Believe In Yourself

I think one of the biggest things to come out of 2020, for me, is the idea that you can, you should - you MUST - believe in yourself. It’s been one hell of a bumpy ride, with so many obstacles and road blocks along the way. Staying grateful and giving yourself the time you need to focus on yourself is more important now than ever. Cherishing those special, small moments with friends and loved ones. Delving deeper into yourself and what you want out of this funny old life. Real progress takes time, faith and the strength to prioritise your own happiness. 2020 have given us time to slow down. To reflect, re-think, and re-focus. We now, hopefully, have a clearer view of what and who actually matters.

Recently I spoke to one of my dear friends from Drama School, Blake. We both studied the same course at East 15 Acting School (BA World Performance). As well as a budding writer, Blake has gone on to become a Lecturer in Acting at the Miskin Theatre, North Kent College.

Covid-19 has been a challenging time for everyone but Blake has been focusing on the positives - “we’re trying to work hard and maintain that high level of motivation and confidence so that the actors can achieve their goals, even in a pandemic and in a safe, secure manner.” At the moment, Blake is working with two groups of actors on their audition materials and techniques for various drama schools and universities. With the contacts he’s made in the industry since leaving drama school, he can organise Q&A’s for his actors that will offer advice and answers to any questions they may have. Blake acknowledges that he is very fortunate to have carried on working during the pandemic - “I was able to still work from home and had projects on the go with making short films and then a big production in June, which unfortunately was cancelled. But I am thankful that I still have my job.”

After graduating from East 15, Blake says his main ambition was to work. Whether that was acting, directing, facilitating, teaching or volunteering. His aim was to carry on building on his skills from drama school, and he was fortunate to go straight into working in the industry with connections he made whilst training. During those experiences “the thought of working with young and aspiring actors became a real option.” After being given the chance to work with young actors at the Miskin Theatre (where he trained himself prior to East 15) he went back there to direct and found something that he loved and wanted to do.

What Blake loves most about writing and directing is the “freedom to explore and play.” Recently he’s had very little time to write, but when he’s directing he tries not to have things planned. This can be hard when actors have certain goals they need to achieve in their training, but that “freedom and spontaneity” is a great feeling to have. “It helps when you have a high level of trust and understanding with your actors as they know what you ask them to do will challenge their abilities” as well as giving them a safe environment to play. “Give everything a go”, Blake says. Not just in training, but in life. “You’ll always come across things you don’t like, but for me, I found that I resisted a lot at East 15 when I found something I didn’t like or enjoy. If I could go back, I would try to make the most of my training, there is so much more I could’ve learned,” Blake reflects now. “Also, I wish I’d written more down. Memories are great to have, but I like to have things in my hand I can read.”

One of the most important things Blake learnt during those days was to trust his own instinct. “A lot of the time you ponder and worry whether what you do is right, but I found that if you believe in yourself then you can have no concerns or worries if things go wrong.” He stresses the importance of also trusting others around you - “they’re there to help you and throughout my training at East 15 I was always supported by others. I know I can still count on them today.”

As hard as the coronavirus pandemic has been for everyone, Blake is hopeful for the life of the arts - “I hope one day we can find a way to work in a way that we used to, then we can start planning for more exciting and ambitious projects where hopefully we can have an audience. I know the public are desperate for theatre and performance to return. Of course, we will wait patiently till it is safe for everyone to do so.”

Let’s hope we’re not waiting too much longer.

Thank you Blake, for letting me share an insight into your story.

You can follow him here: @blakeypalmer7

Until next time!