If you haven't prepped your witness with on-camera practice, shame on you. Oh, did that slip out? Sorry.
Okay, if, for some lame reason, you can't do a camera test and practice to see how your witness will look onscreen, remember the rule of thumb: The more full-face you see them onscreen, the easier it is for the jury/audience to identify with them. You sit close to the camera so when they look at you, the camera sees most of their face. An exception might be an extreme difference in how they look from various angles. If they have off-putting scars on one side, for instance. Use your judgment.
If you don't know how they'll look, then tell them to look at you when they're answering. Again, you'll be sitting close to the camera.
Some practiced witnesses can look into the camera convincingly. Some.
Some people can get away with looking back and forth between camera and questioner. Again, use your judgment. It's easy to watch them and see what you hope you'll see. Force yourself to see what's really there.
Don't instruct them on the record where to look. You must deal with this ahead of time.
Don't, especially with inexperienced lay witnesses, ask the question then abandon them by burying your face in your docs. Even experienced actors do better looking at attentive, sympathetic faces. The top of your head is not good company in a stressful dep.
You're a very experienced media consumer. Bring that judgment to bear in this high-stakes production.
Your witness, counselor.
No comments:
Post a Comment