History
Coppola 2 Studio Inc is a production and arts education company based in Los Angeles, CA. Founded in 2006 by Director John Coppola and Producer Michael Sonntag, the studio (formally known as Studio C Artists) came from humble beginnings.
The inception of Coppola 2 began in 1995 at John’s dining room table. John is a New York trained actor who, at the time, was searching for an acting class that reflected the current realities of the industry. John found that many techniques and studios focused were outdated in their approach and could not keep up with the ever-increasing pace of the entertainment industry. John’s solution was to start a class that studied exactly what he was looking for. He gathered a group of fellow actors in his living room each week and soon John’s natural role of director came to the forefront. His peers began to look at him as the “teacher” and word of mouth spread quickly among the acting community of LA. Within a year, John had moved out of his dining room and into a rented studio (Studio #C) in the old Todd-AO stages. And the studio was born.
In 2000 John partnered with Michael Sonntag, a fellow actor and burgeoning film and TV producer who was also a former student of John’s. The studio expanded to multiple weekly classes that included guest teachers, workshops, and filmmaking seminars. Michael eventually took on his own weekly class. With the growth of the company, came the growth of their careers. John and Michael worked on multiple film, television, and commercial projects together. This also opened Michael up to casting, adding another element to the Studio C banner.
In 2017 Michael Sonntag moved into an advisory role for the company to focus more on his family but remains a crucial role in the rebranding of Studio C to Coppola 2. Now more than ever, being an actor in the entertainment industry is everchanging. Coppola 2 had its official launch in 2022, keeping the same philosophy and techniques alive while adapting to the world post pandemic.
Mission
LIVING OUT LOUD
An integral technique we teach our clients at Coppola2 Studio involves learning the tools to “live out loud.” The goal of this premise is to enable our students to be free to explore the nature and source of their being and to fully experience each moment in life so that as artists they can illuminate a variety of issues in our society and the world.
You are the sum of all your experiences in the sense that every experience you have helps inform your identity, what you refer to as your own personality. And on a deeper level, your true essence is energy. Your very physical existence is made up of atoms in your body aligning and manifesting energy. This process also makes up the essence of who you are. You cannot hide this essence. It influences the way in which you interact with the experiences and events in your life, incrementally shaping your world view.
This notion is of paramount importance when it comes to acting or filmmaking because it determines the ways in which you create. And yet, we often find ourselves tending to hide because our egos have become our representatives to the outside world. It is important to understand that the less we hide, the more we are able to “live out loud.”
In the words of William Shakespeare:
“This above all: to thine own self be true, and it must follow, as the night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man.”
And when it comes to the creative process, all things that come int your energy field alter you in some way: every thought that enters your head, every person you encounter, and every experience you have. Unless you do the right type of work to allow your energy field to fully resonate, you run the risk to compromise authenticity and self-expression, falling pray to constant internal chaos.
The opposite of chaos is order. And one of the ways “self-expression” could be interpreted is as the “calling” to bring some semblance of order, harmony and insights within ourselves – actors and filmmakers – and to the world –audiences -.
This philosophy is also the approach we take in every one of our productions. We aim to create an awareness about whatever subject we are tackling and hopefully entice our audiences to see that subject in a different or new way. We believe the time is right for films that can do this. We know that in this troubled world audiences are hungry for stories that not only entertain, but are also able to provide clues as to how to live life to the fullest. It is imperative that artists commit to experience each moment in life fully, and in so doing, bring light into the darkness.
At Coppola2 Studio we believe that is really what being an actor or a filmmaker is about: LIVING OUT LOUD.