<p>^ My, don’t people get emotional about their American Idol favorites (Adam rules!) even from when they would have been nine or ten years old when they were on the show … 
And she WAS working on a cruise ship before she did that film. There’s nothing wrong with that. It’s probably a great gig, but it is what it is … Don’t you know that a good director can make a very mediocre or inexperienced actor seem brilliant? Neither one of us were on the set, so there’s no point in speculating about that … But …</p>
<p>We’re definitely talking about two different kinds of actors here. Of course there are some people who have a knack for being very natural in front of the camera, manifest a very specific ‘type’ and have ‘that one thing they do.’ Sometimes they are very marketable or even brilliant at it and this goes for everyone from high dollar celibrity leads like Bruce Willis and Cameron Diaz right on down the food chain to the guy who gets a commercial agent and appears as the old school New York cabbie in a few commercials. I mean, Bruce is Bruce and Cameron is Cameron, right? In every single role they play … I think it’s safe to say that at this point Jennifer may be Jennifer, too, and yes she has the added bonus of having been born with a Stradivarius in her throat. 
Some did luck into it with little or no training and if you think you’re one of those for whom that could happen, have at it. </p>
<p>However, there is another kind of actor that any BFA worth its salt is trying to nurture who may or may not have ‘that one thing’ at eighteen or younger, but also have the capacity for being multidimensional in not only TV and film, but also in theatre and that takes a lot of intensive training no matter how much of a natural you might think you are. You’ll find those all over the industry as well and their success rate - while still low - is a lot higher than the many thousands who just take the bus to NYC or LA every year. The old saying is that most actors can do one thing, the good ones can do two, and the greats can do three. That’s what you have to assume that the seniors you see here going to these good BFAs are striving for. They’d better be … They’re not wasting their best asset. They’re enhancing it. Not to mention that they’re getting a college degree …</p>
<p>Check out Cate Blanchett’s work in “Elizabeth: The Golden Age,” “Notes on a Scandal,” and “The Aviator.” Then tell me her ‘type.’ That’s what a great actress looks like. She has also received a lot of acolades for her stage work and you just can’t develop that kind of skill by casually taking acting classes a few times a week. Without that training, she would probably just be another bottle blonde in LA with a lot of unexplored potential. As if they need any more of those … LOL I seriously doubt she would take you very seriously if you tried to tell her she wasted her best asset during her time at conservatory. That goes for all the other such actresses I listed in my first post as well. It also goes for the people I know who have graduated the past couple of years and have moved onto doing some exciting things on and off Broadway, in the major regionals, in TV and film, and in commercials. Some had already worked a good bit before they even started school, but I’m sure any one of them would tell you that they’re a million times the actor than they were before and THAT is their best asset. </p>
<p>I’m watching them VERY closely and learning all I can from their successes and failures. It’ll be my turn next year and I want to have all the bullets I can possibly stuff into my bandolier … I don’t believe in winging it and hoping to get lucky. I believe you can make your own luck by getting as good as you can be, creating as much financial staying power as you can for yourself, and making intelligent and informed career decisions. Really, that’s all anyone has any control over, but whatever works for you …</p>