Just Being

“I’ve always remembered something Sanford Meisner, my acting teacher, told us. When you create a character, it’s like making a chair, except instead of making someting out of wood, you make it out of yourself. That’s the actor’s craft – using yourself to create a character.” -Robert Duvall

“A lot of what acting is, is paying attention.” -Robert Redford

“If you look at yourself as a star you’ve already lost something in the portrayal of any human being…I do the same thing now as when I was just starting, I ask myself a few questions: How is this character like me? How is he unlike me? In the difference between these two, what is important?” -Gene Hackman

In the last year, we’ve lost three incredible actors, three of my all-time favorites, three who made me want to become an actor, and three whose work continues to inspire me to be the best actor I can be.

Gene Hackman last February.

Robert Redford this past September.

And today, the announcement that Robert Duvall passed away at age 95.

Besides being phenomenal at their craft and creating so many indelible characters, there is one other trait these three all shared in common…It never felt like you were watching them act. It all seemed effortless.

That’s what the greats in any craft do. They make it look easy. In the case of acting, the great actors make it look like they aren’t acting. They’re just being.

And perhaps they are. Just being.

R.I.P. Mr Duvall (and Mr. Redford and Mr. Hackman and all the greats we’ve lost in the past year). We will miss you big time.

P.S. – The above stills are from three of my favorite films by these actors. They are not as widely known. The first is “Scarecrow”. The middle is “Downhill Racer.” And the last is “The Great Santini” which scared the crap out of me as a kid. I re-watched it not too long ago and Duvall’s performance is still scary. Scary good…Give all three a watch.

P.P.S. – And if you haven’t watched “Tender Mercies”, put that on the top of your list. So good. I wrote this blog post about it a while back.