Natural Talent vs. Learned Skill
Through my experience, acting is something that can be taught and is not necessarily a natural talent that one is born with. Though I am not saying that you cannot be born with this skill, I believe that a skill is exactly what it is, and skills can be learned. If I did not believe that acting is an ability and that an actor can train in the craft of acting then I should not be here right now. There would not be extensive amounts of school for actors; there would not even be different acting techniques, because everyone who pursued acting would be naturally able to act, without guidance. While studying Sanford Meisner, I ran across his most famous quote time after time, "Acting is the ability to live truthfully under imaginary circumstances." The funny thing about this quote is that he uses the word ability, not talent, implying that anyone can be an actor, no matter what you do for a living. Because I agree with Meisner's teaching philosophy of reacting truthfully in the moment and relying on impulse, I believe that acting is derived from human interaction and basic human connection, not from the luck of the draw at birth.