Over many years the acting and entertainment industry has transformed in its attitudes in many different ways. One of the biggest and most fundamental changes /movements that has been observed within Hollywood is the me too movement. This movement highlighted sex abuse allegations and harassment within the industry. Many actors spoke out in support of the women involved and new procedures and protocols were put into place to prevent anything like that happening again.
Budgets For Films And Cast Selection
Budgets for films have risen steadily over many years from the 1950s onwards. Whereas previously films originally would have budgets of thousands or hundreds of thousands when films became popular, films now can have budgets that run into hundreds of millions of dollars. Part of the reason the bar has been raised so high for budgets is high profile actors from Hollywood as well as more use of special effects and computing technology. Attitudes to cast selection have also radically changed as now movies such as star wars have done casting calls for lead roles without picking out Hollywood actors. This has opened up more diversity within the Acting world and there are now more female actors as well as actors from ethnic minorities.
Employment Levels In Actors
Unfortunately unemployment levels within the acting profession are at very high levels. It is commonplace for actors across the UK to have several jobs at once in order to make ends meet. They often rely on work on the side and traditionally work in trades such as hospitality or retail to generate income whilst looking t make a break into the acting world. Part of the reason that employment levels are so low is the sheer numbers of actors across the UK.
Acting and drama are becoming increasingly popular subjects at schools and as a result more and more students are looking to pursue a career in acting. However in order to get top or mid range roles as with may professions due to saturation in the jobs market often only those with the most qualifications are being chosen for lead roles. This and industry/family connections are big influencers in who succeeds in landing acting roles.
Social Media And Acting
Social media has played an important part within the acting industry as shows such as games of thrones and peaky blinders have become viral and extremely popular after being shared across face book and other platforms. The more publicity for a production the better. Another way in which social media has affected actors is by producing social media celebrities that then go on to become actors. This has led to many turning to social media as an alternative to acting as large sums of money can be made from featuring advertisements on popular videos as well as by doing brand deals or sponsorship.
