Expressionless

Jun 6, 2012 by Lona

There are more expressions than frowning, smiling, laughing and crying. One eyebrow can loft quizzically. The side of her mouth could quirk upwards. His brow can furrow dangerously. Her lips could twitch as she tries to control her laughter. He looks towards the ceiling at the stupid thing she said, she worries at her bottom lip.

The thing about expressions is that there are very few just alike. Practicing in the mirror is good, yes, but so is people-watching. Real people, not movies – the actors in movies are highly over-played, even when it doesn’t seem so. Turn off the sound sometime, leave off the captions. Really watch a sitcom that way. Who actually puts up both hands, shrugs both shoulders, widens their eyes and shakes their head too? Have you ever actually seen someone do a spit-take? Or be SO shocked they pour hot coffee down themselves without really noticing it?

Realistic expressions are all part of a good story. Not overplayed, over dramatic expressions, mind you, and not so much expressive detail that you can’t tell what’s actually going on–as with all things, moderation is key–but real expression that shows you exactly what the character is thinking that moment, without having to tell it.

*shrugs one shoulder, eyes wide and innocent* It’s all about presentation.