Characters with quirks.

[ChimpPhobiaFilms]

Characters should have quirks. Either the writer, actor, or director added in quirks of themselves or people they know so that they could relate to the character they are creating.

Quirks also make people human. Who wants to see a perfect character who does everything right? No one can really relate to that.

Other times people try to use quirks to make characters distinguishable or unique, which is usually hit or miss.

-------------
Like Mara said, actors often spit out food after takes.

-------------
I recommend you not having characters eat during dialogue though. Trying to maintain continuity while editing will be horrible

 

[FantasyFilmProductions]

The eating of food while talking to a prospective employee is a sign of power. It adds vibrancy to the scene and lets the viewer know that the man eating breakfast is the one in the power position. It also gives depth to the scene ie eating in a cafe/restaurant as opposed to sitting on a park bench or meeting at a desk. Also one can read a bit from how the man is eating breakfast. Is he scoffing it down like a street bum, or is he delicately disposing of the food via knife and fork showing class, "proper" upbringing, and self respect. Further, did the man have a newspaper beside him? If so this might point at him being well read, or at least one who keeps up with current affairs. Did he drink coffee ( ie a hard worker ) or juice ( someone more relaxed about the day ahead ) What kind of breakfast was eaten? The good old English Breakfast with sausages and egg ( a hearty feast for a man needing energy ) or was it the salad ( a trendy man eating for joy rather then need )...as you can see, a lot can be said to a viewer without the viewer even realizing that they are being given clues to this characters persona. Nothing is ever in a movie just for the sake of it. The director is always trying to either build upon his characters, or move the story along. No scene is wasted or without purpose.

 

[Aspiring Mogul]

The eating of food while talking to a prospective employee is a sign of power. It adds vibrancy to the scene and lets the viewer know that the man eating breakfast is the one in the power position. It also gives depth to the scene ie eating in a cafe/restaurant as opposed to sitting on a park bench or meeting at a desk. Also one can read a bit from how the man is eating breakfast. Is he scoffing it down like a street bum, or is he delicately disposing of the food via knife and fork showing class, "proper" upbringing, and self respect. Further, did the man have a newspaper beside him? If so this might point at him being well read, or at least one who keeps up with current affairs. Did he drink coffee ( ie a hard worker ) or juice ( someone more relaxed about the day ahead ) What kind of breakfast was eaten? The good old English Breakfast with sausages and egg ( a hearty feast for a man needing energy ) or was it the salad ( a trendy man eating for joy rather then need )...as you can see, a lot can be said to a viewer without the viewer even realizing that they are being given clues to this characters persona. Nothing is ever in a movie just for the sake of it. The director is always trying to either build upon his characters, or move the story along. No scene is wasted or without purpose.

Thanks - you've given me (wait for it) food for thought.

Then, if I may ask, how do you account for Cancer Man in the X-Files smoking all the time?

 

[FantasyFilmProductions]

It could be as simple as the fact that even around the time of shooting x-files, smoking was still seen as a very masculine thing to do...or it could have been that characters coping mechanism for stress, or maybe the writer just thought it looked cool.

I would go with the masculine one. Mulder didn't smoke which made him sensible, the bad guy smoked, making him a bad ass maybe.

 

[Caidh Mor]

Thanks - you've given me (wait for it) food for thought.

Then, if I may ask, how do you account for Cancer Man in the X-Files smoking all the time?

Wasn't he a very clouded character with hazy motivations? Weren't his early appearances foreboding, like a lingering death?

Dunno, I think the cigarettes sorta fit.

 

[Aspiring Mogul]

I'm not starting any political discussions.

Anyway, thanks for everyone's input in this thread. I have written a couple of scenes of a superior eating, while his subordinate does not.

I am writing a pilot for my SF series, and it may require another eating scene. This time, the subordinate is treated with far greater respect, and he is invited to eat with his senior officer, along with others who will brief him on what he will be doing for this first episode.

This eating scene, of course, will contrast with the other one, where that superior is eating alone. And there will be a reason for the contrast, because the two departments of the government will have different approaches and different mindsets.

So I will have one eating scene, where everyone has dinner, and I am thinking of the scene in Apocalypse now, where the character played by Martin Sheen is invited to dine with his superiors even as they brief him.

Any thoughts on that? And, no, this is not a cooking show.

 

[Lucky Hardwood]

The dining/briefing scene is a great conduit for expository character development. New guy is thrown into the mix as it were and is brought up to speed while sharing a meal. It works, especially as a contrast to the impersonal, separate dining scene that you previously described.

 

[Aspiring Mogul]

The dining/briefing scene is a great conduit for expository character development. New guy is thrown into the mix as it were and is brought up to speed while sharing a meal. It works, especially as a contrast to the impersonal, separate dining scene that you previously described.

I think you're right, and thanks for your encouragement. The aloof person will engage in fine dining, to show his, well, aloofness, while the others will engage in normal dining, though with relatively decent meal, again, to show their more egalitarian approach.

I'm lucky to get your input, Lucky.