OUTLANDER actor Frank Gilhooley is to teach a masterclass in acting at the end of this month in Edinburgh. Gilhooley, who has also appeared in Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy and Outlaw King, has been asked by Hollywood performance coach Bernard Hiller to teach his method in Scotland.
Gilhooley was asked to start teaching the method after attending Hiller’s classes which he says “changed his life”.
A latecomer to acting, Gilhooley grew up in Loanhead and worked as a landscape contractor before taking to the stage.
His career took off after he signed up for a Hiller class in 2006 and he went on to play Torin in the global television serialisation of the top selling Outlander books by Diana Gabaldon.
He told The Sunday National he was privileged to have been asked by Hiller to teach his method in Scotland as the first one he had attended “blew him away”.
“It was a revelation,” said Gilhooley. “When I did the first one I had not cried for many years and then I cried for hours but came out feeling 10ft tall. It is about getting rid of the things that hold you back.
“If people are emotionally stunted it can give them real problems – they can have all these blocks and it all comes down to their emotions. Actors can also be rejected many times and a lot of them struggle with that but this teaches people to be resilient and stronger than they ever could have believed.”
Gilhooley said the event was open to everyone, not just actors, as it was the “most liberating thing”.
“I think Bernie asked me to bring it to Scotland because we don’t live our lives in the happiest way,” he said. “The first time he came here he said it was like fighting a wave of negativity.”
As well as practical exercises to help people connect with their emotions, the three-day event will also give those attending a chance to meet agents, work with fight director Paul Donnelly who is currently in Outlander, perform with a dance teacher and have professional pictures taken.
In addition, there will be a question and answer session with award-winning casting director Claire Catterson. “I am trying to share my experiences with everybody,” said Gilhooley. “It’s wonderful seeing people just grow in strength and be confident in where they want to go, “If you address your mental health it is incredible how it sets you free. Before Hiller I felt I was not engaging with my emotions but that is so important to everything you do.
“If you don’t engage with them in a healthy way you will have problems and you will not find a person in the world who has not gone through hurt and pain.
‘‘It’s only when you face it and allow the tears and negativity to leave that you can let the positivity in.
“There is nothing like a good greet, as they say here, and when people let it out and acknowledge it they can move on.”
As well as preparing for the masterclass, Gilhooley has written a script for a film based on the global-selling life story, Dreams of a Refugee, about Edinburgh-based Palestinian Refugee, Mostafa Salameh, who not only conquered Mount Everest but also became one of only 16 people to scale the tallest mountain on all seven continents and walk to both the North and South Poles.
Gilhooley is also heavily involved in fundraising for charity and his projects have included cycling across Western Australia, walking The West Highland Way and scaling Tanzania’s Mount Kilimanjaro, pulling together 10 fellow Celtic fans to raise almost £60,000 for charity.
He has now organised a hike along The Great Wall of China with over 40 people signed up for the event.
For more information on his performance masterclasses visit frankgilhooleyacting.com
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