--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In your actor's heart, you know when…" description: "\"In your actor's heart, you know when you're playing well. Others may not always agree with you, but I'm always aware of when the scene is cooking or no..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2da/michael-emerson-4622_actors_in-your-actor-s-heart-you-know-when-you_2130460.jpg" --- # In your actor's heart, you know when you're playing well… ![“In your actor's heart, you know when you're playing well. Others may not always agree with you, but I'm always aware of when the scene is cooking or not. You have an instinct about that from years of doing scenes and plays, and I think it stands you in good stead even in the TV world.” quote by Michael Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2da/michael-emerson-4622_actors_in-your-actor-s-heart-you-know-when-you_2130460.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2da/michael-emerson-4622_actors_in-your-actor-s-heart-you-know-when-you_2130460.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2da/michael-emerson-4622_actors_in-your-actor-s-heart-you-know-when-you_2130460.jpg) > “In your actor's heart, you know when you're playing well. Others may not always agree with you, but I'm always aware of when the scene is cooking or not. You have an instinct about that from years of doing scenes and plays, and I think it stands you in good stead even in the TV world.” [Michael Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-emerson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. An actor trusts their internal sense of performance quality, even if external feedback varies, using experience to gauge a scene’s success. **In simple terms:** Actors rely on instinct to judge their own performance. Key Takeaway Trust your seasoned intuition. Themes acting self‑awareness craft confidence Mood confident reflective pragmatic Type practical inspirational When to use this quote - theatre rehearsals - film sets - live performances Key Concepts intuition experience self‑assessment Questions to Reflect On - When should you seek outside feedback? - How does experience shape perception? A Different Perspective Instinct may be biased without external critique. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Actor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actor/) [Actors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actors/) [Cooking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cooking/) [Heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heart/) [Instinct](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/instinct/) [Play](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/play/) [Theatre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theatre/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [Im a character actor at heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shuler-hensley/im-a-character-actor-at-heart/) [Shuler Hensley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shuler-hensley/) > [I'm a character actor at heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shuler-hensley/i-m-a-character-actor-at-heart/) [Shuler Hensley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shuler-hensley/) > [If you're an actor in your heart, no matter how much money they shove at you, it doesn't matter if the work doesn't provide…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-noth/if-you-re-an-actor-in-your-heart-no-matter-how-much-money-they-shove/) [Chris Noth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-noth/) > [Every actor in his heart believes everything bad that's printed about him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-welles/every-actor-in-his-heart-believes-everything-bad-that-s-printed-about/) [Orson Welles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-welles/) > [I really am a character actor, in my heart of hearts, because I really do like developing characters and painting a past for them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-mcdermott/i-really-am-a-character-actor-in-my-heart-of-hearts-because-i-really/) [Dylan McDermott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-mcdermott/) > [I love doing scenes with two actors in an elevator, but sometimes I'm a little boy, and I like swinging a sword with 800…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michiel-huisman/i-love-doing-scenes-with-two-actors-in-an-elevator-but-sometimes-i-m/) [Michiel Huisman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michiel-huisman/) > [The one nice thing about doing a character for a long time is, you begin to feel more comfortable, and you are thinking less…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-cole/the-one-nice-thing-about-doing-a-character-for-a-long-time-is-you/) [Gary Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-cole/) > [I love doing these scenes. 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So sometimes, you know,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-emerson/it-may-be-changing-but-still-it-s-the-one-place-that-total-control-of/) [Michael Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-emerson/) > [Call-and-response style, yes, exactly. So whenever different groups get together then there has to be this long period of negotiation. How will we worship?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-emerson/call-and-response-style-yes-exactly-so-whenever-different-groups-get/) [Michael Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-emerson/) > [I think people respond to villains because people in general are more villainous than heroic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-emerson/i-think-people-respond-to-villains-because-people-in-general-are-more/) [Michael Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-emerson/) > [So you find a lot of these sixth Americans congregate in these interracial congregations. They hang out together at work, at school, wherever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-emerson/so-you-find-a-lot-of-these-sixth-americans-congregate-in-these/) [Michael Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-emerson/) > [There are roles that are terrifying because they're large or you may feel that they're out of your line, but I'm never terrified once…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-emerson/there-are-roles-that-are-terrifying-because-they-re-large-or-you-may/) [Michael Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-emerson/) > [We do not have an American culture. We have a white American culture and a black American culture. So when those two groups try…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-emerson/we-do-not-have-an-american-culture-we-have-a-white-american-culture/) [Michael Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-emerson/) > [I think of myself as a problem-solver. 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I talked to an African American who says before she goes into an interracial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-emerson/and-different-traditions-stress-different-so-then-there-s-that-i/) [Michael Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-emerson/) > [I think it's easier, I really do, because of not having that similar history, so that's why I think two-thirds of these mixed congregations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-emerson/i-think-it-s-easier-i-really-do-because-of-not-having-that-similar/) [Michael Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-emerson/) > [There are three things, and it depends on the group that we're talking about, but there's history, there's culture, and then there's social networks.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-emerson/there-are-three-things-and-it-depends-on-the-group-that-we-re-talking/) [Michael Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-emerson/) > [I ask the clergy why don't I see myself represented in leadership? And I'm told, and this happens quite a bit, "We don't think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-emerson/i-ask-the-clergy-why-don-t-i-see-myself-represented-in-leadership-and/) [Michael Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-emerson/) > [I was a magazine illustrator for many years before I became an actor, and I used to think, 'Oh, God, all those wasted years!'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-emerson/i-was-a-magazine-illustrator-for-many-years-before-i-became-an-actor/) [Michael Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-emerson/) > [We go where our family goes. We go where our friends are, and because our social networks are so segregated by race, we end…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-emerson/we-go-where-our-family-goes-we-go-where-our-friends-are-and-because/) [Michael Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-emerson/) > [This is this thing I harp on: Sometimes acting can be a self-defeating psychological enterprise if we feel like we're desperate, if we feel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-emerson/this-is-this-thing-i-harp-on-sometimes-acting-can-be-a-self-defeating/) [Michael Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-emerson/) [Explore all 108 Michael Emerson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-emerson/) ## More Actor quotes > [I actually think acting is a form of self-hypnosis. You have to be hyper, hyper aware of what's going on around you. 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