The Specifics Of Being Specific
The Specifics of Being Specific
When we are preparing for an audition or a role, we are often told we must be "detailed," "make choices," and "be specific." Yet, there's always some confusion over how exactly we should go about making these creative decisions. After all, these points set us apart from the crowd and make the difference in why we are better suited for a role over another person. Although this is something constantly repeated to us by industry professionals, sometimes we genuinely may not know how to start the decision-making process, or we may not know if our choices are specific enough.
The first questions we must ask ourselves before working on our material are, "Who, What, Where, When, Why, and How?" These offer us the most significant launch point for starting to delve into the details. Try reading the text aloud and feel for how the character chooses to uniquely express themself in their own words and how they choose to respond to each moment in their actions and behavior. These context clues guide us in how to answer each question. There may be times when the questions do not provide solid answers directly in the script, yet it is still our job as actors to establish these answers to play out the scene to the fullest capacity.
For example, in one scene, we may acknowledge that we're playing a police officer who is at the station at night searching for a missing person as soon as possible. With this information, we have already answered "Who, Where, When, and What" in its most simplistic form by establishing these initial facts for ourselves.
At this point, we need to break down our previous answers and explore each more thoroughly. Going back to the previous example, what type of police officer are we? Are we a compassionate police officer that's doing our best to better society? Or are we the kind of police officer who has a reputation for being ruthless, no matter how minor the offense, we want the fullest repercussion against the perpetrator? If this is a police station at night, what type of neighborhood is it? A big city where there are lots of other police officers roaming around very late? Or a more rural town where there are only two of you working on this significant case. Go through each of your previous answers and let your curiosity guide you to more questions and keep going until you have a definite choice. The more decisions we make, the more realistically we will understand what is at stake for ourselves, what types of obstacles lay before us, and the more excited we may be to play within the world we are creating.
Next, we must consider "Why?". Why does this character feel motivated to respond to the situation in the way that they do? The same forces and desires do not drive not everyone, nor should they. No two people in our everyday lives have the same goals or dreams, and our scene-work should be a direct reflection of that. It is important to note that why someone feels motivated to act in the way they do will change how they work through a situation. Whatever we decide is this character's motivating objective in the scene (whatever we want and are doing to this other person) will ultimately affect our "How?" or how we go about playing the scene.
We must never forget that how someone responds and behaves literally will define their character. Exploring how a character goes about doing their goals and motivations brings to light all of the possibilities and the variety of options at the character's disposal. It is almost as if we are taking all of the previous information we've confirmed for ourselves and filtering out all of the other extraneous information to see what is left.
We now can find variety by making specific decisions for every moment throughout the scene. We should almost label each beat with what exactly we are doing in each shift as they are happening. By clarifying for ourselves what is happening precisely in each moment, we can recognize if things are remaining stagnant or if we are consistently changing. No two moments should be exactly alike. By consistently changing throughout the piece, we allow our audiences to go on the journey with us, leaving them in suspense at what has the potential to happen.
Finally, it is important to note that although we may approach every scene with a game plan, we must also be willing to let go of any preconceived notions we have about how the scene will play out and be open to responding and discovering moments in the present moment. By letting go of the homework, we trust that whatever choices we had previously decided may come about naturally and instinctually throughout the work. This gives us the freedom to be present, listen, and react as we do in our everyday lives.
From the beginning, I repeat the same phrases that we likely have all heard before. Be detailed. Be specific. Make choices. But more importantly, be daring. Take risks. By doing the deeper homework we may discover choices that no one else has made yet. Be willing to come to the table and craft something that is distinctive and individual to us. As in life, nothing happens in a scene without a purpose—and it is through our specific choices that we may define them.
By Diana Frankhauser