I am Leon Bogacz, a 2nd year acting BA student at Leeds Conservatoire. This portfolio depicts my three developmental pillars: technical, aesthetics, and business. The Technical pillar is my reflections as well as my analysis of my skills development vocally and physically; On top of this, wider reading that has developed me as an artist. Focusing on key moments during this year and overcoming challenges that I have faced. The aesthetics pillar consists of headshot photographer analysis, CV creation and marketing materials that consider stylistic and formatting choices. The business pillar depicts industry research and networking progress.
My biography is aimed at a target audience of casting directors as well as agents. It is effective in communicating information such as skills training because it has clear information on the level of experience. It conveys my level of experience through grades I have gained in oboe and singing, as well as the belt I have achieved in taekwondo. A variety of biographies will be required for different target audiences, for instance, a biography aimed at a public audience would require the specific role I am playing, whilst a biography aimed at casting directors and agents would need the most notable credits. Another difference would be having skills within the biography for casting directors and agents. The skills show my abilities in other fields, not just the arts, which can stand out to this specific audience. It is important to tailor biographies to the target audience to ensure that they are effective in communicating the specific information needed for each demographic.
Technical Pillar
The most meaningful voice lesson I have learned about is pitch, energy, tone, and resonance. This lesson consisted of multiple exercises for example, exercise 1 was finding our natural, high and low pitches. An example of the utilisation of this skill set whilst using my lines from the play I am currently working with ‘Punch’ can be found in the voice memo below.
The most significant issue arising from this exercise was tension within the higher range while doing the exercise for the first time. To overcome this, whilst at home I would spend more time within my higher range whilst talking, reducing the tension over time as my body got more comfortable. This exercise and subsequent skill set development truly helped me understand where my range is. A wide vocal range will be useful for me going into the industry, especially for auditions, because it can create distinct characters, bringing a more authentic performance.
Another key aspect was intention on my line, which was raised by my tutor as something blocking my performance. Not having intention on the line created unnecessary tension, as well as dropping off on the line. This led me to research how to prevent this. Based on my findings from Actors Hub, I found that I was lacking action in my text. Reflecting on the first year we covered actioning, and now I will implement this back in my process (Palmer, 2026).
Following on from discussion with class peers, it was suggested I invest in the actor’s thesaurus (Caldarone & Lloyd-Williams, 2004)`. At first, it was overwhelming as there was an abundance of action words making it hard to pick out which words worked best for each line. Looking back, I can see that this ‘setback’ provided me with an opportunity to find words that worked for me. Consequently, I now feel confident when going into the industry that my characters have intention behind what they say. On top of this, my tension decreased.The development of this skill set is shown in the image below which depicts previous work done without actioning and work done with actioning. The image illustrates the action words before the line of text this gives me as the actor a clear and deep understanding of how the character wants to affect the other characters within the scene.
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Feedback following the Shakespearean block this year became another key moment as it highlighted my weaknesses. It was conveyed to me that I did not connect with my given circumstances, and my actions were fairly similar to each other. Consequently, I decided to go back and work on the foundations of my acting process, Stanislavski’s system, and revisit ‘given circumstances’ so my choices are believable. Therefore, this prompted me to read parts of An Actor’s Work. In the book, Stanislavski emphasises that ‘ the path to the subconscious lies through conscious physical action.’ (Stanislavski, 2016)
Subsequently, moving forward, I will add physical action back to my work in order to make my tactics varied. In the industry, having varied tactics will create a more engaging performance for casting directors and directors during an audition. On the right is my script with physical actions written in for each action used. It emphasises how by grounding myself I have removed myself from the intellectual to the physical in order to connect with the character’s given circumstances.
To enhance the development of my given circumstances skill set I will also apply the ‘magic if’ to my future work (Stanislavski, 2016) . Applying ‘magic if’ back into my work means I can connect to the character by viewing it as if I were in the situation. Therefore, justifying my choices because in the given circumstances I could see myself doing the same actions as character. Reflecting back on my assessment scene, I can now see that I did not believe my character would make certain choices. Understanding this also highlighted for me that if I do not believe it, the audience will not either. The ‘magic if’ principle will help to overcome this when I am in the industry because it will enable me to bring an organic performance. I see myself in the future pursuing film and television work, and this part of the industry is mostly naturalism.
A significant breakthrough was working on character development during our Shakespeare block, shifting focus from the text to a more physical viewpoin t. Using what we learnt from animal studies and Laban’s effort in action, we did an exploration fully as animals, even doing our scene without words.
The image depicts the animal I chose to use for my character. Whilst choosing the animals, I used ‘Animals in you’. ( Link to this website) This website allows the user to answer questions and see what animal they are like. I used the website not as myself but as my character. The result of having done this work gave me a far more nuanced performance that allowed raw emotional expression within the scene.
To bridge the animal’s raw emotion with technical precision, I identified the animal’s core movements as Laban efforts. The value of layering Laban over animal work is that it ensures that the character is still grounded and the performance is naturalistic. This experience has redefined my approach to going into the industry, specifically regarding my initial character work.
The value of this particular work lies in its ability to bypass my thinking brain and put me directly in the physicality of my character. Below shows the work I have done on my most recent production Punch, adding this into my character work.
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To refine this technique further, my further reading was on ‘Laban’s efforts in action’. (Laban Effort in action) I choose to work more on Laban due to having less time on it within the course. I struggled with Motion factors, specifically with time. Reading this book, I learned that it can be portrayed as a rhythm. This clarified a point of confusion in my training. Coming from a musical background, my understanding now is that time is the body’s rhythm. The sentence that stuck with me was ‘the rhythm will remain the same even if the speed of the whole movement sequence is faster or slower’.
Aesthetics pillar
Headshots function for the industry by providing a showcase range of characters that the actor can portray and their versatility. This aids casting directors and industry professionals when deciding on audition invites and creating a cast.
I was particularly drawn to Benjamin Kelly’s Headshots (Kelly, 2026). Benjamin’s photographs are evoking due to the variation of shots. In my opinion, the points which draw me in were the varied facial expressions and transformative looks, specifically details above the neck like his hair being styled differently. The jewelry and glasses used in the images by Ben are a weakness as they pulled the focus of the viewer away from the facial expression of the actor. This could have hindered industry professionals when deciding on casting.
Another 3rd year actor headshots I was drawn to were Dominic Nugent (Nugent , 2026). Like Benjamin he he has varied facial expressions. On further inspection A and C facial expressions are quite similar. Having two photos with similar facial expressions shows less versatility for roles. What is done very well is the colours chosen with the clothing and backdrop. He has done this by using single colour clothes as well as using base layer clothing to emphasise the colour on his outer layer, which makes his silhouette stand out in a fashionable and professional way.
The images depicted by Dominic’s are preferred to Benjamin’s by me because Dominic does not have clothing that distracts. The image that had the most strength was image D. Dominic, leaning forward, gave even more focus on his face, highlighting where the reader should be looking, giving the potential employer an accurate and detailed shot of his face. This contrasts with the images of Benjamin, where a weakness is that a few photos are quite far away, pulling focus away from his face.
I am drawn to the photographic work of Akta Photography as their usage of techniques such as colouring illustrates their professional work (Akta, 2026). Furthermore, I find the photographic work of Akta appealing because of the way in which all headshots show different facial expressions, emphasising the actor’s versatility.
The attached performer CV highlights my skills, credits, headshots and training whilst including a professional biography containing background information.
The style of the CV is clean with simplistic information sections, and this was chosen due to wanting a smooth reading experience, so that the reader can easily access the information they need from me. The formatting of the CV was chosen because it focuses on my acting experience, training and skills. I decided not to include my weight in the personal details section as I did not feel this was appropriate for acting, whereas my build is.
Spotlight is a brilliant website to articulate all this information in one place, where it showcases the actor in detail. Also giving access to singing, voice, and video reels. When I go onto Spotlight, I hope to keep a clean look like my CV. I feel this is important for me as an actor to give potential employers an easier time looking through my page.
Business cards are beneficial for networking with industry professionals. They can depict a specific headshot and a QR code to social network accounts that further showcase the actor. When I have my Spotlight made, this is where my QR code will go, allowing for instant access from a mobile device.
Social media accounts such as Instagram provide another platform for me to exhibit my professional skills and experience. They can act as marketing to industry professionals who are interested in working with me or potentially auditioning me. Currently, my account is set to private. I have seen other students make a new account for acting, but I feel it’s beneficial to use my main account as my acting account, as I already have a lot of connections within the industry.
Business
The first area in the industry we looked at was types of theatre. Types of theatre include commercial, independent, subsidised and community. The two types i researched further were commercial and subsidised. Examples of commercial and subsidised theatre are shown in the Images above. I am particularly drawn to the commercial and subsidised types of theatre because commercial tends to have better contracts with fair pay, whereas subsidised is aimed at community outreach in regional locations. This scope of theatre type allows me to maximise the frequency of my professional experiences.
Different business elements of the industry we discussed in class include agents, unions, and contracts. From a professional standpoint, securing an agent is vital because agents seek out work on your behalf, leading towards more opportunities to be in work. The primary value an agent will add to my career is to act as a negotiator, lobbying for fair pay, safety, and working conditions. While an agent provides you with a lot of support, a potential weakness is that they take 10-20% commission. Below is a file of research we carried outas a class for invitations to the third year showcase, 2 agencies I selected, Curtis Brown, as well as SKT Talent.
The industry relies on unions to maintain standards such as pay, fair treatment, equal treatment, protection, public liability, compensation, and pensions. Equity is currently the biggest union in the UK for actors (Equity, 2026). Joining a union like Equity is a strategic move for me because it provides a baseline for the requirements needed for me to work. As well as providing support and advice within the industry. On the other hand, the cost of membership might be considered a weakness for recent graduates due to low income upon graduating.
Contracts, in my opinion is the most critical part of the industry because it is legally binding. We got given a contract to look over and answer questions. When first looking through the contract was very overwhelming; however, looking for keywords helped this process.
From this contract information that stuck out to me was about the performers obligation to work 6 days a week shows a clear amount of time needed for this job. The impact of this is that the performer has to put the production first, meaning they might not be able to accept or work on other projects. On top of this you are required to take part in publicity and press which will be even harder to juggle with the amount of work each week.
My learning expanded when looking at the risudals and royalities the performer has got long term payments if the BBC uses the footage again. Having a minimum basic fee will be beneficial as you will have consistent payments whilst they use the work. However if the work was not received well, payments would stop. In my opinion taking a buy out and revoking the rights for your work is more risky than basic fee due to the factor that they assaitain full rights and you do not get a say in showing the work.
On reflection this work has helped me grasp a basic understanding of contracts. This will importan when entering the industry as now I don’t get overwhelmed by looking at contracts. And can look for key information that effects me.
I would especially like to work with the film maker and director Edgar Wright, because the style of his films are fast paced and enjoyable. In order to connect with Edgar Wright I would contact his production company ‘Complete Fiction Pictures’ and ‘The Independent Talent Group’ representation. I decided that this method of contact was the most professional to contact this director. Furthermore, connecting with agents and production companies via agents such as Curtis Brown, Representation Agency, SKt Talent and director David Lewis would aid my industry networking.
The solar system map depicts my network of industry contacts that I have engaged with. Further networking opportunities could arise when industry guests visit campus, and I exchange business cards, CVs and spotlight details with them.
Summative Statement
Reflecting on the project, the most significant moment was Learning about the Business side of Acting. I’ve developed a deeper understaning on major areas in the Business such as contracts and unions. The imact of this for me as a acotor is being able to advocate for myself for fair working enviroments. To build on this momentum, my next priority is to send put further introductions to casting directors, agents, and directors to get my name out into the industry.
Moving into my final year of university, I intend to further explore the practice of Labans technique merging with animal studies. The impact of this learning was most evident during my perfromance and helped me stay in the moment and create big acting choices.
A challenge this year was keeping grounded and present during scenes. I will bring actions and physical action with me to all future projects ensuring my characters are grounded.
Bibliography
Palmer, J. (2026) Intentions – an actors guide, Intentions – an actors guide | Actor Hub UK | Actor Guide | Actor Tips | Acting Career Help | Advice for Actors. Available at: https://www.actorhub.co.uk/1042/intentions-an-actors-guide (Accessed: 2026).
Caldarone, M. and Lloyd-Williams, M. (2004) The actors’ thesaurus. London: Nick Hern.
Stanislavski, K. (2016) An actor’s work. Milton: Taylor & Francis Group.
Akta. (2026) Akta Photography (@aktaphotography) • instagram photos and videos, Akta’s profile . Available at: https://www.instagram.com/aktaphotography/ (Accessed: 2026).
Nugent, D. (2026) Spotlight page, Profile. Available at: https://app.spotlight.com/4773-5618-2110 (Accessed: 2026).
Kelly, Benjamin (2026) Spotlight page, Profile. Available at: https://app.spotlight.com/1174-6722-5726 (Accessed: 2026).
The MTM Agency (2026) What is the cost of equity membership?, Equity. Available at: https://www.equity.org.uk/membership/how-much-does-equity-membership-cost (Accessed: 2026).
Equity (2026) Equity, Equity ” The actors’ guild of great britain. Available at: https://www.actorsguild.co.uk/equity/ (Accessed: 2026).
