Acting in film and television requires a variety of different abilities. There are several skills that every actor must master:
- Understand how to work with a camera
- Act identically on each take
- Recognize how to act scenes that are out of order
How to Act in Front of a Camera
In film and television acting, there is no live audience providing feedback. Rather than that, you have a camera, a director, a camera operator, and occasionally a few extras, which means you must use your imagination and pretend. Keep this in mind as you “play to the camera.”
- Always be aware of the location of the cameras.
- Determine what the camera is attempting to capture – If the camera is attempting to capture a closeup, focus on your brows to convey emotions, as the camera will capture everything.
- Know the locations of other actors and props – You never want to block another actor’s view from the camera.
To improve, turn off the sound while watching TV shows or movies on video. Without dialogue to direct you, you can deduce what the actors are attempting to communicate to everyone. Body and facial gestures can reveal a great deal more than you might believe. By watching films and television shows with the sound turned off, you can learn how gestures can enhance or detract from an actor’s performance.
“The camera never lies” means that when you act in front of a camera, every gesture, motion, glance, breath, and glance is captured. You can get away with shifting your gaze in theater. Unless you are attempting to achieve a specific look for your character, inappropriate movements and gestures, such as rapidly moving your eyes, can detract from your acting performance in film and television productions.
Record yourself delivering a monologue and look for inconsistencies in your performance that detract from your character. For example, if you’re portraying a tough, self-assured businessman, avoid looking down. Never look down on a strong character. Request that your acting coach or instructor view your videotape and provide feedback on the type of character he or she believes you are attempting to create.
Continually Acting the Same
Consistency in multiple takes is critical for TV and film acting. In the worlds of film and television, scenes are not performed once. You replay the same scene repeatedly to allow the director to capture it from a variety of angles and for the actors to experiment with different styles of acting.
The director may choose to re-shoot a scene numerous times. To maintain consistency throughout each take, you must be cognizant of continuity whenever you perform a scene on camera. From an actor’s perspective, the issue with repeatedly shooting the same scene is that actors never know which scenes will ultimately be used, so they must maintain consistency.
Acting Scenes in the Wrong Sequence
Apart from ensuring continuity across multiple takes of the same scene, you must also ensure continuity between different scenes. Films and television shows are frequently shot out of order for financial reasons. As a result, you shoot the film’s final scene on your first day on set. If your character is supposed to be reserved at first but becomes more assertive by the end of the film, your actions must reflect those character choices. If you do not act appropriately, your character will be illogical. Contact our acting studio for more information now.
