Actor job description: duties, skills and qualifications.

Core duties

9

O*NET task statements

Preparation

Job Zone 1-2 of 5

very little to some preparation

Typical entry education

Some college, no degree

BLS 2025–35

Median pay

$29.05/hr

BLS May 2025

1. Attend auditions and casting calls to audition for roles. importance 4.8 of 5
2. Work closely with directors, other actors, and playwrights to find the interpretation most suited to the role. importance 4.8 of 5
3. Portray and interpret roles, using speech, gestures, and body movements, to entertain, inform, or instruct radio, film, television, or live audiences. importance 4.7 of 5
4. Study and rehearse roles from scripts to interpret, learn and memorize lines, stunts, and cues as directed. importance 4.7 of 5
5. Collaborate with other actors as part of an ensemble. importance 4.6 of 5
6. Learn about characters in scripts and their relationships to each other to develop role interpretations. importance 4.6 of 5
7. Perform humorous and serious interpretations of emotions, actions, and situations, using body movements, facial expressions, and gestures. importance 4.6 of 5
8. Read from scripts or books to narrate action or to inform or entertain audiences, utilizing few or no stage props. importance 3.7 of 5
9. Work with other crew members responsible for lighting, costumes, make-up, and props. importance 3.6 of 5

Work activities O*NET rates most important here: Thinking Creatively, Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships, Getting Information, Performing for or Working Directly with the Public and Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates.

Also part of the job

Supplemental tasks O*NET lists for this occupation: less central than the core duties above, and not done in every job.

• Promote productions using means such as interviews about plays or movies.
• Tell jokes, perform comic dances, songs and skits, impersonate mannerisms and voices of others, contort face, and use other devices to amuse audiences.
• Write original or adapted material for dramas, comedies, puppet shows, narration, or other performances.
• Sing or dance during dramatic or comedic performances.
• Prepare and perform action stunts for motion picture, television, or stage productions.
• Introduce performances and performers to stimulate excitement and coordinate smooth transition of acts during events.

Knowledge areas: English Language, Fine Arts, Communications and Media and Psychology.

Software O*NET lists for this occupation: Facebook, TikTok, Linux, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Office software, Microsoft Outlook. These are examples O*NET records for the job, not a list of tools every employer uses or a checklist of what you must know.

• Education: BLS lists some college, no degree as the typical entry-level education.
• Experience: BLS lists no work experience in a related occupation as typical to enter.
• Training on the job: BLS lists long-term on-the-job training as typical once hired.
• Preparation: O*NET places the job in Job Zone 1-2 of 5 (very little to some preparation). Some occupations may need little or no previous experience; others require several months to a year of experience.
• Licenses and certifications: not listed here. A license is a legal requirement set by a state; a certification is a credential from a private or professional body. Rules vary by state and employer, and a missing entry on this page does not mean none is required: check with your state's licensing board and see how to become an actor.

Most O*NET's occupation experts for this occupation (66%) name less than a high school diploma as the education the job requires.

Job title: Actor
[Company] · [City, State] · [Full-time or part-time] · [Pay range, where your state requires one]

About the role
[Company] is hiring an Actor to play parts in stage, television, radio, video, or film productions, or other settings for entertainment, information, or instruction.
[One sentence on your team and why this role matters.]

What you will do
- Attend auditions and casting calls to audition for roles.
- Work closely with directors, other actors, and playwrights to find the interpretation most suited to the role.
- Portray and interpret roles, using speech, gestures, and body movements, to entertain, inform, or instruct radio, film, television, or live audiences.
- Study and rehearse roles from scripts to interpret, learn and memorize lines, stunts, and cues as directed.
- Collaborate with other actors as part of an ensemble.
- Learn about characters in scripts and their relationships to each other to develop role interpretations.
- Perform humorous and serious interpretations of emotions, actions, and situations, using body movements, facial expressions, and gestures.
- Read from scripts or books to narrate action or to inform or entertain audiences, utilizing few or no stage props.

What we are looking for
- [Education: BLS lists some college, no degree as typical for this occupation; set the level this role truly needs]
- [Experience: BLS lists no related work experience as typical to enter; set what this role needs]
- Strength in reading comprehension, speaking and active listening
- Working knowledge of English Language and Fine Arts
- [Software your team uses, e.g. Facebook or TikTok]
- [Any license or certification your state or company requires]

[Schedule, benefits and how to apply]

Illustrative: every name, employer, school, date and number in these samples is fictional or a bracketed placeholder. Replace each bracket with your own true details; never copy a result you did not achieve.

Not a real job posting. This template is TryHired's illustration built from government occupational data. It is not an opening at any employer, and no employer wrote it.

The median hourly wage was $29.05 in May 2025.

BLS projects employment of actors to show no change from 2025 to 2035, with about 6,300 openings a year over that period, including openings to replace workers who leave.

See the full actor salary breakdown by percentile, state and metro.

• Read a real actor posting next to the core duties above. Duties it repeats, such as “Attend auditions and casting calls to audition for roles”, tell you what that employer weighs most; anything it adds is specific to that team.
• Tailor your resume to the posting, not to this page: describe only actor work you have actually done, with your own results.
• Prepare a story for each of the top-rated skills (reading comprehension and speaking); actor interview questions turns them into practice questions.