Alfredo Aparicio/Staff Writer
The transition from theater to television and film for student actors on campus is being made easier with the help of Introduction to Acting/Directing for TV/Film, a class that exposes them to the various differences between the three types of performances.
“To have a four-year program in the 21st century and not have [a] film [course] is a sin,” said Phillip Church, an associate professor at the Department of Theatre and instructor for the course. “We are doing the students such a disservice without giving them an appreciation for the film.”
Church, who has been battling to get a film program off the ground in previous years, states that the interest is there if only the many factors involved would come together to create it.
“I have gotten student petitions and would have these classes of 30 kids shoot up at the idea of a film program. There are so many nomads who are just wandering, and many of them could find themselves hooked on the new technology—but we have nothing to offer them.
“I worked out a whole curriculum and presented it to the provost 10 years ago and got shot down because of the football team or [parking] garage or all the reasons why a film program will never happen. I’ve since stopped the battle,” said Church.
While the course, which began five years ago, is only available to bachelor’s of fine art performance majors, Church cannot stress enough the importance of a film or television component for student actors.
“Only BFA performance students can take it, but [theater majors] are all headed into a world of technology that we shouldn’t pretend doesn’t exist. I don’t think TV and film as entertainment forms have been given any serious thought,” said Church.
For Stephanie Sandoval, a junior BFA theater performance major, the class has introduced her to acting in front of the camera and has exposed her to directing behind the camera.
“We realize that, in the U.S., TV and film is bigger and provides more income for actors than theater. It has been very interesting and eye-opening in many ways that have made me want to pursue acting in front of the camera more than I had thought of before,” said Sandoval.
As part of their training, Church set up auditions for the students at the WLRN studios as well as various camera angles on the first day of class.
“The class started and [Church] had three cameras set up, and he made us do a screen test. We ended up with four screen tests with us just being in front of the camera and being ourselves—but it helped a lot,” said Missy Franciscus, a junior BFA theater performance major.
“TV is more time-consuming. [Every work day is] 16 hours, and they do different angles. In the end, you have only filmed five minutes,” said Jason Caceres, a junior BFA theater performance major. “There is realism in theater on-stage, but it has to be expanded in front of the cameras; TV is reflective of everyday life.”
Church also notes the wake-up call many students receive when they begin the class after having solely trained for theater, especially with typecasting.
“The typecasting is the big one, but it’s very good because many times the theater actor can think they’re above TV and film and all of that. It’s a shame because TV and film is the bread and butter—it just can’t be theater,” said Church.
“Beneath the Skin of the Actor,” an exercise in which Church requires the students to pick an actor of the same sex and study their physical and vocal techniques, demonstrates this very idea.
“It starts with the George Clooney syndrome; there is something very bankable and marketable about him,” said Church. “The theater actor prides themselves in being transformational; being this character one week and another next week. When we go to a movie, however, we all expect to see George Clooney. It’s not a put down but the very life of film.”
The importance of the exercise, Church said, is revealing the reversal energy presently going into theater performances.
“There wasn’t one student that didn’t apply things from themselves that they don’t normally apply. It’s trying to touch the essence of that person. Theater today is so open and loose, and reverence seems to have gone out the window,” said Church.
The final project for the course—in which two pairs of students will get together with another to act, write, direct and edit an original commercial of a preexisting product or service—is a task the class is more than ready to take on.
“We have to take it seriously and make it big so that people can see what you do; however, you can’t show a moment of dishonesty in front of the camera,” said Franciscus. “One group will write and do the storyboard and another will act, then we will switch. It’s open for the company to use if they should choose to.”
For Church, the class offers a creative outlet for students waiting for their chance.
“They don’t need a theater; they’ve got their cameras and have friends. They can write a script, get a daytime job and wait, but now at least they have this capacity in the area they love the most. It’s win-win; it’s just a shame it can’t get developed into something more,” Church said. “In the meantime, we have to serve our theater and performance students and this class, for my money, is a major element in their development as performers in the 21st century.”
Introduction to Acting/Directing for TV/Film is being offered for non-BFA performance theater majors this upcoming Summer B.
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