I have a very simple tip for you today: Just listen! OK, that’s all. Goodbye.
OK, OK, there’s more. This tip is less about what you should be doing, and more about what you should stop doing. Less is more.
This tip is great for all acting, but is especially relevant to camera acting. And it's even more important for closeups. The camera tends to be very intimate. Much of the time we feel as though we are only a few feet away from someone (or even closer) when we are acting on-camera. The closer the camera comes to you, the less you should do. So what do you do? Less!
Stop all that extra fake stuff you’re doing.
Stop trying to figure out how to say your next line.
Stop trying to fake it to make it look like you’re doing something..
Just really listen...and allow something amazing to happen naturally. Listen to the other person talk instead listening to yourself. I see a lot actors who seem to try to put all of their acting into how they say their lines. But that’s like having a conversation with someone and only paying attention to what you are saying. The other person will quickly become uninterested in you because you aren’t really listening to them. It becomes a one-sided monologue at someone, instead of a flowing conversation alive with interaction and surprise. It’s like a one-sided hug. Uncomfortable!
The more that you connect to really see and hear the other actor, the more you will get out of your head. Then, you will stay in the moment. And you will have natural reactions. You will appear to be doing less, but the audience will care about you more. Little nuances will flow across your face and your body will loosen up and become more natural. Everything will be easier and freer, and will look and feel much more real.
Don’t pretend like you are listening. Don’t look like you’re listening. Just really listen! Here are two tips to help you connect within a scene.
1. Really connect to the other person. It’s so simple. Stop worrying about what you’re doing and just concentrate upon the other actor. Connect. Really see them. Allow whatever happens to happen. If nothing happens, that’s what is happening. It won’t look like “nothing” to us. It will look like you are lost in the moment and being truthful. Thousands of tiny nuances will flow through you...but it will look like you are doing nothing.
2. Subtext. This means allowing your character’s thoughts to fill your mind instead of your own. Think of them as all of the ad lib lines that aren’t coming out of your mouth—you’re just thinking them. Again, it will look like you are doing nothing, but we can tell you are having real thoughts and we will care about you.
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