Sometimes actors have to get some out of the box training for certain roles. In order to get into character and morph into the personality they will be playing, they need experience with certain skills they would otherwise never have had to worry about. For instance, those taking on fight scenes, stunt actors, and those who will be playing law enforcement roles may need to undergo tactical training.
What is this exactly? Tactical training involves learning how to properly handle a firearm. Those in high speed action films will often undergo such training to ensure they’re not holding prop weapons awkwardly and to make their role as believable as possible.
There are tactical workshops held all over specifically for those in the entertainment industry. Typically, these sessions are led by a real-life law enforcement agent who is highly experienced. The workshops offer the fundamental skills and confidence needs to realistically portray a character with a firearm.
During the training, actors may learn to handle different kind types of weapons and may be made to understand the circumstances in which each would be carried and used. This will teach an actor how to be properly position oneself before discharging the weapon and how law enforcement uses each in various scenarios.
Other specialty classes that actors may need to take over the course of their career include archery, fencing, stage combat or boxing. Just as one would expect to have to master period dress, mannerisms, and social expectations, the deposition of someone who is entirely different from themselves or would sign up for workshops to receive training designed to master accents, foreign languages and the like, an actor should expect to train in these tactical areas ahead of time if required. Then, when the time comes, he or she will be able to easily master the role on screen or on stage.
An actor with very little experience in a skill that is required for the character being portrayed should invest in learning how to make the role as believable as possible. That is the very nature of an actor’s chosen career. This means, if tactical experience is required for a role and the actor does not have prior experience, learning how to excel in this area may be key to ensuring success. Once a skill or set of skills is mastered these may translate to other future opportunities as well, no matter how miniscule the importance of such training seems to be.