Introduction – Biography
This portfolio contains my aspirations for my career beyond my graduation, as well as how I will achieve these goals and what in this academic year has set me up for this. My research contains an extensive look into the industry, from actors to other parts such as agents and directors, in areas of the industry I’m interested in, to showcase what I want for my career.
I would like to be an actor, but also considered as a versatile creative, as I have interests in writing and music as well, and my time in training has shown that I am eager for this to become a reality. I have been establishing myself as someone who can do many types of work, an example of this being a play I wrote and performed at a new writing night, and I intend to continue doing different types of work after graduating.
Appendix 1
The first way I can showcase this aspiration, as well as who I am as an artist, is through my bio (Appendix 1). Straight away, my bio uses the phrase “multifaceted artist” to inform the reader that I am interested, and skilled, in many areas. When it comes to speaking about acting in my bio, I make sure to talk about parts I’ve played that show versatility as an actor, as well as including my experience in stage and screen, to showcase my aspiration to act across a vast array of genres and recorded media. Additionally, the bio includes my interest in writing and music. It mentions the work I have written and performed, as well as mentioning the music I have released while training, to communicate my strengths and interests to the reader, and how varied my talents as an artist are.
Industry Research
Agencies
As I am interested in many areas of the arts, the best place to start my research was to look into agencies that offer a variety of opportunities across the industry. The first bit of research into agencies I did was looking into recent graduates of Leeds Conservatoire and seeing what agencies they signed with, as well what work their clients are involved in. Through this, I found the agency Infinity Artists. Through looking at their clients, they offer a variety of work, such as classic stage shows like The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui, and TV shows like Sky’s The Rig and Prime’s Lockerbie: A Search For Truth (Appendix 2).
Appendix 2
Appendix 3
This agency is based in Edinburgh, and as someone based in London, having an agent closer to where I’m based is preferable, so I began to look at London based actors and their agencies. Iman Marson (Appendix 3), who has appeared in shows like Wednesday and Silent Witness, is represented by Gavin Barker Associates (GBA).
Appendix 4
Through looking into their agency more, I have found that their clients are given auditions for the variety of work I’m looking for, such as theatre shows at the National Theatre and The Old Vic and screen jobs with studios like Netflix and BBC. Because of GBA being in London, I am swaying towards them as it is more ideal for me in terms of location. In order to attempt to secure an agent from one of these companies, I can contact the people that work for these agencies, and invite them to my showcase and third year shows, as well as sending them footage from my showreel.
Voice Acting
A specific area of the industry I’m interested in, while being quite alien to me, is voice and motion capture acting for video games, due to my love for them growing up. In order to understand that area more, I looked into my favourite actor in this field, Nolan North. Primarily known for his work on the Uncharted video game series, North has a handsome resume in the industry. Being a voice actor consists of having a plethora of voices available to you to play many types of characters. When asked about this in an interview with the Guardian (Appendix 5), North says to “become an actor.” and “work on your voices on the side.”. In an interview with Culture Slate (Appendix 6), North mentions he got his start in acting on a soap opera called Port Charles as a series regular, and it was through his co-star he was recommended to a voiceover agency, where he signed on and began to get work. In order to make my interest in this field a reality, I will continue my work of breaking into the industry via screen and stage acting, and after a few years look into getting a voiceover agent. While I do this, I can work on my repertoire of voices in my free time, to better prepare myself for this lane of work.
Appendix 5
Appendix 6
Look
CV
Back in 2023 I made an acting CV (Appendix 7 left), and upon looking at it there was a lot wrong with it, so I had to make a new one to better represent myself. In my updated CV (Appendix 7 right), I opt for a black and white colour scheme as it showcases the information about me better. Both CVs are written in a black font so it is easy to read, but the white background in the newer version exemplifies the information being more direct. I include less credits from my time in amateur drama on the CV, having chosen to only include two, one being a well known play (The History Boys) and the other being a newer, more unknown play (The Last of the Pelican Daughters) to show the various styles of work I have done at amateur level. I also include two credits from training with the same logic, one classic play and one contemporary, showing my dream to perform in different types of work. I include other mediums of work, such as screen and r&d, in one section, in order to keep the document compact, although I hope to make my screen credits its own section past third year. I have updated the headshot to a more recent photo of me, and will change it to a professional headshot when I get them done, as it’s important that the people viewing the CV see what I look like now as opposed to 6 years ago. I have also made the headshot a large size, so it’s easy for the viewer to remember what I look like. I have also included a small skills section, detailing some of the important skills I have learnt whilst training that are prevalent areas of the industry now. For example, a number of American plays are performed in London every year. Whether it be classic plays like All My Sons by Arthur Miller, which was performed at Wyndham’s theatre, or contemporary plays such as Katori Hall’s The Hot Wing King that had a limited run on The National Theatre’s Dorfman Theatre, American plays are getting produced every year. It’s for this reason I have included my skills in American accents on my CV to alert casting directors of my ability in this area, so I can be considered for roles in American productions in the future.
Appendix 7
Headshots
When looking at my headshot from 2019 (Appendix 8), it doesn’t capture any form of casting or character that might get me auditions. It’s a good photo, but not a good headshot. In my eyes, a good headshot can encapsulate who I am, whilst also giving an idea of what roles would be suitable for me. When looking for photographers, I wanted to consider this criteria and eventually decided upon Tom Barker (Appendix 9). I appreciate that while the photos are of a high technical quality, they prioritise the actor behind the camera, and capture them. When compared to other studios, such as akta photography (Appendix 10), the techniques behind Tom Barker’s photography feels more substantial and less stylistic. I also looked at how he photographs people with darker hair and eyes, and he captures these features well whilst still bringing out the essence of who the person being photographed is. The use of different backgrounds used in his photos is another positive, as these can blend with outfit choice to convey a large amount of character types for casting opportunities. Taking different outfit choices to my session will ensure I get a wide variety of shots that will appeal to different roles. For example, a darker background can mix with a red or burgundy hoodie to show myself as an urban youth character for a show like Top Boy, whilst his brighter background mixed with a light grey t-shirt can portray me as a romantic lead character. Tom Barker fits everything I want and need for my headshots, so I will be getting my third year headshots from him.
Appendix 8
Appendix 9
Appendix 10
Reflections
Jellyfish + Macbeth
Balancing my studies with external performance opportunities was a huge hurdle to overcome. During the Shakespeare block, where I played Macbeth, I was also rehearsing for a play I had written titled Jellyfish, where I was playing the lead. Obviously, as someone that wants to be working many jobs in many fields, I was elated to be having a taste of that whilst training, however it was challenging. Rehearsing two scripts at once was tough, and finding time to prepare and learn both proved to be difficult. To prevent that difficulty in future, I will form a timetable I can follow for when I have multiple projects on the go. It wasn’t just my acting in Jellyfish I had to do, but also the planning of schedules and casting of characters, which proved to be a handful. If I am to put on a play again whilst in training or involved in other projects, I will look to hire a couple more behind the scenes roles, such as a producer, so I have less overall work to do and just focus on my character work. I was satisfied with how both performances went, and knowing I could rehearse both simultaneously and be happy with the outcome was a great discovery. The differing styles in both helped me with my aim to feel more comfortable across a variety of work, with Macbeth being more classical and Jellyfish being more contemporary. Because of these findings, in the future, I know I am able to create, perform in and promote my own writing, whilst working on other projects.
Our Town
The rehearsals and performance of Our Town pushed me to a new level of performance , with the process helping me form and build upon new skills and interests. I was cast in the role of Mr Webb, a father in his 50s, and I quickly found it challenging to portray this character due to me being neither a father nor 50. This encouraged me to think outside the box and change the way I normally prepare for a role. For example, I interviewed my father for his views on parenthood and marriage, two themes that my character encountered in the play, which gave me plenty of things to play with when in the rehearsal room. Overcoming challenges like this in a creative way helped me to feel more secure in my process, whilst also giving me a better idea of what my casting can be. Webb is a vulnerable man and a loving dad, and whilst it may be a while before I play a father, it’s valuable to find out I can play one now and in the future. There are a lot of paternal roles available, including younger ones as seen in the 2022 film Aftersun, so moving forward I will pay attention to parts in this casting bracket that match my current age but can also showcase my full acting range.
Summative Statement
The first hurdle of getting work as an actor is auditions. When auditioning, I can get quite nervous, which can often affect me in the room. I always make sure to do work on the character, script and people associated with the project beforehand, but my nerves in the room can sometimes make me forget this preparation, and I begin to doubt myself. Obviously, I know I can deliver in an audition room as I have succeeded in auditions before, but brushing up on my audition technique as I go into the industry is important for me to progress. This year, we did two mock auditions, and in both of them I felt I did my best, but my nerves did get in the way and I subsequently got a no in the callback with casting director Suzy Catliff. I received the feedback that while my energy was good, I needed more subtlety. I made the decision to have high energy as I was auditioning for a children’s and family show, whilst also doing preparation on the stakes and context of the scene, but in the room my nerves got the better of me. I still maintained the energy, but I neglected the stakes I had prepared. In order to feel less nervous, I will learn some breathing techniques to calm me down on days of audition, as well as continuing the needed preparation for the character. Fusing these two will help me feel more assured, and even if I don’t get the role, knowing I can prepare in the correct ways will be easy to remember and calm myself down.
Obviously, the experience of writing and performing my own work was great and something I want to continue doing. Having audiences react positively to my work was an incredible feeling, and was truly an experience I’ll never forget. The aim is to perform my work in major theatres, both in the west end and across the country. I will continue to perform the current version of Jellyfish at more scratch nights and at Leeds Theatre Festival, gathering feedback on the piece and hopefully gaining a stronger idea on where to take it. After these performances, I will continue to work on the script, making it a longer play and more suitable for a run in a theatre. Once the script is completed, I will perform it at more scratch nights and submit it for fringe theatre festivals, whilst also inviting industry professionals, such as producers and artistic directors of theatres, to watch and hopefully get them interested in being involved with the piece. I will also contact Naomi Sumner Chan, coordinator of Leeds Playhouse’s Furnace, as she is someone who works on programming shows at this theatre. Through doing this, I will create a network of people that can get my work performed on stage, for now and future projects.
Pre drama school, I was in a short film titled False 9, which was a great experience. Screen acting is something that I’ve always wanted to do regularly, and getting a taste of that before training confirmed this, so I made sure to make the most of my screen lessons throughout the year. Developing my skills in this area was important to me so I can ensure I’m ready for the work upon getting my first screen job. One particular finding that helped me was in a lesson with Matt Lewney on framing. In this lesson we focused on exploiting the frame, and how to make the most of characterisation within any shot, and it taught me how to interact with the intricacies of a close up or the fill the space of a wide, as well as little tips like asking the camera crew for your framing so I know what I can work with in shot. Using these findings when I get the work will help me to feel instantly comfortable on set. In terms of finding work, I can continue to do short films as a way of building experience and connections, as well as joining casting groups on social media to find work. I can even expand my interest in making my own work into screen work, thus creating an opportunity for myself.
I will make sure my brand is up to date. Updating my headshots regularly, while expensive, will be vital to ensure that casting directors are always seeing an up to date version of me, and know what person is going to walk into the audition room. Also, if I find myself with free time, I will look into doing plays at amateur drama groups, specifically looking for work that has been done recently. For example, South London Theatre recently did a performance of The Unfriend by Steven Moffat, a year after its 2024 run. Finding newer work at these groups will be great for me to get experience in what the industry is like, and what type of work is being put on today.
Conclusion
Overall, I am happy with my progress in second year. My experiences over this year have made me ready for projects in third year, and I’m looking forward to sinking my teeth into the plays I get cast in. Having looked into what’s needed in the world of voice acting, and taking Nolan North’s advice into account, I’m also eager to get to work on my voice reel.
While my mock auditions didn’t quite go to plan, I’m actually grateful for the way they went. Having these experiences of nerves has made it clear to me what I need to work on for future auditions. These mock weeks have taught me that auditions aren’t as scary as they seem, and I’m now able to see them as a chance to play around and have fun.
In terms of going into the industry, I feel set up and able to carve a path for myself that I’m proud of. The experience of doing two projects at once helped me get used to being busy, and how to manage these challenges. Through conversations with my teachers, I also have an idea of my casting, and how I will use my headshots and showreels to cater to this.
Bibliography
Reference list
Ditum, N. (2015). Uncharted’s Nolan North: ‘I’m the best kind of actor – the working kind’. [online] the Guardian. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2015/jul/13/uncharted-nolan-north-voice-nathan-drake.
Lockerbie: A Search For Truth, (2025). Amazon Prime.
North, N. (2022). CultureSlate. [online] CultureSlate. Available at: https://www.cultureslate.com/interviews/exclusive-interview-with-nolan-north-voice-of-nathan-drake [Accessed 21 Apr. 2026].
Port Charles, (1997). ABC.
Silent Witness, (2025). BBC.
The Rig, (2023). Sky.
Top Boy, (2010). Channel 4.
Wednesday, (2022). Netflix.
Word count excluding bibliography: 2,986.
