How important is typing for an actor, and how does an actor figure out his or her type?
Orion Barnes Theatrical and commercial agent and owner, Rogers Orion Talent Agency, Sherman Oaks, Calif.; clients recently booked Star Trek, Criminal Minds I think it’s more important that actors know themselves rather than a “type.” When you know who you are and how other people see you, it transcends the nuts and bolts of acting technique and becomes about the true you. In other words, tapping into the quality that helps people relate to you is 100 times more important than branding yourself as a “lawyer type” or a “cop type.” As a client put it recently, “People are more complex and interesting than any character that could ever be written in a movie. It’s the quality of the human behind the actor that fills in the blanks.” As to how to find this quality, there are two great classes in town: Know Your Type, Act Like Yourself, taught by Mark Atteberry (www.beaworkingactor.com), and Marketing the Actor, taught by Jason Buyer (www.marketingtheactor.com). But really, it just comes down
