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3rd December 2024
Carola (MFA Professional Acting ‘22) talks to us about her latest role in Hellboy: The Crooked Man
Hi Carola! Your recent role in Hellboy: The Crooked Man represents a significant step in your screen career. How did training with the Theatre School’s recorded media department prepare you for this experience?
As part of the MFA Professional Acting course, we had a couple of screen acting modules. Not only did the teaching staff help us to improve our screen acting techniques, we were also taught how a professional film shoot is run.
The course emphasises creating a coherent, self-managed and dynamic approach to performance. Could you share a specific example of how this training helped you approach your character work on Hellboy?
I was portraying a mythological character, which meant I had tonnes of material to work with. However, I still followed a research method that was taught to us during training; a script analysis structure which is applicable to any text.
That method definitely helped me reorganise the amount of information on the character and apply it to the text, precisely pinpointing all of the elements I needed in order to recreate a fantasy character.
Being part of an intimate ensemble of students is a unique aspect of the MFA Professional Acting Course. How did this environment help build your confidence as a professional actor?
The cohort was built with care so that every actor complemented each other. In my opinion, this is the biggest strength of the course: building a solid and diverse group able to learn to respect each other. This encourages a safe space where you can grow as performers and people.
The course combines classical training with contemporary industry preparation. How have you found the balance of these skills beneficial in transitioning from drama school to the industry?
The teaching staff encouraged us to analyse our strengths and weakness, in order for us to become more self aware. Once I entered the industry, I knew how to ride out the tougher times like Gabriel Medina rides waves… (Check him out and you’ll know what I mean!)
Looking back at your journey, what advice would you give to prospective actors?
Put yourself out there and meet people constantly. Have no shame; it’s better to make a fool of yourself than wasting an opportunity, without a doubt!