Many productions skip rehearsal. Learn why rehearsing with actors matters, how to run a rehearsal process and the do’s and don’ts of working with a cast.
Working with actors can be one of the most enjoyable parts of filmmaking, it opens a world of infinite possibilities and ideas, and more than that, they are just lots of fun to work with. For the uninitiated though it can be a terrifying and daunting task that they don’t believe they have the time or budget for.
I am constantly amazed by conversations I have had with actors about the productions they are working on about how they don’t really have rehearsals. These stories come from both ends of the budget spectrum from the indie budget to serious budget Hollywood productions, the conversations go something like, ‘oh yeah, we rehearse on set,’ or ‘rehearsals are something we do in theatre,’ and while this in not an issue on every production it happens too often to ignore the problem.
From the other side of the camera many directors are so focused on the camera and making beautiful images that rehearsals are something they really don’t allocate the proper time or budget for.
So in this article we will look at how to plan and approach rehearsals through the use of readings, structured rehearsals, the use of a dramaturge, how to approach action stunts and most importantly a focus on developing a working relationship between the director and cast through setting up a functioning rehearsal process.
I have purposely avoided detailing specific direction tools that you may choose to use in rehearsals such as role playing, improvisation and others as this will depend upon the project and the skills and knowledge of the director. What we are dealing with here is setting up a rehearsal process and program that can be adapted to any project.
Rehearsal is does not take place on set. That is blocking and it has a totally different purpose from rehearsal of performance. The reasons for this statement will become apparent as we go deeper into the process.
The idea of rehearsal is to create an environment where the cast and director can reach to the core of the story, the scripts’ themes and the characters’ motivations and reasonings behind their journeys’ actions.
Remember character is revealed through action; the actors need to know how their unique character will act in a given situation, otherwise their performance will lack truth and strength. To illustrate, after Sir Laurance Oliver portrayed Richard III on the stage, his performance was so landmark that actors and directors avoided the work for almost two decades purely because of the strength of his interpretation of the character of the murderous Richard III.
There are many types of performances from pantomime and farce to realism and everything in-between. As a director it is your job to interpret the script and decide in which direction the performance will flow, whether it will simply be one type or style or a combination. Consider for a moment the legendary Faulty Towers with its comedy running from Pythonesque humour to high drama and the magnificent performance of John Cleese, one moment deadpan straight moments later screaming, crying or even laughing outrageously at his own cleverness just before he comes unstuck.
Would you be able to elicit such a performance from your cast? I know I would not attempt it without in-depth discussion and some type of rehearsal, possibly down at the local pub or bar.
Whatever decision you make regarding the type or style of performance for your film, it is necessary to always consider the audience, making sure all the performances keep them in the story. For your story to be truly successful they must remain participants and not become observers. It is the difference of people laughing at the comedy of a joke or laughing at the person telling the joke – the first is a participatory action on the part of the audience whereas the second is observatory. The purpose of rehearsal then is to find the truth of the performance; to allow the actors to become familiar with the landscape as the director sees it; for them to understand the world and the characters and to make the character as the director and actor see them come alive. This in itself is a delicate balance between what the director wants and what the actor interprets this as, based on their skills and experience.
As with any skill there are processes that can be followed to optimise successes and as I go through this process I will list some do’s and don’ts. These will assist you to get to the truth at the core of the performance. As part of the production process I regularly use the term, ‘the map is not the territory’ or in the case of film or screen production, ‘the script is not the film’ as a contextual idea.
This is an important way of describing the fact that the script is only a way to the film, a way of describing its reality, not the reality that exists in the finished product. In this case the film that will be created, this is not to disparage the screenwriter’s craft but to locate how we should view performance and to highlight the importance of rehearsal and the process involved.
So to start us off here is a don’t: Don’t make the mistake in thinking that an actor is an empty vessel that the director pours their vision into. Performance is a collaborative and negotiatory process where there is hopefully a meeting of like-minded artists. Just a brief note the process outlined applies for shorts or feature films and would be similar but differently structured for television, though there is rarely much real rehearsal for TV. The reading is a preparatory process to rehearsals and needs to be seen as the beginning of gathering the performance elements towards a cohesive whole ready for cameras to roll.
Readings come in several guises, they assist in getting the key creatives on the page prior to pre-production, they enable final casting decisions to be confirmed and agreed upon, and previously unseen failings in the script become apparent and can be remedied. The reading will also give the director the opportunity to hear the work, its pace, beats and rhythm. Best case scenario, it breaths and takes on a life of its own. Worst case, you decide to throw it out and start again, but better this at the reading than in the editing room.
During the reading of my first feature script, I came to understand this when I (the writer) became bored half way through and by the end of the reading found that the script played much longer than its 80+ pages. This told me that (a) the script needed further work and (b) stopped me from making the same mistakes again. My next scripts were never boring and few off the page, but I would never have learnt how to go about this without using readings.
For clarity there are two main types of readings for performance, aside from the short ones you may do for casting and judging how cast members may play against one another. (1) The uncast reading where you bring together actors who are willing to read to give the script an airing; (2) the cast reading where the prospective or locked in cast run through the whole script for the first time. Let’s look at these.
This is a ‘no harm, no foul’ reading where the script is heard and discussed as to its good and bad points, ideas for improvements and revisions bounced around and noted for action to be taken upon later. It is useful to both record the reading and have the writer or a script assistant/supervisor present to take notes for future revisions. If you are the director or producer try to avoid taking any part in the reading so that you can hear the film. This type of reading should be a totally safe environment where everyone is free to state what they really truly think. It’s about making the script better.
This is where you test run the cast as a whole where you can listen to how they might interact and bring the voices of the characters alive. It is also where the actors have for the first time the opportunity to operate as a collective, with the aim of being a cohesive group and this is also where you can start to plan for actual rehearsals based upon what you observe from the casts’ explorations of the script’s landscape and world.
Do listen and hear what the cast has to say. It is key to the successful cohesion of the creative group that you allow them to express their thoughts, concerns, fears and ideas regarding the script and their part in its execution. Listening also involves hearing and responding to their points of view, even if you believe them to be wrong. In this way you will gain their respect and obtain better performances and good ideas that were not previously available to you.
This approach of listening and hearing leads to the idea of including the actor in the creative process. They become more than a chess piece to be moved at the omnipotent will of the director and become a collaborator. I once read of how Krzysztof Kieslowski got Irene Jacob to develop two lists of mannerisms for her twin roles in the “Double Life of Veronique” [1991]. He was, in effect, asking her to search out the answers about her dual character’s actions to bring them to life.
Try to avoid treating actors like chess pieces movable only to the will of the director and writer’s lines. Let them inhabit the role and its world, consider their ideas in context of your vision and allow them to speak their mind. This does not mean that you relinquish control but that you listen to all the voices and steer a path using their ideas to augment or improve the project. This will also give them a sense of ownership over their work in the film and they will work harder.
A dramaturge is someone who assists the director with the preparation and direction of the actors; they will generally be someone with acting and or directing experience. There are many benefits to having a dramaturge on a project especially when dealing with ensemble casts with limited time for rehearsals, allowing the possibility to schedule concurrent rehearsals for different scenes with two groups of cast. The dramaturge works collaboratively under the instruction of the director. They will work on performance and character rather than the blocking and framing of the performance for the camera, as this is something the director needs to do. There are a number of instances where there are co-directors and generally the roles are split between cast and camera direction. This type of relationship extends the type of place a dramaturge holds in a production.
There are many ways and places in which to rehearse from a park on a sunny afternoon to the actual set prior to shooting. The choice comes down mainly to cost and logistics but also timing. By timing I mean timing the preparation of the actor to give the best performance, as we will discuss in depth later.
Sydney Lumet, the director of “Dog Day Afternoon” [1975] and many other films, would hire a community hall or club for a number of weeks prior to shooting, mark out the actual rooms of the set on the floor with tape, and set up furniture and rehearse each scene to the point where all were on the same page with the script, blocking and how they would work together on set comfortably.
And that is the most important thing about the space you use, that the actors are comfortable and they feel safe to express themselves and take risks, as it is this risk taking that leads to great performances. So look for a space where you will not be disturbed and have exclusive access for the duration of the rehearsals.
One approach I personally like to use is to take the actors to the locations or sets and show them the space prior to shooting in them, and talking about the scene and how I intend to use it. This allows them to get a sense of their environment, to roll around the reality of it in their minds until it fits in place with the preconceived ideas they had about the script and the film. The whole reason for rehearsal is to give the actor all the information they need to do their job prior to stepping on set. Yes, of course any good actor should have learnt their lines and scenes and be able to just turn up and deliver their lines and act without rehearsal, but that approach is one that will limit what you see in front of the camera and that will end up on the screen.
Think about it from their perspective. You may have been living the project anywhere from months to years, and they on the other hand have met with the director several times in casting at which point they are doing everything they can at those meetings that they are the right choice for the part. Then they have gathered with the rest of the cast for a reading. For many, this will be the first time they have met people they are going to have an intimate working relationship with, meaning one where they will be putting trust in one another.
Then if you shoot without proper rehearsals the next thing the cast knows is that they all turn up on set with the crew running lights, cameras and sound while they are in costume and makeup and thinking about breakfast. Then you are running through their lines and blocking for the camera and sound at the same time.
Do you really think they will be able to give you their best performance? More than likely sometime in the afternoon they will start to find their way but this will happen all over again each time you go to a new set or location. There will be this feeling of alienation and displacement which they will hide with training, skill and hard work but will come out on the screen in performances that are less than perfect.
And that’s great, you might say, ‘I’ll get my performance.’ True but more likely you will not get the magic that comes from a well rehearsed cast who are bringing the characters and scenes to life as they go beyond the page and create a world. It will rarely be possible or practical to rehearse every word of the script due to stunts, locations, and scenes with no cast, etc. The idea is to have the cast correctly on the same page with performance and their lines. just listen. Allow 30 minutes to two hours.
be worked into the project and applied to rehearsals. Allow two hours to one day for these discussions. availability. Circulate this to the cast with clear instructions as to the locations of the rehearsals and how to get there. If the rehearsals are to take place in the distant future and/or at another location from the reading, do this at least one week prior to any commencement of rehearsals as cast may have a number of commitments being scheduled.
and style. Here we are talking about whether a character is sitting or standing, and where to move to and from the other cast. If you are rehearsing out of script/scene order, be clear as to where the scene sits in the film and the performance tone at that point.
On the point of rehearsing the script from beginning to end there are benefits of doing this to allow cast to clearly chart the emotional journey of their characters and that of the film. Conversely, for very action-based films, this linear approach might not be as important.
the scene. Work on cause and effect performance and revise action and dialog based upon the outcomes. It would be good to have a note taker to record any changes. They could simply be a general assistant or a script editor.
Note: Cause and effect performance is where the actions of one character elicit responses from their opposite characters based upon the background of those characters.
production and inform them that you will confirm all through them or the agent. [If they have an agent, they are the first point of call.] Many writers and directors are very precious about their scripts; this is despite the fact that very few scripts will ever be perfect. Actors themselves are taught to follow the script as a bible. While a good starting place for the director and cast, both knowledge sets create a problem where defects in script dialog can creep in. The key problems that come up are as follows: Personally I encourage actors to bring their own voice to the script and its dialog. I ask them questions such as do they believe that their character would speak with those words and in that manner given who they are and the context of the moment and their journey? Are they comfortable with the language or could it be better?
Allowing them this freedom to make changes in language, syntax and delivery in ways that do not affect the meaning of the story and script will actually benefit the film and produce a better performance.
To emphasize the importance of correct dialog, it is noteworthy that in a number of countries such as France and India it is common to employ a dialog writer in addition to a scriptwriter and this is of great benefit. This shows how important dialog is as a factor all its own.
You don’t have a lot of time on set to solve problems, so it is crucial that this is done as much as possible in rehearsal. In fact the more direction you apply during rehearsal time, the more observing of problems and devising of solutions, the better off you will be when you come to the shoot.
This, however, brings us to some don’ts.
Don’t burn your actors out during rehearsal. What this means is that you can over rehearse your actors to the point where they use up the knowledge and energy they have for their role even before you get to set.
Out of character dialog: dialog and syntax that a character would not use.
Nonsensical dialog: a line or lines which either make no real sense or are counter to prior dialog, the scene or character context at that point. Remember just because a line sounds good does not mean that it forwards the narrative. A bad line of dialog can even force the audience out of the film causing them to say, ‘What did they mean by that?’ Don’t confuse your actors. Rehearsal is a time for gaining clarity of the role, character, and performance. Getting lines right and getting comfortable with themselves [each cast member with their character], and you and the other actors. What can happen is that if the direction is not clear or contradictory then the actors will lose any clarity and start simply reading the script to camera as a way to survive what has become a difficult experience. On the set the director’s job is about the staging and blocking of action for the camera while keeping an eye on the performance and tweaking it where it can be improved or sharpened. Also, once on set, it is key to involve the 1st AD in all things cast related so that at all times they are cared for while the director is otherwise occupied with other departments.
So with the shoot approaching, you have rehearsed, the cast know their lines, and it’s time to release them into the wild. Now is the perfect time to visit the set so that they can gain familiarity with their real environment. This will not be possible for every set but if you are using locations, getting the cast to the major ones and allowing early set visits to completed sound stages will provide real benefits.
Surprise only works for the first take. Steven Spielberg used it in The Goonies [1985] where the kids end up in a water slide only to drop into a pool with the revealing of a pirate treasure ship. Here Spielberg used genuine surprise from withholding information from the cast regarding the set and so captured the wonder of the young actors’ seeing the set for the first time. But after the first take, it is all performance and skill. You are much better off to put your money on that, that it will pay off time after time.
From personal experience and observation, there is a truism that action stunts will burn you every time. If you allow one hour, it will take two or more, so give yourself plenty of time.
The reason for this is that with action stunts, you need to involve a secondary set of professionals to reduce risk and provide safety for the cast and crew. These include stunt man, action coordinator and health and safety person [these roles could be filled by one or two specially trained professionals, but preferably not your runner] who will manage the physical logistics of each action stunt shot.
There is no getting around the safety of your cast and crew. You need to accept that the extra time is necessary and allow for it, and your shoot will be safe and happy and you will get your shot every time.
For advanced action and stunts involving wirework, things blowing up, etc., you should have undertaken action rehearsals with the cast and safety and stunt personnel. This serves several purposes; firstly, to safely without the pressure of shooting schedules, allow you to rehearse both stunt and performance. Secondly, it enables the stunt coordinator to evaluate the level of physical ability of each cast member and advise where the director will need to replace cast with stunt personnel.
This will of course be done in conjunction with your safety officer and insurance/ legal advisors regarding the safety and risk to cast and the production. By doing this your action stunts should be relatively carefree affairs that have been clearly planned in advance for the optimum results.
Camera and sound departments should always ask you for a rehearsal on set. This will be for the purpose of orientating themselves with the environment and your movements within that. Be careful here not to waste everyone’s time and causing confusion by getting your actors to rehearse performance rather than simply blocking the scene briefly for everyone based upon your shooting plan.
And, yes, that means you have to have a plan. So prior to the day’s shoot, sit down the director with the 1st AD and plan out the order of your scenes and what shots you want in what order preferably creating a shot list for the day’s shoot. And, yes, you most likely are going to be doing this the night before the shoot, after you have watched the dailies. Get used to it. It’s part of the job.
When you come to block each scene, do it with your DP and Sound in attendance in the background having indicated the scene and direction of the scene and shot. Talk specifically about the complexities [this may be simply be walking from point A to point B] of the performance first to your actors helping them to find their space, and then consult with camera and sound as to the shots you want and how that may impact their departments, what issues these departments face, and how these may impact on the cast in the space.
This sounds drawn out, but once you have a collaborative group between director, camera and sound, it will just happen, as each will be thinking of the other each step of the way.
Most importantly none of this discussion between departments should flow over to the cast, as they should always remain in the story. A good way of avoiding this flow over of department needs on the actors is to get the actors to do their own little rehearsal and timing of the scene at their own leisure in the space [if this is safe and practical] while you are working with camera and sound. This achieves two things: you are getting more rehearsal done and keeping the actors occupied.
Another option is to get the cast on the set prior to the scene being set up and once everyone is on the same page regarding the layout of the scene send the cast off to hair, makeup and costume to be started or finished for the shoot. This will all depend on the timing and speed of the shoot and will vary one project even one scene to the next.
Blocking for the cast is somewhat different than the camera and sound. It is about how the director wishes to present the performance and how the cast will interpret their placement and juxtaposition within it. You may have covered this in rehearsal but the set is the reality and a different one at that, so make sure of it again. This will give the actors confidence.
This time is also when the cast needs to know how the shot is composed, if it is in wide or in close-up, so they can participate in the dance between the camera and themselves, by holding their performance for close-ups or accentuating gestures and actions in wides as an example. This will be dictated by the genre and style of the film you are making. It can be useful for you to describe the scene as a whole, and then if a large or complex scene, break it up into sections and discuss how it will be again be covered in wide, medium or close-up, what the start or end framing of the camera will be.
The majority of films are shot non-sequentially [not in script order]. This is not a rule, it is simply a necessity due to the constraints, of the availability of locations and cast, considerations of budget and general logistics.
Not withstanding this there is an argument for the benefit of timing sequence of shooting of specific parts of a script at particular times during the production cycle to maximise the performance of an actor or group of actors.
Sydney Lumet always shot his first shot of a film only a single time and then moved on without another take. He always chooses something simple that most likely could not go wrong. His reasoning was that he was showing the cast and crew that every shot could be the one that was printed and the one that made it onto the Big Screen. It created a specific perspective for the cast and crew that they were now shooting a film for real, not five takes down the road. By doing this he was in fact directing not only the cast and crew but the overall approach to how the film would be made.
This idea of a process whereby you are directing the entire approach to a film can be articulated in the planning for rehearsal and order of performance. To illustrate, in my 2005 short film, Phase, about a conflicted workaholic superhero and his wife, what I chose to do was to leave the darkest scenes for the last day of shooting so that the lead actress would have time over the three day shoot to dig deeper into the darkness of her crumbling marriage. I shot the last scene first so that she would be at her happiest. And it worked; the first day was nice and light and as the shoot went on you could feel the whole set taking on the darkness of the film in a positive way as the actress built up towards the end of her marriage. In a very practical sense it is important to give your actors the time they need to get comfortable in the world you are all creating. So don’t plan to shoot your most important scene or shot of the film as the first scene on the first day of shooting or first scene of any day for that matter. Leave their close ups to last as much as possible as they expect this and will be holding back their best till the camera is close and so they should.
Rehearsal should be an empowering time for director and cast, a time of exploration, discovery and collaboration towards a common goal, the best performance achievable. If you can engender this idea that the rehearsal room and by extension the set is a place of safety and collaboration, I can guarantee that the obstacles that you will face will not stop you but prove to be surmountable because of your rehearsal process and the preparation it has afforded you.
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