Kurt Yue is a commercial actor who you may recognize from shows like Insatiable, Smoketown, and most recently, the top-notch Netflix show, Cobra Kai. I was especially excited to have Kurt visit the flight deck because of his down-to-earth intellect when it comes to his own career and the acting business.
Kurt started acting while living in Cleveland, Ohio, where he joined his first acting class just for fun. “I kind of fell into an acting class almost by accident, just because I was looking for something fun to do after work,” he says. And from there, things fell into place, but not without some struggles. “I hadn’t done any acting in high school or college,” Kurt says, “but the people I met in acting class—so many people started when they were young… everything was so brand new for me. Also, because I got into it with no expectations and not knowing anything about the industry, the early struggles had a lot to do with not understanding how the business side of it worked.” What were auditions like? How do you get an agent? Kurt had many questions, and he realized that lots of other people had the same gaps in their knowledge.
These early struggles are part of what inspired him to become a video podcast host and start his own YouTube channel. Originally, Kurt used YouTube to provide a resource for people in small markets. “I remember being in a market like in Cleveland,” Kurt recalls, “there might be one, maybe two, movies a year that would come into town… Whenever you would get an audition for a movie back then, it would be that one time a year thing and everybody’s heads would explode,” he laughs. “You’d work on this audition for four or five days for your two lines.”
Eventually, Kurt moved to Atlanta and discovered how a hot market helps an actor: “I went from getting maybe one or two film and television auditions a year to over a hundred a year.” At this time, he rebranded his YouTube channel as a kind of “Acting Business 101.” He also created the Acting Career Centre to spread information about how to navigate the acting world. I love the way Kurt gives back to the acting community—he helps guys like me learn how to get their careers started.
“Obviously, I’m not a huge celebrity or anything like that,” Kurt says, modestly, “I can’t tell someone how to become a lead character in a Marvel movie. But I can definitely help the people who are trying to get their careers off the ground and get into acting classes, get an agent, start auditioning, start booking, that type of stuff.”
You must check out Kurt’s videos—they are fun, charismatic, and absolutely informative! Kurt has a wealth of knowledge to offer to any aspiring actor, and he’s discovered how to deliver his information in an enjoyable, professional, and charming way. And don’t forget to see how Kurt puts his own acting chops to use--check out Cobra Kai on Netflix!