Hundreds of movies are released each year so major studios compete for prime release dates that can help crucial opening weekend box-office receipts. Incredible sums of money are spent on marketing to help ensure that interest is high enough to get butts in the seats. If a smaller, less funded, movie tries to compete with the "tent-pole" features that have millions of dollars in advertising funds, it will likely get lost in the shuffle.

As far as what gets released and what doesn’t, in most cases, a studio or production company will not invest its time and money into a project without doing everything it can to improve the odds of making money. They do this by employing A and/or B List Actors and/or top Directors who have proven track records to bring in a quality product. Once those decisions are made, they come with an inherent upfront cost so the choice to spend the money it takes to have a theatrical release is built-in. They HAVE TO have a wide-release in order to earn back the expenses it takes to produce the movie. And because it is a theatrical release, they HAVE TO spend a significant amount of marketing money on top of everything else, so that means the movie has to do that much better to be considered a success.

Smaller films, that may have better stories, can’t compete with this system particularly if they do not have a built-in attraction, like an A-List Actor. People like their movie-stars and are less likely to see a film if it doesn’t have a recognizable name in it. Therefore, movies without movie-stars or large scale action are not likely to be seen in great enough numbers to justify spending the money for a theatrical run.

Also keep in mind that nobody sets out to make a bad movie. Truly. Movies cost far too much money for someone to risk their career just so they can make a "bad" movie. What generally happens is that a good or great script is slowly turned into a "mediocre" project for a variety of reasons. Those factors could be just a lack of adequate budget to get the locations or talent (on screen and off) needed to really do the script justice. Or maybe there is enough money, but someone’s ego gets in the way…perhaps an Actor feels that he/she should have a bigger part or should play the character in a different way than is on the page..or the Director tries to impose his "vision" upon a script when that "vision" is just wrong for that story… or a Studio Executive decides that he needs to justify his job so he begins delivering "notes" that negatively impact the project. Any number of things can conspire to make an otherwise great movie a bad one, BUT nobody ever starts the process with the intention of making a bad movie. By the time the damage is done, it is too late to stop the machine, so a "bad" movie can get a major theatrical release while otherwise "better" ones get lost because they didn’t have the money or talent to begin with.

Brian Dzyak
Cameraman/Author
IATSE Local 600, SOC
http://www.whatireallywanttodo.com

You are off to a good start by knowing that music theatre and opera voices are very different. Where does your voice feel most comfortable? It’s your voice. You know it better than anybody else in the world. You know your personality and how you really feel.

It’s your choice. If you try to do what someone else says is better, is it really better for YOU?

Why would you want to limit yourself and not get any formal training? Training can lead to experience, which can increase your casting opportunities, which can increase your chances of success.

You have to audition for parts. You cannot just walk off of the street and ask for a part and get it. drama classes are very helpful. After you have done some things in school, try out for local theatre groups. Start building yourself and your resume. It will help you far more than hurt you.

If this is what you Truly want to do with your life, then you owe it to yourself to do everything you can to develop as an actress. That means that you should take the courses, because in the end, you need to know as many aspects of acting as you can. In a casting call, that can make all the difference in the world. So do not short change yourself. Good luck!

If you are wondering where the locations should be around, they should be in Orange County. Preferrably in Irvine.
If anyone has any ideas about fundraising as well, could you also share your ideas?

VolunteerMatch, http://www.volunteermatch.org
Idealist, http://www.idealist.org
HandsOn Network, http://www.handsonnetwork.org/
Change.org, http://www.change.org
CraigsList, http://www.craigslist.com
Network for Good, http://www.networkforgood.org
http://www.1-800-volunteer.org/
ServeNet, http://servenet.org/

If you see an organization that you would like to help, but don’t see a volunteering opportunity posted by that organization for a group, it’s okay to call them and say you would like to volunteer as a group — they may have opportunities they haven’t posted. Also, many organizations are open to your own suggestions for volunteering activities.

If you want to do something that is representative of your club, many senior homes would welcome short skits and lively monologues.

to answer your question the top four are as follows (trying to put them in order of importance though some disagree).
scene study. this is the base of everything. you need to know how to take apart a scene and performs it. there are various techniques, adler, miesner, etc. this is essential because it will not only teach you acting skills but also how to approach a part/scene.

-cold reading. cold reading is basically learning how to audition when you have no or little time with the script beforehand (thus a cold read) . this is important because you need a good audition to land any part.

-a commercial class. people think this is important because as a beginning actor you’ll get work in commercials to start with. this will leas into bit parts in tv or movies. its not really essential to become a great actor, but it is to have an acting career.

-improv. improv looks great on a resume. in auditions it isn’t unusual for a casting director to tell you to improv the rest of the scene. also, it really teaches you how to be comfortable with your body and movements, which translated in your craft.

most classes let you audit before you pay for a 4-10 week commitment. this means you’ll get to sit in on one class. different schools/coached have different rules about auditors participating. some will just let you watch while others will invite you to jump in. either way, it gives you an idea of what the class is like.