The III Archetypes of the Actor: Part II - The Artist

Part II of V: The Artist

Hi Actor,

Last post we introduced the III Archetypes of the Actor. If you haven't checked out the previous post go read it and come back. Today we are looking at the first Archetype. The Artist.

He/She Encapsulates the creative, sensitive, expressive, spiritual (if thats something you connect to) and bold nature of the actor. He/ she emphasises the importance of individuality and bravery within in your work.

Below are some options of things I could put into my Artist Archetype. When creating your own Archetypes, really sit down and think about all the tips, tricks, methods, exercises and lessons you've found influential or helpful from literally anywhere (classes, life, art, quotes, experience). Don't just copy me, this is simply a guide to help you build your own.

Heart

• Point of View: Those of you that are familiar with Les Chantery's work know all about having a point of view and how to develop it. Here I would list exercises I know that would boost my point of view. Just listing them would provoke a reminder to practice them. Add as much detail or as little as you like about each skill/ lesson/ exercise.

• Play to Win: Approaching roles with a drive to help the character win. All the exercises that challenge the play to win side of me are listed here too.

• Curiosity – From reading my blogs you know I'm a huge believer in practicing curiosity. Every exercise I could think of that would boost my daily curiosity I would list below. Throw in quotes from people you admire talking on the subject too if that helps spark something.

“If you know what you want to do and you do It, that’s the work of a craftsman. If you Begin with a question and use it to guide an adventure of discovery, that’s the work of the artist. The surprises along the way can expand your work, and even the art form itself.” 

Rick Rubin – ‘The Creative Act’

• Cultivated Look – Maybe you're paying attention to the way you present yourself to the world. This could be a very interesting way of expressing your individuality. The clothes and makeup you wear or to the way you groom yourself could be listed here.

Note: For the purpose of keeping this post shorter, the remaining skills will be labeled minimally. Some of these won't mean anything to some of you and thats the point. Make your own. It only has to make sense to you.

Recap: These are a collection of exercises, skills, habits, learnings or techniques to throw into one of the 3 archetypes. Generally speaking any skill even slightly related to acting can fit into one of The Three. What we are slowly doing here is opening our eyes to the focus points of our career. We are building an awareness to what we have learnt along the way and this will serve as a practical reminder and compass to assist with giving us immediate direction to our work. This allows us to work with intention.

• Voice

• Listening

• Humour 

• Familiarity

• Relationship

• Improvisation

• Screen Acting Technique

• Understanding through watching:

  • Genre

  • Pacing

  • Auditions

  • Self-tapes

  • Working in the frame

  • Stage

  • Film

  • TV

• Listen to Music related to projects/ goals/ current emotions...

• Stillness & Intentional Movement 

• Script Analysis

• The Slow Reveal tool

• The People, Places & Things tool (On The Page Tool)

• Off The Page Questionnaire Tool

• Personalisation

• Substitution

• Second Circle

• Journal 

• Emotional Exploration

• Rehearsal

• Record and Review. 

• 5 Points of Story

• Minimal Effort Approach

• Process of Artistic Creation : Inspired by The Creative Act by Rick Rubin

  • Collecting Seeds

  • Experimentation & Crafting

  • Completion

• Accent

  • US: Standard, Californian, Southern, Boston, New York

  • UK: RP, Cockney, Scottish, Irish

  • EU: German, Russian, French

• Inspiration/ Ignition/ Priming

  • Watch Movies

  • Watch Plays

  • Watch interviews

  • Watch tutorials/ filmed footage of classes

  • Read books

  • Rest

  • Reward

• Process/ the Structural Approach to a Roll

• Process of Immersion through:

  • Music

  • Accent

  • Skills

  • Books

  • Fitness Exercises

  • Sensory Reality

• Performance/ Show day

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Anything that fills your heart; inspires you to work; pushes you to be brave; anything directly related to the art/ techniques of acting, throw it all in here. You may add or remove anything you want over time. This will grow into an expansive toolkit/ reminder of how to connect to the artist within you. Never again will you need to worry about how you can connect to that inner fire because you'll have The Artist to remind you.

NEXT WEEK: We will have a look at Archetype of The Soldier.

Looking forward to it! Feel free to comment or leave a like! As always share it around with friends in the industry! Appreciate you!

Talk soon,

Lachy

Lachlan is an Australian Actor who has been working within the industry for a decade. He’s worked in Film & Theatre.

© Lachlan Stuart 2025