Professional Character Development Tips – Questions to Ask During Character Analysis

While you may take years of acting classes and gain a vast knowledge of the technical aspect of acting, when it comes to character development you will continually be learning. The reason for this: every character is different and each requires a unique approach in order to truly delve deep into the “mind” of this character.

Throughout your initial character development process, there are certain questions you must ask yourself in order to gain a well-rounded viewpoint of this “person.

Read, Read and Read Again

Before moving forward within this step of character development, you must have read the script a minimum of five times. This is important as you must absorb every hint, every clue and every foundational key phrase about your character in order to accurately answer the following questions.

What Does the Character Do? What is he not willing to do?

When answering this questions, write them down in “first person” as if the character is actually talking. When I say “What does the character do?” I’m not necessarily speaking about what he does for employment, rather, answer this question in regards to how he is throughout life. What is his morals? On the other hand, what is your character not willing to do in order to reach his objective?

What others say about the character?

How do the other character’s in the script view your character? What are their spoken feelings? What are their hidden feelings? How does your character respond to their perception of him?

We all are shaped and molded based on how others view us, and while the severity of these alterations is strictly dependent on the personality of yourself (i.e. your character) other people’s opinions do matter as well as cause an affect.

What actions are caused by the character’s dialogue?

Throughout life, the words we speak and the words we hear cause some sort of action – physical response. While it may not be necessary to outline each and every action you take within the play based on what “you” say or what others say about you, outline the most vital actions based off your dialogue.