Filmmaking or Acting For The Screen

RESIDENTIAL ACTING FOR THE SCREEN CAMPS

For teens who prefer “Acting For The Screen”, we offer a safe space to teach this most worthy of pursuits with a timetable of drama and comprehensive workshops. Ideal for beginners or more experienced young actors!

“The most important thing, in anything you do, is always trying your hardest, because even if you try your hardest and it’s not as good as you’d hoped, you still have that sense of not letting yourself down.”

Tom Holland

“Actors do movies because you want to make a connection, you want an audience to recognise themselves in what it is that you're depicting. The portrait, you want it to be a reflection of some aspect of humanity that people understand, that they see in their own lives. And so, when a movie makes a connection like that, there's simply nothing better."

Holly Hunter

Acting is doing. It is showing how your character feels. We explore in-depth character work, scene study, original, classic text and improvisation on camera. Our core ethos is that screen acting is about “reacting” and “listening”. We cover these two fundamentals in detail and then we see it on playback. This requires subtlety, naturalism and “chemistry” between young actors because without “chemistry” our movies and scenes are dull. All good drama has conflict! We explore opposing goals in scene study. How to create and solve conflict are some of the most important choices that directors and actors can make. We use latest scripts plus original age appropriate content for monologues and duologues. Central to our philosophy is that acting requires creative courage in a safe space.

Participants will learn the differences between what is effective on stage versus demands of the screen. As well as developing strategies for screen acting, students become comfortable with the film process, acting for camera, film equipment and roles of the crew including terminology used.

The course will allow each participant to experience the fundamentals of screen acting technique, such as hitting marks, staying in your light, finding the light in a tracking shot, working with sound crew and continuity as well as dispelling some of the myths surrounding the process of screen acting. The course will begin with camera-based classes that are designed to show students how the camera can aid a performance rather than hinder it.

“I'm curious about people. That's the essence of my acting. I'm interested in what it would be like, to be you." - Meryl Streep

Theatre is a nurturing art form. The best of theatre has adequate rehearsal time. In contrast, film sets are chaotic places! often packed with people so busy they have little time to rehearse or direct you. For a young actor, this presents obstacles. The Film industry hire actors under the assumption that they will come to set performance-ready. Our courses help preparation technique so you are one step ahead of the film crew and as an actor, that’s where you want to be.

Preparation is vital in both theatre and film, but the process of “doing your homework” is completely different. In addition, the pace of film pressures actors to hit their performance on the first take. Theatre actors, especially may find the pace of a film set tricky so be organised, word perfect and flexible when new to film! Our courses give young actors important time on camera to make the transition fun, educational and seamless while working on listening skills and character work.

Our final films and filmed monologues reflect this. Now that’s something to aim for.. Skills not just for the screen, but for life! Please note for all acting students, recorded work is sent on after the programme through unlisted you tube links or google drive. Only films are shared on social media.