Increase your acting skills with acting scripts. Cold read auditions are a standard method of hiring actors.
A cold read is when an actor is given a script and asked to perform it with 5 or 10 minutes preparation. You can practice your cold read skills with acting scenes. What should you do when you are given a script for a cold read? Do you know what steps you should take?
Your goal with any acting script is to create a memorable character. You begin that process by breaking down the scene. Breaking down the scene consists of asking yourself questions about the scene. By answering these questions, you develop a character. Ask yourself where is the scene set? Your character will behave differently in a crowded restaurant than in the privacy of a home.
How do the characters know each other? Have the characters just met or have they known each other? What was each role in the script doing fifteen minutes before the script starts? Breaking down a script requires that you answer these questions. Most often the script will hint at these things or outright tell you with notes.
Next, determine the wants of the characters. Each character in the scene has a want or need. Without a want the character would disengage and there would be no scene. For example, remember the scene from A Few Good Men where Jo and Kaffe argue? Kaffe is defeated and wants to quit. Jo hasn't lost faith and she wants to pull an all night work session and forge ahead. Each character has a goal they are trying to accomplish.
Many times the characters will have opposing goals. This creates the conflict in the script. Sometimes the conflict may be with something other than a person. Tom Hanks struggled against nature while marooned on an island in Castaway.
Determining the conflict and wants is open to personal interpretation. No two people will have the same take on any scene. It is the job of the actor to bring the role to life by making daring choices. Playing a sad and withdrawn character is a poor choice and will be uninteresting to watch. Strong role choices make the character integral to the scene and draw in the audience.
A scene may lend itself to a particular interpretation. It may be clear from punctuation or notes in the scene that a character is to behave a certain way. You want to make a choice for the character that fits the context of scene and dialogue. However, it is up to the actor to choose the how and why of the behavior. Perhaps the character is angry, excited, crying or even drunk. You want to make a bold choice that fits the scene.
You can also make choices as to what transitions the character goes through. Does your character change how he feels through the course of the scene? Does your character experience several emotions? Are there evolving circumstances or is information revealed in the scenes that might make your character reconsider a position. You have a chance to display your range as an actor by choosing different emotions. If you can truthfully portray multiple emotions, the director or your audience will notice.
A cold read is when an actor is given a script and asked to perform it with 5 or 10 minutes preparation. You can practice your cold read skills with acting scenes. What should you do when you are given a script for a cold read? Do you know what steps you should take?
Your goal with any acting script is to create a memorable character. You begin that process by breaking down the scene. Breaking down the scene consists of asking yourself questions about the scene. By answering these questions, you develop a character. Ask yourself where is the scene set? Your character will behave differently in a crowded restaurant than in the privacy of a home.
How do the characters know each other? Have the characters just met or have they known each other? What was each role in the script doing fifteen minutes before the script starts? Breaking down a script requires that you answer these questions. Most often the script will hint at these things or outright tell you with notes.
Next, determine the wants of the characters. Each character in the scene has a want or need. Without a want the character would disengage and there would be no scene. For example, remember the scene from A Few Good Men where Jo and Kaffe argue? Kaffe is defeated and wants to quit. Jo hasn't lost faith and she wants to pull an all night work session and forge ahead. Each character has a goal they are trying to accomplish.
Many times the characters will have opposing goals. This creates the conflict in the script. Sometimes the conflict may be with something other than a person. Tom Hanks struggled against nature while marooned on an island in Castaway.
Determining the conflict and wants is open to personal interpretation. No two people will have the same take on any scene. It is the job of the actor to bring the role to life by making daring choices. Playing a sad and withdrawn character is a poor choice and will be uninteresting to watch. Strong role choices make the character integral to the scene and draw in the audience.
A scene may lend itself to a particular interpretation. It may be clear from punctuation or notes in the scene that a character is to behave a certain way. You want to make a choice for the character that fits the context of scene and dialogue. However, it is up to the actor to choose the how and why of the behavior. Perhaps the character is angry, excited, crying or even drunk. You want to make a bold choice that fits the scene.
You can also make choices as to what transitions the character goes through. Does your character change how he feels through the course of the scene? Does your character experience several emotions? Are there evolving circumstances or is information revealed in the scenes that might make your character reconsider a position. You have a chance to display your range as an actor by choosing different emotions. If you can truthfully portray multiple emotions, the director or your audience will notice.
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