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Quote by Annette Bening

“I love watching people listen. And on film often some of the best moments if you think about favorite moments on film, often the person isn't even talking.”

Quote by Annette Bening

Author

Annette Bening is an American actress born on May 29, 1958. She is renowned for her exceptional performances in films, particularly winning the Academy Award for Best Actress for her role in 'American Beauty' and being nominated for 'The Aviator'. more

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“That's one of the most important things about acting is not just when you're speaking but when you're taking in from someone else. So I often go to the theater and I'm watching the person who's not talking. I love that.”

Important Acting

Author:Annette Bening

“A lot of acting is working with your own psyche in order to allow yourself to be open and reveal yourself. But then of course there's a healthy part of you that says, "Well, don't do that." You know, you're going to be in front of people. You could look foolish. You could get it wrong. You could be too big or too small or not realistic or whatever those things are. People might criticize you. There's all kinds of reasons not to be open. But you do want to be open.”

People Kind Reason Acting Healthy Foolish All Kinds Criticize Realistic

Author:Annette Bening

“As an actor, you want to be open to the unexpected. So in order to be open to that, you do have to get out of your discursive mind just like in any creative process, this isn't just about acting. So you have to learn a little bit how to work with your own mind.”

Mind Acting Creative Unexpected Creative Process

Author:Annette Bening

“We all have our insecurity and that's normal. And you have to learn to accept that about being an artistic person or aspiring to be an artistic person is that fears and insecurity, they don't go away.”

Accepting Artistic Insecurity Going Away Being An Artist

Author:Annette Bening

“You have to learn to deal with your own, for want of a better word, insecurities, fears. They don't go away. And that's normal. It's human. You don't ever really want to lose that. What you want to do is learn to manage it and to work with yourself. But there's a part of you that has anticipation and fear. And so the important thing to know is that there's nothing wrong with that and that that's normal. You have to learn how to deal with it, certainly, but it doesn't keep you from doing it. And that doesn't go away ever.”

Important Manage Insecurity Going Away Anticipation

Author:Annette Bening

“It's always tricky to watch yourself, always. When I first had to watch myself, it was really hard because I'd done quite a few plays and I've never seen myself. So I was professional but I'd never watched myself. So I was like hearing you know... I'm sure you guys are all much more familiar with that because everybody has a phone, and everyone's taking pictures of themselves and making movies of themselves. And so people are more accustomed to it now. So I had to get used to it because there's a lot to be learned, of course, as an actor. When you watch yourself, you learn a lot.”

People Done Guy Familiar Tricky Taking Pictures

Author:Annette Bening

“Our mantra is that 90 percent of all television is bad, and ten percent has never been better. We make fun of that 90 percent.”

Author:Joel McHale

“Of course, you can never watch something like somebody else watches something like you, but nonetheless, you have to try. So I think on camera you learn a lot about how much the camera does for you, which is what is the great luxury of movie acting. Or acting whether it's TV or movies or whatever it is, that the camera's really such a gift because there's so much that it sees and does if you're willing to just be open and expose yourself and all of that. So you also learn what doesn't matter. And sometimes when you think about things, you think things matter that don't matter.”

Thinking Trying Sometimes Acting Like You

Author:Annette Bening

“Movies are details. Movies are billions of details that come into a certain moment. So with all the years and months and weeks and days and minutes of preparation, then finally you're shooting and it all comes down to these moments when you're shooting, which is sort of insane when you think about it. The details make a difference.”

Thinking Moments Week Insane Preparation Making A Difference

Author:Annette Bening

“Sometimes people don't rehearse at all, but you might have had a chance to rehearse for a few days, or even more than that. Then in the moment when the camera's running is the only time it matters. So whatever you've discussed or thought about or discussed with the director, the other actors, hopefully there's a part of the experience that you've left open so that only in that moment the camera catches it. That's of course the hardest thing to do because everything is planned and you have thought about it in advance.”

People Sometimes Moments Running Chance Hopefully

Author:Annette Bening