Everyone wants to be cast as the lead—so are you ready for all that it requires of you?
There are four key aspects that I would love for you to start consciously training yourself in to be the lead.
When you are hired as a lead, it’s likely that you will be acting in the majority of scenes in the film. That’s a lot in a feature length film. Imagine: it’s like filming 50+ self-tape audition scenes in 6-12 weeks! I just counted on a feature that I am developing: the lead has a ton of scenes.
You need to do detailed analysis in your prep so that you can make conscious choices that are supporting the story and not solely instinctual. You can wing it…but you can also craft it. It’s important to know your character’s building blocks so well that you can work self-sufficiently without any direction given to you at all. Directors get busy and have less time than desired for talking about ideas with actors on set. And, of course, you should prep the building blocks hard so that you’re able to film scenes out of order! Every single film is forced into shooting out of sequence at some point due to location avails, actor avails, budgets, and schedules. But YOU have to keep track of your character’s arc and play it out thoughtfully. The director—and the editor!—will love you for being such a thoughtful and prepared lead actor!
Filming days can be long. 10-12 hours on average. Of course, there is a lot of waiting around while sets change up. You will find your rest moments. However, you will likely be prepping the next scene during those “breaks.” Filming is like running a tag team marathon, and the lead is expected to jump right in at full speed every time actors are called to set.
Which brings me to my next point:
Each character is assigned a number on the call sheet. The lead is always #1. If there are two or more leads, the actor contracts will specify their assigned numbers. Sure, there is a bit of status represented by the number on the call sheet.
(And I won’t even be able to fit here the challenges faced by segments of actors who have not traditionally been #1 and have had to fight hard not only to get there, but also be paid commensurate with that status. Amongst many others, Viola Davis and Taraji P. Henson are some of those voices!)
If you become #1 on the call sheet, then you are carrying the lead baton. You will set the tone for the cast and crew. If you are late and problematic, others will become late and problematic. Everyone on that set is following your energy, your focus, your morals and ethics, and your commitment. If you are a collaborator who is generous, inspired, and positive, then you will see that reflected in the cast and crew around you. Being #1 is not simply about feeling like the most important person on the set—it’s about setting a role model example for the kind of set you want to be working on.
I can’t stress to you enough about how important this attitude is to your team and to folks who will want to work with you again.
Yep, nothing will go as planned. That’s just the law of the universe and of filmmaking. So don’t prep in such a way that you can’t possibly bend with the changes. Locations, scene partners, and directors can all change quickly. If you are stuck on the way you want to deliver a line or do a physical action, you will miss creating magic in the moment that is inspired by the energy around you. Do the prep, then let it flow. Find the sense of play in your work so that you are not locked.
Do not wait to be hired hire to work on these qualities. Use every audition you get as a chance to bring the presence and work ethics of a #1. Use every class as a playground to explore your personal process of prep and flexibility. Use all the hours you spend in class and in self-tapes and rehearsals and theater runs and workshops as endurance actor training. I can tell ya, I have incredible stamina for sets because I have years of sitting in audition rooms for 8-10 hours a day, plus over 10,000 hours of coaching actors. I am always ready and warmed up for being on set.
Again, find ways to give yourself the opportunity to work on your prep skills, stamina, flexibility, and possessing the spirit of being #1 on set, and you will see how you are manifesting something undeniable.
You are the lead.
Bring it to you.
xHeidi