which will come through in the audition) and the support/networking that came along with that school’s degree…networking that can be, with diligence and time, developed on one’s own.
I always upvote your thread on Reddit @Gyokoren! IMO people don’t want to accept that there is so much work (not to mention training, I’m talking work as in research/hustle) involved in pursuing this business.
@Gyokoren, I’m a little late to the party but thank you so much for all this wonderful information and for the hard work and careful thought you put into every post I ever see you do on here! This stuff is pure gold for our kids.
I started to listening to Audrey Helps Actors after you recommended it last year and it’s become a favorite. Those “Leveling Up” episodes are amazing. Now off to download some of the others you recommend and seek out some of those books.
Thinking good thoughts for your film to re-start production soon. Best of luck with it all.
@Goggleson@TS0104 Hey, thanks! I should have the final 3-year compilation of all this data ready to post in the next couple of weeks.
From what I have so far, @MuttsandMT, @HAHCx4 and others will be happy to see my point illustrated that while there are a few big name schools with lots of bookings, there are overall 80 colleges represented of which 58 are American. That actually surprised me. Now I just have to figure out a way to format that part without it becoming an overwhelming eyesore to read - which will take some doing. haha
Hello there @Gyokoren
Thank you so much for your insightful research. My oldest daughter is trying to make a choice by this Friday between three different programs and we wondered if you had any input or suggestions. We have been doing as much extensive research as possible. She has been accepted to: Cal Arts BFA in Acting, Chapman University BFA in screen acting, UC Santa Barbara BFA in Theater. There are other programs that she has been excepted to but is most interested in these three. How essential is it to go to a more expensive and exclusive program in terms of finding your path as a professional actor? She also has an interest in directing and filmmaking.
Would welcome any ideas that you or anyone else may have. Thank you!
Like I said earlier, the most important thing I believe she will get out of a good college acting program towards being a screen actor is a solid foundation in the craft along with some experience using it. There are additional benefits beyond that which can come from attending an expensive big name school with a large and active alumni network, but doing so isn’t essential at all. It isn’t even essential that one study acting in college although the data I have offered shows that it can certainly be beneficial and is probably her best bet for the reasons I outlined in another thread entitled “Foundational Training in College vs. Private Acting Studios” which is linked to the bottom of the list on this one. And here is a link to the promised 3-year compilation of the data which I think illustrates that. http://talk.qa.collegeconfidential.com/theater-drama-majors/2183206-3-year-totals-young-adult-actors-theater-drama-degrees-and-pilot-season.html
However, while you haven’t said anything about your specific financial situation, something I have not said in this thread is that one of the best gifts an actor can give herself is to acquire that foundation while incurring little to no debt. The cost of living in Los Angeles has gone through the roof in the last few years and it went all the way to the moon in New York a long time ago. It’s hard enough to just keep one’s head above water financially and still afford the continued training most actors coming out of even the tippy top schools will still need. A mountain of student debt on top of that? Just … no.
Who knows? She could get lucky and be one of the tiny minority who hit on something big straight out the gate. But most likely, if a load of debt is even part of what drives your concern with an expensive school, it will not serve her. For instance, most of the actors on the list for whom those pilot bookings were their first got around a $40k payday minus 10% to their agents, 10% to their managers, and 100% including those rep commissions being taxed if they weren’t incorporated. If the shows didn’t get picked up and run at least a season which most did not, that didn’t make much of a dent if they had high-five to six figures in debt.
Actually, the first year I posted data here under a different age range, the mother of a recent graduate from one of the really expensive schools that shows lots of bookings replied. She and her daughter had apparently been operating under the mistaken notion that just graduating from that school entitled her to much of anything and they weren’t very happy about having been smacked in the face by reality. Just be forewarned that nobody knows what market trends will be in four years, there are no guarantees, and expectation is the mother of resentment. http://talk.qa.collegeconfidential.com/discussion/comment/20560835#Comment_20560835
I auditioned for colleges eleven years ago, so I don’t have much of anything current to offer about those particular schools - or really any schools. I can’t even offer much of anything definitive about the one I attended because there has been so much faculty turnover since I was there. But to be honest, while I may be a little old-school in my thinking, I do have some reservations about the value of a degree specifically in Screen Acting. But as for that and the others, maybe @JuilliardGrad will have something to offer since he seems to keep abreast of this stuff.
