LEAP OF FAITH  

      Represented in many forms of culture from movies like La La Land and TV shows like Entourage, the topic of people chasing their dreams and becoming a Hollywood movie star is a concept that has been covered for decades and has captured the hearts and minds of millions of aspiring actors across the globe. But as time passes and Hollywood changes, its influence–not only here, but abroad–expands. And as its influence grows, the parts previously unknown to the average consumer have had the curtains pulled back.

        Conversations about pay disparity and on-set cultures have shined light on some of the darker corners of the industry, but the process in which our actors are chosen has remained similar. The only difference now is that talented actors now have to fight tooth and nail with each other to simply get a spot in a line–a line that has grown to feed the desires of an entire planet full of people chasing their dream.

      In a New Republic article by Kyle Paoletta titled “Why it’s Harder Than Ever to Make it in Hollywood,'' Paoletta describes Hollywood’s work culture and the turnover rate for jobs with a hearty dose of cynicism: “Just as in every industry disrupted by a fast-talking founder with a Silicon Valley area code, Hollywood finds itself in a new status quo, one that’s forced the proletariat of writers, actors, and key grips into a never-ending hunt for their next job.” This struggle for opportunity is what awaits every actor preparing to go to Hollywood, but can an actor be “prepared” for Hollywood? Does higher education prepare actors for the rigors of the industry?

      To find out we can look at the first four actors listed in the main cast of the top three highest grossing movies of 2022. This list included multiple A-list actors like Tom Cruise, and also more up-and-coming names like Letitia Wright. In the data, I found a pretty even split of the most “successful” actors who have and have not received a college degree in acting. The issue is that since all of those actors are what we would classify as “successful,” it’s impossible to know if their education supported or failed them because of their commercial success. So in order to find more out I had to find and interview actors much earlier in the process on why they decided to take this leap of faith and pursue a career that isn’t promised to them.

      I was first introduced to Max Chester, a 21 year old senior at Emerson College who is in the BFA acting program. When we started our conversation what surprised me the most was how he credits a lot of the growth he sees in his own work but not from the classroom. “What acting school has given me is a way to explore more and make big choices but at the same time your classes don’t really prepare you too much for the industry,” said Chester.

      With a little more digging it was clear that college provided Max with the opportunities to hone his own skills. But what I didn’t expect was a glowing review of our student film process. “A lot of the preparation I got for the industry comes from my extracurriculars,” Chester explained. “I’ve done a dozen or so student films here on campus and I’ve learned…probably an equal amount on set as I have in classes.”

      But that experience isn’t mutually exclusive to students enrolled at a college. The other actor that I interviewed, Michael Moroso, at 21 years old has been involved in multiple student films and took classes at the Stella Adler Academy of Acting, which taught massive names like Marlon Brando and Robert De Niro. “You have to have a lot of faith in yourself, a lot of faith that things are gonna work out, and a lot of faith that all the work you're putting in is gonna pay off. Honestly that’s the name of the game when it comes to acting, it’s just faith,” said Moroso.

      Michael and I spoke about what he might be missing out on by forgoing the experience college and higher education bring. While he accepted that he would miss out on some opportunities he was adamant that he saw no difference in his talent and those of people who graduated from university. “Do I think you need training? Yeah. Do I think you need to go to a university? not necessarily. No.” explained Moroso. “But once you get out here, if you’re going to come out here and try to get into the industry, No one cares where you went to school.”