Lesson 3 - Crafting Memorable Characters
Character Development and Analysis
“Storytelling is about two things;
it’s about character and plot.”
George Lucas
Crafting memorable characters is the main job of the actor. It requires an actor to develop their skill and creativity through dedication to their craft. Actors have the unique ability to bring fictional personas to life, capturing the essence of a character and immersing audiences in their stories. The process of character development involves creating a multi-dimensional individual with a unique personality, motivations, and emotions. Through thorough analysis and understanding, actors can breathe life into these characters, making them relatable, compelling, and memorable.
Character Development
Character development is the foundation upon which memorable performances are built. It involves a deep exploration of a character’s background, traits, and experiences, enabling actors to portray them convincingly on screen or stage. To develop a character effectively, actors engage in various techniques and strategies.
German-American actress and theater practitioner, Uta Hagen, developed a great technique for helping actors develop their characters. We will dig deeper into her process in Final Act Drama’s 3rd series, The Professional Actor. Until then, lets cover…
Uta Hagen summarized the steps to developing a character into 6 steps. An actor needs to begin this process the moment they get a script for an audition as they go through the first read through. By asking yourself these questions, you are defining the target of who the character “IS”. It is only after you know who they are, can you begin the process of becoming that character. Here we go!
Six steps to building a character!
Who am I? – This question’s answer includes all relevant details from name and age to physical traits, education, and beliefs.
What are the circumstances? – What time is it? Depending on the scene, the most relevant measure of time can be the era, the season, the day, or even the specific minute. Where am I? This answer covers the country, town, neighborhood, room, or even the specific part of the room. What surrounds me? Characters can be surrounded by anything from weather to furnishings, landscape, or people. What are the circumstances? Given circumstances include what has happened before, what is happening now, and what will happen to a character in the future.
What are my relationships? – Relationships can be with other characters in the story, inanimate objects, or even recent events.
What do I want? – This is the most important question! We have to know what our character wants in order to understand their motivations throughout the story. Wants can be what the character desires in the moment, or in the overall course of the story. Spend some time here making sure you find the truth of the character’s desires and wants.
What is my obstacle? This is the actor’s chance to understand the obstacles the character must react to and overcome. What is keeping me from getting what I want? Most of the plot centers around overcoming the obstacle in front of the character.
What do I do to get what I want? – The “do” here means physical action. How can I achieve my objective? What is my behavior? This is the specific “How” does the character overcome the obstacle that is in the way of the character’s “Want”.
Exercise
Download a script off the internet from a film that you have not seen. You can also use a script from a current project that you are auditioning or preparing for. Read the script from beginning to end to do a character breakdown as you develop your character. Answer the 6 questions above before you start any memorization or preparation for the role. Take notes along the way! Don’t short cut this process! This is the main job of the actor and it is a process you have to get familiar with and good at if you are to break into this competitive industry.
Script Analysis
The first step in character development is a thorough analysis of the script. Actors examine the dialogue, actions, relationships, and overall narrative to gain insights into their character’s journey and purpose within the story. We need to identify key moments, conflicts, and objectives, which serve as guiding points for their performance.
Backstory Creation: Identifying or creating a backstory for your character allows actors to understand the events and experiences that shape their character’s personality. They explore the character’s upbringing, relationships, traumas, and significant life events, filling in the gaps left by the script. This backstory informs their choices, actions, and emotional reactions throughout the performance.
Psychological Exploration: To fully embody a character, actors delve into their psychological makeup. They analyze the character’s motivations, desires, fears, and internal conflicts. Understanding the psychology of a character helps actors portray their emotions authentically, giving depth and complexity to their performances.
Physicality and Voice: Physicality and voice play a crucial role in character development. Actors consider how their character moves, stands, gestures, and speaks. They experiment with different postures, vocal tones, accents, and speech patterns to bring out the unique qualities of their character. These physical and vocal choices contribute to the believably and distinctiveness of the portrayal.
Character Study
A character that comes to mind is that of Captain Jack Sparrow, played by Johnny Depp, in the Pirates of the Caribbean film series. In an interview, he explained how he found inspiration for the character.
“In the original screenplay Captain Jack was written as a swashbuckler, a pirate who swings in, sort of fights a little bit and then swings out, grabs a girl and that’s it. I had different ideas for him. This sounds weird but Captain Jack was born in a sauna. My sauna. I was looking at various aspects of the character and I figured this guy has been on the high seas for the majority of his life and therefore has dealt with inescapable heat to the brain. So I cranked the sauna up to about 1000 degrees and sat in there as long as I could until it started to affect me mentally. It was very, very hot, as was my brain. While you’re in there in that kind of heat you can’t stand still, but the worst of it is if you move, it kills you. So that gave me the idea that his brain has been par-boiled to some degree. Also in terms of his body language I felt that when he was on the ship he would be fine as the ship would be bounding away. He would have sea legs, but when he gets on land he cannot get land legs. He would be looking wobbly and Disney disagreed.” – Johnny Depp
Never be afraid to make bold choices with your characters based on your imagination and all the information that you have available to you.
Character Analysis
Character analysis is an essential aspect of an actor’s craft, allowing them to gain a deeper understanding of the characters they portray. By analyzing the character’s traits, relationships, and arcs, actors can create well-rounded and memorable performances.
Trait Analysis: Actors examine the character’s personality traits, strengths, weaknesses, and idiosyncrasies. They consider how these traits influence the character’s behavior, choices, and interactions with others. By embodying these traits, actors can bring authenticity and consistency to their performances. When we hear how Johnny Depp created Captain Jack Sparrow, (above) we see how much we need to understand our character’s personality and how we need to make creative choices to bring that “Truth” to life.
Relationship Dynamics: Characters exist within a web of relationships. Actors analyze their character’s relationships with other characters to understand the dynamics at play. They explore the emotional connections, conflicts, and power dynamics that shape these relationships. This analysis helps actors build believable chemistry and reactions in scenes.
Character analysis is an essential aspect of an actor’s craft, allowing them to gain a deeper understanding of the characters they portray. By analyzing the character’s traits, relationships, and arcs, actors can create well-rounded and memorable performances.
