The Collapse of Psychotechnical Acting Methods in Representational Arts and The Search for a New Paradigm

This study examines the actor’s performance as a meaning-creating element within the realms of cinema and theatre from a historical perspective. Through this analysis, the fundamental differences between theatre and film acting and the reasons behind common misconceptions are explored. The study aims to demonstrate that variations in an actor’s performance do not actually stem from acting methods but rather from challenges introduced by changes in medium. Moreover, the pressures exerted by the dominance of certain media create challenges for actors, often causing them to abandon the essential techniques they have learned, ultimately leading to the obsolescence of core acting methods. Cinema, because of the Industrial Revolution and digital mass media, has acquired a commercial character. This evolution requires the performances of actors to increasingly align with commercial demands, which in turn reshapes acting methods to accommodate these demands. Based on these premises, the transformation of acting methods and their current crisis are addressed through qualitative analyses under relevant themes. The findings of this study underscore the need to construct a new acting paradigm by critically re-evaluating traditional acting techniques.