Documentos de Académico
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Documentos de Cultura
Leonardo DiCaprio
Early Life
Born on November 11, 1974, in Los Angeles, California, Leonardo Wilhelm DiCaprio is
the only child of Irmelin and George DiCaprio. His parents divorced when he was still a
toddler. DiCaprio was mostly raised by his mother, a legal secretary born in Germany.
Despite his parents' early divorce, DiCaprio remained close to his father, a comic book
artist and distributor. With his parents' urging, DiCaprio explored his creative side,
developing an early interest in acting. "I loved imitating people ... I loved joking around
with my parents and creating different characters. I liked doing my own little homemade
skits," DiCaprio told Backstage. But he didn't have much success in Hollywood until he
reached his early teens.
'Growing Pains'
For years, DiCaprio had trouble landing an agent. One agent even recommended DiCaprio
change his name to Lenny Williams to improve his appeal. However, by the early 1990s,
the burgeoning actor began landing regular television work. His early credits included guest
appearances on such programs as The New Lassie and Roseanne. He also landed a role in
the dramatic comedy Parenthood. While the show proved to be short-lived, DiCaprio
reportedly met fellow actor Tobey Maguire while making the series and the two have
remained good friends ever since. In 1991, DiCaprio took a leap forward when he was cast
as a semi-regular on the family comedy Growing Pains, with Kirk Cameron and Alan
Thicke. He made his film debut in the low-budget horror flick Critters 3 that same year but
got the chance to demonstrate his talents as a serious actor two years later.
Movies
'This Boy's Life'
Proving he was more than a just good-looking teenager, DiCaprio starred opposite Robert
De Niro in This Boy's Life. The film delved into the difficult relationship between a young
boy and his abusive stepfather in this adaptation of Tobias Wolff's memoir. DiCaprio
impressed critics, holding his own on screen against acting heavyweight De Niro.
'Titanic'
It was another tragic love story that helped propel DiCaprio's career to a new level in 1997.
He co-starred with Kate Winslet in James Cameron's Titanic, about the sinking of the titular
ocean liner. In the film, he plays Jack, a poor artist who falls for the rich and beautiful Rose
(Winslet) on board. The couple faces danger not only from Rose's fiancé (Billy Zane) but
the ship itself after it strikes an iceberg. With a production budget that topped $200 million,
it was the most expensive film ever made at the time.
Titanic became both a critical and commercial smash hit. It garnered 14 Academy Award
nominations and won 11, taking home such distinctive honors as Best Picture and Best
Director. It was the first film to reach the billion dollar mark in international sales.
The success of the film also showed that DiCaprio could handle traditional Hollywood
leading man roles. He quickly became a world-famous celebrity with a growing following
of admirers, his charm and youthful good looks landing him on People magazine's list of
the "50 Most Beautiful People" in 1997 and 1998.
'J. Edgar'
DiCaprio took on another famous figure in the 2011 biographical drama J. Edgar. Directed
by Clint Eastwood, the film explores the life of J. Edgar Hoover, who ran the FBI for nearly
five decades. To prepare for the role, DiCaprio conducted extensive research and visited
many of Hoover's haunts in Washington, D.C. "I do love playing historical figures simply
because there's so much incredibly diverse, interesting information about a character when
you can research their life," he explained to Backstage. "A lot of the stuff you'd never be
able to make up as a writer."
'Django Unchained'
In 2012, DiCaprio appeared as a slave owner in Quentin Tarantino's Western Django
Unchained, co-starring Jamie Foxx, Kerry Washington and Christoph Waltz. The following
year, he re-teamed with Luhrmann to play one of literature's most intriguing characters,
starring as Jay Gatsby in the adaptation of the F. Scott Fitzgerald classic The Great Gatsby.
Wolf later sparked legal problems, with a former Belfort associate, Andrew Greene,
claiming that the film's character based on him was "portrayed as a criminal, drug user,
degenerate, depraved, and/or devoid of any morality or ethics." He filed a lawsuit against
the production companies associated with the feature, including Paramount Pictures, Red
Granite Pictures, Scorsese's Sikelia Productions and DiCaprio's Appian Way Productions.
Oscar Win for 'The Revenant'
In late 2015, DiCaprio starred in The Revenant as Hugh Glass, an 1820s frontiersman
forced to endure the wilderness after being left for dead. Directed by Alejandro González
Iñárritu, the film was difficult to shoot due to frigid weather but immediately generated
major awards buzz, earning a slew of Golden Globe nominations. Upon winning for Best
Actor, the popular DiCaprio received a standing ovation from his peers and praised Iñárritu
for his vision while also calling for support to indigenous communities and the protection
of natural environments.
"Making The Revenant was about man's relationship to the natural world. A world that we
collectively felt in 2015 as the hottest year in recorded history. ... Climate change is real, it
is happening right now," he said. "It is the most urgent threat facing our entire species, and
we need to work collectively together and stop procrastinating. We need to support leaders
around the world who do not speak for the big polluters, but who speak for all of humanity,
for the indigenous people of the world, for the billions and billions of underprivileged
people out there who would be most affected by this."
Upcoming Films
'The Devil in the White City' & More
In 2015, it was announced that DiCaprio and Scorsese would be partnering up again to
work on the film adaptation of Erik Larson's The Devil in the White City, in which the actor
would play the 19th-century serial killer H.H. Holmes.
Among a slew of other projects — some through his own production company Appian Way
— DiCaprio is set to star as Leonardo da Vinci in a film based on Walter Isaacson's
biography on the artist and the upcoming biopic on President Theodore
Roosevelt called Roosevelt.
The actor is one of the founders of The Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation (LDF), a nonprofit
that supports and brings awareness to numerous environmental causes. He's also served on
the boards of the World Wildlife Fund, the Natural Resources Defense Council and the
International Fund for Animal Welfare.
In March 2018, DiCaprio served as an executive producer of the History Channel's eight-
part docuseries The Frontiersman, a look back at America's most iconic pioneers who
helped shape the country.
Hay varias técnicas para disminuir el estrés y distraer la mente en otras cosas. La
mayoría de expertos recomiendan:
- Ejercitarse.
- Hacerse un masaje.
- Escuchar música.
- Reírse.
- Organizarse.
Leonardo DiCaprio ganó el Oscar a mejor actor en 2016.
Los famosos no están exentos de eso y muchos eligen alguna de esas opciones.
El año pasado, el actor Leonardo DiCaprio, tras cinco nominaciones, finalmente
recibió la estatuilla por su protagónico en El renacido. Pero antes de la ceremonia
el estrés se había apoderado de él y practicó apicultura para tratar de bajar los
niveles de ansiedad.
El yoga es otra actividad popular entre la comunidad artística. Dos fans de ello
son la actriz conocida por su papel en la serie “The Vampire Diaries" Nina Dobrev,
a tal punto que reconoció que le gustaría algún día abrir su propio centro, y la
actriz Lea Michele de la ficción "Glee".
Para Miley Cyrus la respuesta es pilates, que le sirve para mantenerse en forma y
a la vez centrada. La actriz Elle Fanning explicó en una ocasión a Teen Vogue que
se descontractura con el ballet y las pijamadas. Por su parte, Christina Ricci se
pone música a todo volumen y baila.
En esta quinta entrevista tenemos como invitado a Damián Alcolea,
actor, autor, cantante góspel y uno de mis primeros compañeros en
Toastmasters. Damián es Licenciado en Interpretación formado en
Murcia y Londres. Co-fundó la compañía Teatro del Ser y ha actuado en
series televisivas como “El Internado” y “Águila Roja”. Actualmente
trabaja en la Sala Malasaña avivando en sus alumnos la pasión por el
teatro y enseñando a empresas a mejorar sus habilidades de
comunicación con sus clientes y entre sus propios empleados. Más sobre
Damián al final de la entrevista.
2. ¿Qué ritual sigues antes de entrar en escena para meterte en papel y prepararte para
actuar?
3. Con tu larga experiencia, ¿qué trucos usas hoy en día para calmar los nervios asociados a
actuar frente a un público?
Pero hay veces que lo que necesito para aliviar mi ansiedad es «soltar»
de una forma mucho más explosiva. En esas ocasiones, me pongo a dar
golpes de karate en el aire dejando salir la voz, a saltar o incluso a
cantar.
4. ¿Cómo ha evolucionado tu reacción ante esos nervios con el paso de los años y qué ha
facilitado dicha evolución?
Sobre todo que se prepare bien. Cuando estás bien preparado para
hacer «cualquier cosa», ya sea una competición deportiva, hablar en
público o actuar, normalmente los nervios no llegarán a ser insufribles,
pues te sentirás capacitado para la labor que estás a punto de
desempeñar. Otra cosa son los nervios provenientes del miedo al error o
el miedo a equivocarnos. Es obvio que no queremos errar en un entorno
como el teatro, en el que no puedes volver atrás para editar y corregir.
Pero normalmente aceptar que podemos ser muy buenos profesionales
y, a pesar de ello, equivocarnos (hasta a los más grandes les pasa)
tranquiliza bastante. A mis alumnos de teatro (imparto clases para
aficionados en Sala Malasaña en Madrid) de hecho les digo que «no hay
error»; que en verdad cada error es una oportunidad de aprender. Pero
cuando empiezas a veces es difícil verlo.
6. Si pudieras resumir en un solo concepto aquello que define el éxito a la hora de conectar
con el público y hacer una función maravillosa, ¿qué sería y por qué?
7. ¿Cuáles secretos del teatro nos pueden ayudar a hacer presentaciones excelentes?
*La presencia. Los actores tenemos que llenar el espacio físico con el
cuerpo y con la voz para llegar al público. Para ello tenemos que «vivir en
el momento presente», en el aquí y el ahora, ser conscientes de nuestro
cuerpo y «habitarlo» desde el pelo hasta los dedos de los pies.
*La emoción. Como decía uno de mis profesores, Antonio de Béjar, «Si
un actor no mueve los corazones, entonces moverá los culos». Lo mismo
ocurre con las presentaciones. Hay que apelar a las emociones del
público y mover sus corazones. Las grandes marcas (Apple, por ejemplo)
han aprendido bien esta lección y sus presentaciones están cargadas de
emoción, pasión y verdadera conexión con el público.
Blog de Damián.
Damián en Twitter.
“TOCADOS”, su primera novela, inspirada en sus propias
vivencias como actor con T.O.C.