With the renewed spotlight on Michael Jackson ahead of the upcoming biopic Michael, it’s a great moment to revisit one of his words that speak directly to artists and performers. “I’m never pleased with anything. I’m a perfectionist. It’s part of who I am.” Which could easily translate to healthy dissatisfaction can drive growth — but let it fuel us first, not consume us.

So... I have an audition to play a 40y/o man. Giving wisdom about communication in relationships to his son Simon. So brought home a girl for me and his mom to meet. I have some Ideas but am open to suggestions.

Right now, the world is talking about oil, about pressure, power, instability, and what happens when supply is threatened. But as actors, what if oil isn’t just something beneath the ground? What if it’s something within us? Oil represents hidden potential. It forms deep beneath the surface, under immense pressure. And that’s exactly where our best work comes from — not from comfort, but from depth. As actors, we live with pressure. Auditions. Rejection. Comparison. Financial uncertainty. Emotional exposure. But pressure isn’t the enemy. Pressure is what produces oil. Inside us is a resource, an emotional truth, imagination, empathy, lived experience that has the power to create light on stage and on screen. Just like oil fuels energy, our inner life fuels performance. But it has to be harnessed correctly. An olive must be pressed to release something nourishing. In the same way, life presses us through setbacks, heartbreak, doubt. And if we allow that pressure to refine us rather than harden us, it becomes usable. It becomes craft. The auditions that didn’t go our way.The roles we didn’t land.The personal struggles we've had to navigate. That’s not wasted experience. That’s material. As actors, our job is to go beneath the surface, into the psyche, into the emotional reservoir most people avoid. Through discipline, training, devotion to the craft, we learn how to extract that depth safely and truthfully. The question isn’t whether we'll experience pressure in this industry. We will. The question is: will we let it make us bitter or better and let it make us luminous? Because the oil is already there. And when used with purpose, it creates light. Let me know your thoughts...

Hey everyone, I’m Ram. I come from a branding and storytelling background, building ideas into things that actually connect and move people. Acting, for me, sits right at the centre of that. It’s real, it’s human, and when it’s done well, it carries weight. I’m here to learn the craft properly, understand the industry, and put myself in a position to land roles that matter. Good to be here. Let’s build something real.

I'm currently doing a qualification in adult teaching (the one that further education college teachers have; I've completed level 3 and currently working on level 4). For my next unit, I need to do two 60 minute lessons, and submit the recordings for assessment (I want to do it over a call for ease of recording). It can be as few as 2-3 students (not 1 on 1 tutoring). Date and time to be arranged. Would only take an hour (or two, to do both classes). I'm therefore offering a free class to complete this. Depending on the students and their level, I can offer: - Introduction to the Meisner technique - Introduction to the Gonsalves Method (an applied new version of Meisner, with a new approach to defining scenes by 5 conditions); I'm already an acredited teacher in this method. - Use of tactics when playing objectives - Scene study Let me know if you are up for this, and if so, when is good for you; I'll try to co-ordinate with other interested people to figure out a time to make it work.