Play Backs
Another blog by Soloman, covering last week’s lesson
Being in the acting career, you will certainly come across a technique for learning called “Play Backs”. This is the topic for today, and hopefully by explaining this to you, you will be able to benefit from this in the future. (Let’s go, shall we?)
What Is It?
Play back is simply watching yourself back when you have been filmed. When you have been filmed, you may have the opportunity to watch yourself back and see where you went wrong. I will tell you now, you would be stupid if you didn’t take this opportunity. It is one of the only times you will be able to see yourself as if you were someone else. In other words, you get to see yourself how others will see you!
A Play Back and the knowledge it brings
Seeing a video of yourself gives you the opportunity to learn. So, take the time to really criticise yourself, the only way you will learn is through the mistakes you pick up on so you can correct them next time. It helps if you make notes on your acting while you watch. This way you can go back to your notes at a later date and remind yourself of what you need to brush up on. Play backs also help to show you what drama techniques to use to portray your character best. And if any need to be improved, you can see which! Play backs can also give reassurance that you have done well. (It’s not all about negatives you know!) If you think you did bad on a certain piece, a play back will prove you wrong!
Summary
A play back is a tool at your disposal. You should use it if you felt something in a particular piece went wrong or even if you simply want to see yourself in acting. Play backs give you the visual learning of watching yourself and seeing what works and what doesn’t. This way you can chop and change your next piece to better fit you and bring out the best acting you and do. And portray the character you need to portray the way you want to.
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Author: admin
I started out young in the film and TV industry, being cast in Dennis Fisher toy commercials at the age of 8-10 years. My mother enrolled me in dancing, ballet, tap, drama, singing, piano lessons and extremely busy after-school activities from the age of 4. But my main interest was acting and pursued in joining the West Riding Youth Theatre and Bradford Youth Players in my teens, which I enjoyed immensely. At the age of 18, I opened a performing arts school with my mother called Stage 84 and headed the drama department for 10 years, teaching speech and drama, Trinity Guild Hall exams and entering children for speech and drama festivals. During this time, I trained Amy Walsh, Kimberly Walsh, Sally Walsh, Lee Otway and many other students who successfully went on and had careers in the performing arts industry. In 1994, I opened my own school, Northern Film and Drama and the philosophy behind it was to make films and at the same time train children and teenagers to act in them. My first film, Victim, which was about school bullying won the Scarborough Film Festival for best newcomer and went on to be shown on Channel 4. My next film, Past Memoirs, with an appearance from Amy Walsh went on to Meridian TV. Many other films have followed. Becoming 8 was a final film selected for the London Short Film Festival. Julia Juliette, 2015, got to the final selection in the South Carolina Film Festival. My latest film is called Sweet Sam, and will be entered for numerous festival throughout the world. Other children trained by me to name a few include Jessica Barden (Mrs Radcliffe's Revolution, Coronation Street, The Lobster, Far From The Madding Crowd), Sam Jackson (Skins), Daniel Pearson (Vera, The Dumping Ground, Emmerdale) and most recent Colson Smith(Coronation Street). My teaching methods are completely the opposite to what you teach for the stage. They are loosely based on method acting, but with my own unique twist. I live for teaching and directing children and young teenagers, and enjoy seeing them grow into confident, talented young people of tomorrow.
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