Wednesday, 16 November 2016

Scene Analysis - 12 steps and a few extra notes

1)      Read the scene
2)      Write down the story of the scene using bullet point form.  Identify beginning, middle and end.
3)      Write down what the scene is about in one sentence.  You can be subjective
4)      What are the given circumstances – who, when, what?  What are the immediate circumstances?
5)      Punctuation – rhythm between characters
6)      Mood of characters at beginning and end of scene.  What is the atmosphere and end.  Shift in both?
7)      Engage with 5 senses.  Don’t self-censor
8)      Divide scene into bits.  Changes in thoughts.  Beats.  A beat is how the writer has structured the dramatic action e.g. when one character enters or exits the scene.  A dramatic arc has to be affected by the exit or entry of a character.  Beats occur at these moments as well:
·         When the subject matter changes significantly. 
·         When one person who has become more reactive or proactive.
·         Stakes become higher or lower
·         The type of language used changes
·         A shift in breathing pattern
9)      What is your objective?  What do you need to do to affect the other person?  What obstacles are present?  What are your counter obstacles?  A need to fulfil a specific task, a need to say or do something.  What is the scene objective?  Need is overall psychological issues.  How can I affect here and now.  Sometimes the outcome is unfulfilled.
10)   Actions for fulfilling each need – intentions, choices – I (transitive verb) you.  Use a gesture, intention.  Actions are playable.  Prep your beats, objections.  Check out the actions and actors thesaurus. 
11)   Subtext – mine the script for subtext.  What the scene is really about.  Sub actions.  Objections of each character.  Subtext behaviour – Physicality – have to be very specific in the choices we make when we are embodying.  Usually in gesture and physicality
12)   Write an inner monologue for your character – feed in with subtext.  Actually focus on an internal dialogue.  Thoughts and ideas about what you are going to say next.  Judgements about what you give.  Remembering thoughts of a past history.  Anything you want to say out loud.  Forget to think it.  Present will live.  Internal dialogue must be very clear.  Not vocalizing it.  Should be written in a way which is not rational or logical.
Remember the following:
Lived Experiences – these need to be considered.  What has happened before will affect the decisions made with a script.  An adjustment – find a deeper feeling.
Obvious memories and conversations.  Work on creating given circumstances.  Rigour of detail.  Receiving.  Looking for discipline.
Paul Newman – book a hotel room and don’t come out – couple of six packs of beer 90% nonsense, 10% pure gold
Allow your imagination to fly
Allow an imaginative approach to research

Daniel Day Lewis: But it may help you think it helps you.  Smallest ima

The basics

                                       Acting for Camera        
       
Key Points
Don’t analyse yourself during the performance.  Facial muscles will betray you if you do this.  Particularly the eyebrows and mouth, these are dead give-aways.
Avoid eyebrow acting
Go through script and write an internal monologue
The word fuck is often primal, from gut
Write action verbs on margins of script
Stanislavski Exercise – imagine a pin of light focus and block everything else out.  Spotlight, internalize.
Emotional shots are closer and close, typically run through scene twice with different cameras
When listening on screen you have to actually listen.
Do not worry about your face.  Think only about your character’s thoughts and what you’re hearing.  It’s your characters thoughts which drive the narrative.  Allows you to get into the subtext of the scene.  It’s not all in the dialogue.  You can hear it.
Never be intimidated x 100
Never be shy
Follow impulses
Ask questions, particularly with regards to shot size – this is especially when it’s a medium/medium close/two shot
Look at your eyes and be aware of how much time you spend at the other person.
If you’re talking to someone you know or someone you don’t know.
When we have thought processes tend to be looking away from the person we are talking to.
We tend to listen and thinking to where we say
Looking up to see response

Continuity Issues
If you do something which changes your physical appearance make a note.  Do this in blocking as much as possible.
Narrative continuity
Spatial continuity – see hitting the marks but also includes 180 rule or “crossing the line”.  However, this can be done to underscore subtext.
Temporal Continuity – small things such as hair in front or behind shoulders.  These can add up to betraying the illusion of time/shot construction
Relationships are continuous
Physical continuity – at which point do you do a gesture/push a strand of hair back

Hitting Marks
Need to be good at it
3 Dimensions
Never stress about it.  Often a sausage shaped sandbag.  Use your peripheral vision.
Relatively close to camera, rather than far away

Cheating to camera – angles matter