Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/1197255
C A S Q U A R T E R L Y W I N T E R 2 0 2 0 63 the emotions [we were looking to get from a performance]. I pay attention to the "music," the emotions, the inner emotions of the actors. Language doesn't matter so much in the end. You mention the "music" of the performance. Can you speak more of this? In the case of French and Hebrew, which are the two main languages in the show, there is an interesting "musical" type of clash. Hebrew is a language with a tonal accent, it uses many mouth sounds and has a different tempo than French. This blending [of pitch, phonetics, and rhythmic differences] creates a unique and interesting contrast. TAKEAWAY From this, we can instinctively learn a couple of things. Actors are generally much better when they act while speaking a language they know well. It may sound obvious, but I could literally feel it when French or Israeli actors were acting in English as compared with their own language. This is possibly influenced by my own experiences of being a local and having been a foreigner. The mix of languages is definitely not a handicap. On the contrary, it gives different colors of sound, energy, and intonations that makes the rhythm fluctuate—and sounds like a mix of melodies from different countries. An interesting observation that I typically experience on foreign movies is that when an actor is acting well, even if you don't understand the words, there is a "music" that doesn't betray. With the Hebrew scenes, Thomas Vincent got very excited because he had the feeling that the scene was good—even if he didn't understand the words. Of course, he knew what they were saying from the script, but still... To me, this shows that the information is not only in the words, but also in the way an actor uses their voice, their tone of voice, and control of breath. It is for all the above reasons that I wanted to share this experience because I have a strong feeling that the sound of the dialogue is the witness of the energy of an actor, and it speaks to the heart of the audience. • " " The mix of languages is definitely not a handicap. On the contrary, it gives different colors of sound, energy, and intonations that makes the rhythm fluctuate—and sounds like a mix of melodies from different countries. Top to bottom: Noa Koler (left) with an Arab-Israeli cast member that spoke Hebrew and Israeli Arab; wiring up Noa Koler, Esti in the movie, while she speaks with Thomas Vincent; the principal actor, Nadia Tereszkiewicz, and her father in the TV series, Tcheky Karyo. Both speak French together and English with all the Israeli. Tcheky also speaks Hebrew with some Israeli.