Consistency in Character:
Most living beings can and will do the most unbelievable things. And, to their way of looking at it, they do it with good reason.
It follows that any character is liable to do anything.
Of course, in the operational environments we work in, the performer must be trained to use good judgment and restraint.
Still, the right preparation gives you real guidelines to logically expand the character and allows the creative possibilities to skyrocket.
A large part of that preparation is to answer the following questions about what drives your character –
- What literally, physically happens while your character is visible to the visitors?
- What does your character expect from the people who are there?
- What drives your character in life?
A side note – there is a fourth question. It is, ‘what bell does these answers ring for you, or what in your life is as important to you as these answers are to the character?’
The fourth question is to help the performer get out of their head and into their heart. More on that in later blogs.
Consistency in Intellectual Property:
It’s important to be able to expand characters in a way that opens creative possibilities without driving too far afield.
The research you do on the original source material is vital. Digging into your character guide and script, answering the three questions about what drives your character creates a vision of your character that you can use as a guide to make better choices.
Jamming on ideas with your director is critical.
A side bar about IP – remember that every idea is not going to be a workable idea. Just because you can do something, it doesn’t mean you should. You may do something that gets a strong reaction, but it may not be the right reaction for the presentation or the character. It can be disappointing, but got to be willing to let some things go for the larger picture.
Consistency in Interaction:
Here’s the point I am driving at. In every interaction, a living, thinking being will pivot and change in response to new information. Change is golden!
The key is in developing the mindset that change, surprises and interruptions are a great source of authentic interactions. It’s not as important to finish a bit of business or a speech. It is more important to be flexible and observant enough to catch the visitors behavior and respond as the character.
You must allow the visitor to change you. A change tells the visitor that the character has seen, acknowledged and responded to them.
Shifting in response to something about a visitor gives them the ego boost that they have touched this hero and they quickly made an impact. No question that every character has the potential to make a visitor feel great about them selves.
It’s emotional immersion. Visitors have now been included in the story. They have accomplished something in the character’s world. Visitors feel connected, appreciated, valued and important.
That kind of result is the key to being an extraordinary interactive character.
Interactive Characters 