A Screen Acting Workshop

This breath connection gets disrupted because the words on the page are not our own spontaneous thoughts

Sanford Meisner famously said, ‘Text is your greatest enemy.’ What is being asked of an actor is that they have a real impulse that comes up and gives rise in that split second of time to the only words that will precisely serve that need and those happen to be the words that are printed on the page

Be specific. Really see what you are talking about.

Your eyes, truly, light up when you think. Just mentioning someone you love produces a momentary, but unmistakable, gleam in your eye

But if you are in a tight close-up, especially in semi-profile, this darting gaze can be distracting and you will lose the strength of the performance. So favour the eye of your partner that is nearest to the camera. Then we will see your eyes better and you will look more focused.

Television was born from a heritage of words derived from theatre and radio and it has nurtured many wonderful writers. Thus, traditionally in television there has always been a proper script that has tended not to change too much and which directors have tended to respect