10 MORE THINGS ABOUT DIRECTING ACTORS
communication, confrontation & confession
communication, confrontation & confession
1. THE HUMAN FACTOR
Stunts are tedious but a car or a helicopter will do pretty much as you expect. Actors, not so much. They hear music you can’t imagine and their volatility is a gift. Forget your expectations. Open your heart. Let them give you the miracle of themselves.
Stunts are tedious but a car or a helicopter will do pretty much as you expect. Actors, not so much. They hear music you can’t imagine and their volatility is a gift. Forget your expectations. Open your heart. Let them give you the miracle of themselves.
2. THE EXCHANGE
Actors rip their souls apart and show them to you. The least you can do is try a bit of the same. Doesn’t have to be deep personal confession. But you’ll be amazed just how much you get in return for losing some of your inhibitions and sharing the feels.
Actors rip their souls apart and show them to you. The least you can do is try a bit of the same. Doesn’t have to be deep personal confession. But you’ll be amazed just how much you get in return for losing some of your inhibitions and sharing the feels.
3. THE DOCTOR IS IN
You’re not a shrink but some basic understanding can unlock a performance. An actor playing ‘depressed’ is unwatchable, but his work comes alive if you tell him depression is really anger turned inward. You don’t have to have been in therapy. But it helps.
You’re not a shrink but some basic understanding can unlock a performance. An actor playing ‘depressed’ is unwatchable, but his work comes alive if you tell him depression is really anger turned inward. You don’t have to have been in therapy. But it helps.
4. LIFE IS THE TEACHER
A talented actress whose work had never quite lived up to her potential took time off to have a baby. Her first performance upon going back to work was a revelation and won an Oscar. When I asked what had changed, she said simply, “I realized I was enough.”
A talented actress whose work had never quite lived up to her potential took time off to have a baby. Her first performance upon going back to work was a revelation and won an Oscar. When I asked what had changed, she said simply, “I realized I was enough.”
5. THE THIEF
When out in the world, try to guess people's intentions – at meetings, at the market, in the bedroom. That couple sitting at a restaurant: is it their first date? Have they slept together? Will it last? Never stop working. Pay attention. Life is your laboratory.
When out in the world, try to guess people's intentions – at meetings, at the market, in the bedroom. That couple sitting at a restaurant: is it their first date? Have they slept together? Will it last? Never stop working. Pay attention. Life is your laboratory.
6. THE INNER LIFE
If you see an actor point, it means he’s lost his motivation and is trying desperately to get it back. Most likely he hasn’t done the internal homework necessary to keep his concentration. There’s a mantra all great actors follow, “Do less, be more.”
If you see an actor point, it means he’s lost his motivation and is trying desperately to get it back. Most likely he hasn’t done the internal homework necessary to keep his concentration. There’s a mantra all great actors follow, “Do less, be more.”
7. THE MAGIC
Why do we say a performance is ‘generous?’ A great actor is constantly giving the audience little gifts. Unexpected humor, sudden rage, mysterious secrets, mercurial intensity. Sydney Lumet used to say, ‘The best actors always seem to have a shark chasing them.”
Why do we say a performance is ‘generous?’ A great actor is constantly giving the audience little gifts. Unexpected humor, sudden rage, mysterious secrets, mercurial intensity. Sydney Lumet used to say, ‘The best actors always seem to have a shark chasing them.”
8. THE EARLY BIRD
Consider arriving before your call in order to visit the actors in hair-and-make-up. Welcome them to your home. Bring presents. Maybe ask if they want to talk through the lines? It’s lot less stressed to do it there rather than on set. Cheaper, too.
Consider arriving before your call in order to visit the actors in hair-and-make-up. Welcome them to your home. Bring presents. Maybe ask if they want to talk through the lines? It’s lot less stressed to do it there rather than on set. Cheaper, too.
9. BODY HEAT
What part of the body does an actor lead with? Is it his head? His groin? Her breasts? Hands? Chin? Body language can be the key to a character. Hang around when an actor tries on his costume for the first time. Watch closely. The performance has begun.
What part of the body does an actor lead with? Is it his head? His groin? Her breasts? Hands? Chin? Body language can be the key to a character. Hang around when an actor tries on his costume for the first time. Watch closely. The performance has begun.
10. THE MEDIUM IS THE MASSAGE
A well-timed hug can unlock an actor’s inhibition and lead to an extraordinary moment onscreen. It’s not for everyone, but a subtle touch or a whispered secret – the hallmarks of intimacy – are part of your arsenal. With consent, of course.
A well-timed hug can unlock an actor’s inhibition and lead to an extraordinary moment onscreen. It’s not for everyone, but a subtle touch or a whispered secret – the hallmarks of intimacy – are part of your arsenal. With consent, of course.
P.S. TAKE 15 ON THE SLATE
The dilemma of digital is that your choices are infinite. How do you know when you have the performance? Is another take worth falling behind? There’s no way to know until you’re in the cutting room. Just remember, the movies don’t bury their dead.
The dilemma of digital is that your choices are infinite. How do you know when you have the performance? Is another take worth falling behind? There’s no way to know until you’re in the cutting room. Just remember, the movies don’t bury their dead.
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