WHAT IS OBJECTIVE? The objective is something we as actors get taught to find at the beginning of every script analysis and without objective, you don’t know why you’re there. Other names for objective is motivation, purpose, want and need. However, you could have an objective that is as useless as shitting your pants such as “getting an answer”, “taking what’s mine” or “giving back what belongs to them”.
Let’s make it more exciting. Let’s immediately RAISE THE STAKES. Think about WHAT ARE YOU FIGHTING FOR? Everyone in life is fighting for something whether it’s a financial struggle, a mental/physical health situation, money troubles or family drama. No matter what it is, everyone is trying to better themselves from a situation that they’re in, whether they put themselves in it or not - they’re going to fight because no one wants to be brought down.
WHY? Changing your perspective to “WHAT AM I FIGHTING FOR?” allows you to utilise empathy and put the purpose of our jobs as actors first - to tell their story. It takes us out of ego (look at me perform) and puts us in a place to tell this person’s story to affect others because of empathy. When we use empathy, we have an understanding of how hard this is for them, but more importantly WHY they are fighting, WHAT they have to lose if they don’t gain what they NEED and KNOWING what it’ll mean if they DO get what they NEED.
NEED VS WANT A want is a desire. It can be both temporary or long term. But essentially you can live without. Whereas a need is something you cannot live without. It’s sustenance. It’s part of your survival to move forward in life.
HOW? 1. Visualise/ imagine how you would feel in this person’s situation. 2. FEEL the emotions about this situation and listen to the thoughts of HOW you got in this situation and WHY you’re here. 3. Figure out tactics and ways to get out of this situation. 4. Think about / feel what this person has to lose if they don’t get what they need. And the impact of this failure on their life. This will provide your with the gauge of how hard you need to fight. 5. Utilise these thoughts, emotions, tactics within your actions when you play out the scene or monologue and use them against the other person in your performance. Make the other actor feel like you’re attacking them. Or you’re making them feel guilty. Affect the other actor. Make THEM feel. Make THEM react. THAT is how you fight.
This will not only provide you with an “objective” but it also RAISES THE STAKES, creates a sense of URGENCY while providing TENSION. All of this will create an engaging, non boring performance which will get us, the audience, on board, wanting you to win.
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