ESSENTIAL TERMS For the Actor and Director. Compiled by Denny Lawrence

Transcription

1 ESSENTIAL TERMS For the Actor and Director Compiled by Denny Lawrence

2 Acting The willful ability to respond to an imagined stimulus in behaviourally authentic and creative ways. Acting is living truthfully under the imaginary circumstances of the script. Action 1. Action! An audible command, or silent signal to start the predetermined and coordinated activity of the shot being rehearsed or filmed. The signal may be separated into first action or second action etc, to achieve a coordinated event. 2. The action is the staging of rehearsed activities or choreographed events. 3. Action: a character s intention, a through-line. A motivational concept derived from Konstantin Stanislavski s system - used mainly by teachers but also by actors, directors and writers to identify and encapsulate a character's conscious intent or desire. Actions are usually expressed as verbs. The playing of action is a fundamental technique for actors and directors due to its wide-ranging usefulness for identifying and focusing a character s overarching motivation at any given moment in the narrative. A character's action is derived from the scene s subtext. Playing appropriate actions allows actors to reveal their characters objectives that is, their long-term ambition within the span of the narrative. Using actions or intentions to direct actors explicitly supports consideration and discussion with the actor about the inner life of the character in motivational terms, and helps prevent directors from resorting to result directing, and the actor from acting in an indicated manner. Actions are usually devised by the actor; then as rehearsal progresses they are monitored collaboratively for effectiveness by both the actor and director. The active verb or phrase used to describe an action should reveal the character s intention throughout a scene until it needs to change, for instance when the need for a different, more appropriate action emerges. Such an event is usually a significant moment in the life of a character; it may also be a turning point in the screenplay s structure. 2

3 Actions are chosen to support the character s objective. Once one action has been achieved, a new action begins - thus adding to the on-going life of the character. Actions are defined from the subtext, and thus should not be confused with the character s activities, choreography or business. (See option 2. above) In life, one s own personal everyday instinctive actions relate firstly to survival. Similarly in drama, actions should reveal the character s selfinterest. Accordingly, actions are mostly defined in positive terms, conveying what the character strategically seeks. Characters in narrative fiction, just as in life, are rarely altruistic. Heroism is an exceptional event in which self-survival is no longer the primary motive. For actors, playing an action is difficult to replicate in precisely the same way in practice, each enactment differs from the previous. Contrary to some beliefs, behavioral difference between takes may be value adding if the continuity or matching behavior during overlaps is sustained at planned moments. Playing the intended action and keeping it fresh (i.e. as if for the first time), is the actor s main creative responsibility, moment by moment, take after take. Activity The word is used to distinguish movement, choreography and staging from for instance, the playing of an action. Activity is the physical form of an action. (Some use the term physical action). For instance, if an actor plays the action to evict they might actively push someone out of a room. Another way might be to remain physically quite still even ignoring the other person; the action is still to evict, though the activity is quite different. Affective memory, aka Emotion memory, aka sense memory A technique used by actors whereby their memory of an actual emotion (or parallel incident) is consciously aroused to access the emotional truth of a scene s imagined situation. Useful for high-level emotional scenes for which the actor needs deep belief. 3

4 Emotion memory is an as-if technique used by actors to induce a state of emotion matching the requirements or mood of the character being played using an actor s parallel (yet unresolved) memory. Simply described, it is capitalizing on what you felt as the result of some earlier identifiable experience it may be recaptured, and what you felt then may be repeated in the present. As-if or Magic-if A referencing technique used by actors in which they respond freely and imaginatively to a hypothetical or an imagined circumstance. For instance, as if in a dream or moving through molasses or caught in a compromising situation or this is the moment I ve waited for all my life. Actors enter into characters circumstances as if they were their own. They then make the choices they make, and feel those choices - and their needs - as if they were their own. They must find for themselves the choices the characters might consider, but reject. The creation of these alternatives is a powerful way to enter into the character s mind, because they represent an inventory of the way the character sees the world. Authentic acting Acting which looks real and spontaneous, and doesn t appear premeditated or self-conscious. Such acting requires the actor to become immersed in the moment. Authentic behavior often elicits an empathetic response from observers. Autonomic, aka Automatic That part of the nervous system which operates independently of the central nervous system and which is not consciously controlled. Manifestly those body organs and processes that function without choice - unconsciously. An actor s autonomic system can be trigged by auto suggestion and a variety of techniques including affective memory, as-if, in the moment and circles of attention etc. When aroused, the autonomic system stimulates many bodily functions such as body stance, blushing, clearing of throat, blinking, yawning, sexual arousal etc. The autonomic system is the source of most involuntary body functions. 4

5 An actor s behavior appears authentic when they consciously struggle to exert control over their involuntary autonomic response. Beat In acting a beat is an interruption, an observable event, a reflective moment in a person s thinking or behavior that remain unresolved. Beats vary in their dynamic; beats may reveal unuttered thoughts or feelings, or a particular moment in a series of thoughts prior to a decisive activity. Beats denote reflection and metacognition usually preludes to a change. For actors, the ability to play beats that appear realistic to the observer, is a key competency, an essential part of their technique. In drama, beats induce suspense and cause observers to empathize. Beats occur within a character as a reaction to, for instance what another character infers, says or does. Beats are behaviorally part of one s everyday life - for instance just pausing to think or metacognition, (thinking about one s thinking), or reflection, (considering the implications of one s choices, or the past). For as long as a beat remains unresolved, it shows a character s vulnerability and uncertainty. These are sometimes called re-action moments because they denote a character s consider of their thoughts, and an awareness of other characters. The beats in a scene need to be identified collaboratively by actor and director too many beats may slow the pace of a scene, causing the character to seem overly contemplative or hesitant. Alternatively, too few may show the character as insensitive, omnipotent or over-confident about their future. Too many beats can easily blur the essential moments in a scene. There is a range of techniques used by actors to play beats, but the most powerful are inner-monologue and parallel action. 5

6 Blocking, aka staging, aka organic blocking A process which entails improvising, arranging then determining the physical movement and choreography of actors, in relation to each other, and with the camera, settings, props and equipment during rehearsal. Various choices are explored, maximized. Then as rehearsal progresses, all camera, actor and related furniture positions are set and marked. Unless determined by a scripted need to show activities, most often it s the subtext of a scene that s used to inform staging and the design of camera coverage (that is, it grows organically out of the actions, activities, beats etc). Staging integrates the actors' timing, looks, moves and position in-shot to achieve for instance, the actor to camera, and inter-character spatial relationships. Staging is also a component of mise en scene. It shows characters in their spatial relation to the setting via shot size etc. Staging is used to denote status and other inferred meanings between characters, settings, and architecture. Given circumstance The imagined circumstances or activity described in the script, or required by the director. The term refers to an imagined world, relationship, or sequence of events within which the actor acts - a world of pretence. Improvisation, aka impro or improv An unstructured, intuitive, uninhibited interaction between actors that seeks spontaneous outcomes. Improvisation is used for instance to aid actors to discover and manifest attitudes, dialogue, or behaviors which resist a more rational approach. Improvisation serves many functions though mostly the purpose is to experiment or find ways confidently to build, enter and sustain the scene s imagined situation or subtext. 6

7 Although time-consuming, improvisations allow actors and directors to break new ground. The challenge however is to sustain the innovation discovered in this way. The purpose of improvisation is not simply to arrive at the words. Improvisation is used to explore and analyze the motivation of the characters. From this work the actors develop the subtext, so that, what is going on is not simply what is being said. The rehearsal process is always being directed toward creating a precisely organized drama. In the moment The term is used to describe behavioral qualities that look authentic and relevant to the staged event. In the moment refers not so much to a moment of time but rather to a sustained sequence of believable behavior. Actors look lifelike when they are in the moment - observers feel empathetically engaged and begin to recognize and identify with what they see. In the moment behaviors also induce a sense of uncertainty, even danger or suspense, for the observer. Inner monologue, internal monologue An actor s manufactured stream of consciousness or imagined innerthoughts purposely customized to support the character s actions and hesitations (beats) etc. Usually a series of triggers ideas or mnemonics to support the subtext of the scene. Inner monologue is an itemized commentary devised by actors to support their character s motivation at specific times. Using inner-monologue strongly compliments the actor being in the moment. Objective (of a character) Usually a phrase encapsulating, preferably in fewer than 10 words, the spine or essence of a character in a screenplay. Objective and its close relations, actions, beats and action change are key concepts for actors, directors and writers. 7

8 The terms were coined by Konstantin Stanislavski ( ). Originally written in Russian and translated differently by various writers. Confusingly for readers, the various translations are not consistent within the literature about acting. Directors negotiate objectives with actors to reveal their own interpretation of the script, their social concern, their vision. Subtext Subtext refers to the layers of inferred meaning that lie beneath the surface of a script. Such meanings often contradict the dialogue of a scene. Subtext is used to reveal the unspoken relationship between characters, over and beyond what they say they mean. Subtext is also used to highlight tension, infer meaning, and to counterpoint the text. Accordingly, subtext is a tool used by actors and directors to identify a character s psychological nature and purpose; hence a character s overall objective, actions, beats and action-change events. Subtext also infers the spatial relationship between characters, the mise en scene, staging, camera coverage, and accordingly the emphasis and timing of edits. Objective encompasses all the actions an actor pursues from scene to scene, from the beginning of the play to the end. 8