Community’s Yvette Nicole Brown Gives Her Advice to Actors

Community star Yvette Nicole Brown attended the Next Gen 2011 event, hosted by Sherlock Homes star Robert Downey Jr., that was recently held at Milk Studios in Los Angeles.  While walking the carpet, Brown had a few words of advice when it came to aspiring actors in the business. 

“Save your money, be good to people on set, be professional,” she said. “I always heard, my mom said, when I was growing up, ‘How you start is how you finish,’ so if you start with integrity and character and as a responsible human being, you’ll end that same way.  Take care of each other in this industry, that’s the best advice I have.”

The Next Gen event also featured an amazing list of experienced actors, Jennifer Garner, Jodie Foster, Chris Pine, Nick Offerman and Josh Brolin, all there to read Reel Stories, Real Lives, a collection of stories from members of the industry and their loved ones.  Also in attendance, making up the thirty-five years and younger guest list, was Armie Hammer and Elizabeth Olsen.

Watch Yvette Nicole Brown on the red carpet speaking to The Hollywood Reporter below.  Read more

Peter Mensah: “The greatest experience for an actor is working”

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 8:10 — 5.6MB)

You’ve seen Peter Mensah in tons of things but most notably 300, Hulk and Hildago. He’s usually the menacing or authoratative guy who gets in the way of the main character but in real life, he couldn’t be nicer. Maybe I shouldnt say that… I don’t want to ruin his authoritative cred!

Peter is starring in two great upcoming projects, James Cameron‘s Avatar and Spartacus: Blood and Sand.

In my exclusive interview I did at this summers Comic-Con, we talk about his Spartacus character (Doctore), working with green screens and he even offers up some advice to actors.

Is this your first Comic Con?
This is my first Comic Con. I’ve done some sci-fi fantasy. I did 300, etc., but I’ve not really attended, usually because I’m working somewhere else at the time.  This time around Rob [Tapert - Executive Producer of Spartacus] and the guys actually flew me back for this.

Tell me about your character.
I get to play a character called Doctore on Spartacus, and Doctore is the gladiator trainer.  And it’s his job fundamentally to bring up the up and coming new gladiators and also to prepare sort of the well-schooled gladiators for each and every fight.  And you know what’s fascinating about doing this is you sort of get to see how Roman society worked way back when, I think 73 B.C.  And the fact that these stadiums could house 80,000 people, would come in and watch these fights.  Physically.  They didn’t have pay-per-view.  They had to show up.

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Amy Lyndon’s Advice to Actors on Cold Reading & Booking Jobs

When you are starting out in your career, you must first understand that it is a career, not a job. Your job is to work your career. A career spans a lifetime and the only way that you will fail, is if you quit. With that said, make sure you think of yourself as if you are in training for the Hollywood Olympic Committee. You need to practice everyday. Go out on as many auditions as possible so that you become an expert at booking. Learn how to work a room. Learn how to work your techniques. Learn how to book. Keep your work simple.

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