How do I get my child into acting when we live in Alabama?

Question:Would I need to move to a bigger city?

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: Would I need to move to a bigger city?

Did your child tell you he/she wants to do this? It can be fun but it can be very stressfull so really unless they've indicated to you a strong desire to perform I wouldn't go there. Especially uprooting my life for it. There's plenty you can do locally to get your feet wet and see if it's something they really want to do. Most theatres have children's programs. You can sign your child up for one of those and see if they take to it. You don't give your child's age so that makes it hard to give more direct advice...

You can look at the websites for your state's film associations, commissions, etc. and see if anything filming locally is casting, even for extras just to get a taste of what it is to be on set for a day or two.

EDIT: A 13 year old should start with acting classes. Not anything provided by John Robert Powers, but a real acting studio. She should also be participating in any theatrical & musical production she can to start building a resume. No agent will take someone her age without any experience. You should also contact all local colleges that have a film department and find out how their students cast their projects. She needs to get in on that. Her first headshots can be something you take if you take good pictures. If not, get her some decent (not necessarily expensive) headshots from a photographer who at least knows what an actor headshot is and should look like. For examples look at websites of photographers who specialize in actor headshots like many of these in LA http://www.workingactors.com/cgi-bin/pag...

good luck,
Marianne

Maybe your child should have a normal life... then he/she can decide later on his/her own if he/she wants to be an actor/ress. Just my opinion.