Courtney B. Vance Quotes

You know, when cameras are rolling, improvisation doesn't feel natural. The pressure is too great. You're on a time schedule. You've got 60 crewmen.

I wouldn't want the pressure of a Six Feet Under or the pressure of improvising like Curb Your Enthusiasm.

I booked 'Transformers' having no clue what I was doing. And then, all of a sudden, it was like: 'You've got to get your game together fast.' It sucks, but I'm trying.

I think it makes a difference when the actors are enjoying it more than anything because we have a real blast on 'Torchwood.'

It's hard to act terrified when you have 200 crew members around you.

I would love to play Lee in 'True West' and Bobby in 'Company.'

I'm usually cast by people who are oddly goofy.

When we are filming, it often feels like we're flying blind. As an actor, you have no idea if your choices are right or if they work. Some scenes feel like a complete Hail Mary. Imagine you're blindfolded and cook a massive Thanksgiving feast with only new recipes - without getting to taste any of them along the way.

I had improvised a lot in classes and at the Actors Studio, but I never did it in front of the camera.

The hardest thing for everyone, for the writer, for the director and certainly for the actors, is not to panic when they're doing a certain line for the tenth time because everything ceases to be funny after it's been repeated.

The main factor in a penalty shootout is luck again. You need to stay calm and focussed but the biggest thing you need is luck.

As an actor, you need that constant change, or things will get stale.

Also a good director and good dialogue. That's very important because you're bringing the words to life. So it's very important for an actor to have good dialogue.

There's nothing like watching a live performance of, frankly, anything. You have to make sure that people believe everything is improvised. I could not stress enough how little we [actors] prepare and what small amount of time we put in before these shows.

As an actor, I love being pushed. I love the feeling of, "Oh my god, I have to keep trying. What else is there to do?".

I've been dealing with so much press for Brooklyn, and now I am rehearsing for a play, and it is hard.

If you ask any actor "What single thing would make you really, really happy?" Among the top five things they'd say is not having to audition anymore.

I love working with actors. If you cast the right person in the right part at the right time, they make you look like a better writer and director than you really are.

As an actor, you're used to putting on characters, taking them off, becoming someone else, doing your research, and working on that.

As actors we're always trying to use our creative imagination.

I love exploring in a rehearsal room with other actors, scenes and you know, stuff you are scared of.

From an acting point of view you need to look at what you're bringing in.

I wanted to be an actor. Maybe a comic actor, but an actor. That's what got me into acting was putting on an act, because in life, I wasn't funny and I felt on stage or in the movies, I could do whatever I wanted to. I was free.

We all enjoy pushing ourselves to accomplish our objectives. But we don't need stress to get there.

As an actress I really like exploring and doing new experiences.