The snow is still on the mountains, though it is springtime now in New Zealand. I have been away for a while and I just went into my garden.
Nothing was happening! Nothing had changed and I was frustrated.
"Come on garden, get on with it and grow faster!"
Do you recognise that feeling of wanting to push your preparation and growth faster than it is able to organically develop?
CHRONOS and KAIROS
Chronoception is the neuroscientific and psychological name for our subjective experience of time. The ancient Greeks recognized that there is a difference between what they called Chronos — chronological time, and Kairos — subjective time.
TIME IS MONEY
You just cannot struggle and win against the immutable process of time and nature. Everything takes the time it takes.
Right now, the film and TV projects I am coaching on have very limited time to rehearse and drop into role. Of course! That is always the way. Time is money, as they say.
I love this challenge. Devising quick rehearsal provocations using the simple ingredients of time, action and thought.
You've got to use whatever time you have to your best advantage. And sometimes that means time outside rehearsal.
Of course, you will often carry out research in your own time — reading and watching to explore historical places and periods; or to familiarise yourself with the visual and performance style of your director; or to learn the craft and skills needed to play a particular role.
But beyond that craft-preparation there is the spirit-preparation you do to re-orient your inner compass towards the role. You could almost call it a meditation upon the role.
In this kind of preparation, your body performs an action and at the same time your mind dwells upon the thoughts of the character, the themes of the piece. So, the challenge in my projects is to devise rehearsal tools that seem to take up very little time on the outside — but create a lot of time and depth on the inside.
I love this challenge. Making brief provocations with the simple ingredients of time, action and thought.
You've got to use whatever you have to your advantage. And sometimes that has to be time outside rehearsal.
Of course, you do research in your own time — reading and watching to explore historical places and times; the visual and performance style of the director and the piece; the craft and skills, vocal and physical preparation that you need to do to be able to play the role.
But beyond that craft-preparation, there is the spirit-preparation that you do to re-orient your inner compass towards the role. You could almost call it a meditation upon the role.
In this kind of preparation, your body performs an action and at the same time your mind dwells upon the thoughts of the character, the themes of the piece.
This week I have been advising actors and directors to devise this kind of meditation as an efficient, simple homework challenge.
Over on the paid site today I discuss and illustrate case-studies for the film LION (2017), for the celebrated LEAVE NO TRACE (2018), plus a no-budget short film and a massive budget award-winner — and I talk about my own experience in the TV film JEAN.
COME BACK INTO THE GARDEN
Before I press “Publish” on this article, I go back into the garden. It is morning, and I can see that overnight in the rain, some tiny shoots have emerged on the hydrangea and some tiny buds on the Clematis Paniculata.
It just takes the time that it takes.
Over the hill from here, in Wellington's Island Bay, also in view of the snowy Kaikoura Range, is an old convent. I will leave you with the trailer for the beautiful documentary GARDENING WITH SOUL (2013) about a nun, Sister Loyola who lived there, shot by the amazing Australian cinematographer Ari Wegner.
"The garden is saying to me all the time "Life is evolving, life is evolving"
— Sister Loyola Galvin in GARDENING WITH SOUL
