IMPORTANT OF MULTI CAMERA OVER SINGLE CAMERA IN FILM MAKING

Often, a First Time Filmmaker really having doubts Like this- How many cameras do I need to Complete My Movie? Here, in this section we are explaining about it.

You can prefer the Number of cameras on the basis of budget and Necessity. In big-budgeted films, usually the production companies decided to shoot with multi-cam set up, while in low budget film production companies prefers to go with the single – cam setup. Alfred Hitchcock, The all time best directors, uses thirteen camera setups in his movie “Notorious” for getting 32 shots. Alfred described this, in this way- “I want to make the Films in a perfect way and that is why I preferred to use the dual-cam setup.” According to The Motion picture Co, Inc opinion, the vast counts of Hollywood films are filmed in a single camera.

Which camera is best For Filmmaking
Filimg using a steady cam
Image Courtesy: The Motion Picture Co .com
Multi- Cam Set Up is best for…
The high budgeted films
Films that having large a number of shots
The films that having high end multi-star casting system
Tight production schedule running films
Single-Cam Setup is best for….
Low Budgeted Films
Experimental Films
First-time filmmaker’s films
Found applicable in Short films, documentary films..
Case Study:
Dialogue Scene: Multi Cam setup is found as effective in Dialogue/conversation scenes. In usual dialogue scenes, filmmakers usually use over-shoulder- shots, two shots and wide frame (establishing) shot. So, if you are filming with a single camera, you needed to change the camera position in each and every time accord to your shooting script. In such a situation the multi camera setup is really helpful for shooting the scene easily without the occurring of time loss.

Negativity: The Multi-cam setup will not practicable, if you are filming a dialogue scene in a congested location.

Action Scenes: Filming the action scenes with multiple cameras is really worthy: why because in an action scenes there are too many shots are needed to make the scene visually impactful and that is the reason why multi cam set up are beneficial as compare to a single cam filming method.

Let’s Illustrate clearly with an instance: Suppose you are filming Hero-Villain fight scene, over here the intro- shots will goes like this:- close up view of Hero’s revenge showing eyes, close up view of villain’s angry eyes, over shoulder shots of both the characters, wide angle or top angle view of both the characters , close up view of hero’s blowing hair, anger showing face of villain, close up view of here’s fist etc… In short, there are too many shots are needed in action scenes and that is the reason why we said single cam mode of filming is not practicable in action Scenes.
By oluwagbemiga ademiju

OH IS MORNING GET MOTIVATED...

GET MOTIVATED... AND START SOMETHING (ADEMIJU OLUWAGBEMIGA)

Let's face reality: It's hard, if not impossible, to feel motivated all the time.
Some days you just want to put your feet up, eat buffalo chicken nachos, and watch Netflix -- and not even good Netflix, but some crappy movie that you're only watching because you've given up on being productive and are complicit in filling your brain with dim-witted, mind-numbing entertainment.
But hey, sometimes that's what it takes to recharge your batteries. A nice little brain vacation.

Of course, when you've got a deadline looming, or a big presentation coming up, and your coworkers (and/or customers) are depending on you, taking a brain vacation isn't really an option. In such cases, when you can't afford to lollygag, you need to be able to silence your inner couch potato and get your head in the game. You need to be able to dig down deep, find your inner strength, give 110%, and ... look, I'll admit it: Motivational speeches aren't really my thing.

So in lieu of writing you one, I've found 16 of the greatest motivational speeches from across the worlds of business, sports, entertainment, and more. And while the messages vary greatly from speech to speech, they can all help you get in the right frame of mind for tackling your next big challenge.

(Warning: Some speeches -- *cough* Al Pacino *cough* -- may contain NSFW language.)

16 of the Best Motivational Speeches
1) J.K. Rowling: “The Fringe Benefits of Failure, and the Importance of Imagination” (2008)

In J.K. Rowling's 2008 Harvard commencement speech, the Harry Potter author explored how two phenomena -- failure and imagination -- can be crucial to success. While failure can help you understand where your true passion lies, and where you should focus your energy moving forward, imagination is what will allow you to empathize with other people so you can use your influence to do good.

We do not need magic to change the world, we carry all the power we need inside ourselves already: we have the power to imagine better."

2) David Foster Wallace: "This Is Water" (2005)

From the opening minutes of David Foster Wallace's 2005 Kenyon College commencement speech, in which he questions commencement speech conventions, it's clear that Wallace has some serious wisdom to share. The crux of his speech: Many of us are oblivious to our own close-mindedness. We picture ourselves as the centers of our own, individual universes, instead of seeing the bigger, more interconnected picture.


If you're automatically sure that you know what reality is and who and what is really important, if you want to operate on your default setting, then you, like me, probably won't consider possibilities that aren't annoying and miserable. But if you've really learned how to think, how to pay attention, then you'll know you have other options. It will actually be within your power to experience a crowded, hot, slow, consumer hell-type situation as not only meaningful, but sacred -- on fire with the same force that lit the stars: love, fellowship, the mystical oneness of all things deep down."

3) Brené Brown: "The Power of Vulnerability" (2013)

The video above is an animated excerpt from researcher Brené Brown's speech, "The Power of Vulnerability." In the speech, Brown explores how our fear of not being good enough (among other fears) drives us to shield ourselves from our own vulnerabilities. The alternative to wearing this emotional suit of armor: Embrace vulnerability through empathizing with others.

Empathy is a choice, and it's a vulnerable choice. Because in order to connect with you, I have to connect with something in myself that knows that feeling. "

4) Al Pacino: "Inch by Inch" (1999)

Yes, this speech is from a football movie (Any Given Sunday), but trust me: This isn't your stereotypical rah-rah-go-get-'em sports speech. It's deeper than that. It's about life, and loss, and ... gosh darn it just listen to Al Pacino, he's pouring his soul out!

Either we heal as a team or we’re gonna crumble, inch by inch, play by play, till we’re finished. We’re in hell right now, gentlemen, believe me. And we can stay here and get the $&#@ kicked out of us, or we can fight our way back into the light. We can climb out of hell, one inch at a time."

5) Steve Jobs: "How to Live Before You Die" (2005)

Considering the YouTube video of Steve Jobs' 2005 Stanford commencement speech has 24 million views (not counting the 10 million+ additional views from duplicate uploads), it's likely that you've seen this one already. In the speech, Jobs plays on two themes: connecting the dots (anecdote: how taking a calligraphy class helped inspire the design of the Mac) and love & loss (anecdote: how getting fired from Apple helped inspire his greatest innovations). Perhaps the most memorable part his speech comes at the end, when he quotes the (now-famous) lines from the final issue of his favorite publication, The Whole Earth Catalog:

Stay hungry. Stay foolish."

6) Ellen DeGeneres: Tulane University Commencement Speech (2009)

Ellen's speech, as you might expect, has its humorous moments. But it also explores some of the very personal and tragic episodes in her life that helped push her into comedy in the first place. Two key themes of DeGeneres' speech: overcoming adversity and being true to yourself. For DeGeneres, that meant pushing onward with her career after her sitcom was canceled in response to her publicly coming out as gay.

Really, when I look back on it, I wouldn’t change a thing. I mean, it was so important for me to lose everything because I found out what the most important thing is ... to be true to yourself. Ultimately, that’s what’s gotten me to this place. I don’t live in fear. I’m free. I have no secrets and I know I’ll always be OK, because no matter what, I know who I am."

7) Will Smith: Speech from The Pursuit of Happyness (2006)

Here's another speech from the big screen, this time from the 2006 film The Pursuit of Happyness. In the scene above, Will Smith's character explains to his son why he shouldn't pursue basketball (because he'll end up being "below average") before having a major change of heart.

Don't ever let somebody tell you ... you can't do something. Not even me. All right? You got a dream. You gotta protect it. People can't do something themselves, they want to tell you can't do it. If you want something, go get it. Period."

8) Sheryl Sandberg: Harvard Business School Class Day Speech (2012)


In her speech to the HBS class of 2012, Lean In author and tech executive Sheryl Sandberg deconstructed the idea of the "career as a ladder." For Sandberg, a career is about finding opportunities where you can make an impact, not about chasing titles and planning out a meticulous path. "If I had mapped out my career when I was sitting where you are, I would have missed my career," she commented. What's more, Sandberg eschews the traditional wisdom of keeping emotions out of the workplace. For Sandberg, you need to care not only about what you're working on, but also who you're working with.


"If you want to win hearts and minds, you have to lead with your heart as well as your mind. I don’t believe we have a professional self from Mondays through Fridays and a real self for the rest of the time ... It is all professional and it is all personal, all at the very same time."

9) Dan Pink: "The Puzzle of Motivation" (2009)

Commissions, bonuses, other incentives ... in the business world, these are the things that motivate people, right? According to Dan Pink in his 2009 TED Talk, such extrinsic motivators (a.k.a. "carrots and sticks") could actually be doing more harm than good. The most recent sociological research suggests that the real key to producing better work is to find intrinsic motivation inside of yourself. 


There is a mismatch between what science knows and what business does. And what worries me, as we stand here in the rubble of the economic collapse, is that too many organizations are making their decisions, their policies about talent and people, based on assumptions that are outdated, unexamined, and rooted more in folklore than in science."

10) Denzel Washington: "Fall Forward" (2011)

In his 2011 UPenn commencement speech, Denzel Washington highlighted three reasons why we need to embrace failure in order to be successful. First, everybody will fail at something at some point, so you better get used to it. Second, if you never fail, take that as a sign that you're not really trying. And third, at the end of the day, failure will help you figure out what path you want to be on.

Fall forward. Here’s what I mean: Reggie Jackson struck out twenty-six-hundred times in his career -- the most in the history of baseball. But you don’t hear about the strikeouts. People remember the home runs. Fall forward. Thomas Edison conducted 1,000 failed experiments. Did you know that? I didn’t know that—because #1,001 was the light bulb. Fall forward. Every failed experiment is one step closer to success."

11) Sylvester Stallone: Speech from Rocky Balboa (2006)

I had to put this one next since it plays along the same themes as Denzel Washington's UPenn speech. In the scene above, from the 2006 film Rocky Balboa, the title character (played by Sylvester Stallone) is having a heart-to-heart with his son. The advice he gives him: Don't let your failures or the adversity you face slow you down. Keep. Moving. Forward.

Let me tell you something you already know. The world ain't all sunshine and rainbows. It's a very mean and nasty place, and I don't care how tough you are, it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life. But it ain't about how hard you hit. It's about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. How much you can take and keep moving forward. That's how winning is done!"

12) Elizabeth Gilbert: "Your Elusive Creative Genius" (2009)

Following the extraordinary success of her book, Eat, Pray, Love, people began asking author Elizabeth Gilbert the same question over and over and over: How are you going to top that? In her 2009 TED Talk, Gilbert explores that question while also examining how our ideas of genius and creativity have shifted over the generations. While once seen as separate entities or states of being that anyone could tap into, genius and creativity have increasingly become associated with individuals. And according to Gilbert, that shift has been putting more and more pressure on artists, writers, and other creatives to produce great work.

I think that allowing somebody, one mere person to believe that he or she is like, the vessel, you know, like the font and the essence and the source of all divine, creative, unknowable, eternal mystery is just a smidge too much responsibility to put on one fragile, human psyche. It's like asking somebody to swallow the sun. It just completely warps and distorts egos, and it creates all these unmanageable expectations about performance. And I think the pressure of that has been killing off our artists for the last 500 years."

13) Charlie Day: Merrimack College Commencement Speech (2014)

Best known for his role in the sitcom It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, actor Charlie Day had lots of wisdom to share during the 2014 commencement speech at his alma mater, Merrimack College. Day explained to the audience how college degrees are inherently valueless, since you can't trade them in for cash. Instead, it's you, your hard work, and the risks you take that provide real value in life.

You cannot let a fear of failure or a fear of comparison or a fear of judgment stop you from doing the things that will make you great. You cannot succeed without the risk of failure. You cannot have a voice without the risk of criticism. You cannot love without the risk of loss. You must take these risks."

14) Frank Oz/Yoda: Speech from The Empire Strikes Back (1980)

This speech from The Empire Strikes Back felt like a natural follow-up to Charlie Day's speech. In the scene above, Yoda -- voiced by Frank Oz -- is teaching Luke the ways of the force. One of his key teachings: Whether or not something can or can't be done (e.g., lifting an X-Wing out of a swamp) is all in your head. So instead of doubting yourself, believe in yourself.
Do, or do not. There is no try."

15) William Wallace: Speech From the Battle of Stirling Bridge (1297)

OK, I'll admit it: I couldn't find a recording of the actual speech Scottish freedom fighter William Wallace gave at the Battle of Stirling Bridge in 1297 (the historian I spoke with said something about "nonexistent technology" and me "being an idiot," but I digress). Historical accuracy aside, there's no denying that Mel Gibson's version of the speech from the 1995 film Braveheart can help get you pumped up.

Aye, fight and you may die. Run and you'll live -- at least a while. And dying in your beds many years from now, would you be willing to trade all the days from this day to that for one chance, just one chance to come back here and tell our enemies that they may take our lives, but they'll never take our freedom!!!"

16) Orlando Scampington: "The Pillars of C.L.A.M." (2015)

Sometimes humor is the best motivator. So to cap things off, here's an INBOUND Bold Talk from self-proclaimed author, thought leader, dreamer, cat owner, visionary, and "believer in unlimited human potential," Orlando Scampington. As you'll soon realize upon reading the quote below, it's hard to explain what his speech is actually about -- so I think it's better that you just dive in and enjoy.

Culture is the bitter drunken coachmen lashing motivation into the ungrateful workhorses, so they drag the wagon of growth down the road of success. I think that's a very accurate analogy."

Like comment and share ( by ademiju gbenga)

ROLE OF FILM IN FOSTERING NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT IN NIGERIA

Film is a unique means of communication; its visual bias gives it a universal appeal and impact. Film is the link between all the aspects or forms of literature –prose, poetry, short story and dram. Film plays important roles in the development of any groups of people, ethnicity, and race as a nation or country. It is a veritable tool of national development. One of the key areas in which perform this duty is in the realm of culture.

Film is a purveyor of culture. It helps to preserve the culture of a people from eroding away and this is a focus of implementation of the Nigerian National policy on film article
4(3) c, which states that “film will be produced to protect and promote our rich cultural heritage and our national aspirations in the process of development”. Culture is the totality of the ways of life of a group of people, nation or tribe including their food, costumes, dressing, music, marriage and burial practices etc and it is the bedrock of the essence of being of a people. Tunde Oladunjoye in an article in the Guardian Newspaper of Sunday April 18, 2004 titled: “Cannes Film Festival Knocks, Where is Nigeria?” retraced and emphasizes the role film plays in cultural promotion when he says “I am not aware of nay nation that has been able to achieve development without proactive promotion of its essential cultural components” and this is true because culture is an integral aspect of the life of a people. Much of the Americanization of the world (if I can use that word) is due to the fact that Hollywood movies emphasizes, promotes and projects the American people and nation in a form that most appeal to the viewer, thus from watching Hollywood movies the tendency to be American is developed and this is apparent in the way our youths dresses, the way they speak amongst other nuances.

The film industry is a big employer of labour in any economy. Film like any other aspect of the Theatre arts is a melting pot of all the arts-painting, costumes, writing; prose, drama, poetry, short story, acting, directing, producing, photography, tourism and so on.
According to an anonymous source, it takes a small village of people to make a movie. Film is a big art form that requires the involvement and participation of many people who are often employed as actors, costumiers, cameramen, producers, singers and aesthetic workers. In an article in the Sunday punch of 28th August, 2004, Yinka Ogundaisi, a major Yoruba film producer says that about N100 million goes into film production in Nollywood and about N1.2 Billion annually; the industry was valued at over N4 Billion in 2003. Film provides worthwhile employment for a lot of people; other people are employed in the downstream sector of the industry as marketers, video club owners, copyright and censorship officers etc.

More so film plays an important role in education and human resources development. Audio visual aids are now a significant element in teaching and knowledge impartation. Films are produced on different aspects of medicine, law, humanities etc. It is a very important in pre-school education; there are volumes of educational film materials for toddlers and small children, this is based on the premise that the human mind retain information more vividly what is heard and seen better than what is heard or read only. Educational film is a genre of film on its own. Furthermore documentary film helps to enlighten the public about events and phenomenon in the environment.

Film plays a vital role in social mobilization and information. Film is used to popularise government policies and ideologies amongst the masses. Owing to its ability to hold a captive audience films are used more than any other means of mass communication to promote ideas of positive social transformation as well as to consolidate and build new relationship between culture and national development for example, the National Orientation Agency and the Ministry of Information and Culture uses films to promulgate awareness on issues such as the HIV/AIDS endemic, anti-corruption, poverty alleviation, etc.

Film also help to inspire and develop a nation’s population through the adoption of themes which emphasize the desirable rather than the negative aspect of present social existence and the projection of heroes and heroine that refuse to get involved in the ills and evil around them.

Film serves entertainment and therapeutic purposes. The feature and animated films are chiefly made to entertain the viewer and also help him or her relax. Madagascar, the Matrix Parts I-III, Titanic, Gods Must Be Crazy are produced to help the audience relax and give off tension.

It is a tool of national mobilization, unity, a sign of national autonomy and a means of the preservation of heritage and sovereignty.

Film is a gizmo of research as in the case of archival and library materials. Reel tapes of national events like the Independence Day, First Visit of Queen Elizabeth to Nigeria, the Declaration of Independence, June 12 Presidential election, the official handover from Military rule to Democratic Governance in 1999.

Film is a propaganda device. Established and successful film theorist and filmmaker, Sergei Milkahovich Eisenstein (1898-1948) used films to lobby for the public to accept the regime of Josef Stalin who was the President of the Soviet Union in the deformed USSR. Lisa Reinfanhel also used film that projected the Nazist regime of Adolf Hitler has been the best form of government in the world.

Film is an art form that appeals to the senses of beauty and aesthetics. It combines all the arts of editing, costume, make up, lighting, dance, drama (writing), directing and producing to make it statements.  By Gbenga AdemijuAdemiju

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT ACTING BEFORE U COULD BECOME SUCCESS

There are a lot of things you need to know as an actor or actress, but here are five lessons I wish I'd learned early in my career.  by Oluwagbemiga ademiju.

1. Know your “type.” Sure in school you learned how to play any role—to stretch, to challenge, to grow. Out in the real world, you are unlikely to be able to play much outside of your general age, height, weight, etc. It is very important to have a clear sense of who you are when you walk into a room and what that means in terms of the roles you can audition for. This takes work, soul searching, and asking friends, teachers, agents, and casting directors to give you some hard opinions about your type. Then your headshot should reflect that person. You may very well be able to play many other kinds of roles. However, you aren’t going to get to do those roles unless you get the jobs that you are right for first.

2. The first year is the hardest. If you thought college was hard, wait until you hit the real world. What I hear from former students most often is, “I knew it was going to be hard. I just didn’t know it was going to be this hard.” This business is not for the faint of heart. It takes a lot of hard work and belief in yourself to even feel like you’ve gotten a hold of the bottom rung of the ladder. Learning to be patient and wait your turn are skills you can work on every day.

3. You need to work at it every day. If you want to get through those first couple of difficult years, you have to work at it every day. If you leave it to chance, you will always be able to convince yourself that you will have time to do those mailings, make those calls, and read those trades “soon.” You have to start by scheduling at least an hour every day that you are working at your business—and it is a business. Any day that you have done at least one thing for your career is a good day. This includes auditioning, doing mailings, etc., but it also includes working out, eating healthy, seeing plays, movies, new TV shows, etc. Your job is to learn the business. It is “learnable,” but you do have to learn it.

4. Agents, casting directors, producers, and directors are not “the enemy.” Yes, the whole manager, agent, casting director system is set up so that many, many people have vetted you before you get in front of the person who will actually decide to hire you—the director. producer, or both. However, they really do want you to be good. It makes their job easier. Remember if you nail it in the room, then everyone in that system looks good. The director will trust the casting director to present new talent. The casting director will trust your agent to pitch new actors. Your agent will look to the school where you trained for new talent next year. There is truly nothing more exciting in an audition room than when someone you’ve never met before comes in and just knocks it out of the park. Your job is to be that person. When you are, you make everybody look good—especially you. It takes a while to really believe this. Keep reminding yourself of it.

5. Being a good person is just as important as being a good actor. At a certain level, any of the five people up for a part could do a good job in the role. Are you someone I want to be in a rehearsal room with for a month? A movie set for six months? A TV series for seven years? It takes time to build a reputation. The way you do that is by treating everyone with respect and trying your best to do good work.

It takes persistence to have a life in this business. If you really are going to spend your life as an actor, then the fact that the first year or two was hard is a drop in the bucket.

Be on time. Be professional. Be thankful.

Inspired by this post? Check out our audition listings! January at bauchi state

Ademiju gbenga teaches on-camera acting and audition technique at G net Acting GRoup. He is a veteran of more than 150 episodes of network television. He was a series regular on "Sports Night" and recurring as a reporter on more than 50 episodes of The gnet series...

25 SKILLS THAT WILL BOOST YOUR ACTING CAREER

25 Special Advantages the Theatre Major Has - (and may not even know!)

By ADEMIJU GBENGA 

Here's a list of twenty-five skills, traits, and qualities of personality that are usually well-developed in individuals who complete four years of undergraduate theatre study.

Take special note of them. They are more extensive and important than perhaps you recognize.

As you think about them, consider how many of these advantages are unique to theatre majors--and that you have far more advantages than majors in most other disciplines.

Oral Communication Skills
Many students find that theatre helps them develop the confidence that's essential to speaking clearly, lucidly, and thoughtfully.
Acting onstage teaches you how to be comfortable speaking in front of large audiences, and some of your theatre classes will give you additional experience talking to groups. Furthermore, your work on crews has taught you that clear, precise, and well-organized oral communications are best. Oral communication skills are so important to some employers that they often send management trainees to special workshops. You already have an advantage.


Creative Problem Solving Abilities
Most people expect theatre students to exhibit creativity in such areas as acting, design, playwrighting or directing, and many companies do recruit creative thinkers. But employers are not always aware that theatre experience also helps you learn creative problem-solving techniques that are applicable to many jobs. Tell them!
For one example, tech theatre work--building scenery, hanging lights, making props, running the show, and so on--is a particularly good way to learn how to think on your feet, to identify problems, evaluate a range of possible solutions, and figure out what to do.

The same is true of almost every aspect of theatre. Directing. Design. Acting. Playwriting. Management. And more.

The point here is that your creative ability, what you've learned about using creative processes to solve problems, can be directly applicable to virtually any job you may have.

Most major companies believe that a creative problem-solver will become a good employee. That's you.


More than "get it done"
But theatre students learn that just "getting it done" isn't enough. Not at all. It goes beyond that. You learn to do it correctly. In theatre we learn that merely "getting the show on the boards" is pure bush league and totally unacceptable. Whatever your theatrical job--tech, performing, research, management--it has to be done right . You learn to take pride in doing things at your very best level. Of course an employer will value that trait.

Motivation and Commitment
Being involved in theatre productions and classes demands commitment and motivation. These are qualities that college theatre faculty members and, in some measure, you and your fellow students, probably already possess. By example, we teach each other that success comes to those who are committed to the task at hand. Few other disciplines you study will so strongly help you develop motivation and commitment.
Many theatre students learn to transfer that attribute from theatre to other activities such as classes and jobs. For employers, that positive attitude is essential.


Willingness to Work Cooperatively
Your work in theatre companies teaches you how to work effectively with different types of people--often very different types!
Theatre demands that participants work together cooperatively for the production to success; there is no room for "we" versus "they" behavior; the "star" diva is a thing of the past. Your colleagues will usually let you know when you violate the team spirit of a production.

In theatre, it's important that each individual supports the others involved. Employers will be pleased to know that you understand how to be a team player.


The Ability to Work Independently
In theatre, you're often assigned tasks that you must complete without supervision. Crew chiefs. Directing. Putting together this flat, finding that prop, working out characterization outside of rehearsals. It's left up to you to figure out how best to achieve the goal. The ability to work independently is a trait employers look for in their workers.

Time-budgeting Skills
When you're a student, being involved in theatre forces you to learn how to budget your time. You need to schedule your days very carefully if you want to keep up your grades while you're busy with rehearsals, work calls, and the other demands that theatre makes on your time. Good time management skills are enormously important to employers.

Initiative
Personnel managers call people who approach work with initiative and enterprise "self-starters," people who do what needs to be done without waiting to be asked, without needing to be told.
The complexities of a theatrical production demand individuals who are willing to voluntarily undertake any task that needs to be done in order for the production to succeed. In theatre, we're all self-starters. We learn how to take initiative, to move a project from initial concept to finality--and to do it well.


Promptness and Respect for Deadlines
Tardiness is never acceptable in theatre because it shows a lack of self-discipline, and more importantly, a lack of consideration for others. Being late for a rehearsal or a work call or failing to finish an assigned task on time damages a production and adversely affects the work of many other people. Theatre demands that you learn to arrive on time and meet scheduled deadlines.
That's a job-skill. Employers appreciate workers who are on time and do their work as scheduled.


Acceptance of Rules
In theatre you work within the structure of a set of procedures and rules that deal with everything from shop safety to behavior at auditions, rehearsals and work calls. You learn that you must be a "good follower." Theatre teaches you the importance of rules, a concept that's valued in any organization.

The Ability to Learn Quickly--AND Correctly
Theatre students, whether they're memorizing lines or learning the technical aspects of a production, must have the ability to absorb a vast quantity of material quickly--and accurately . Your work in college theatre will show that you have the ability to grasp complex matters in a short period of time, a highly-valued trait to employers.
Note that part of this ability is another significant trait: knowing how to listen. If you don't listen, you're likely to make some major error that will damage the production. Listening is a skill for any job and an employer will respect your ability to listen and comprehend.

Respect for Colleagues
In theatre you discover that a successful production requires contributions from everybody who's involved. Mutual respect is essential. Working on a production teaches us to respect and trust the abilities and talents of our colleagues. A prospective employer will appreciate the fact that you have learned the importance of respecting your co-workers.

Respect for Authority
Only one person can be in charge of any given portion of a production. The director. The shop foreman. The tech director. The designer. Theatre teaches you to willingly accept and respect authority. That's a trait employers look for in their workers.

Adaptability and Flexibility
Theatre students must be adaptable and flexible. You need to be willing to try new ideas, accept new challenges, and have the ability to adapt to constantly changing situations and conditions. In one production you may be a member of the prop crew; in the next perhaps you're in charge of makeup, publicity or the box office; in a third production you might have a leading role.
A worker who is versatile and flexible is highly valued to most employers; both traits prove that you are able and willing to learn new things.


The Ability to Work Under Pressure
Theatre work often demands long hours. There's pressure--often, as you know well, a lot of pressure. It's important that everyone involved with a production be able to maintain a cooperative and enthusiastic attitude under pressure. The ability to remain poised under such tensions in an asset that will help you cope with stress in other parts of your life, including your job.

A Healthy Self-Image
To work in theatre, you must know who you are and how to project your individuality. But at the same time, it's important to recognize the need to make yourself secondary to the importance of a production. This is a tricky balance that, although difficult to accomplish, is a valuable trait that employers treasure.

Acceptance of Disappointment--And Ability to Bounce Back
Theatre people learn to deal with dashed hopes and rejection on a regular basis. Who hasn't failed to get a role he or she really wanted or a coveted spot on a tech crew? You learn to accept that kind of disappointment and move on. You try again. Employers need workers who are resilient enough to bounce back from this kind of frustration.

Self-Discipline
Theatre demands that you learn how to control your life. More than other students, you are forced to make choices between keeping up with responsibilities and doing things you'd rather do. You learn to govern yourself. An employer will respect that ability.

A Goal-Oriented Approach to Work
Many aspects of theatre involve setting and achieving specific goals. In employer's terms, you've learned to be task-oriented and capable of finding practical ways to achieve goals.

Concentration
Busy theatre students, involved in a production or other theatre projects while also taking a heavy academic load, must learn to concentrate if they are to succeed. Acting classes in particular stress concentration, and once you have learned that skill as an actor, it can be transferred to other activities.

Dedication
As you work in theatre you learn to dedicate your very being--to doing your best to create a successful production. There is dedication to that show...to your home theatre...to theatre as an art.
Many theatre students discover that committing oneself to a given task is deeply rewarding. Employers respect workers who have learned the value of dedication.


A Willingness to Accept Responsibility
Theatre students sometimes have an opportunity that is seldom given to students in other disciplines--the chance to take on sole responsibility for a special project. Being a production stage manager...a designer...a crew chief...a director. Students with other majors seldom have anything even close to these lessons. You can expect employers to value this unusual ability.

Leadership Skills
As a theatre student, you have many opportunities to assume leadership roles. You may, for example, assist a director or designer and lead other volunteers, serve as a crew chief, or even design or direct a production yourself. In the nuturing environment of theatre, faculty help you learn from mistakes so you become a better leader. Leadership training like this can open the possibility for comparable opportunities in a company that hires you. Can you think of any other major that offers this opportunity?

Self-Confidence
Theatre training teaches you confidence in yourself. Your accomplishments in theatre show you that you can handle a variety of jobs, pressures, difficulties and responsibilities. You develop a "Yes, I can!" attitude. Of course an employer will treasure that.

Enjoyment -- "This is Fun!"
You've discovered already that theatre people mystify civilians when we say we're having fun. Non-theatre folk shake their heads when we tell them that, and they ask how it is possible to have "fun" in a job that keeps us working night after night, sometimes until after midnight, doing something that calls for a grinding rehearsal or work schedule day after day after day, that makes us miss going to a movie or a concert. "That's fun?"
Yes. It is. We've learned how to find enjoyment in what we do. That's a valuable attribute.

We can adapt that to other jobs, find ways to enjoy other activities. That positive attitude will mean a great deal to any employer.
                               By Ademiju OLuwagbemiga