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Every scene is basically,

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please love me.

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Please forgive me.

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Hire me.

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Believe me

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or text me back.

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Congratulations.

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You now understand human civilization.

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Today we're talking about one of the

most important acting shifts

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actors can make.

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You are not there to present emotion.

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You are there to get something.

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This is casting actor's castle.

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Well, hello, and welcome back to

casting actors.

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Cast.

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I'm Jeff driesback.

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And today we're discussing a major

acting shift,

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one that completely changed how I began

teaching actors.

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Actors often believe acting is

primarily about emotional presentation.

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But over the years,

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and working with actors in both

classrooms and auditions and callbacks

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and casting rooms,

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I kept noticing something.

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The actor who consistently felt most

believable

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we're usually trying to get something

from another human being,

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not show emotions,

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not perform intensity.

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They were pursuing.

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That changes everything.

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We're going to continue on this

subject.

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But first, this is that moment where I

get to say thank you so much for tuning

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into the podcast.

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I am so grateful that you are here to

day.

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00:02:02,489 --> 00:02:02,989

Hey, listen.

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00:02:03,56 --> 00:02:06,259

If you haven't done so already, please

check out the website, casting actor's

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00:02:06,493 --> 00:02:08,128

casks, all one word dot com.

37

00:02:08,595 --> 00:02:12,499

There you're going to find a form that

says, dive into the talent pool.

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00:02:12,899 --> 00:02:16,202

And if you do that that's going to open

up a whole bunch of freebies for you.

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00:02:16,336 --> 00:02:20,273

A book, I'm doing voice over work, a

video called casting secrets.

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What they don't tell you.

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00:02:22,342 --> 00:02:27,947

Also, my new book releases out as well

as you can get an e book copy, or you

42

00:02:28,14 --> 00:02:29,716

can even get the audio book.

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I do the audio book as well, yours.

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Truly wow.

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That was a fun experience.

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But the reason I have the podcast, the

reason I have the website, is to help

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actors feel more comfortable and more

confident

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in this business, in the environment of

what it is to be a professional actor.

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So if you really want to get a little

more confident, if you really want to

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get some more information, to feel a

little bit better about the work that

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you're doing,

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I have the message.

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And I would really appreciate some

comments by giving me a thumbs up.

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Perhaps you would consider subscribing,

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also

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a review on you on YouTube.

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A review on YouTube would be great.

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But also, I was thinking, you know, it

would be really great to get a review

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00:03:15,395 --> 00:03:15,695

on iTunes.

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That is sort of the holy grail of

reviews.

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And it also ups my ranking, which of

course, something I really,

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really would love to be able to

continue.

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I'm on an upward track, and I want to

keep that going.

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So please help me out.

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So if this podcast has helped you out

in any way,

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please just take a moment.

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Would you?

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It would mean a lot.

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Thanks so much.

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All right.

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Let's jump back into it.

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Human beings want things.

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That's the name of this particular

section.

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And I know that sounds obvious,

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but

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actors sometimes forget it.

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Understand that real people constantly

want things,

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recognition,

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acceptance,

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control,

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love, forgiveness,

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attention, reassurance.

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And when human beings cannot get those

things,

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behavior appears.

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That's drama, that's conflict.

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Guess what

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that's acting?

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And

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one of the biggest

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actor misconceptions

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is this,

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actors believe emotion is the starting

point,

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but often emotion is the result of

behavior.

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Okay?

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Somebody write that down.

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This is the core principle of what I'm

trying to talk about.

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Emotion

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is the result of behavior.

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So let me give you an example.

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If I desperately

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need someone to stay,

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in other words, they want to leave.

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I want them to say my attempts to stop

them, create emotional life.

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Now suddenly,

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when that happens, urgency appears,

fear, appears, vulnerability, appears,

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frustration appears.

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Not because I played sadness,

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but because

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I needed something,

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you know what?

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I needed them to stay.

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So that's why

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many, many times, the actor will say,

well, I should start the scene out by

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feeling sad.

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That is kind of, in my mind, the wrong

way to approach it

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if we're going to talk about some very

specifics coming up in just a second.

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But

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here's some real casting room truth.

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Actors pursuing something

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are almost always watchable,

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more watchable than actors presenting

emotion,

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because

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pursuit

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creates movement

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and movement.

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Well, movement creates life.

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Now, moving on from there, I have to

tell you that

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the other person matters.

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An actor sometimes accidentally perform

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at Scenes, meaning they become very

self focused.

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It's all about them.

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But acting is relational.

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The other person in your scene matters

enormously.

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If the other person is not affecting

you, if you are not affecting them,

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the scene often feels disconnected.

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Now, this is why listening matters so

much,

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not acting listening,

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but actual

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listening.

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I can't tell you how many times in class

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I really want

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the actor

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to spend more time

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with the other.

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In other words there oftentimes is this

internal mechanism that keeps you

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focused on you, rather than being

focused on the other.

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And that's the other ex, that's the

main, sorry, that's the major exercise

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that I try to instill on actors.

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Especially in an audition environment

where you have a reader,

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the more attention focus you give the

reader,

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the more interesting the scene.

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Why?

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Because honestly the scene is never

about you, ever

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make it about the other.

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Do they understand you?

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Do they get you?

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Did you make them feel something?

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Then

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and only then do you have a really

interesting

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electric scene happening

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coming up.

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Next, we're going to talk about

obstacles.

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And obstacles absolutely create drama.

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We're going to cover that right after

this.

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Welcome back.

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Now here's where acting becomes

exciting.

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In my opinion,

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if getting what you need was easy,

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there would be no scene, no obstacle,

no tension, no behavior.

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Obstacles create pressure.

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Obstacles create adjustment,

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or tactics

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or

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emotional shifts.

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And actors who understand obstacles,

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guess what?

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They stop playing moods.

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Instead,

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they begin fighting for something.

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They began fighting for something.

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And guess what that's compelling?

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That is basic, simple human truth.

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One of the reasons audiences connect to

behavior driven acting

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is because it feels familiar.

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We recognize it.

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Why?

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Because we've all hidden pain.

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We've all tried to stay calm when it was

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crazy out there.

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We've all tried to pressure someone.

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We've all tried to avoid vulnerability.

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We've all wanted approval.

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Pretending to be ok

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is human behavior, and that is

recognizable.

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And guess what?

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Recognition

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creates connection.

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Ok?

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Somebody write that down?

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That was really good.

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Trying to be understanding

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and to be understood

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are two very distinct things.

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The difference

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is, one is internal,

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the other

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external.

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And this is the shift

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that changes almost everything for

actors.

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The moment you stop asking,

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how should I feel?

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And start asking,

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what am I trying to get?

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Suddenly, the acting becomes active,

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alive,

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00:10:00,467 --> 00:10:01,434

specific,

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because human beings are always trying

to affect other people,

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always,

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even when we pretend we're not,

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think about real life.

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If somebody wants reassurance,

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00:10:14,414 --> 00:10:18,718

we don't walk into a room thinking, I'm

going to play anxiety now.

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No.

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They ask questions differently.

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They hover, they joke, they over

explain, they withdraw, they become defensive,

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they become charming, they become

controlling.

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Behavior appears automatically.

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Because the need is alive

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that's human behavior.

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And actors sometimes accidentally

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reverse the process.

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They start with emotion first.

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Now the problem with that is that it

creates performances that feel demonstrated

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instead of lived.

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You can see the actor trying to produce

an emotional result.

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But great acting usually comes from

pursuit,

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not presentation.

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And here's what's fascinating.

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The audience doesn't consciously think,

oh, look at the objective work,

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00:11:20,580 --> 00:11:20,980

they don't.

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00:11:21,715 --> 00:11:22,582

They just feel engaged.

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Because pursuit

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00:11:24,818 --> 00:11:25,752

creates movement.

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Behavior creates unpredictability,

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00:11:29,456 --> 00:11:29,756

and unpredictability

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00:11:30,990 --> 00:11:32,492

feels human

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that's why audiences lean forward.

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They're subconsciously

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00:11:37,63 --> 00:11:37,364

asking,

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00:11:38,331 --> 00:11:41,267

will this person get what they want?

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00:11:42,335 --> 00:11:42,869

They don't ask.

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00:11:43,870 --> 00:11:46,172

Will this actor successfully display

sadness?

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That's a huge difference.

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00:11:50,276 --> 00:11:54,514

And honestly, one of the biggest

problems in acting training is that

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00:11:54,581 --> 00:11:55,949

actors sometimes become emotionally

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00:11:56,983 --> 00:11:57,317

self conscious.

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00:11:58,518 --> 00:12:00,653

They start monitoring themselves,

258

00:12:01,454 --> 00:12:01,955

am I connected?

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00:12:02,355 --> 00:12:03,289

Am I emotional enough?

260

00:12:04,357 --> 00:12:04,991

Am I believable?

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00:12:06,192 --> 00:12:07,994

Should this moment feel bigger?

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00:12:09,229 --> 00:12:13,133

Meanwhile, human beings are usually

focused outward.

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00:12:14,501 --> 00:12:15,835

They're trying to convince,

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00:12:16,2 --> 00:12:16,503

avoid,

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00:12:17,704 --> 00:12:18,4

protect,

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00:12:18,872 --> 00:12:19,172

control,

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00:12:20,440 --> 00:12:20,740

seduce

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00:12:21,941 --> 00:12:22,242

comfort,

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00:12:23,209 --> 00:12:23,510

attack,

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00:12:24,310 --> 00:12:24,944

deflect.

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00:12:25,912 --> 00:12:26,880

Survive.

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That outward focus changes everything

on camera.

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Because now the actor's attention is no

longer trapped inside themselves.

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It's connected to another human being.

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And you know what the camera loves,

that the camera loves pursuit.

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Because pursuit creates thought.

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Thought creates behaviour.

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Behaviour creates truth.

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And here's something actors rarely hear.

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You do not need to indicate emotion.

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If the pursuit is clear,

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the emotion becomes the by product.

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For example, if your need is, please

forgive me,

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that creates one kind of behavior.

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But if your need is, please don't

abandon me

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that's completely different behavior,

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different pacing, different tension,

different eye contact, different breath.

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Even if both Scenes are technically

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sad,

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that's why behavior driven acting

becomes so specific.

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Emotion labels are broad.

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Human pursuit

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is precise, and precision

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is what makes performances

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feel real.

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Now, listen, this

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is how this becomes incredibly.

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I don't know, becomes incredibly

powerful

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in auditions.

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Why?

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Because I've seen it all the time.

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Actors think I need to make this scene

emotional.

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No,

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you need to make the need undeniable.

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That's whatcasting responds to

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not emotional volume,

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clarity of pursuit,

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because the strongest audition usually

feels something real, is happening to

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the actor in real time,

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not something they prepared to show.

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And this often solves another major

actor problem,

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predictability,

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because actors who play emotion often

make emotional decisions way too early.

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You can see the performance coming.

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But pursuit

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creates adjustment,

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and adjustment

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creates spontaneity.

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Because in real life, when we don't get

what we want,

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what do we do?

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We change tactics

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that's behavior.

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If charm doesn't work, we pressure.

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If pressure doesn't work,

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we might retreat.

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If retreat doesn't work,

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we might joke.

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If joking doesn't work,

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will probably attack.

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Human beings are constantly

recalibrating

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behavior

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based on resistance

333

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that's what makes Scenes dynamic.

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And honestly,

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this is why listening becomes so

important.

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Because if you're truly trying to get

something,

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you must pay attention to whether it's

working.

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Now the other actor

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actually matters.

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Now you're affected.

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Now the scene becomes alive instead of

rehearsed.

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And this is one of the reasons some

technically trained actor still

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struggle on camera.

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They understand script analysis

intellectually,

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but behaviorally,

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they remain frozen.

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Everything feels predetermined.

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But behavior driven acting introduces

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volatility.

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Now moments can shift.

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Now interruptions matter.

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Now silence matters.

353

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Now, failure matters

354

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because failure changes behavior.

355

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And the best performances often happen

when the actor stops controlling the outcome.

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That's where life sneaks in.

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As I like to do in every podcast, just

about every podcast of recent time,

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because we've been doing these for

quite a long time, is to give you a

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00:16:50,810 --> 00:16:54,514

quick exercise to consider, to help

sort of solidify the point that I'm

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trying to make here.

361

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So this is to day's exercise I'd love

for you to try.

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I want you to take any scene,

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00:17:02,88 --> 00:17:02,889

anything,

364

00:17:04,591 --> 00:17:07,460

maybe not a recent scene, maybe

something that you worked on a little

365

00:17:07,560 --> 00:17:09,929

while ago, perhaps, but it doesn't

really matter.

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Now I want you to answer these three

questions.

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One, what do I need?

368

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In other words, what does your character

369

00:17:21,875 --> 00:17:22,409

need?

370

00:17:23,877 --> 00:17:28,748

It can be, need the other person to do

something, need the other person to

371

00:17:28,915 --> 00:17:29,382

feel something.

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What is it that you are there for?

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Number two,

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why can't I get it?

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See, that's

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00:17:39,959 --> 00:17:41,761

understanding the obstacle.

377

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Why can't I get it?

378

00:17:44,831 --> 00:17:45,598

And then three,

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00:17:47,67 --> 00:17:48,501

what am I doing to try?

380

00:17:50,837 --> 00:17:52,305

What are the efforts

381

00:17:52,906 --> 00:17:56,276

that my character is making in order to

effectuate

382

00:17:57,477 --> 00:17:59,245

questions one and two, ooh, effectuate.

383

00:17:59,779 --> 00:18:00,480

That's a good word

384

00:18:02,415 --> 00:18:07,987

think about those three questions that

alone may unlock the entire scene.

385

00:18:10,423 --> 00:18:12,892

Please remember this, acting is not

emotional decoration.

386

00:18:13,960 --> 00:18:16,496

It is human behavior under pressure.

387

00:18:17,230 --> 00:18:21,701

And the more actors stop trying to

manufacture feelings and start pursuing

388

00:18:22,268 --> 00:18:22,969

meaningful needs,

389

00:18:24,104 --> 00:18:25,772

the more truthful and compelling

390

00:18:26,840 --> 00:18:28,308

their work often becomes.

391

00:18:30,977 --> 00:18:32,412

Thank you so much for joining me on.

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00:18:32,412 --> 00:18:34,748

Jeffer eisbach, this is cashing actor's

cast.

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00:18:34,814 --> 00:18:37,83

I want you to keep growing, deep,

listening.

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00:18:37,851 --> 00:18:38,551

And remember

395

00:18:39,152 --> 00:18:41,588

you are not there to present emotion.

396

00:18:42,589 --> 00:18:46,393

You are there to affect another human

being.

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We'll see you next