Interview with Ellie Nixon, Mask maker and BA (hons) Acting Lecturer at AUB.

The meeting with Ellie today has really made me consider the different elements of my mask, as well as the importance of body language to essentially "bring the mask to life". She underlined the different categories a mask can fall into:

- Larval masks- These masks are more focused on form and don't usually have much detail or detailed characteristics. They tend also to be more animalistic rather than human.

- Character masks- These often are clearly attached to human features and transform the actor completely into another character/person.

- Primitive masks- These bring together both character and larval masks. In consequence, they usually convey abstract or distorted views of a human ect.

Another aspect to take into consideration is whether the mask is to be a full mask or a half mask. This is because if the mask covers only half of the face, leaving the mouth uncovered, it gives the character the element of speech. I have so far been making half masks, this contradicts my narrative as the protagonist loses her ability to speak, only growl.

I also need to think about the eyes. Its a very important aspect to a mask and adds character as well as the acting showing emotion. When thinking about the film, I need to consider these elements and how the eyes can be captured in shots. The last thing I want is for the audience to not be able to see the eyes as the mask hinders the view.

"The mask is the body".
To be able to bring a mask to life, the actor must use the rest of his/her body to interpret the mood and emotions of the character. They need to be aware of their body's movements from head to toe. Three areas of the body can particularly effective in performance.

- The pelvis: This area of the body can be effective when demonstrating the characters use of space. If they were very confident, they would move with their hips pushed forwards, comparing to someone not so comfortable with the space would keep the pelvis back.

- The chest: Emotions can be conveyed by the movement of the chest. Similar to the pelvis, if the chest is puffed out and the actor stands tall, it would interpret a very proud and perhaps overtly confident persona. For my character, i think its important if the actor kept their chest sucked in, and cowering over. These emphasise the vulnerability of the character. Also the breathing of the character can be added in the film. Quick breathing and slight movement of the shoulders could demonstrate the panicked state my protagonist, Callisto, is in.

- The head: This body part signifies the intellect of the character. Head down shows deep thinking and an avoidance from talking or catching the attention of other people/characters. Head up shows a very awestruck and day dreamy approach to acting.

Also Ellie introduced me to mask maker, Oskar Schlemmer that made abstract masks for performance. I'm inspired by his use of large shapes and the way in which he distorts scale.