The Art of Acting

Susan Batson has been called the "Oscar coach." She takes big Hollywood actors and makes them better. Nicole Kidman thanked her from the winner's circle as she waved her Oscar. Tom Cruise thanked her as he clutched a Golden Globe. And that's just a start.

Jamie Foxx and Jennifer Lopez and Juliette Binoche are all on Batson's client list. So are Spike Lee and Jennifer Connelly, Chris Rock and Sean "Diddy Combs.

What does she whisper to the stars? Truth, she says. Truth about the human condition.

This hour On Point: the Oscar coach, Sudan Batson, on the truth at the heart of acting.

Quotes from the Show:

"The industry as it stands now is has very little time for the actor, especially the film industry. There's no rehearsal time, there's no rehearsal time with directors, there's no real prep time with the director, so the smart actor now knows 'let me get help, let me get my prep time'." Susan Batson

"In good acting you never know how it's gonna come out but in good acting you put together the dynamics that will feed that moment and then you hope that the truth will come out." Susan Batson

"I dare say you don't get nominated for an Oscar, you don't win an Oscar unless it has that universal connection." Susan Batson

"The common denominator among many of the actors [I've worked with] is that they are very hard workers." Susan Batson

"Great actors are interested in the art form of acting." Susan Batson

"One of the key abilities for a great actor is the ability to have empathy." Susan Batson

Guests:

Susan Batson, acting coach, producer of the Broadway revival of "Raisin in the Sun," and author of "Truth: Personals, Needs and Flaws in the Art of Building Actors and Creating Characters"