"I
have known JB and been a fan of his work for six years, starting the
moment he walked into a meeting for my movie 'The Count of Monte
Cristo' and instantly convinced me he was a hoary old Italian pirate. I
immediately cast him as Luigi Vampa. He was just as comfortable as an
English knight when we worked together a second time in 'Tristan &
Isolde'. He has a masterful ear for the rhythm and timbre of an accent
and the way that he links that to character is a rare quality. Not only
that, he is a talented and patient tutor."
Kevin Reynolds, Director - The Count of Monte Cristo, Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, Tristan & Isolde.
"There's
no fancy method; just an individualized approach that enables JB to
coach in a way that really speaks to actors as opposed to confusing
them - he is a remarkable teacher and he has an amazing ear,"
Rufus Sewell, Actor - The Illusionist, A Knight's Tale, Dark City
"I have known JB Blanc since the early 1990s when we acted together over several seasons at The Royal National Theatre. He is an extremely versatile actor, with an incredibly sharp ear for dialect. Understanding that all of us have the same basic vocal equipment, he is somehow able to think and feel his way into being a person from another culture, and to sound authentic as that character. More importantly, working with specific techniques, he can guide fellow actors through that process. I have personally consulted him on accents from South African to Russian, to regional British, American, and Australian, with excellent results."
Colin McPhillamy - Actor and Writer
"I
came to JB to study a Yorkshire accent through a highly recommended
referral by a friend, and fellow actor. I have to say that I was more
than pleased with the one-on-one session I received with JB. He had a
clear understanding for the mechanics of the European Accent, as well
as the historical and geographical backgrounds (which he also
provided). Being from Europe himself, and having traveled through all
of its various regions, he provided an invaluable educational
experience. I've taken dialect courses, and I've purchased the books on
tape, and those only provide you with the generic sense of what a
dialect should be. JB provides a sound that is rich, authentic, and
specific to the region of the world that it's been taken from. He does
all this maintaining a positive energy, and a friendly working
environment, which is ideal when learning anything for the first time.
He tapes a recording of the session, afterwards, so you can take it
home to practice. I now understand why he came with such a high
referral. The session is definitely worth the very reasonable rates he charges and I will
most definitely be back!"
Tyler McGraw, Actor
"I
had the pleasure of working with JB recently on 'The Company' for Sony
Television and TNT. JB was playing Manuel Pinero, Fidel Castro's head
of secret police. On our first day on location in Puerto Rico, one of
the producers approached JB and I and announced that the scenes had
been translated into Spanish and we were set up to shoot the first one
the next day. JB gently had to point out that he did not, in fact speak
any Spanish and frantic phone calls to and from the director ensued. It
turned out they were so convinced by his audition tape, that they
assumed he was Latino!"
Ramon Franco, Actor.
"I had a
last minute theatre audition for a play set in Cornwall in the 1950's
and was in a panic. A friend in London recommended JB and I literally
called him up at about 8 in the evening. He told me to come over
immediately to his place and we sat and worked for 2 hours solid. JB
was calm, reassuring and professional. He breaks the accent down into
the sheer mechanics of how the mouth gets around certain sounds, making
it extremely clear for me to understand. Were it not for him, I would almost certainly have blown the meeting. As it was I was confident enough to get a callback and the very next week, got the job! I cannot recommend him highly enough." Chris Hollis, Actor.
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