Literature review

Literature Review 2

‘Westbrook.M, http://actingcoachscotland.co.uk/2012/05/should-actors-work-for-free/’

The piece I am reviewing is an article written by an acting coach on his company’s website, ‘http://actingcoachscotland.co.uk/’.  The content of the piece is all based around the tile, ‘Should Actors work for free?’, I feel that Westbrook writes from a personal point of view, and is very much advising the reader, whom I feel are actors or performers.

Westbrook states that, ‘Clearly professional actors should be paid for their work like lawyers, doctors and everyone else’, he is stating to the reader his opinion and making a comparison to strong professions so that everybody reading the article can clearly understand his opinion.  We all know that Lawyers and Doctors are well paid.  He does however go on to say that, ‘I occasionally give my time away for free, watching rehearsals or coaching someone I think is a good investment for me.’  This shows his audience, that he is not against free work, and by using the words, ‘good investment’, he is indicating that he believes it will pay off in the future.

An interesting point that Westbrook raises in his article is how, ‘The real problem is when big organisations exploit unpaid actors. If the BBC or a big funded film company expects people to work for free, then the problem should be dealt with by Equity or SAG’.  He is telling the reader that he believes the big companies and organisations who ask performers to work for free are the ones who exploit them and this is not ok.  He believes that working for free or for experience should be happening on both sides of the spectrum, ‘But should interesting projects just get killed because the director isn’t rich? How would the neophyte director ever get to put something on?’  He is informing his reader that this isn’t exploitation, when everybody involved is doing it to try to reach a goal together it is ok to work for free.

In conclusion I feel that Westbrook raises some very interesting points and this article will help me in my inquiry.  I also feel that his closing statement of his article is very true, ‘I think we need to calm down about biting people’s heads off for suggesting that people could work for experience but also those offering the work should work hard to keep things above board and not suggest that ‘doing it for the experience’ is why the actors should do it.’  He believes it is each individual’s choice, and if they believe there is a good reason for working for free then they should do it.

Literature Review

Literature Review.

‘Trueman.M, http://www.theguardian.com/stage/2013/dec/13/half-equity-actors-pay-under-5k-survey’.

The piece I am reviewing is a journalistic piece written by a theatre critic Matt Trueman, in December 2013, for The Guardian.  The content of the piece is about the rise in unpaid/ low paid work for actors.  I feel that this piece really reflects and establishes the need for the research I am carrying out in my professional inquiry.  I believe that the intended audience for the piece are those who have an interest in the theatre and Arts.

The first thing that caught my attention in this article was its title, ‘Half of Equity performers earn less than £5,000 a year’.  Knowing that national minimum wage sits at around £15,000, I automatically found this figure appalling and wanted to go on to read the rest of the article.  I don’t feel that Trueman takes a very biased approach to the subject he is addressing, as he doesn’t ever express his opinion throughout the article.  Trueman uses a lot of statistics and I feel that this gives the reader more trust in his findings, ‘Since November 2012, almost half said they had worked for no pay, while a further 51.9% were not reimbursed for expenses.’ This is something I wish to reflect in my own inquiry.

Although I feel that Trueman doesn’t express any personal opinion, I do feel that he wants the audience of the article to realise how poor pay conditions are for performers.  Trueman doesn’t write anything about any good paying jobs for performers and his approach to the subject is very much aimed at the negative side of no pay for performers.  Although I want to gather statistical data through my research, I want to be able to compare benefits and drawbacks of no paid/ low paid jobs for performers.

Trueman also touches lightly on how, ‘Low-paid work has been a significant point of conflict this year, with a number of campaigns targeting the practice of unpaid acting jobs.’  He goes on to state that rulings from Courts supporting actors under Employment Law will begin to affect the Fringe theatre and how it works on profit share and artist collaboration.  This is something I would like to explore further, as I believe there is a difference between artists coming together to create artistic development and directors employing performers for free and making a profit on ticket sales etc.

In conclusion, I feel that the statistics in this piece will really help me to compare my own data to data that already exists.  I believe that the context of the piece is very similar to what I wish to explore and will be a great stepping stone for me to start from.

Full Force Ahead

So Module 3 is here.  I feel like i blinked and landed at this place, how did the time go so quick?  So I feel like there is soooooo much to do on this module and just not enough time.  I doing so many things at once, just trying to get a great start on my inquiry.

Please click the link below to take my short survey on Performers working for free...

Here's the link https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/BJPYKWB

A Critical Reflection Of Professional Practitioner Inquiry.

A Critical Reflection Of Professional Practitioner Inquiry.

Module 2 has been a very insightful and interesting module for me.  It has allowed me to explore a topic I am very passionate about, and discover ways that I can research and evaluate this topic.

Reader 4 helped me to discover the ways in which I research within my industry.  It helped me to determine that as a performer I am always researching and gaining knowledge through everything I do.  I began to think of a topic that is often spoke about amongst performers and workers within the industry and noticed a pattern amongst my conversations and readings.  The question arose about why performers work for free and I began to brainstorm ideas about my views and opinions on this topic. (Appendix A).  I also researched what is already known about this topic and found some very interesting articles that helped me to progress with planning my inquiry.                                                                  ‘Trueman.M (2013) (http://www.theguardian.com/stage/2013/dec/13/half-equity-actors-pay-under-5k-survey)’, (http://www.spotlight.com/news/archive/2012/07/04/equityrsquos-guide-to-the-issues-around-low-no-pay-for.aspx).  After discussing my inquiry question with my Advisor Alan Durrant, I was very enthusiastic to begin my plan.

I began studying all the inquiry tools that are available to use. I decided I was going to make a pilot survey for my friends to take on my chosen topic.  This was to see if the topic had a good amount of interest amongst friends in the industry. (http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?PREVIEW_MODE=DO_NOT_USE_THIS_LINK_FOR_COLLECTION&sm=K0cxGiA9qOQu6hViozBocv0rA42JVgcgcAQrQOaDkJQ).  I found this survey very useful and it helped me to determine that I will use a survey within my inquiry to gain statistics and patterns.  I also looked into the benefits of other inquiry tools, such as interviews and literature reviews and found that all three tools will create a good balance when reviewing for evidence in my inquiry.  I blogged about the different advantages and disadvantages of the tools explored in reader 4 and decided these were the best 3 for my inquiry. (Appendix B. LIZZYROWDEN.BLOGSPOT.CO.UK).  I also found that my SIG on Facebook helped me to gain others opinions on inquiry tools and create conversation on the work we were all planning.

Through the tasks in reader 5 I was able to identify how important professional ethics are to my inquiry.  I found this reader very interesting as ethics are there to keep us safe and set boundaries, but there are arguments that they can stand in the way of human instincts and characteristics, ‘If the development of civilization has such a far-reaching similarity to the development of the individual and if it employs the same methods, may we not be justified in reaching the diagnosis that, under the influence of cultural urges, some civilizations, or some epochs of civilization -- possibly the whole of mankind -- have become "neurotic"?’ (Freud.S (1930) Civilization and Its Discontents).  A question I asked myself, is should we allow ethics to overrule our emotions and instincts?  This question arose from the photograph in reader 5 of the Sudanese girl that ‘Kevin Carter’ photographed in 1993. (http://www.cincyworldcinema.org/press/carter2_545x588x300dpi.jpg)  In this instance I believe that ‘ethical duties as a photojournalist’, ‘Nottingham.P (BAPP (Arts) WBS 3630 Module 2, Reader 5)’, shouldn’t have been more important than a human life.  However I do realise that in circumstances such as an inquiry, ethics play an important role and are there to protect those participating.  I found this a very fascinating topic as there is so much debate amongst it.

In conclusion, I have had a very interesting time whilst planning my inquiry and believe that I can take a lot of new knowledge and findings into Module 3, and build my inquiry to become a piece of work that develops knowledge of my topic.

References

‘Trueman.M, (2013) (http://www.theguardian.com/stage/2013/dec/13/half-equity-actors-pay-under-5k-survey)’,

http://www.spotlight.com/news/archive/2012/07/04/equityrsquos-guide-to-the-issues-around-low-no-pay-for.aspx.

(http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?PREVIEW_MODE=DO_NOT_USE_THIS_LINK_FOR_COLLECTION&sm=K0cxGiA9qOQu6hViozBocv0rA42JVgcgcAQrQOaDkJQ). 

Freud.S (1930) Civilization and Its Discontents.

http://www.cincyworldcinema.org/press/carter2_545x588x300dpi.jpg

‘Nottingham.P (BAPP (Arts) WBS 3630 Module 2, Reader 5)’

Award Title Proposal

Passion and love for what I do, is what has driven me to develop and nurture my talent and skills within Performing Arts.  When someone asks me what I am best at, I cannot answer.  As I feel my strength lies in Performing as a whole, singing, acting, dancing and choreographing.  I believe that my skills work together and not individually and that I am a better performer and teacher for this.  This is why I have chosen the proposed title of Performing Arts as what I do doesn’t fit into one single category.  It fits into the Arts as a whole and has many segments and attributions within it.  For me to single out one skill, such as dance or dance teaching, I would be neglecting my other skills, and not portraying a true and fulfilling description of my talents.  I also feel I have worked hard in my life whilst studying and training to develop all of the relevant skills required within performing arts to just push some aside.  I want the chance to pass on my knowledge to others through teaching and performing and I don’t want to restrict myself to doing this through one genre of the Arts.  I want to teach Performing Arts and everything that is categorized within it and I feel this title will allow me to go on to do so.

Researching.

There are many different ways that we can conduct research and I feel that there are Pros and Cons to all forms of research.  I also feel that certain types of research are better suited to different topics.

Surveys:  I believe that Surveys are a great way to gain statistics and discover patterns when researching for an inquiry.  It allows us to gain a wide range of answers, from different people and makes the summary non biased.  However, I don't believe that it gets a deep enough answer to questions and can be very vague.  I don't feel that I could just use a survey by itself and gain optimal results for my Inquiry.  It is less personal but more statistical.

Interviews:  An interview is a great tool of research.  It allows the researcher to gain a more personal opinion on their topic and also allows them to feel the participants emotion towards the topic.  It also allows the researcher to ask questions about the respondents answers.  An interview can evolve as it is going along and can lead on to so many other questions and topics.  The personal side can however, become biased and cant be used for statistics but can be used to get an inside view from somebody who is involved in the topic.

Focus Groups:  Focus groups are great for bringing together ideas, and creating discussion and debates on topics.  It brings an inquiry to life, and allows us to develop ideas from other peoples knowledge and opinions and maybe take a different view on the topic.  I do however feel that focus groups can also be biased and this therefore doesn't allow enough variety and truth about the topic to be discussed.

Pilot Observations: Observations help greatly with an inquiry as they allow you to develop feedback and ideas over time.  By doing more than one observation, you are able to compare the different ways in which people work and have a variety of research to work from.It allows us to see the topic in action and get a more live experience from the work involved.  I do feel that Observations may not always be beneficiary though, as if the people know they are being observed they may adapt the way they do things and it may not be a true display of the work.

PLEASE HIGHLIGHT THE TEXT BELOW TO READ IT!!  I HAVE TRIED FOR ABOUT AN HOUR TO GET RID OF THE WHITE BUT I CANT DO IT!!!!!