The last week, I had the pleasure of coaching some young actors who are working on a major TV show for Netflix. The actors were lovely and keen to get to work. We spent the majority of our time on defining and simplifying objectives. Objectives are some of the most basic circumstances you can define when analyzing a scene. Basically an objective is asking the question “what do I want?”.
By defining what you (or, if you are inclined to think about things this way, your character) want in a scene or a particular interaction is a great way to give a sense of direction, rather than just going through the lines. A good objective will help the actor by providing something to focus on (as opposed to thinking about “what would I do in this situation” or “how would I feel”).
There are some ways to refine your objectives which will help them be more effective:
- Make them as active as possible (instead of “I want to understand” or “I want them to listen” or “I want to feel a certain way”). An active outcome will free you up to feel all sorts of ways and get you out of your head
- Make them about the other person in the scene. If what you want has nothing to do with the other people in the scene, then maybe you have an “activity” (something you need to get done), but often you can find something you want from someone else in the scene. This will force you to interact with them and respond to what they are reacting to you.
- Make it as simple. In order to work for you, an objective should be as simple as possible. Try to make it ONE thing (rather than “I want X but I am worried about them wanting Y and I also am kind of afraid of getting X”, just make it “I want X”. Them wanting Y might get in the way (be an obstacle) of what you getting what you want and make you work harder to get X. Usually once you get down to the simple objective, it becomes something that is universal which is easy for you as the actor to buy into (see the next point).
- It doesn’t have to be related to the script/plot! This is a weird one. If your character wants to deliver a letter, but what’s in the letter means nothing to you, have a think about what would motivate YOU (the actor) to deliver the letter. There are no wrong answers here and what you are looking for is a way for you to connect and care about your (or your character’s) objective. If you give a shit, it’s going to be something you’ll fight for.
- Make it specific and concrete. The more concrete the objective is, rather than heady or an idea of something, the more of a chance you have at committing to getting it.
Objectives are a simple and powerful tool to connect to and commit to the action that the author wrote for you to undertake in the scene. It’s ok at the start of looking at the scene to come up with broad objectives that are not terribly simple or action based (ie. not following the above points). But keep at it, keep refining them to make them more concrete, more personal, more simple, more needful of the other person in the scene. If you get to the point where you are simply driving for what you want and letting the other people’s reactions hit you, then you’re in a good spot!
One of the most important things actors can do to keep their skills sharp, especially during downtime, is to be in an acting class. Because acting classes are process oriented, they allow students to explore new parts of themselves in a safe environment. You aren’t going to get fired from your acting class because you are trying something new!