Most actors know that behaving like a big baby on set or stage isn’t going to go over very well. You have to be professional, listen, and, as the saying goes, put your grownup pants on. But while there’s no denying that being an actor is serious work, approaching the process with some childlike levity—aka forgetting that seriousness sometimes—can be incredibly helpful for your performance.
Acting coach and teacher Terry Knickerbocker, whose list of alums includes Michelle Williams, Daniel Craig, and Austin Butler, always tells his students to look back to their childhood for inspiration. “What makes acting work best is a sense of play and freedom that most of us had when we were little,” he says. “If an actor can reclaim that freedom of not worrying about if they’re doing the right thing, or being polite, or if everyone around them is happy, that is often the difference between good and great.”
Here are his tips for getting back in touch with your inner child (tantrums not included).
Get past perfection
Not only is striving for perfection an impossible endeavor, it is the ultimate joy killer of acting. “If you think you’re not allowed to make a mistake, your whole sense of self-esteem hangs on you doing something well, even in a class,” Knickerbocker says. Thinking you’re going to nail everything from auditions to rehearsals also leads to the other great fun destroyers: overthinking and worrying. “The most important mantra I teach my students is ‘fuck it,’ ” he laughs. “Not in an ‘I don’t care’ way, but in a ‘not being controlled by your anxieties’ way.”
Change your routine
“Think about how children are always asking questions—that’s a growth mindset and it’s a good thing to have,” Knickerbocker says. Practice by changing small things in your routine, including seemingly meaningless tasks such as switching the hand you brush your teeth with or taking a different route to work. He also suggests improv or acting technique classes if they focus on play and discovery. “Put the focus on experience and learning, not the result,” he advises.
Be prepared
Knowing that you are on top of something, or have given it your all, often gives you the freedom to be more fun. “I find actors fall into two camps: the scattered and last-minute ones, and then the ones who really put in the work,” says Knickerbocker, who worked for months with Craig on his latest role in the upcoming “Queer” and with Sam Rockwell for “American Buffalo” on Broadway. “The more prepared you are, the more you can play and get into your flow state.”
So, if auditions give you anxiety, go to as many as you can. “Do auditions for things that you’re not even going to be right for and get past the ‘what do they want from me’ mindset, as that quickly kills your inner child,” says Knickerbocker.
Study fun actors
Even complete villains can be imbued with silliness and wonder. Knickerbocker references Sir Anthony Hopkins in “The Silence of the Lambs” as “interesting and captivating,” because he was so open and playful in how he toyed with Jodie Foster’s protagonist, Clarice. He also remembers the late Alan Rickman in “Die Hard,” “which was a complete popcorn movie, but he was so fun to watch as the villain, he really took his time.” Bottom line: Take the business of acting seriously, but try not to take yourself so seriously.
Get into therapy
“You are the instrument, so the more you know about what’s going on with you, the better,” Knickerbocker says. Are you someone who is chronically late? Struggles to learn your lines? Crumbles after an audition? “We all build up defensive structures over time and they are not useful,” he says.
Also, since acting happens in the body, any sort of embodied process is helpful, whether it’s meditation, yoga, or voice warmup. “I always remind my students that they’re actors, not air-traffic controllers,” says Knickerbocker. “You’re doing this because you love it. Nobody is forcing you, it’s a voluntary obsession, so why not make it fun?”
