AUGUST 2024
Start sending in auditions that capture the best of you and radically inspire creative teams with clear, vivid choices.
In this 3-week class, find the missing link between your inner life and physicality so that you can visually pop on screen. Learn how to liberate yourself from so-called “rules” of how you should and shouldn’t move in the camera frame. Breathe new life into your self-tapes and see a visible difference in your freedom on camera!
This class will break down and re-build your absolute inspiration for making kick-ass self-tapes!
CLASS 1: WHAT’S IN A FRAME
CLASS 2: THE CAMERA SEES EVERYTHING
CLASS 3: HOW TO OFFER VARIETY IN YOUR TAKES
This class is for actors of all experience levels who want to express their authenticity on camera using both technique and instinct. No matter where you are in your acting career, this series is designed to up-level your personal process and work, strengthen your self-tape submissions, and tackle challenges that a constrained frame brings to all actors.
This class, like all classes in the studio, was designed in collaboration with Heidi. So if you are already inspired by Heidi’s aesthetics, work with Athena to explore the next layer! And if you are new to the Studio, you will love this joyful and energized jumpstart!
Athena’s class is amazing for:
TIME COMMITMENT
You will need to plan for homework time to research your assignment, prepare your materials, and practice your self-tape set-ups. All studio classes are designed to stretch and support your complete prep process as an actor for self-tapes and in-person auditions. The more you put into the class, the more you get out of it!
WORKING WITH STUDIO TEACHERS
Artists teaching artists is the inspiration for bringing Guest Teachers to Heidi’s studio. This class is intended to expand your process as an actor and to reinforce your skills, confidence, and natural talent.
Acting on camera is fun! Athena takes a high-energy approach and encourages actors to embrace a sense of play because that’s where freedom lies.
Athena’s teaching will get you “on your feet” quickly and you’ll learn tons of tools and insights from an artist who is out in the field every day as both actress and coach. Her useful insights are fresh and invigorating.
Hone in on making specific choices so you can feel at ease and prepared for any audition or on-set experience.
In class, you will:
Athena Colón is a bilingual, native New York actress, teaching artist, and acting coach.
Athena Colón is a bilingual, native New York actress, teaching artist and acting Coach. Athena has worked as an independent teacher and coach in New York City for 10+ years. She has trained with former Telsey + Company casting director Heidi Marshall as a coach and joyfully prepares actors for screen tests and auditions. She is the recipient of the BRIO Grant from the Bronx Council of the Arts. While earning her BFA in Theatre from Long Island University–C.W. Post, she co-created a Suzuki-based performance, Third Child, which toured Italy, the Czech Republic, and New York City. Her recent TV credits include: THE GIRL ON THE BUS, NEW AMSTERDAM, BULL, Martin Scorsese’s VINYL, JESSICA JONES, and LAW & ORDER: SVU. When she’s not acting on stage or film, Athena facilitates acting classes and conducts theatre workshops in NYC. She proudly collaborates with Heidi Marshall Studio and DreamYard.
HEIDI’S ENDORSEMENT
Athena is a tremendous coach who will draw out your confidence and (re)energize your work. She has a loving, magic touch with actors. I often partner with Athena in the prep process for actors in screen tests and role prep (e.g., Hallie Bailey is starring as Disney’s live-action Little Mermaid after we walked her through all her intense screen tests!) Actors just adore Athena’s laser-focused, energetic coaching! Her classes are totally invigorating. They’re also super fun and incredibly informative—she brings ALL the insider, behind-the-scenes knowledge from actor to actor…things you’ll really want to know when you head to set! Athena has been around the block on so many TV sets. I really, really love for working artists to teach each other.
What was a difficult challenge for you as an actor?
Trusting my instincts on camera.
What was a crazy or silly moment on set?
My knee pads story! This was when I realized an actor can always ask for what they need on set to get the work done.
What is the most important quality or skill for an actor in the audition room?
Authenticity. Be yourself! Everyone else is taken.
What is the main thing you wish you knew then but that you only understand now?
There is no right way to do a scene.
What frustrates you as an actor in the current climate of filmmaking or of the business at large? How has this affected you directly?
Not enough roles for actors of color. We need diverse characters of different abilities, genders, orientations, and nationalities. The lack of opportunity has often discouraged me and kept me “small.”
What moment or experience as an artist do you feel most proud of?
The ah-ha moments! Like every time I help an actor break through a scene, or every time I work and can see a genuine connection to the character and circumstances.
Who do you really look up to in your field and why?
I look up to my resilient friends in the business. They are the people you’ll sit next to on the subway, and you don’t know their names, but they are incredibly gifted storytellers who never give up. They’re the artists who decide to keep going despite the odds.
Athena was so encouraging and her energy so good. I loved the way she really made the participants active observers of what was working in people’s scenes technically and how to incorporate the new information. I’ve already had a booking and an “in the mix” since our second class—I utilized what I learned immediately and it’s already paying off.
Athena’s pearls of wisdom never stop.
I’ve taken classes at many different studios. But there is nothing that compares to classes at your studio, Heidi. I found Athena’s class to be very purposeful. I’ve been in other classes where it feels as if the teacher is figuring out what they are teaching on the spot. That is not the case with Athena, just like it is not the case with you. I also loved the time frame and that it was 3 weeks. I can’t thank you both enough.
It came at the right time, when I was ready for it. After a season of feeling down and discouraged in my career, I knew I need to take class with Athena, who is such an encourager and who holds space beautifully for her students.
Words cannot describe how much I needed this class and how much it helped my confidence and in turn helped my acting. I would take this class every month if I could. Athena created such a safe environment which I really really needed to explore and fail. My gratitude cannot come through enough. There are so many studios where the teachers just phone it in and don’t care if you are there or not. I’ve never experienced that at Heidi’s studio and thats why I will always come back and recommend it to everyone! Thank you, Thank you!
It was truly fun and inspiring. I loved working with other actors and seeing their behind-the-scenes processes too. It encouraged me to know that I’m right on track with myself.
I loved the class. It definitely revived the joy and creativity involved in acting for me. I think my favorite moment was the class on comedy as a whole. I had such little knowledge on how to prepare for a comedic scene before, so the whole class was just extremely insightful
I was able to see everything I need to work on myself in order to continue progressing and bettering my craft. I’ll be signing up for more classes soon!
I absolutely loved the class and teacher. So informative and inspiring. Athena creates a space where the creative and technical elements of working the frame become possible. All done within a safe and supportive space. Fantastic!
I had a great time in the class. Athena is so passionate about the work which made the class so enjoyable and amazing. The energy was really positive. I will definitely love to take more classes here.
It was a breath of fresh air. The technical and philosophical points were just what I needed and the chance to work up to the “casting session” exercise was a perspective game-changer.
This class gave me the tools for preparation, so when it comes time to film, I get to relax and play!
I had been going to classes that made me feel so bad about myself, or that stressed me out or only focused on my look, and not the work. They made me feel really uncomfortable and apprehensive as a postgrad trying to continue my education. I felt I didn’t have a whole lot to offer. This class really gave me a sense of confidence and a way to more importantly organize my prep so that I can play once on camera
HIGHLY RECOMMEND! I booked two tv shows off of the self tape work (and confidence) I gained from this class! If you’re on the fence, take it!
I wanted to sincerely thank you for an amazing class these last few weeks!
I REALLY enjoyed your class, and am amazed at how much I learned in such a short time. Thanks for helping me conquer my self-tape fear, fix important details in my setup, and actually enjoy acting. It was especially appreciated with this seemingly sudden “return” to the industry, and the external pressure that’s seeming to be everywhere.
Your energy and kindness are incredible, and I can’t wait to take class or coach with you again soon. Keep being amazing!
I just wanted to thank you for running such a brilliant class.
The class really woke me up to the prep and how that can give us the room to grow.
My mind was filled with training that I loved but didn’t know how to incorporate and the way you broke down a script was a game changer for me because it allowed me to use what I learned in a way that I can easily understand and refer too!
I am enough and I can use what I’m working with and start from where I’m at.
I feel less defeated and more empowered and I thank you so much for that!
By the end of our sessions, I had accomplished everything that I set out to do and I saw my work improve from week to week. This class came exactly at the right time as I am returning to NYC and I was feeling like my skills were rusty after a year off. I loved my classmates and seeing their work made me want to be better. I love the community in the studio and I left with new resources.
I like working with people who show up for the work. Athena is supremely professional and so were my classmates.
I just want to personally thank you for your class and your coaching. You’ve transformed my approach to self-tapes in such a brief amount of time. There’s a newfound energy, joy, and excitement in preparing them now!
hi wonderful teachers,
i just wanted to let you know i booked my first role of a taped audition recently. the character was perfect for me so there wasn’t much to work on in terms of character. i just made sure i knew my given circumstances and who the people in the scene were to me. i made sure to differentiate who the two people were both with acting and with my body and eyeline. […] anyway i wanted to tell you both because i never would’ve gotten it if i hadn’t learned where to put my energy when doing a self tape.
Athena is such a natural and gifted teacher. Her warm, caring nature mixed with her love for helping actors tap into their potential is so energizing! I felt completely safe to try things. She also reminded me to bring out my unique qualities in each scene and take. So many great takeaways in such a short time.
Well worth the time spent with her. I would definitely love to work with her again
Athena was great. Provided a wonderful toolbox for me to use on self tapes. Class exceeded my expectations
I just wanted to send you a huge thank you. I just got a request for self tape for a commercial this morning and had two hours to set up, learn it and send it. (You better believe I triple checked my sound, after our 3rd class!)
Thank you so much for your knowledge bombs, love, and support. Before your class, I would’ve melted away into a puddle of anxiety. Not this time, lady! Those 3 classes were money so well spent. I’m actually playing around now with all of my frames even for my Zoom Shakespeare class. Totally raised my game.
Athena was a wonderful teacher, just the right amount of support and tough love. 🙂 I really appreciated her insights as a working actor and her real world acting/audition experiences. She did a great job of getting me to change and expand my thinking about the way I prepare and shoot self-tapes. I’m really glad I took this class.
I always love working with Athena. I always learn so much more than I ever expect and am so uplifted and inspired.
I learned a lot about inner monologue. How to use it, what to say and how it can really transform my acting. Eyelines were very helpful because they made the scenes more realistic as if there were really people there that I was acting with. Athena helped me become aware of my nervous ticks and physicality during the scenes. Sometime I would do odd things that I was unaware of and this class helped to fix that.
Had a great experience. Learned so much. Took so many notes. I enjoyed getting to know Athena and really get her feedback. She’s hilarious! I’m obsessed.
This class was the highlight of my week! Athena created a safe and supportive space where I felt free to play and explore. I now feel more comfortable with self tapes (I was really terrified of them before) and it was really fun to connect with fellow artists again.
1) This class is perfect for quarantine because its less about acting and more about the technicalities of framing yourself on a self tape which is surprisingly hard info to find in one spot!
2) Athena is a legend.
3) Athena is hysterical.
I learned incredible gems about eyelines, inner monologue, and how to best frame myself to accomplish the best self-tape.
I feel much more confident now that I’ve taken Athena’s class. I have learned to give myself more time in preparation for auditions and to focus on being “camera ready” long before I get in place for the shot.
Athena has lots of golden nuggets! She’s like your super cool big sister who is actually nice to you. I think what rings loudest in my head is to slow down, take my time.
Athena is just fantastic. I also got a lot out of her co-star workshop, and her combination of hard work, practicality, lightness toward the industry, and pleasure in the process make me very happy to work and learn.
I just wanted to let you know that I am having the time of my life taking your classes! Throughout this quarantine and pandemic I have had a hard time finding the drive and ambition I normally have, but your studio’s classes have really brought it back. For that I am forever grateful.
My top three general insights from class are to play around more and have more fun, embody the role in the scene with more physicality even if it’s a subtle movement or weight shift, and to always have a strong arc with beats by starting the scene one way and finishing it another.
I have already changed the way I approach self-tapes in general- Setting up everything first, giving myself enough time to get focused before and best of all, learning how to ENJOY and look forward to the process. I also learned how to trust myself more and surrender to moment confidently.
The class was fantastic. It has made me realize what I need to work on and what I need to do during self tapes.
Class with Athena is always so much fun.
Athena is amazing, she brought her trained eye and open heart for each of us despite the class being online. The last class as casting directors was not only fun but also educational. THANK YOU BOTH!
I look at sides with excitement; eager to break them down and find all the hidden gems of the scene whereas before it was daunting and confusing.
I definitely feel Athena armed me with tools that I can directly refer to in the future for auditions. It was a a wealth of knowledge and the class opened my eyes to how in control we can be with our self tapes and the choices we make.
I am so much more aware of the camera now and have a whole new appreciation for the deep thought processes that take place in the prep work. I am excited to start applying the script analysis and camera use skills to my next self-tape. Seriously, this is probably the best class I have taken since graduating from conservatory. Insightful, grounded, and practical- not generalized read/adjust/read/next! Thank you so much.
Full disclosure — please note that we do not guarantee that actors in these classes or workshops will be hired for any project that we might direct, produce, or cast. We teach and coach because we enjoy supporting and nurturing actors as you develop your personal process for auditioning, working and creating your own work.