As artists, we feel a great need to create our own and find our voice. Originality is paramount to our feeling of true artistry. But I’d be willing to bet that most, if not all of us, have borrowed from the greats. Every performance, every nuance has been informed or helped along by the different experiences we’ve taken part in. What makes it original is that we’ve borrowed from others, and funneled it through our own POV and experiences, and made something distinct to ourselves. Michael Caine famously said:
All actors steal certain gestures and behaviors from other actors — but the best actors make these gestures their own. Steal from the best, and make it your own.
I was reading a book by Dorothy Sayers this morning and though the text is regarding poets, I think it’s universal to the artist.
…It means that in a very real sense poets do sometimes write more greatly than they know; and it also means that every poet’s work enriches not only those to whom he transmits the tradition, but also all those from whom he himself derived it.
Think about that. Our performances are not only our own creation in this moment in time, but will influence future performances, becoming a brand new original creation. Thinking in the larger scheme of things, that emits a certain timelessness to what we do. Brando’s performances were stunning in their time, and now. But the greater picture is how his performances changed the course of acting history. It’s rather interesting to think that every time I’m inspired by Winslet’s acting, and I translate that into my own, I’m honoring and enriching not only past performances, but future ones as well.
thethriftyactor 