05 Feb 2010, Posted by Alex Shofner in Acting,Articles,Drama,Filmmaking, 2 Comments

9 Directions to never give actors

One of the biggest conundrums facing new directors who are just starting to foray into the world of low-budget short filmmaking, aside from trying to convince a group of friends to hold a boom pole or set up some lights, is just how in the heck is a director supposed to direct actors, anyway?

As we all know, acting may just be the most important part of a student short film. They make or break the entire thing. Good acting can save a film with bad production value, but bad acting simply cannot be saved by anything. But how is a director supposed to get the performances out of his (or her) actors that are so vital to the success of the film?

I just finished auditing a class called “Directing Actors”, taught by the experienced and talented Mark Cabus. He has a long list of credits, acting and directing, for both the stage and the camera, so he is in an excellent position to analyze the actor/director relationship. He has provided some excellent tips on what we, as directors, should do, and more importantly, what we absolutely should NOT do.

The most important directive he gave can be summed up in two words: “Be nice!” Directors need to treat actors as collaborators, not meat puppets. If you have done your job in casting (and he says casting is 95% of the game), then you have casted actors that are capable and enthusiastic. We need to make sure we don’t try to pull their strings like a puppet master. Additionally, and this is especially important for the no-budget films where the actors aren’t being paid, you need to be appreciative. Thank them for their time. Never make them feel like you are wasting it. If there are delays, and there always are on film sets, be apologetic, and be open. Tell them why there are delays. Keep them in the loop. The better you treat them, the more they will enjoy the experience, and the more likely they will be to come back and work for you again, and tell their other actor friends to do the same. If a director can get a reputation for being an “actor’s director”, his job will become much, much easier.

That said, Mr. Cabus gave a list of Nine Directions Not to Give, and they are as follows.

1. EFFECT

Don’t tell actors that you want something to be “more quirky” or “sadder” or “funnier” or whatever. That’s not specific, they won’t know what that means, and the performance as they try to do that will come off as flat and uninspired.

2. AMBIGUITY

Saying things like “Can you take it down some?” or “Can you give it more energy?” isn’t helpful. These things are unspecific, and, again, actors are not meat puppets. They aren’t a machine that has emotion buttons to be pressed.

3. LINE READING

Never give an actor a line reading. Period.

4. ACTOR-AS-MECHANISM

Don’t say something like “I think the character is disappointed…” The actor needs to be the character and understand how the character is feeling from the inside, not to be told the character’s feelings. If the actor doesn’t understand what the character may be feeling at that point, discuss it with them. Ask them questions. Help them flesh out their character from the very core, and emotions will bubble to the surface. Don’t try to edit the surface.

5. JUDGMENT-BY-WAY-OF-EFFECT

Don’t say something like “Your character gets angry here…” Similar to the last one. Don’t tell the actor his emotions, try to explore the core of the character with them.

6. WRAP UP

Don’t give a Reader’s Digest version of the scene. Don’t say “okay, so you have come in to the bar, and she’s mad at you for cheating on her, and you lash out by breaking your beer bottle…” If your actors have done their homework, THEY KNOW THAT ALREADY. And if they haven’t done their homework, you didn’t do a very good job casting, because you picked someone who didn’t care enough to come prepared.

7. FINE WINE

“Can you be aggressive, but pleasant? How bout cherry but a wood finish?” Actors cannot be two things at the same time. One emotion is all a person can do at one time. Asking them to do more is like asking a sane person to become schizophrenic.

8. STRAIGHT-UP JUDGMENT

“He’s a punk. She’s a whore.” No well written character is JUST anything. They are more complex than that. Narrowing your character to a sweeping generalization is asking your actor to play one-dimensional. And it will show up in the movie like that, too.

9. ATTITUDE

“Let’s give her a hostile edge…” Why? The actor won’t understand that. The character’s emotions need to come from inside the core of the character, not because the director wanted to add a little flair for no reason. The better the actor can understand the character and why they do the things they do, the better the performance will be.

So now that this list is done, you may be saying “Crap. I did every single thing on that list my last short film.” Because that’s exactly how I felt. But it’s okay. Every director will do these things at one point or another. If you catch yourself doing it, apologize to the actor, and forgive yourself.

The best thing you can do to actors is ask questions. Help them discover their character by getting them to explore their role through your questions. If they feel like they discovered some aspect of their character, even if you intentionally led them there, they are much more likely to integrate that new aspect with energy and zeal than if you had just told them how to interpret it.

So there they are. Now you know what not to do. It’s figuring out how to do it right that’s challenging. But no one ever said directing was easy, right?

Many thanks to Mark Cabus for this list.

– Alex Shofner