2022.04.16 – 0471 - 5 – Know Who *You* Are
5 – Know Who You Are
You need to know your role in this script-reading, what perspective you are speaking from, what gives you the ‘right’ to pass on this information or advice:
· Voice Of God – a disembodied, unnamed voice that makes announcements and pronouncements without any emotion.
· Representative – perhaps seemingly an employee or brand ambassador, talking to potential clients: look for phrases such as “call us” or “we’d like to help” and so on. (Incidentally I personally think there’s a bit of a brand disconnect when commercials feature famous voices in the role as brand ambassador. Hearing a famous actor talk as though they are a member of staff of a supermarket, bank or whatever (“Here at SuperStore ABC we have created the finest Indian cuisine…”, “call us at ABC bank where we have experts who can advise you on your pension plan…” sounds unrealistic, disingenuous and plain daft. I know the actor is only paid to front the ad, so don’t give me the impression they work there full time…
· A friend or neighbour of the listener – “Want a new sofa in time for Christmas…?”
· A reassuring expert such as a doctor or dentist – “I know just how painful receding gums can be…”
· And so on …
If you haven’t been given a ‘character brief’ as part of your direction notes on the script, you could go one step further yourself, and think for a few seconds about your character:
· Who they are and how they know the listener – close friend and confident or passing acquaintance?
· Their name and age – to add a bit of detail
Where they are talking to them – over a garden fence, at the school gate, in an office…
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