Camera acting largely brought about the formal changes in acting art through the technical mechanism of camera, wholly different from staging acting. Cameras are the representative medium for expression of acting art in these days, and are popularly spreading, making some forms that are distinguished from stages. While the needs and demands for camera acting are increased in the commercial aspect, the specific training method of how actors/actresses can perform the camera acting, and it may be a serious problem that the acting education is practiced in dramatic performance methodology.
For the acting of actors/actresses the ‘space’ in which acting performances are conducted is very important. The space of stage and frame is surely an another dimension, in particular, the close-up and bust shots promote the psychological intimacy with audiences, which is distinctively different from the acting method in which a stage is away from seats in a theater. In addition, since the close-up shot emphasizes the internality of a character, the acting of actors/actresses in close-up shot may be the method of ‘being’ as the character rather than an acting.
As Mary Ellen O’ Brien said, ‘an excellent actor/actress acts, as if he/she is in real life and seems to experience the output every moments,’ which is an old issue of film acting. There is no evidence that the completion of acting can be enhanced, even though actors/actresses experience the ‘internality’ of their roles through acting. However, actor/actress’ ‘experiences’ in front of the lens rather than on the stage reinforce the presence of characters, which camera leads audiences to percept.
Therefore, the methodology of camera acting should start from the understanding and recognition of the camera media. The camera acting requires the understanding of features of (capturing) viewing method of camera itself, frame, shot, and continuity (continuous combination of shots) and the recognition of how great expression an actor/actress’ silent ‘face’ has in a close-up shot, as stage acting needs the understanding of mechanism of seats.
This study intends to focus on the ‘internality of film acting’. The internality of a character has been evolved into a new expression which can put the human’s soul into a screen by finding a close-up. From the film, various devices were developed to visually transfer the internality of a character and freely enumerate many images. In other words, the principal methodology of film acting is to reveal the ‘internality’ of a character, which may be an significant difference from the dramatic performance. First, the internality of a character is revealed in tight shot or close-up. This shot is to erupt a very strong energy of a character, in spite of focusing on the face of him. It is wholly different from the acting space on a stage. Second, the close-up acting is also considerably related with the emotional sympathy of an actor/actress. The ‘emotion’ is more important than actions. Third, the silence is more important than lines in the shot. Fourth, the ‘assimilation’ between an actor/actress and a character is very essential. And fifth, this shot dose not allow any disguised acting: the acting consciousness of an actor/actress is not permitted.
In this respect, the most important thing in the film acting is to consider the method to receive an object by camera. In the acting level, the acting of ‘being’ through the internal experiences of actors/actresses, characters’ ‘aliveness’ at ‘that moment’ may be more significant than a simply ‘disguised’ acting. In the ‘moment’, an actor/actress can experience a point of time to be ‘being’ as his/her character and the degree of experience is very high, which is consistent with ‘acting theory of experience’ mentioned by Constantin Stanislavsky (1863∼1938). Along with method acting, his acting theory significantly contributed to the development of film acting.
Thus, this study intends to consider the ‘internality of film acting’ through 〈The Bridges of Madison County,1995〉. Meryl Streep and Clint Eastwood appeared in this film which was producted by the director who was well acquainted with the acting. In some scenes, the experience of ‘internality of her role’ shown by Meryl Streep was properly harmonized with the method of how a camera received it, so it was determined that this film can be analyzed to consider the internality of film acting. In the film acting, the revelation of internality consists of combination of actor/actress’s acting and technical devices of film. This can be promoted only when the viewing method of camera is well adjusted by a director, and actors/actresses are asked to show the ‘being’ dimension through his/her own experiences, rather than ‘disguised’ acting empathized in the stage acting. This study suggests that this issue belongs to the film acting different from the methodology of dramatic performance, thus, hopes that a different methodology of film acting would be significantly recognized.