TopThreeTips on.....
On Set
Etiquette for Actors
1, Be "Professional".
Day 1 of the shoot is not the time to learn your
lines. The crew are gathered, Locations booked and everything has been
prepared for you to step onto set and do your work.
Prepare yourself! Mentally and Physically,
filmmaking can be a tiring business so get enough rest. Pack things you may
need, if you know you get grumpy when peckish (like me) pack your chosen
snacks, If you have hayfever and there are scenes in a field, take your tablets/eyedrops
etc, Bring thermals if you think you will get cold on the night shoot.
Imagine yourself in each set up and think about
what might help you be at your best.
Make some character choices, be bold with your
decisions and put them to the Director (preferably before the cameras are
rolling) without being precious about them, flexibility is a must, come with an
open mind and positive attitude.
The script is your bible, it has all the clues
you need, use it as much as you can.
Viola Davis wrote a 50 page biography for her
character in "Doubt", hear her talk about it here:
2, Communicate with
clarity.
Usually the
Assistant Director (AD) is the person who can get you any thing or any
information you will need on set, if they don’t know they will know who does know
and try to sort it for you (a good AD is priceless).
The Director is the person to speak to with any “performance”
based questions/suggestion etc. Remember the Director will have many things to
think about and most of it is technical (Sound, lighting, Camera) but
ultimately all technical departments have a Head (HOD) whereas the “Acting”
department only have the Director to turn to. It is this collaboration that is
critical to achieving the best possible story with a clear vision of the final
film.
Respect your Director, respect your crew, they work very
hard to make you look good.
Never be afraid to ask for the frame, the size of the shot
will determine the size of your performance, if the Director seems busy
establish a relationship with the Director of Photography (DOP) where you can
just check if your are in a close up/medium shot etc, its not always obvious by
the cameras position.
The other person on set who will be spending a lot of time
watching you is the Continuity person, they will be taking notes of every time
you stand, sit, drink, punch, kick etc, be kind to them as they can remind you
of what you did in the last take and that can save a lot of time wasting and a
frustrating job for the Editor.
A good habit to get into is make sure you have been
introduced to the whole crew or at least the HOD’s, It makes for a happy set
when (for example) the Focus puller can just ask you to take your first
position without having to go through the Director and you can personally thank
the runner that has been fetching you hot tea all evening.
On a low budget shoot you may not have the luxury of a big
team of people but take a second before just firing out a question to think who
is the best person to ask here, when in doubt I always turn to the AD.
An example of poor communication on set is the clip of Christian
Bale having a bad day here:
3, Be a “Team
player”.
Filmmaking is a group effort; everyone has a role and has
been specifically selected to work on the project because of the skills they possess,
same goes with actors.
Have the awareness to understand what is happening around
you without letting it affect your work.
There will be times when there is a camera right against
your nose, a light in your eye a microphone under your chin and it is your job
to find the truth of the scenes while all this is going on, stay calm, breathe
and take a second to block out all the exterior gadgets and focus on your job.
Of course we all want to be helpful but let other people do
their job, often It can be more disruptive for the actor to move from the first
position and get some water/ replace a prop/ move a cable etc while everything
is being set for you in that one spot, if you see something out of place
mention it (to who it concerns).
There’s usually no need to be lifting things (especially
when in costume) but remember to conserve your energy for that big emotional
scene later that day, no one wants to see an actor breaking an expensive light.
You will be pampered as an actor, enjoy it, but realise the
logic behind why.
The production needs the “talent’ to be happy as much as
they need the camera lens free from dust and hair, it is important that the
hair/ make up and costume department (always a source of great comfort in my
experience) can make you look pretty so the shot looks pretty so in that sense
you are “dressed” as the set is dressed, don’t be embarrassed by the attention,
it is necessary.
Don’t allow this attention to feed the ego, too many times
before a take I’ve heard an actor ask the director “are you sure about this
scarf/line/move”. Assume that when ready to roll everything is how it should be
otherwise someone would have flagged it to the Director.
Personal hygiene! For everyone’s sake, have mints and
deodorant on hand.
There will be hundreds of other actors who would love to be
on set working on a film at any level, remember this.
Watch Steven Speilberg talk about collaborating with actors in
here:
