Archive for the ‘The Basics’ Category

So that camera that's on you?

Remember how we said that you shouldn't change a thing? Well....that isn't entirely true.

You probably should have picked up that cup with your other hand. You just totally blocked your face and the reaction to what she said.

Also, where you stopped to wait for the bus, there's no light, we can't see how your worried about your mother.

As much as you shouldn't change if the camera is on you, there are certain technical things that can't be denied.

You have to hit your mark. You have to be seen.

As much as you shouldn't be concerned with the camera, you need to be worried about the camera. It would suck to do your best work, but all we see is your back.

PS. This, of course, all applies to the stage as well. Though, the audience doesn't move while, the camera might, so hitting the autopilot on your audience awareness is more tricky.

If there was a camera on you right now, would you be doing anything differently?

Would you be sitting differently?

Would you been looking at your computer/phone/whatever differently?

Would you not be picking your nose?

Would you suddenly be aware of every move that you're making?

To be as "real" as possible the answer should be "No." You shouldn't change anything. The scene is you reading this post. And this is how you look reading this post. You don't need to change anything.

Throughout the day today, picture a camera suddenly being on you. Just notice, but don't change, what you're doing.

The stuff that we're doing on set, the stuff that fills our life with meaning?

It really ain't that important. Seriously.

Sure we move people. But we're not firefighters, or heart surgeons. What we do is mostly fluff. It's entertainment. Entertainment that makes some people, and hopefully ourselves, a shit-ton of money.

I'm not saying that what we don isn't important, but lets' put it into perspective.

In general, no one is going to lose their life if we mess up a take (nod to the stunt men, for whom this may not be true). It's just another take. Now, once you get past the 3rd or 4th take, you may start costing people money, and by the time you're on take 10, they're wondering what the hell is going on. But still, no one's life is at stake.

What we is important, in context. We all love out-takes, but you don't want the set to be a free-for all. And you don't want to be unprofessional.

Believe it or not, being more relaxed about the whole process will make you better as an actor. More relaxed = more emotion. More emotion = more dramatic takes.

The natural next step after "Be a fuck-up," is naturally, not caring at all whether or not you get the job.

This may seem counterintuitive at first. As in, "If I don't care, I won't do a good job."

But that's not what I'm saying. Getting the job would be nice and all, but that's not why you're in the room. You're in the room to show them the shit you can do with those four pages in your hand. You're there to show them the work you put into these four pages. To show them that you made some frikkin' choices. That you're NOT BORING. That you're engaged with the material. That's why you're in the room.

Whether you get the job or not is soooo far out of your control that you shouldn't even be thinking about that AT ALL. The more you think about the job, the more your stupid brain starts spinning out of control with all kinds of crazy scenarios and stories about how you're finally going to get your new apartment and by a house for your mom. Guess what, you're not. All you're gonna do is walk into that room, and kill it. After that, who knows.

Acting can be seen a little like learning a second language. From a practice standpoint.

In the beginning, you know a few words and have a few tools at your disposal. As you get better you can go deeper into a language, and maybe even get a few jokes, and carry on a conversation. Go even deeper, and you will get the "inside jokes" of a language, things like playing of words and such. When you become turely fluent, you're not even thinking of what you're going to say. You have a thought and communicate it.

Acting is very very similar. At first, you do everything with just the few tools that you have. You're really good at angry, so everything takes on that color. After a while, you get a little better, and have some measure of proficiency, and can call on different emotions. Go even deeper, and you see what the writer meant or the deeper meaning in the script and how it all ties together. But when you're really fluent, when you've reached the point of virtuosity, you find that you're just communicating. You're not thinking of what to say next. You're feeling, and the words just flow out.

This all happens, of course, through practice.

It's amazing, really, that people would never think of going to a foreign country without even picking up a phrase book. Yet they would get up on stage and try to give it a go. Even better when the director, or casting looks at you like, "What was that?" and you go into a explanation of what you were trying to do!

You need daily practice, just like you do in a foreign language. Sure, if you live on set, and you're on day 106 of a 200 day shoot, I would think that you have your stuff pretty well dialed in. This is like living in France for a year, and really having your french dialed in. If, however, it's been a while since you've had a audition, and you're current scene partner is lame about making it to rehearsals, Wwell, you're probably going to get a little rusty. Just like if you came to the states and didn't speak a lick of French for a while.

If you met a French person, you could get your point across, but after parting ways, you'll probably be thinking, "Ah, I should've said it this way, not that way." Does that phrase sound familiar? Ever had that internal dialogue inside your head after an audition?

Yeah, thought so.

You need to practice every day. You need to be emoting. You need to get your tongue around some words. You need to be moving. There are a lot of ways to make all that happen. Stay tuned, and we'll give you some tools.

AP

Believability - I don't think it's a word, but it should be.

All acting stems from this. I don't care what history work you did, and that you're mother in the scene is an alcoholic, and your dog just died. None of it matters if I don't believe you.

The reason all those acting greats are so great? You fucking believe them. Think of Roy Scheider in Jaws. Remember the scene? When Jaws comes up out of the water, while he's throwing chum out to sea. His look is completely blank. You totally believe he just saw the biggest fucking shark he's ever seen, then he says, "We're gonna need a bigger boat." and you are completely there, you totally buy in. You believe him.

Every other lesson, task, motivation, whatever it is you're doing to make the scene feel more "alive," should stem from this one thing. Am I believable?