Casting+for+Film

=ntroduction to Film Acting= > ==4. Casting== > Casting is one of the key factors in a good movie. The performance they provide can either make the movie or kill it. Certain actors can only be in certain roles and other have a variety of roles that can be done. > Hitchcock emphasized the casting of his movies was a way to make the star become more about the character than about the movie. Although many directors used the D.I.D (damsel in distress) Hitchcock made many of his lead characters female. EX: Rebecca, Psycho, and The Birds > Many filmakers don't write the script until they know who is playing the major roles > **Reference Films** > Like photography, mise en scene, movement, editing and sound, acting is a kind of language system > **Reference Films**
 * Typecasting was almost invariable in silent films.
 * Blondes are usually a symbol of purity.
 * Brunettes are symbolized as erotic figures.
 * Hitchcock uses deceitful casting
 * Villains are usually charming
 * Ex: James Mason in North by Northwest
 * Hitchcock relied on audience's established goodwill toward a star
 * permitting "heroes" to act morally dubious.
 * Ex: In Rear Window it’s hard for the audience to condemn, all-American boy Jimmy Stewart.
 * Audiences assume that a star will remain in the film until the final reel.
 * However, in Psycho, the Janet Leigh character is killed off in the first third of the film.
 * Hitchcock will sometimes cast awkward, self conscious actors in roles requiring a note of evasive anxiety
 * Ex: Farley Granger in Rope and Strangers on a Train
 * Bad acting is precisely what's called for
 * Yasujiro Ozu: "I could no more write, not knowing who the actor was going to be, than an artist could paint, not knowing what color he was using."
 * Billy Wilder would tailor his dialogue to the personality of his actors
 * Acting is a kind of language system
 * filmmakers use actors as a medium for communication of ideas and emotions.
 * Ex: In the Bicycle Thief, merely casting Lamberto Maggiorani rather than Cary Grant, Vittorio De Sirca radically altered the artistic impact of the film.
 * One Hour Photo (U.S.A., 2002) with Robin Williams, written and Directed by Mark Romanek
 * Robin Williams, after winning an Oscar for playing a compassionate psychologist, decided to make a smart career move and play a role as a villain. His role in One Hour Photo was this unnerving creep which was totally divorced from his usual persona.
 * Film makers use actors as a medium to communicate ideas an emotions
 * In analyzing a film, you have to consider what type of actors are featured and why? (amateurs, professionals or well known stars)
 * Unfamiliar performers enjoy an obvious superiority over stars, so the public has no way of guessing what kind of people they are playing
 * The Crying Game (Ireland/Britain, 1992)
 * In this movie, the characters surprises send the story spinning into totally new directions. If the main characters had been played by personality, viewers would have guessed in advance what make the characters tick.
 * Erin Brokovich (U.S.A. 2000)
 * Starring Julia Roberts. She radiates personality and is the only female star who consistently places among the top 10 box office attractions in America. She is popular with the public due to her good looks and captivating smile. She is an accomplished performer in straight dramatic roles, but she really shines in comedies, where her style is spontaneous and it hardly looks like she's working.