Acting Quotes

4873 Acting quotes by 2890 unique authors

In civilized life, where the happiness, and indeed almost the existence, of man depends so much upon the opinion of his fellow men, he is… — Washington Irving
An actor must make his needs (goals, wants, objectives) so strong that he is willing to interfere with the other actor in order to get… — Michael Shurtleff
You are the spokesman for your character, you put on his case. Are you going to win or lose? There'll be no drama if you… — Clive Swift
An expression of feeling isn't worth anything unless it interferes with what the other actor in the scene wants. — Michael Shurtleff
One of the things I like about my profession, and that I find healthy, is that one constantly has to break oneself to pieces. — Liv Ullmann
Acting doesn't have anything to do with listening to the words. We never really listen, in general conversation, to what the other person is saying.… — Jack Lemmon
An actor must interpret life, and in order to do so he must be willing to accept all experiences that life can offer. — Marlon Brando
You don't merely give over your creativity to making a film - you give over your life! In theatre, by contrast, you live these two… — Daniel Day-Lewis
Acting is a sport. On stage you must be ready to move like a tennis player on his toes. Your concentration must be keen, your… — Clive Swift
The [Great] Actor is able to approach in himself a cosmic dread as large as life. He is able to go from his dread to… — Unknown Author
If you're an actor, always be true to your character. If you are not an actor, have character and always be true to yourself. — Robert De Niro
There is a need for aloneness... for an actor. — Marilyn Monroe
The key is always to speak in your own voice. Speak the truth. That's Acting 101. — Vincent D'Onofrio
Sometimes if you have financial restraints, it's a benefit. It forces you to come up with a more creative way. — Robert De Niro
It's the actors who are prepared to make fools of themselves who are usually the ones who come to mean something to the audience. — Christian Bale
You have all these plans to act, and maybe do it rather elegantly, and then they turn the rain machine on. — Bill Nighy
The more you do your homework, the more you're free to be intuitive. But you've got to put the work in. — Edward Norton
At the Neighborhood Playhouse School of Theatre, Sanford Meisner said, 'When you go into the professional world, at a stock theatre somewhere, backstage, you will… — David Mamet
I just try to be honest and true to the character and play the part. — Denzel Washington
The truth of ourselves is the root of our acting. — Sanford Meisner
Acting is not talking, it's living off the other fellow!!! — Sanford Meisner
You can't learn to act unless you're criticized. If you tie that criticism to your childhood insecurities you'll have a terrible time. Instead, you must… — Sanford Meisner
The only way to deal with yourself as an actor is to follow the emotional truth of what you have to do under the imaginary… — Sanford Meisner
Transfer the point of concentration to some object outside of yourself - another person, a puzzle, a broken plate that you are gluing. — Sanford Meisner
If you have the emotion, it infects you and the audience. If you don't have it don't bother; just say your lines as truthfully as… — Sanford Meisner

Who Wrote These Acting Quotes

2,890 authors contributed a total of 4,873 Acting Quotes, led by these top contributors: