A. Using one of the following “Required Viewing” films from the silent film era through the 1950s, choose an actor or actress with a major role and discuss his/her use
of the tools of the craft of Acting discussed in the first five class sessions.
B. Using two of the following “Required Viewing” films from the silent film era through the 1950s, choose an actor or actress with a major role from each film and
discuss their use of
the tools of the craft of Acting discussed in the first five class sessions. How are their choices similar? How are their choices dissimilar?
The Artist
The Informer
The Rules of the Game
The Little Foxes
Born Yesterday
Address at least three (3) of the following in your analysis: presentational vs.representational acting, objectives, obstacles, actions (both verbal and physical),
motivation, beats, personalization, substitution, the “Magic If”, imagery, given circumstances, specificity, relationships (both objective and subjective), ongoing
physical
activities, secondary activities, sending and receiving, emotional life, status, discovery in the moment, extreme physical and environmental conditions, scenes of
exposition,
physical character work, subtext, the arc of a scene, moment-to-moment acting,
concentration and focus, soliloquies, the character’s center of pain,importance of casting,etc.
You must reference examples of technique covered in the lectures and Uta Hagen’s “Respect for Acting” to support your arguments. You may also reference Harold
Clurman’s
“The Fervent Years.” In addition, you may address the specific political, sociological and economic issues of a particular decade and how you believe they may have
influenced the
actor’s (or actors’) choices in the film(s). Be specific and thorough in your observations,opinions and arguments. (Do not include long sections devoted to plot
details in your 2 paper. The Special Readers and the Instructor have seen these films – more than once!
Instead, get directly to the specifics of your arguments).Your paper must be double-spaced, Cambria 12-point font, 1” margins and between four
(4) and six (6) pages in length. If you have a Works Cited, it will not count for or against the length of your paper. Properly site any and all sources (MLA or
Chicago style is
acceptable).