MEET THE COACHES
Brian Norris - Owner, Lead Teacher & Coach
A working actor for over 25 years, Brian is recognized most for his recurring roles on the final season of AMC’s acclaimed drama Halt and Catch Fire, Hulu’s original noir drama series Reprisal, and ABC's long running daytime series General Hospital.
Notable recent credits also include Recurring Roles on season two of HBO’s prestige drama Perry Mason and ABC’s long-running daytime soap General Hospital, along with supporting roles on Walker (CW), The Rookie: Feds (ABC) and the political thriller feature film 88 (Amazon).
Brian started his career as a child actor, making his television debut in San Francisco on the CBS hit Nash Bridges. Notable recent credits also include The Rookie: Feds (ABC), New Amsterdam (NBC), S.W.A.T. (CBS), Into The Dark (Hulu), Longmire (A&E), Castle (ABC), Veronica Mars (CW), Mad Men (AMC), and Community (NBC). Brian has voiced numerous video games and commercials, including hundreds of spots as the National Campaign voice for Wendy’s Fast Food. Soon you'll able to see him in both season two of HBO's Perry Mason and in the political thriller feature 88, which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival.
Brian has taught and coached actors for 10+ years. In class, he loves helping actors find the space and safety to get unstuck by understanding and taking ownership of their craft. In audition coaching, Brian's goal is to help you figure out who the role becomes because you're the one playing it, while still honoring the needs of the script and story. And as a Career Coach, Brian loves demystifying the industry and helping clients see their careers as the ultimate choose you own adventure, with only your imagination to limit you.
Brian opened The Norris Studio to create a home for professional actors looking to level up their onscreen craft and career, in a community of kind, wacky, and non-competitive fellow artists.
LFG.
Tiffany Commons - Audition Coach
Born and raised on the Southside of Chicago, Illinois, Tiffany has been a performer at heart since an early age. Laughter was always present at home and she was usually the one that started it and kept it going! Tiffany has been a working actor for nearly 10 years with credits including "Modern Family" (ABC), "The Big Bang Theory" (CBS) and "This is Us" (NBC. Outside of TV Acting, Tiffany has dabbled in improv, sketch and stand-up comedy.
I feel like I have finally got to a point in my acting where I do it for me and the story I want to tell - not for what I THINK someone would want to see. And that makes it fun and free. I hope that I am able to work with others to also get to that point too...and book the job...obvi."
From Brian: "Tiffany is joy personified. It's impossible to work with her and not leave smiling. Her coaching instincts are always spot on, probably because she's a working actress who actually watches a ton of the shows on TV. I'd work with her on anything, but my goodness does that woman understand multi-cam comedy!"
Gwen Carole - Commercial Coach
Gwen started her performing career as a dancer (with a BFA from the University of Arizona) where "back-of-ballet-class jokes" was one of the first special skills on her resume. Growing up in a family where improv games were quality time and The Simpsons was never missed, she developed an early knack for comedic timing and purpose in making people laugh.
Aside from her relatably goofy dance/re-enactment videos that have blown up social media, Gwen has appeared in many commercials for clients like Bosch, Supercuts, Little Ceasars, ESPN, Viasat, CA Lottery, Ethos, Paycom, TAB Bank, and Youtube (among others). You can also spot her in Welcome to Chippendales on Hulu.
Gwen is a big fan of treating yourself no differently than you would your best friend... especially when it comes to auditions and acting work. Taking shame out of the game, knowing your specific strengths, and creating an authentic and playful audition that feels suspiciously easy is the GOAL!
Anthia Gillick - Career Coach
Anthia is an actor, writer, and producer who is passionate about bringing messages of consciousness to all aspects of her art and life. Her recent works include starring in a festival-bound Sci-fi Western, and her debut book, "Ever in The Next," which is set for publication this spring.
Additionally, she's a certified life-coach who believes that vulnerability, healing, and perserverance will help you follow the open doors to your own unique path, both in and out of the entertainment industry. She's been working with Brian Norris, both in acting and career coaching, for 5+ years.
She's excited about passing on all she's learned to help actors build the foundation of their careers for lasting and satisfying success and fulfillment.
From Brian: "Back when I was trying to get a handle on my career and the industry, I wish I had an Anthia. She understands the business the way Neo understands the Matrix, and she's able to share that information in a way that feels inclusive and personal. If you work with her you'll leave the CEO of a successful acting business.
Kelly Mis - Audition Coach
Originally from North Carolina, Kelly graduated from UNCW with a BA in Theater Performance. She has taken all sorts of acting classes while out in LA, but really found her home training with Brian.
A lover of wigs, Kelly enjoys playing with characters and performs monthly with her sketch comedy team. She’s a big crier and believes empathy is one of the greatest tools in finding character; following your feelings to tell you how this person thinks, how they react, and how they listen
From Brian: I don't think I've ever met someone with better instincts across-the-board than Kelly. It's remarkable, really. She has a giant heart that's able to access all of the dramatic work, but she's also just absurdly funny. It's not fair to the rest of us, so the least she can do is share her genius by coach auditions really well.
Marc Winnick - Audition Coach
Marc was born and raised in Los Angeles and has been acting and performing most of his life. He has worked on projects from every genre, such as the creature horror Shadow Puppets with Tony Todd, the heist comedy Guns, Girls, and Gambling with Christian Slater and Gary Oldman, the action thriller Code of Honor with Steven Seagal, and most recently, the sci-fi spy film Dark Asset with Byron Mann and Robert Patrick.
Marc has studied and collaborated with Brian for nearly a decade. Over the last few years, Marc has used his experience and love of acting as a coach, helping actors produce clear and specific self-tapes that are grounded and authentic.
From Brian: I could tell you that Marc is the best. I could tell you that he understands the specifics and intricacies of GENRE better than pretty much anyone. But the simplest thing I can say about Marc is that he's who I tape my auditions with.