Many people dream of becoming an actor, but before venturing to Hollywood and pursue and acting career you need to learn how to act. Unlike what many may think, acting is more than just being able to shed a tear or saying your lines. Acting is actually a complicated process, which when perfected can get you noticed by casting agents and talent scouts.

There are many ways to learn acting; one of the most popular is the "Method Acting," also known as the "Russian Technique" or the "Stanislavski System."

This method was created by Constantin Stanislavski, a prominent theater director from Moscow, wherein the actor should be able to identify as closely as possible with the character through associating the actor's personal experiences to that of the character. This method is considered as the most difficult process, but these basic steps should give you an idea on how method acting works.

Go deep into your own life and memory

Using your imagination, search within yourself memories or events and associate these with the imaginary circumstances of your character.

For instance, if your character is facing a person with a knife and is about to approach her, correlate her experience with your personal event that gave you a scare as intense as what your character would evoke.

You probably have a fear of dogs attacking you, or you were locked in a dark room for several hours. You need to emphasize on showing off that "sense of fear" your character is facing.

This step is actually a tiring process, as you may "accidentally" trip over harsh and traumatic memories that you do not want to relive. If this happens, keep in mind that you are in control of your emotions.

Learn the art of emotional memory

You need to be able to associate your personal emotions with that of your character in such a way that it has become automatic.

If your character is dealing with great loss and defeat, for instance, go back to a time in your life when you felt defeated. You can use that same experience on your next acting job if your character is also experiencing emotions associated with loss and defeat.

When trying to conduct emotional memory exercise, you may have realized that some experiences evoke stronger emotions compared to other situations involving the same feelings.

You can use these select situations when dealing with specific emotions. This is when you being to formulate your own personal method of acting based on these experiences.

Get into character

One of the many reasons why award-winning directors prefer applying the method acting into his cast because this gives the actors a chance to get into character as deep as possible.

However, there are some instances that the actors may go so deep into their characters that they became the individual being described in the screenplay.