mVm Academy

Whether you take Foundations for Acting or Foundations for All, you’ll have one live, Zoom class per week, with a Certified mVm Teacher. Outside of class, you’ll have access to our online learning platform, Thinkific, where you’ll find weekly modules with instructional videos, homework, and occasional assignments to complete. You will also have access to mVm’s weekly live virtual workouts between classes.

Homework is limited to 1-hour per week, and we encourage you to complete it in 15- to 20-minute daily work sessions. There are recommended guided workouts available as part of the homework. These are not strictly necessary but will help you develop your personal practice. When developing these skills, short bursts of practice more often are more effective than longer workouts once or twice per week.

The course takes place fully online with live classes on Zoom. You must have a stable (preferably wired) internet connection, a Laptop or Desktop computer, and a working camera and microphone.

You will be asked to record two brief videos of yourself for one of the assignments, so you must have access to a phone, tablet, computer, or other video recording device.

Our online learning platform (Thinkific) works best on Chrome and Firefox web browsers. You might need to update to the latest version of these browsers to access the material.

All the exercises in this course have been adapted for a wide range of physical ability. While mVm often uses full-body athletic movements to encourage breath habits, all of these movements can be adapted based on your body’s unique needs. If you have specific accommodations or concerns, please share these with your teacher so we can work together to find how you can get the most out of each exercise.

We prefer you join Zoom classes from a private or semi-private room, where you can work without distraction or self-consciousness. That being said, we want to meet you where you are. So if this type of space isn’t available to you, let us know and we’ll work with what you’ve got.

A blank stretch of wall, 5’-6’ wide, within view of your computer’s camera, will be useful for some of the exercises. In some cases the side or back of a piece of heavy furniture (a couch or bed) can be used instead of a wall. Failing this, a space where you can lie on the floor will suffice.

You'll need a digital recording device (phone, tablet or computer camera) to record two short videos of yourself. For some exercises, a yoga mat or similar can be useful, but is not necessary.

For all Academy courses, you’ll need to prepare about a minute’s worth of text.

For actors: This will be a (preferably contemporary, English-language) monologue and can be something new, or something you’ve worked on before.

For everyone else: The prepared text could be something from your work or your personal life – a call script, a wedding speech, a business presentation – something you have memorized or that you work with regularly and tends not to change.

mVm Foundations for All is for anyone interested in deepening their connection to their breath, their body, and their speaking voice. Course work explores each student’s breath and speaking habits. This course will have plenty of application exercises, but focuses primarily on building each student’s awareness of their breath, their authentic voice, and what it feels like to be fully present. Take this course if you want an embodied deep dive into your breath and your self.

mVm Foundations for Acting is designed for trained actors who are looking to work on their craft. This course is rigorous, longer, more in-depth, and will involve a lot of acting drills and exercises. Take this course if you want a fast-paced kick start to incorporate mVm into your acting.

Life happens, and we understand that sometimes you need to miss a class. There are no make up classes for this course.

However, there will be ample opportunity to practice mVm not only in class but also through mVm’s live virtual workouts, and your online homework and workout playlist.

The Zoom classes will not be recorded, with the possible exception of one exercise, where the recording will be for the diagnostic and informational purposes of the students only. Outside of that one specific exercise, we want to protect the integrity of the work being done in real time, and we don’t want students to feel self-conscious about being recorded while they work. We believe that attending as many classes as possible, combined with the asynchronous online homework, will provide sufficient opportunities for student growth.

Your access to the online homework materials will continue for 60 days after the final class. This will give you an opportunity to keep practicing the work at home as you decide what your next steps with mVm might be. Any students interested in pursuing further mVm training after the course will have access to guidance on how best to continue.