In Ivana Chubbuck’s influential acting methodology, the foundational step is defining your character’s Overall Objective. Understanding and mastering this step sets the stage for creating dynamic, compelling performances.
What is the Overall Objective?
The Overall Objective refers to the ultimate, driving desire that your character pursues throughout the entire script or story. It is the underlying motivation influencing every decision, interaction, and action your character takes. Unlike a temporary goal or momentary objective within a scene, the Overall Objective is the deep-rooted desire guiding the character’s entire journey.
Why the Overall Objective Matters
Establishing an Overall Objective provides actors with clarity and emotional urgency. When clearly identified, this objective informs every scene, creating a cohesive performance and keeping your portrayal authentic, compelling, and grounded. The pursuit of this objective naturally generates emotional stakes, making your character’s journey engaging and believable for audiences.
How to Determine Your Character’s Overall Objective
- Read and Analyze the Script Thoroughly: Carefully study the script, noting key details and emotional beats. Look for clues within your character’s actions, dialogues, and relationships to identify deeper motivations. Consider if the script provides sufficient detail to clearly identify your character’s Overall Objective or if you need to infer from context.
- Ask the Right Questions:
- What does my character truly desire more than anything else?
- Why is achieving this desire so critical to them?
- What emotional or psychological needs does this objective fulfill?
- Communicate with the Director: Engage with your director to clarify your character’s Overall Objective. Directors often have valuable insights into the broader vision of the story, character relationships, and how your character’s objectives align with the overall narrative. Asking specific questions can ensure alignment and consistency in your portrayal.
- Consider Other Roles in the Script: Reflect on the Overall Objectives of other key characters. Understanding how these roles interact with your character’s objectives can provide additional depth and insight. Conflicting or complementary objectives between characters can drive tension, drama, and emotional dynamics within the narrative.
- Make It Personal and Active: Ensure the objective is expressed actively, beginning with a strong verb (e.g., “to win love,” “to gain respect,” “to seek redemption”). This active phrasing helps you engage directly and powerfully with each scene.
- Test and Refine: Consider how the identified objective fits within the character’s journey and the narrative’s arc. Ensure the objective can sustainably drive your character throughout the entire story, adjusting and refining as needed based on insights from script analysis, discussions with the director, and considerations of other roles.
Common Mistakes When Defining the Overall Objective
- Choosing Passive Objectives: Avoid passive or vague desires (e.g., “to be happy”). Objectives must be active and concrete, providing clear, actionable motivations.
- Lacking Emotional Depth: Surface-level objectives (“to get money”) might lack the emotional weight needed for nuanced performances. Dig deeper to understand the underlying emotional motivations driving these desires.
- Inconsistency: Ensure the chosen objective aligns consistently with your character’s choices and evolution throughout the script. Inconsistency weakens believability and emotional impact.
Examples of Powerful Overall Objectives
- “To reclaim lost dignity.”
- “To win unconditional love.”
- “To achieve absolute power.”
- “To seek redemption.”
- “To prove worthiness.”
Applying the Overall Objective in Performance
Once clearly defined, continually remind yourself of your character’s Overall Objective during rehearsals and performances. Allow it to guide your emotional responses, physical behaviors, and interactions with other characters. By consistently connecting to this central desire, your performance will remain truthful, engaging, and emotionally resonant.
Final Thoughts
Mastering the Overall Objective—the first step in Ivana Chubbuck’s Technique—is essential for creating authentic, compelling characters. By clearly identifying and embracing your character’s deepest desires, consulting with your director, and considering the script’s other roles, you lay the foundation for an emotionally powerful and memorable performance.