Acting Through composition closeups and camera angles movie

Acting Through composition, close-ups and camera angles movie actors come closer to the audience even appear larger, than actors on stage do.

Four key types of actors n 1. Personality actors- take their personas from role to role. n 2. Actors who deliberately play against our expectations of their personas. n 3. Chameleon actors- seem different in every role. n 4. Actors, nonprofessionals but famous in another field, who are cast to bring verisimilitude to a part

Types of Roles n Major roles- main, lead n Stand-ins- substitutes (look similar to actor) n Stunt-persons- double in certain scenes n Minor roles- supporting roles n Character roles- stereotyps (judge, doctor) n Bit players- small speaking part n Extras- nonspeaking, crowd role n Cameos- small significant roles by famous actors n Walk-ons- even smaller roles for highly famous personalities

Stage vs. Movie Actors n Must memorize all lines n Convey their acting/voice n Must project their voice n Must use exaggerated gestures and movement n Speak their lines in the order that they were written n Performs each scene only once during performance n n directly into the camera Learn only the lines needed for the moment Difficult to create continuity when scenes are shot NOT in the order they will appear. May do many takes of the same scene Many people on set viewing each scene

Improvisational Acting n This means delivering lines based loosely on written script or with no or little preparation. Can also mean playing through a moment, making up lines when lines are forgotten. Requires the actor to play even more an active role than if working with a prepared script.

Casting- Process of choosing and hiring actors for a movie. n Type of role n Actors strengths or weaknesses n Budget n Gender n Race n Ethnicity n Age

Typecast n Cast in particular kinds of roles because of their looks or “type” rather than for their acting or experience. Actor has a record for bringing in good box-office receipts.

Preparing for role/ Creating a “coherent, unified character” n Synthesizing basic sources (script, directors advice, other actors influences n Look the role (hair, weight, costume, makeup) n Make the behavior of the character believable, natural in appearance n Actor must think and speak the way the character on the screen would.

Nonnaturalistic Characters n Excessive, exaggerated even overacted performances are sometimes intentional and aim for effects beyond the normal range o human experience and are intended to distance the audience from the characters. These performances often include the same sort of costume and are common in horror, fantasy and action films.

Consider when analyzing an actor’s performance: n Appropriateness- physical appearance, speech, movement and gesture, does he/she create the illusion of a character n Emotionality- does the character have a believable inner life (process thoughts, feel and think as the character would) n Expressive coherence- combines the above two qualities n Unity- despite the challenges, does the actor maintain the illusion throughout