This past weekend I worked on a screenplay with a producer whose list of credits includes Nickelodeon and Disney. He specializes in children and family stories. In fact, we first met when he hired me to direct a children’s picture that went on to win several awards.

More recently we’ve teamed up to write a love story that is bookended by a courtroom drama. The story requires some very intense scenes and humorous relief to keep the audience focused on how the story will end. And yes, the boy gets the girl. But the “how” is unique and worth watching to see it unfold.

This story is very much driven by the three main characters. The dual protagonists are strong-willed and the antagonist has a deep secret that is revealed in act three that drives his passion throughout the film. This hidden secret is the fuel for many intense scenes and the quirky moments that the antagonist needs for relief.

To strengthen weaker scenes, actors typically employ the concept of holding a secret from their peers. The use of a secret gives the mind additional angles to consider during a scene and visually creates depth of character from the camera’s point of view. The subtle facial changes from the mere thinking of the secret during the shoot are actually picked up by the camera. And, since the audience doesn’t know the secret, it reads like there is more to the character than meets the eye, which is true.

Cameras have always been able to detect the real and separate it from the fake or make believe. That’s why actors work so hard to find common ground with their character and play the scenes as honestly as possible.

I recall a chat with Catherine Hicks, known for 7th Heaven and Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home. She shared with me that during the shooting of Game Time: Tackling the Past, she drew from a time when her daughter was in the hospital as a little girl. This fueled he role as a wife sitting in a waiting room anxious to hear the news about a family member. The use of this technique or secret that the audience doesn’t know brought more depth to her character and created an honest scene for the camera.

Some of the best screenplays infer something unknown in the character’s background that fuels the performance and passion of the actors. This passion or edgy unknown causes the audiences’ minds to fill in the gaps based on their own experiences, which strengthens their bond to the character. Once the bond is achieved, the audience must watch the remainder of the film to understand the character’s outcome.

In the case of my recent script, the person with the greatest amount of integrity carries the greatest secret. The character seems too good to be true until the secret is revealed. Interestingly enough, once the reveal hits, the audience trusts the character all the more, since she has overcome her life’s obstacle and had everything turn out for her good in the end.

What types of real life secrets have you drawn from to fuel your creativity?

Copyright © 2012 By CJ Powers

Many in development neglect the opportunity for a table read of their script. It is a simple step that can feed animatics, if recorded, or just give a reality check to the writer. While the dialog might not be interpreted the way a director would drive the story, it is still of value in understanding what story elements are clear and what dialog doesn’t work.

The writer, director or producer might call for the table read and contact SAG actors to fill the roles. Sitting everyone in a circle helps each voice to easily be heard. If microphones are being used for recording purposes, it’s helpful to give everyone headphones. The use of microphones and headphones helps the actors speak in a more film like manner and still be heard regardless of the extreme shout or whisper.

I’ve found that most actors will do a reading for free if they legitimately have a shot at the role or it gives them an opportunity to work with a director they hope to work with in the future — Relationship building does make for future opportunities. If the person putting the table read together doesn’t have the ability to offer the role, then a small stipend is beneficial for an excellent performance. If the session is recorded for animatics, it should be treated as a performance with proper pay.

There are two types of table reads. The most common is the straight read-through from top to the bottom of the script. A narrator reads all the actions and headers, and the actors read their roles as it plays out in a linear fashion. This gives everyone a solid understanding of the story, its flow, and many times its pacing.

The second type of read is conducted on a sequence or scene basis. It’s typically done so immediate fixes can be worked and tested with the actors. During this type of read, actors are asked their opinions for word choice, dialog flow, and any other input to improve the development of the character.

There is a slight drawback in doing a table read, which correlates to the directors vision, or his unknown vision at the time. It’s common to have something feel flat in a read through that sparkles once put to the right action, camera angle and music. The conservative would therefore only use the table read to find script issues and not assume the read is explicit in how the film will play out.

The tool is not designed to move toward perfection, but rather catch the unseen mess waiting to happen. It’s far cheaper to correct a problem in development than during production when every hour costs thousands of dollars. With that perspective in mind, a table read is an excellent tool that would be prudently added to any writer, director or producer’s tool belt.

Have you ever done a table read? If so, what kind of experience did you have?

Copyright 2012 By CJ Powers