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204 results for “teaching”
Voice & Narration Workshop -- Making People Listen
I've narrated documentaries, audiobooks, and the voice of God himself. The secret? Slow down, breathe deeply, and mean every word. We work on resonance, pacing, and the art of reading text as if you're discovering it for the first time. Tip: Read the sentence silently first. Feel it. THEN say it aloud.
Comedy of Equals Workshop -- Screwball Technique
Bringing Up Baby and The Philadelphia Story are screwball comedies -- the man and woman are EQUALS in wit, speed, and stubbornness. I teach rapid-fire dialogue, physical comedy with dignity, and how to win an argument on screen while making the audience love both sides.
Photography Fundamentals -- Seeing Before Shooting
I was a Look Magazine photographer before I was a filmmaker. Still photography teaches you composition in ways no film school can. One frame. One moment. No second chances. We shoot on the street with 35mm cameras. Tip: The subject is never the subject. The LIGHT on the subject is the subject.
Cold-Water Swimming Coaching -- Morning Discipline
I swam in the Long Island Sound every morning, year-round, into my nineties. Cold water wakes up everything -- your body, your mind, your courage. I'll teach you to breathe, to enter the water without flinching, and to find the joy in discomfort. Tip: The first thirty seconds are terrible. After that, you're alive.
Samurai Screen Combat Workshop -- The Way of the Blade
Katana work for film. Proper draw, strike, and resheath. We use bokken (wooden swords) first, then move to iaito (blunt steel). I'll teach you the difference between real kenjutsu and what looks good on camera. Kurosawa insisted on realism -- the audience can feel a fake swing. Tip: Speed comes from relaxation, not tension.
Public Speaking Masterclass -- The Voice That Cannot Be Ignored
Whether you're addressing a boardroom or a protest march, your voice must carry conviction. I'll teach you pacing, breath control, and how to land a sentence so it stays in the room after you've left. Harry and I spoke at the March on Washington. The microphone helps, but the message does the work.
Suspense Filmmaking Masterclass -- The Bomb Under the Table
I'll teach you to terrify an audience without showing them anything. We study the shower scene in Psycho (70 cuts, no knife-on-skin contact), the crop duster in North by Northwest (silence is scarier than music), and the dinner party in Rope (one continuous take). Tip: Always give the audience more information than the characters have. That's where suspense lives.
MacGuffin Writing Kit (Plot Device Workshop Materials)
Cards, prompts, and exercises for creating compelling plot devices. The MacGuffin is the thing the characters care about but the audience doesn't -- it's the excuse for the story, not the story itself. The Maltese Falcon is a MacGuffin. The uranium in Notorious is a MacGuffin. The real story is always about people.
Chess Strategy Session (Tournament Level)
I played chess in Washington Square Park for money as a teenager. It taught me to think five moves ahead -- which is exactly what directing is. We play and I teach you to see patterns. Tip: In chess and filmmaking, the opening determines everything. Control the center early.
Stage-to-Screen Acting Workshop -- Projecting Without Shouting
I started on Broadway and moved to Hollywood. The transition destroys most actors -- they're either too big for camera or too small for stage. I teach you to calibrate. Same truth, different volume. Tip: On stage, your eyes reach the back row. On camera, your thoughts do.
Voice & Delivery Workshop -- Every Syllable Is a Weapon
My voice was my signature. Clipped, precise, weaponized. I teach you to use rhythm, pause, and emphasis to make every line land. We work on monologues from All About Eve and The Little Foxes. Tip: Slow down. The audience hangs on the pause, not the word.
Bokken Set (Oak Practice Swords, Pair)
Two red oak bokken -- standard katana length. These are the training weapons I used before every Kurosawa film. They teach you distance, timing, and respect for the blade. Tip: If you're gripping too tight, you're already losing.
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