WORDS TO INSPIRE
Actors are agents of change. A film, a piece of theatre, a piece of music or a book can make a difference. It can change the world.
I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it.
We actors are obliged to engage in unflagging, systematic exercises and training. We must have patience, time and faith.
Creativity is a wild mind with a disciplined eye.
There is a vitality, a life force, an energy, a quickening that is translated through you into action, and because there is only one of you in all of time, this expression is unique. And if you block it, it will never exist through any other medium and it will be lost. The world will not have it. It is not your business to determine how good it is, nor how valuable, nor how it compares with other expressions. It is your business to keep it yours clearly and directly, to keep the channel open.
Take your job seriously, but not yourself. That is the best combination.
Perfection is the enemy of progress.
I wanted to communicate something, to reflect something back to the audience. For me, that was what was powerful. I think that’s what’s more important than being in the centre of the stage, to communicate something.
Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one’s courage.
You have treasures hidden within you – extraordinary treasures – and so do I, and so does everyone around us. And bringing those treasures to light takes work and faith and focus and courage and hours of devotion, and the clock is ticking, and the world is spinning, and we simply do not have time anymore to think so small.
An actor has to burn inside with an outer ease.
With any part you play, there is a certain amount of yourself in it. There has to be, otherwise it’s just not acting. It’s lying.
Acting is not about being famous, it’s about exploring the human soul.