Gold Logie Winner Paul O'Brien follows his dreams by opening his own acting school in Melbourne!
About Us
What makes us different?
As a school and as actors we understand that Australia is yet to find the formula that helps to support and create great actors and performers. The world is filled with amazing Australian actors, but unfortunately many of them have had to leave the country in order to reach their goals and find opportunities, particularly when it comes to training and education. The Actors Nest is striving to change the standard of the industry and the standard of teaching for actors and performers all over Australia.
We are one of the only acting schools in Australia to provide purely professional actors who have extensive experience and knowledge within the industry and as teachers. All our teachers are trained by Paul O’Brien on the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People (Stephen R Covey) and are required to go through our Master Class, an intense 8 week course performing scenes and applying the 7 habits to the critiquing process. This is done to guarantee our product will not be diluted & that teachers will not be contradicting the strong principles the school is based on.
Other Australian acting schools generally offer teachers who lack the experience it takes to understand an actor’s world. Many teachers have simply done courses themselves and have 20 hours experience on set or basic theatre, making it impossible for them to answer questions honestly and share genuine knowledge of the craft. We believe our teachers must be mentors and role models helping students to discover their own path using the life skills they are being armed with throughout the course using the 7 Habits and their own life experiences.
How & Why?
It’s simple, Paul has studied acting for the last 11 years, he also managed to teach and take 100’s of acting courses while working on major roles. His inspiration to create the school came to him while living in Los Angeles and attending some of the great schools and courses supplied by the American industry. By adopting these new found techniques and approaches to the 7 Habits, which are commonly used within large corporations to train staff and improve performance and moral, Paul has developed a formula that is unlike anything Australia has seen before.
Some of our aims and teaching philosophies
1. Our aim is to encourage each individual student to start with the end in mind, helping them to set goals, plan and feel a sense of achievement in an industry filled with rejection and disappointment. Often the basic starting points, such as finding an agent, or preparing for auditions, can be daunting and confusing. Many of our students have come to us believing they understand how to do these things, or that they already have done these things, only to discover they know very little about how they should be going about them and why. We have also come to believe that many actors of all ages have the true passion but lack the confidence to strive in other learning environments provided in the Australian industry
2. We attempt to create a non-judgemental and non-competitive environment within our classes. This includes the judgement of other actors in the industry in any country and on the front of any magazine!
3. We also believe in student lead learning, particularly with children and young adults. Students retain information more effectively when they feel they have had some control over the decision making process of their own classes and learning process. Rather than asking students the right questions, we strive to encourage them to ask themselves the right questions, essentially showing them that they already have the knowledge to succeed. This does not mean our classes are not structured, but rather that they can be flexible and open to changes based on the individual students in the class.
4. One of the most beneficial aspects of the school is the support network it creates for all actors in this growing industry. Our classes always begin with discussions about wins and losses during the week, personal or professional. This gives actors the opportunity to share their experiences during auditions and jobs helping them to feel supported by the class. It creates a very close bond between all class members, helping students to trust one another and be honest with them self about how they feel they are progressing. This is also a great chance for the teachers to keep track of each student and their development. Many of our students consider the school to be a second family because of the level of support they receive and the level of understanding demonstrated by the teachers and other students.
CONTACT:
Claire Wyndham
Ph: 0403 717 446 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting**************0403 717 446******end_of_the_skype_highlighting begin_of_the_skype_highlighting**************0403 717 446******end_of_the_skype_highlighting
EMAIL: info@theactorsnest.com.au
WEB: www.theactorsnest.com.au