How many relationships are really in the scene? A lot more than you might think!
When fleshing out relationships in a scene, every actor will tackle the most prominent one. Most actors will develop relationships with secondary or ensemble characters in the scene. However, not many actors take a true tally of all the relationships that are in any given scene and take full ownership of them by personalizing them in a way that elicits an emotional connection.
Characters in both comedy and drama spend a lot of time talking about the people in their lives who aren’t present. For example, if you have a scene featuring a brother and sister planning their father’s retirement party, and the emphasis is on the debate between the brother and sister regarding how the party will be executed, actors very often fail to develop their relationship with the father.
Although Dad’s not in the scene, he is referenced. The conversation has everything to do with him and a milestone in his life that includes the entire family. If the actor hasn’t thought through their relationship with him, there’s a lot of depth that is not being mined in the scene. It’s very likely brother and sister don’t have the exact
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