Author Archives: thevsstudioblog

Come together, right now, over me -song, “Come Together” by The Beatles In chemistry, a covalent bond is a link between two atoms who share a pair of electrons. The best example of this? Water. Hydrogen and oxygen come together, or bond, to provide us and the world with the most basic necessity of life.Continue reading “Bond”

If someone brings you in to pitch an idea, some pointers… One. Be grateful for the opportunity. Someone took time out of their busy schedule to listen to you. Two. Work hard on it. Do your research. Know your subject cold. Think through every detail and try to anticipate questions the person may ask. Three.Continue reading “The Winning Pitch”

“Maybe you are. But I don’t want to be talked to like some incurably sick patient you have to comfort. Oh, I suppose I am sick, one of those weak and divided people who slip like shadows among you solid strong ones. But sometimes, out of necessity, we shadowy people take on a strength ofContinue reading ““Is It Easy To Say?””

There are many great acting theory and technique books out there. Far too many to list here. Below are three practical ones. They’re all short, yet pack a punch. They’re filled with strategies you can use for your auditions, rehearsal or performance. (1) “A Practical Handbook For The Actor” by Melissa Bruder, Lee Michael Cohn,Continue reading “Practical Acting Books”

The things just started changing with your touchYesterday, tomorrow just didn’t mean as muchAnd I’ll be all the finest man can be before I stopAnd if you’ll just hold the ladder, baby, I’ll climb to the top – song “If You’ll Hold The Ladder” from the film Tender Mercies “Mercy is the love we deserveContinue reading “Mercy”

“First do what is necessary. Then do what is possible. And before you know it, you are doing the impossible.” – Saint Francis Of Assisi “Progress equals happiness.” – Tony Robbins For anything you want to accomplish, first get out a pen and paper and write down all the possible steps from start to finish.Continue reading “The Perfectly Acceptable Plan”

”You get a feeling of electricity. Sparks seem to shoot from him.” -Sportswriter Jack Zimmerman writing about Walter Payton (aka “Sweetness”), legendary Chicago Bears running back You will get nothing and go nowhere by half-assing it. Instead, as my good friend Tony Ciccone used to advise when we were kids… “Johnny….Explode into it.” Don’t playContinue reading “Explode Into It”

In addition to the both us being super famous movie stars, Matthew McConaughey and I have one other thing in common…(Okay. He’s the movie star. I was just testing to see if you’re paying attention.) We both have dads who believed in us. In his excellent and engaging book/memoir Greenlights (I highly recommend the audioContinue reading ““Don’t Half-Ass It””

Inspired by a prior post from James Clear’s weekly newsletter (terrific, by the way): A great question to ask yourself when working on habits: “What am I optimizing for?” Or put another way, “Why am I doing this?” If you can’t answer cogently, then why optimize. It’s also a great question to ask yourself repeatedlyContinue reading “Optimizing”

“No.” “Nope.” “Not interested.” “Not for me at this time.” “No, thank you.” If you’re truly passionate about something, then you won’t be able to take “No” for an answer. You’ll either (a) get them to “Yes”, (b) realize it’s not for them, (c) do it on your own. Two core principles that might helpContinue reading ““No””