Copti Workshop: Techniques of Directing Actors

The Scandar Copti Workshop (Feb. 16-17, 2012) will be an amazing opportunity for everyone wanting to develop their skills directing actors, or just getting insight on the whole process. You will have an educational experience of excellence, with Scandar Copti a tutor who developed his very own method of directing actors, with enormous success, granting him the Golden Camera in Cannes and an Oscar Nomination.

Scandar’s method of directing actor's without them being aware is impressive making his film is a work of fiction which shows “real” people acting in situations that are orchestrated by the directors, but very “real” to the performers, resulting in the actors projecting emotions on camera that they actually experienced at the time.

This 2 days intensive workshop will be a great opportunity to learn the best techniques to have a successful casting. The workshop has a price of 369 Euros per person for the two days, and is strictly limited to 25 participants, we advise to register fast to guarantee your place. The workshop will take place during the last few days of the Berlinale – Berlin International Film Festival, so if you are in town for it you should really take advantage of the workshop.

About Scandar Copti

Copti is an Oscar-nominated Palestinian filmmaker born and raised in Yafa. In 2009, his first full-length feature film “Ajami” won the Camera d’Or Special Mention at the Cannes Film Festival. His film was also nominated for the 82nd Academy Awards in the Best Foreign Film category and won more than 15 awards worldwide. Formerly a mechanical engineer, he has also written, directed and edited several fiction, documentary and experimental short films.

Copti was on the jury of the Tribeca film festival as well as at the Thessaloniki film festival in 2010 and President of the Human Rights Award in the Istanbul International film festival 2011. Copti was part of the team that launched the Doha Tribeca Film Festival and the Doha Film Institute (DFI) and he headed the DFI’s education department until November 2011. Currently Copti is developing his next feature film project.

Workshop Information

Filmmakers often use the element of surprise to direct actors for certain scenes to get authentic emotional responses. The directors of AJAMI based their film entirely on this principal. Unlike other forays into improvisation, AJAMI had a very precise screenplay and a well-constructed plot that demanded precise emotional responses from its actors.

The actors ended up acting out a story, without being aware that they were being directed according to a pre-written script. The film is a work of fiction which shows “real” people acting in situations that are orchestrated by the directors, but very “real” to the performers, resulting in the actors projecting emotions on camera that they actually experienced at the time.

This was achieved over specialized workshops, in which the actors were brought to each character’s emotional and psychological state as written in the script. In these workshops, the participants didn’t learn about text, goals, mise-en-scene or acting tricks. The focus was on the psychological journey of the characters through dramatic role-playing. Eventually, each actor deeply identified with his or her character as though the character was an extension of their own personality.

When the cameras started rolling, something magical happened – the actors forgot that they were in a fictional situation and their minds believed that what was happening was real. Throughout the 2 days-workshop, participants will learn and experience the technique that Scandar uses during the preparations of his actors as well as during the shoot.

For more information and to register please visit the workshop webpage at www.filmlab.fest.pt.

Image Courtesy: Abu Nadha, The National