The Actor look

When casting for a movie, the look of the part can be equally if not more important then the acting itself.  People often judge on appearances.  It takes an average person 6-11 seconds to look, analyze and come to a consensus about a person, place, or thing and 6 months to a year to change or challenge that opinion.  This human ability to judge based off of appearances is all part of natural selection.  Humans are constantly looking for genetic and physical compatibility.


A stereotype is often generated in the minds of people and there initial reactions may cause them to behave or think a certain way.   For example, if an individual sees an over weight person they might assume that he or she eats too much, is lazy, slow and probably has many health problems.  Our minds may be naturally inclined to reject, invoke negative thoughts or actions towards the individual based on  first impression or assumptions.  The survival of the fittest theory comes to mind when an individual automatically makes assumptions based off of perception.

In story, there are a number of ways to play off of a stereotype such as empathy, guilt, pity, bullying and so on.  Our human interaction to the world is based off of simple conclusions and made complex by the reactions man exhibits.  Personal genetic wants and needs are inherently built within our genetic code and fostered by nurture.

The term "sex sells" is a big tactic and it works because an individual who has lust over another individual may develop endorphins.  Those endorphins trigger chemical reactions in the brain and in the boddy.  When this chemical reactions occurs our pupils may dilate and our mind may work overtime to absorbe the information is sees.  This information is collected by the mind and it stores it for future use.  Any other information left standing during this process is also absorbed, thus making the ad that much more effective.  What we choose to do with that information is up to the individual. Regardless, the mind has already made judgments and assumptions in a matter of seconds.  Hence is why it is so important to have the right look for the role.

Chrisma or charm is also an important deciding factor in the casting process because after the first initial judgment based off of physical appearances our minds already have a built up expectation or stereotype of what that person should act like.  Within the first few moments, the actor's mannerisms well be the final point before the audience's built up expectations can be met or not.  So if the person looks like a dork, walks like a dork, talks like a dork then as the audience will probably perceive that he  is a dork.

How humans respond to one another may ultimately create an archetype of self image.  Our behavior and self image is a direct and distorted reflection of how the world responds to us.  This phenomenon can be described as a distorted mirror of reality.  These images of self and our need to be social is what causes the need to fit in.  Kind of like birds.  There are many different species of birds and typically birds of a feather flock together.  If there is an injured bird amongst the group or the bird is of a different species then that bird may be rejected amongst the flock.

Same goes for people.  This natural selection can be called a popularity contest of sorts.  Societies are often built around stereotypes and archetypes.  This selection can be based on the color of skin, rituals, customs, habits, religion etc...

The connection between individual and groups of people can create a social filter for physical features, habits and rituals.  As humans we constantly try to make sense of the world by Categorizing people in groups and as a biproduct, stereotypes are produced.  Anything different beyond an individuals understanding can cause confusion and the individual has to work hard to try to find a connection or category to put that new information in.  The idea when making movies is to allow the audience to connect to the story and characters as much as possible so they can absorbe the content or message.

Different cultures and and societies can have a different ideal for a character's look.  When casting there has to be a target audience and that audience has a norm of what that a particular look should be.

In casting, it is possible to go against the grain, but the audience will have to adjust to the new archetypes. An alternative archetype may take away from the story or it could add a new element all together.

I think a good analogy is the Archetype of a pretty female.   A female who possesses striking features will get certain reactions from the public as a whole.  To the female she has a better chance of picking her "ideal" mate.  The odds are she will give the not so hansom / nice guys a cold shoulder and bat the eyelashes to the ones with hansom features, but not so good personalities.   After so many failed relationships the pretty female may build a hard heart and when the nice, not so hansom type comes along she will want to fall in love, but the damage has already been done and the nice guy is left to pick up the pieces.  Hence, nice guys finish last syndrome.

The fight or flight response from the judgment of other people can often times lead to a learned response.  The individual may develop defense and tolerances to filter these world issues.  Much like our immune system does to foreign invaders.

There are so may variables to how and why people respond the way they do.  But all to often, its the distorted world view which causes people to behave the way they do.  In casting, we can use this phenomenon to our advantage.  We can take the experiences and reactions of other people based off there looks and group them.  Casting in this way can expose similarities between how a person behaves and how they look aka the stereotype.   

So the next time you Cast for your next movie, ask your self what physical features does the actor needs to create a particular Archetype that will ultimately help tell the story.

By 

Robert Sawin

endorphins

chrisma