Carol Hickey Acting Studio: Austin, Texas

2025 Film Conservatory

The Film Acting Conservatory will welcome our second class at our new studio location at 979 Springdale Rd. Austin, Tx. 78702. We are thrilled to offer this comprehensive two year training program for the development of actors in television and film.This program is highly competitive and admission is offered to select students. Space is limited.

ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS NOW!
Submissions Due September 28th

Applicants -

1.Upload your Headshot and Reel (0ptional) to the Google Drive Box link below

2. Add your AA Resume Link to the Spreadsheet link below

3. Look at sample of Kim Jackson Davis for example of how to submit

After submitting your materials, you will receive auditions sides to tape and upload.

Label Instructions Below:

FirstName LastName_Headshot

FirstName LastName_Reel

Actors Access Link - add link to Excel in Drive

CLICK HERE TO UPLOAD INFO

Year 1 Curriculum

January - April - 16 weeks
Monday 5:30 - 9pm
Scene Study and On-Camera - Kim Jackson Davis and Jon Michael Davis

Saturday 11-1:30 pm
Alexander Technique with Sarah Peace - 8wks
Improv with Sarah Marie Curry - 8wks

May - June - 8 weeks
Monday 6pm-9pm
Commercials with Richard Cerato 4 wks /Script Analysis - TBD - 4 wks

Saturday 11-2pm
Voice and Movement 8 wks - with Richard Cerrato

July - 4 weeks
Monday 6pm - 9pm
Film Production - Tika Cook

Saturday 11am-2pm
Business of Acting- Marta Parrillo

August - November - 16 weeks
Monday 5:30 - 9pm
Scene Study and On Camera with Kim Jackson Davis and Jon Michael Davis

Saturdays 11am-2pm

August - 4 weeks of accents with Jack Wallace
Sept. - 4 weeks of Film Fight with Paul Purvis
October - 4 weeks of Industry Workshops TBD
November - 4 weeks Film Production with Russell Reed

Year 2 Curriculum

January - April - 16 weeks
Monday 5:30 - 9pm
Scene Study and On-Camera - Kim Jackson Davis and Jon Michael Davis
Saturday 11-1:30pm
Improv with Sarah Marie Curry - 8 weeks
Alexander Technique with Sarah Peace - 8 weeks

May - June - 8 weeks
Mondays 6pm-9pm
Screenwriting with TBD - 4 weeks
Solo Performance with Richard Cerrato - 4 weeks
Saturday 11-2pm
Intimacy 1st 4 wks - Andrea Grapko
Dialects 2nd 4 wks - TBD

July - 4 weeks
Tuesday 6pm-9pm
Shoot Your Short - Tika Cook
Saturday 11am-2pm
Fight Reels - Paul Purvis

August - November - 16 weeks
Mondays 5:30 - 9pm
Scene Study and On-Camera with Kim Jackson Davis and Jon Michael Davis

Saturdays 11am-2pm

August - Film Fight Reels with Paul Purvis
September - Dialects - Jack WallaceNovember
October - Filming Showcase Scenes with Russell Reed
November - Directors Workshops - TBD

Conservatory Instructors

Carol Hickey | Studio Director
Carol Hickey is the founder and director of The Carol Hickey Acting Studio (CHAS) in Austin, Texas. She has studied with some of the most prestigious instructors in Acting at HB Studio in New York and 7 years in Los Angeles with Harry Mastrogeorge. She has a degree in Theatre from University of California, Santa Barbara. She earned her living working on commercials and television series (Gilmore Girls, Six Feet Under, Scrubs, ER, NYPD Blue, Judging Amy, Big Love, National Tide, AT&T, Kelloggs, Cisco and many more) in Los Angeles and recently booked Love and Death (HBO) Mo (Netflix) Walker (CW) and is featured in the film Only the Good Survive which premiered at SXSW Film Festival 2023. She has received numerous awards for her work on stage, developing premiere works in Los Angeles and in New York with The Canyon Theatre Company, along with name actors such as Mark Ruffalo and Kathy Bates. She worked as an instructor through East L.A. Classic Theatre to inner city, underprivileged youth and has primarily works now as a private coach for series and feature film roles in Austin and Atlanta.

Kim Jackson Davis | On-Camera Acting

Kim Jackson Davis has worked as a professional actress, host, and dancer for over 25 years and is a member of the Screen Actors Guild. While living in Los Angeles, she had the opportunity to study with one of Hollywood's most sought-after acting coaches, John Kirby. Since moving back to Texas, she has trained under Carol Hickey for the past seven years. She also serves as the studio's Youth Program Director. Kim has a degree in Journalism and Theatre from the University of Texas at Tyler. Her most recent acting work includes Tyler Perry's "Zatima", Jessica Biel's hit series "Cruel Summer", and "Adam The First", a feature film playing opposite David Duchovny and Oakes Fegley.

Sarah Marie Curry | Homework and Improv

Sarah Marie Curry has been an actor and working artist for over a decade. On stage she has been called "hilarious," "fierce," "truly exceptional," and is a local Austin, Texas award winner for both Outstanding Lead Actress as well as Best Improv Troupe multiple times over. When not performing, she is a passionate coach, director and producer of improvisational theater and teaches advanced improvisation and acting curriculums across Texas. For show updates and more go to www.sarahmariecurry.com

Russell Reed | Director, Film Production

With a burning passion for telling stories, Russell Reed is a devoted 24 year old filmmaker from Houston, TX, whose goal is to simply excel from each of his films. Looking to inspire and entertain, Russell's keen eye for imagery and heart for directing has earned recognition from respected industry folk. Russell's achievements have stretched far and wide. Russell has seen accomplishments in nation-wide film festival screenings, distributions via streaming platform and select theater screenings. His recent award-winning short film, Baby Nick, now lives on digital cable television network, REVOLT TV. Russell commits his life to studying his craft and relentlessly chasing his dreams of directing major motion pictures while he approaches his commencement this summer from Texas State University as a Business Marketing student.

Adam Roberts | Voice and Movement

Adam Roberts is an Austin-based vocal coach, conductor, and artistic director. He is co-founder of TILT Performance Group (tiltperformance.org) and Resolution Creative (resolutionaryworks.com), a faculty member at Carol Hickey Acting Studio and The Actor's School (theactorsschool.org), a contributing writer for Backstage (backstage.com), and Director of Music at St. Luke United UMC (stlukeaustin.com). His students have performed in principal roles on Broadway, Off-Broadway and in regional theatre, been nominated for the Tony Award, and appeared in film, national tours, and on network television. Learn more about Adam and his work at adamkroberts.com and on Instagram @adam_k_roberts.

Nichole Abshire | Script Analysis, Screenwriting

Nichole Abshire is an Austin, Texas based creator. She was a 2018 Academy Nicholl quarter-finalist and Austin Film Festival semi-finalist for her feature, Imposter Impersonator. She was a recipient of the New York Stage and Film Filmmakers Workshop and was selected for The Writers Lab supported by Oprah Winfrey, Meryl Streep, and Nicole Kidman. Nichole Abshire's writing journey began long ago in countless journals and diaries. While those should never be published, they facilitated an underlying sense in Nichole that her best work seeks personal truths.

Mark Cabrera | Film Fight

Mark Cabrera is originally from Houston, TX. He has been a film fight instructor for seven years for kids as well as adults. He has been an active MMA competitor for 10 years and truly believes that experience helped the transition into film due to knowing first-hand how to react and combat. Mark is a brown belt in Jiu Jitsu and an instructor in both muay Thai and boxing as well as weapons defense/stage combat (including firearms, knives, swords, bows, and staff weapons.) He is a weapons master and fight coordinator for feature films, shorts, and series such as "The Honey Trapper" and "Laura's Fate." Mark coordinates a range of fight styles including TKD, boxing, karate, Jui Jitsu, street brawl, and MMA.

Sarah Silva Peace | Alexander for Actors
Sarah Silva Peace is an AmSAT certified teacher of the Alexander Technique, holds a Master degree in Music (Vocal Performance), and is a highly sought after as a clinician across multiple industries. Sarah has worked with UCLA Medical, Chapman University Hall-Musco Conservatory of Music, and California State University Fullerton Conservatory of Music, as well as members of the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, the Hollywood Bowl Symphony, the Pacific Symphony, and the LA Opera orchestra.

Jack Wallace | Dialects
Accent Coach Jack is an experienced dialect coach from England, based in Los Angeles. With over 10 Million combined views on his videos for Buzzfeed and a private coaching practice, Jack specializes in coaching professional actors and celebrities with all accents. Jack is available for assistance during pre-production, on-set coaching and ADR.

Known for his warmth and precision, Jack has become an in-demand coach for a broad range of projects from films and television to theatre and commercials.

An expert advisor for news outlets such as CNN, Entertainment Tonight!, Buzzfeed, Disney+, IGN and Insider Jack is the go-to specialist for accent questions within the film industry.

Jack's clients have appeared in: 1923, DAVE, Never Have I Ever, Queer as Folk, Pam & Tommy, Ghosts, Derry Girls, Young Sheldon, 13 reasons Why, Queen Sugar, Westworld, The Mandalorian, The Walking Dead, Little America, Mission Impossible Rogue Nation, Big Little Lies and many others. His Voiceover clients can be heard in: Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, Boss Baby, Where's Waldo, Thundercats Roar! Call of Duty Modern Warfare, Cyberpunk 2077, Star Wars Jedi:Fallen Order and in national campaigns for Amazon, McDonalds, AT&T and Walmart.

Formally trained, with a Master's in Professional Voice Practice from the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire, Jack draws from a strong technical knowledge of the voice to distill the key features of an accent to prepare actors for any role.

Tuition and Policies