The 10 Most Important Questions You Should Know About Your Character
They’re the same questions you would ask a stranger whom you were trying to get to know
(By Jim Webb)
(Photo: Pixabay | Pexels)
“Every single character an actor takes on, they need to treat that person as if they were real.”
(Andrew Garfield)
If you’re going to “become” someone else, otherwise known as acting, you’d better understand who that person is. When you don’t fully understand your role, you risk performing a caricature, instead of a character.
You’d better take the time to explore that person’s thoughts, feelings, background and motivations. At minimum, you must understand the basic details of your character’s life.
Here are the 10 details you must know about your character.
#1: What’s your character’s full name?
What’s your character’s full name? What’s their middle name? Do they have a nickname? Was your character teased about their name growing up?
#2: Who are your parents?
(Photo: Andrea Piacquadio | Pexels)
What’s your character’s mother’s name? Father’s name? How old were they when they had you? What’s your relationship with your parents? Was your father in your life? Was your mother nurturing or cold?
#3: Who are your siblings?
How many brothers and sisters do you have? What was your relationship like with them? Were you effectively raised by one of your siblings?
#4: Where did you live growing up?
Are you from a large, metropolitan area or small-town USA? Did you enjoy living in your town or were you eager to move away?
#5: What was your character’s family religion?
Is the family Christian, Muslim, Jewish, or, perhaps, atheist? How prominent was religion in the family? How does religion shape your world view?
#6: What is your character’s education level?
(Photo: Pavel Danilyuk | Pexels)
Is your character a college educated person? Did they drop out of school? Are they planning to go back?
#7: What is your character’s profession?
What does your character do for a living? Is your character a doctor? Are they unemployed? How does your character feel about their chosen profession? How much money does your character earn?
#8: What’s your character’s relationship status?
Has your character been married for 20+ years, or are they newlyweds? Is your character single and bitter or single and loving the bachelor life?
#9: Does your character have children?
If so, how many kids do they have? Do they want more? Do they have a good relationship with their children? How has raising children changed your character’s perspective?
#10: What is your character’s personality?
(Photo: Andrea Piacquadio | Pexels)
Is your character happy-go-lucky? Nerdy? Sarcastic? Is your character an introvert or extrovert? Is your character an alpha or a beta?
You should recognize all of these questions. They’re the same questions you would ask a stranger whom you were trying to get to know. They’re the same questions you should ask of the new character you are attempting to “become”.
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