Image and Acting

[cinephile]

It has been said that a woman know within five minutes of meeting a new man where he rates in her to do list ( 1st, 10th, or somewhere around 2000). Probably in reality, the time frame is even shorter than that. What is important to know though, despite how good your game may be, if you can not make a positive impression within that time, you will probably be SOL.

What you need to do to prevent this is to develope an Image. A redidly decribed construct of who you are and what you are all about that is easily understandable. The goal is to honestly represent yourself for who you really are in the best posible manner.

I say honestly, because in reality, not all women are going to be attracted to you. That is just a fact. So really, it is just better to concentrate on those who appreciate your values. I mean why bother with women who could care less or worse about what you think is important.

The way to do this is through Acting.

Okay, stop laughing.

The goal of every actor is create a character that is not only appears real to the audience but also to build an emotional/intelectual impact as well. Good actors are masters at creating images for us absorb. Think of Robert Deniro, Samuel L Jackson, Tom Hanks, Mel Gibson. While all of them have played roles which are very far from who they are in real life, they have made them so real that we did not doubt their authenticity in the role.

That is your job as a DJ. To create an image so strong, that she has to keep talking to you. That she can't help but be facinated. With that in place, the you can unleash your game on her. But you have got to make her receptive first.

Image is really just another form of communication. To simplfy, it is everything that you don't say. Image comes from the way you walk, the way you dress, the entrance you make, to the way you talk. I think it has been said enough on this site about the importance of body language and non verbal communication.

So how do you create an Image?

First off, what you are not doing is misrepresenting yourself. If you are trying ACT like a Alpha Male but don't feel you are, then people will see through you. While not everybody can recognise a good actor, everyone knows a bad one.

So the first thing before all is to know yourself. You need to develope an image that is congruent with who you are. This can be dificult, but can be done. The reason being is that most of use are not really good enough at acting to keep it up for long periods of time. The second is that even the best actor can be miscast. So don't try to be things that you possible can't be.

Once you develope this idea of you you are, you the need to know what you want. This is called motivation and drives the actions of the character. Rocky wants to go the distance with champ. Luke wants to get off Tatoinne and fight for the Rebels. You want get into Jessica Alba's pants. Etc. I think you get the point. The idea is that you want to have a motivation that has a little more depth than just getting into JA pants. Maybe you will only accept the best, or your a rebel and won't be held down by the man, whatever. You need a motivation that has some impact to it, so that people will be forced to respond. And that is what every good actor is looking for, response from the audience. Positive or negative, Response is the only way they know if they have made an impact.

Next: The major Acting Styles and how they work

 

[cinephile]

Technical

Technical is catchal for stage actors basically. The best example is Anthony Hopkins. the basis of their acting could be described as "If it looks like a duck, sounds like a duck, swims like a duck, then it must be a duck". They are considered to be exteral oriented in that they are trying first to create what a charater should look like physically to the audience before anything. They really are'nt concerned with the characters motivation but that they are able to deliver it it with the most impact.

For a DJ, this would mean considering

1. Your body ( How big, how tonned, etc)
2. How you walk and hold yourself ( does it maxmize your impact)
3. How you dress (is it appropiate for your character)
4. How you speak (Does it create interest)

While these are the basic four elements, there are many, many others that can be added to them. Just concentrating on these alone, though can be hard enough.The important part is to really study these elements and give them the most depth posible. The great technical actors are ones who are obsessed with details. They create illusions of reality so great that you have to believe them. Of course they are only as good as their material.

Technical Actors/DJ are all about appearance. For them the question is "Does it Look Real?" comes first. A great example is Hopkins portrayal of Hannibal in "Silence of the Lambs". While a completely fictional characters, he obessed over the little details ( the posture of the character, his mannered but silky way of speech, the constant smelling) that gave creepy realsim to the role.

 

[cinephile]

The Method

The Method is really just another form of technical acting but with one major diference, psycology. Actors in this tradition are first concerned with creating an emotional reality. They want to know all about the charaters history and motivation. They will sit and create entire histories for the charater if that is what they need to understand it. They work for the inside out. The reason for doing this is so the actor will be able to mentally be that charater. I'm sure all of you have heard about actor like Al Pacino and Sean Penn who will remain in charaters for days just so they feel what the charater is feeling.

The DJ who uses this method is basically all about ATTITUDE.

1. For them, you must become the MAN in your head first.
2. Become the prize
3. Be the ALPHA

and so on. The most important part of this is Confidence. You must believe first before anything that you are really what you say your are. The major advantage of doing this is that you add strength to your Image because it comes from within and not some carefully crafted visual image. When you can express directly to someonewhat you feel in the most intense way, Most will respond positively.

The great example is Marlon Brando in Streetcare Named Desire. His portrayal of an inarticulate, Brutish, Blue collar worker was emotionally so intense, he became a major sex symbol for the next 30 years.

The goal here is to make the audience FEEL. To create an emotional impact. Does it feel Real?

 

[cinephile]

Improvisation

The final and probably most misunderstood style is improvisation. The simplest way to describe it is doing something diferent each time, whether it be diferent lines, diferent ways of talking, waliking etc. The idea is basically to give the feeling that you are not so much watching a pre rehersed performance but an actual event hapening before you. Comedians are the best at this, and the undisputed improv master is (at least in my opinion) Bill Murray. While it may not be obvious, most of the dialogue in his movies is made up on the spot. He uses the script as a guide to where he should go, but invents all the material himself.

DJ's should basically uses improv in their conversation because it it gives it an edgy, risky element. It throws her off balance in that she does not know what to expect. When done right it creates tons of interest.

Improv is great in that it creates surprises and points to direction not thought of before. It also makes a conversation real and not just a series of thought out lines and routines.

The problem with improv is that it is something very, very hard to develope. While not impossible, because it is so dependent on being mentally quick and being a good conversationalist, it is not recomended for beginers. The basic skills needed to do it well are:

1. Quick Mentally
2. Good at caputuring the "feel" of the moment
3. Knowing how to play with and against the moment

The bigest problem is people overdoing it as a way to impress how smart or funny they are. The is usually the quickest way to prove how you are'nt. The purpose of improv is create the unexpected in a natural way. It is a great way to change the mood of a situation without making it feel forced.

The best way to study it is basically watch a lot comedy, but don't try to memorise the jokes. Bill Murray and Jack Nicolson are two of the masters at this.

The goal of Improv is to create naturalism. To make it literally real and unexpected.

 

[cinephile]

The Goal/Conclusion

The goal of all actors is to create a character that is both real for the audience and resonantes with the emotionally. The goal of the DJ is create an impact with his intended in the same way.


So to do this effectively, you must do the following

1. Know Yourself completely.
2. Know what you want throughly

Once you have these first basic steps in place all the techniques can come into place. While they ar the hardest, they are what will give you most sucess. Too many people comit the double fault of going through life without a plan, not knowing anything. If you want or desire anything, you have to be able to plan and act. Without that, you might as well just wander about aimlessly, without rhyme or reason.

When you have that in place then develope the following elements so that they are in line with the image you want to create.

1. Your Body
2. Your Clothes
3. Your Posture and Motion
4. Your Voice.
5. Learn your motivation and speak with authenticity.
6. Direct your feelings with intensity.
7. Keep them guessing with the previous 6

When you can effectively control all six elements with depth and skill, you will be able to create an image so powerful, that what you say won't matter. Its the total package that you buy, not just the product.

 

[dice]

this is an amazing post that i think was overlooked because people don't recognize its importance, id say this is the ultimate response to all the "just be yourself" questions