On-screen Interviewing: Bad Habits

Video Transcript

"Hi, my name is Aimy Kersey. I want to talk to you today about some general screen tips. What to do when you find yourself in front of the camera? Nervous and Irritating Habits. Don't chew gum or play with your pocket change or keys while on television. This is really irritating. Everyone has nervous habits such as picking ears, noses, dead skin, touching noses, hair, and ears. You know what you do. Don't do it on TV. Seriously, it may seem funny. But when you do something continuously in front of the camera, it's accentuated ten times. I once saw a person that just blinked continuously all the way through a scene. And it got to the point that I was looking at their eyes rather than listening to what they were saying. If a person taps their foot a lot, fidgets with their hands, raises their shoulders, turns away from you, or brings their hands to their face. In other words, if they act nervous or uncomfortable, it could mean their telling a lie. Or at least, it could be interpreted that way. You know it sounds really obvious but the most important thing that you can do on camera is to sit as still as possible. Particularly since everything on camera is magnified. And many people have nervous habits that they repeat continuously. Maybe they play with their hair or they you know have their hands in their pockets jingling their coins. They got a shaky leg or whatever their particular habit may be. Sometimes people blink their eyes a lot and don't realize they're doing that. If you can sit really still on camera as much as possible without being awkward, just make very naturalistic movements and if you're not sure what to do with your hands, place them in your lap."