# Female scare acting tips?



## imsogabby

I completed my first year of scare acting in a scare zone last year at a amusement park. And my second year is approaching. And while, I seemed to get in pretty good scares. I found it hard to push the envelope as much as I'd like. A lot of tactics that worked for my male coworkers definitely didn't work as well for me. I know I can do a scream or the creepy possessed girl thing. But that's what almost all the girls do? So I was hoping to hear some more creative ideas. Plus being in a scare zone, I almost never have the element of surprise due to being out in the open(unless I'm part of a distraction scare) Any help is appreciated!!


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## medusa53

What is your character or costume?


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## Gorylovescene

You could try making yourself more of an oddity than a terrorizer. I worked in a haunted house at an amusement park, and I was having this same discussion with one of the haunt actors who worked in the line. She was also constantly exposed, and needed to entertain without necessarily being able to sneak up on any of the patrons. Here are some of the ideas we tossed back and forth.

1. Be a bashful or flirtatious monster-- think overdramatic and cartoonish. This will encourage people to approach you. Say something ridiculous or creepy to them (if you are in a particularly themed area you can think several related conversation pieces)This may not get people running and screaming, but you will be memorable. 

2. Instead of going for creepy/possessed, just try a little unbalanced. Pick imaginary bugs out of your hair (or your fellow actors) and pretend to eat them. Approach stationary people and stare blankly/affect a tick. Stop suddenly and shriek (The actor I was speaking of previously would rapidly blink just one eye and then scream and abruptly stop). Start clawing/pulling at your face and scream "Get it off! Get it off!"

3. Get creative with hiding places. If you are out in the open, but there are bushes, garbage cans, food stands, etc. to hide behind take advantage of those for a jump and scare. As a tip-- a good, low "growl-y" sort of scream or roar coming from a woman tends to make people a little more likely to trip over their own feet, in my limited experience. Of course it's also more likely to irritate your throat, so choose wisely 

Obviously props can be fun and helpful as well, but can be hard to get them approved. If you can get your hands on something it opens up all kinds of options.

I'll brainstorm and see if I can come up with anything else, but I hope these are at least moderately helpful for you.


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## corey872

imsogabby said:


> ... I found it hard to push the envelope as much as I'd like. A lot of tactics that worked for my male coworkers definitely didn't work as well for me. ...


Elaborate?


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## fontgeek

Depending upon your character, and physical limitations or capabilities, you might look at scary styled contact lenses, carrying a super bright (e.g. 2000 lumen) flashlight to "uplight" your face. With scary makeup, maybe including some gory fangs or scary teeth, the flash of the bright light and the quick grimace or flashing of teeth can scare many folks. Also keep in m ind that appearing out of the normal range of hight tends to freak people out too. The more you put yourself out of the range of normalcy/comfort zone to people the more effective all/any of your stunts or tricks will be. You might look at making a fake ribcage and chest/torso piece that you can wear and flash too. Again, people look for "Normal" so anything you can do that's creepy and out of the norm helps make people even more uneasy. If you are hunched over, and wearing a loose robe or extra large coat (shorten the sleeves so that they fit) it lets you have the fake torso hang down, thanks to gravity, and help c complete the illusion that you that you are a walking cadaver, probably in search of a good "meal". Carrying a fake limb to "munch on" can also go a long way.


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## imsogabby

corey872 said:


> Elaborate?


Most of the typical scared such as stalking and stares didn't work because most guests didn't find me as intimidating.


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## imsogabby

medusa53 said:


> What is your character or costume?


I'm a biker vampire if that makes sense. It's my scare zone theme.


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## imsogabby

fontgeek said:


> Depending upon your character, and physical limitations or capabilities, you might look at scary styled contact lenses, carrying a super bright (e.g. 2000 lumen) flashlight to "uplight" your face. With scary makeup, maybe including some gory fangs or scary teeth, the flash of the bright light and the quick grimace or flashing of teeth can scare many folks. Also keep in m ind that appearing out of the normal range of hight tends to freak people out too. The more you put yourself out of the range of normalcy/comfort zone to people the more effective all/any of your stunts or tricks will be. You might look at making a fake ribcage and chest/torso piece that you can wear and flash too. Again, people look for "Normal" so anything you can do that's creepy and out of the norm helps make people even more uneasy. If you are hunched over, and wearing a loose robe or extra large coat (shorten the sleeves so that they fit) it lets you have the fake torso hang down, thanks to gravity, and help c complete the illusion that you that you are a walking cadaver, probably in search of a good "meal". Carrying a fake limb to "munch on" can also go a long way.


Thank you so much for these ideas. I'm definitely gonna discuss these with the costume and makeup team this year.


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## imsogabby

Gorylovescene said:


> You could try making yourself more of an oddity than a terrorizer. I worked in a haunted house at an amusement park, and I was having this same discussion with one of the haunt actors who worked in the line. She was also constantly exposed, and needed to entertain without necessarily being able to sneak up on any of the patrons. Here are some of the ideas we tossed back and forth.
> 
> 1. Be a bashful or flirtatious monster-- think overdramatic and cartoonish. This will encourage people to approach you. Say something ridiculous or creepy to them (if you are in a particularly themed area you can think several related conversation pieces)This may not get people running and screaming, but you will be memorable.
> 
> 2. Instead of going for creepy/possessed, just try a little unbalanced. Pick imaginary bugs out of your hair (or your fellow actors) and pretend to eat them. Approach stationary people and stare blankly/affect a tick. Stop suddenly and shriek (The actor I was speaking of previously would rapidly blink just one eye and then scream and abruptly stop). Start clawing/pulling at your face and scream "Get it off! Get it off!"
> 
> 3. Get creative with hiding places. If you are out in the open, but there are bushes, garbage cans, food stands, etc. to hide behind take advantage of those for a jump and scare. As a tip-- a good, low "growl-y" sort of scream or roar coming from a woman tends to make people a little more likely to trip over their own feet, in my limited experience. Of course it's also more likely to irritate your throat, so choose wisely
> 
> Obviously props can be fun and helpful as well, but can be hard to get them approved. If you can get your hands on something it opens up all kinds of options.
> 
> I'll brainstorm and see if I can come up with anything else, but I hope these are at least moderately helpful for you.


Thank you so so much! I'm glad to know I'm not the only one who has had this dilemma. These are very helpful!


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## Gorylovescene

imsogabby said:


> Thank you so so much! I'm glad to know I'm not the only one who has had this dilemma. These are very helpful!


I'm glad! I hope you'll share how your season is going when the time comes.


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## imsogabby

Gorylovescene said:


> I'm glad! I hope you'll share how your season is going when the time comes.


I definitely will, thank you!


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## Abby Normal

most fun I had last year just as a weird possessed demon girl I guess but one thing I did was I was munching on beets ,...it looks so gross if people don't know what it is. Might work for your vampire theme ,...though hard to chew with fangs lol


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## Longmont Haunt

Something I always thought would be cool, and really get people to buy in, would be to act like a patron of the haunted house that had truly lost his/her friends, etc. In other words, introduce a bit of realism: hysterics, saying things that someone who legitimately came through and lost his/her friends would say ("we came in all together, and got separated. Now I can't find them or the exit, and no one will help me!"). Just a thought, which may not work in practice, but removing the "it's all pretend" veneer seems like a winner.

Cheers!


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## imsogabby

Abby Normal said:


> most fun I had last year just as a weird possessed demon girl I guess but one thing I did was I was munching on beets ,...it looks so gross if people don't know what it is. Might work for your vampire theme ,...though hard to chew with fangs lol


Haha thats a really good idea I'll definitely try!


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## imsogabby

Longmont Haunt said:


> Something I always thought would be cool, and really get people to buy in, would be to act like a patron of the haunted house that had truly lost his/her friends, etc. In other words, introduce a bit of realism: hysterics, saying things that someone who legitimately came through and lost his/her friends would say ("we came in all together, and got separated. Now I can't find them or the exit, and no one will help me!"). Just a thought, which may not work in practice, but removing the "it's all pretend" veneer seems like a winner.
> 
> Cheers!


Sounds good, I'll definitely try to add that in!

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## jabberwocky

Hi, just wanna jump in real Quik.
I had worked a lot with my niece(high school age) and her friends for a haunt they were helping in.
1- A walk. Something that makes your body look contorted or broken. Should not move that way type. The Exorcist stair scene is a great example.
2- Staring from a distance. Gives people a bad feeling. And if possible, once you've gotten the groups attention, slowly start making your way closer. Stopping ever so often so as not to reach them, but enough to keep them unnerved. Then just as you get close enough, find interest in a different group or patron, leaving first victim wondering "wtf?".
3- Blank stares I think are great females.
Sometimes it's just as good to be unsettling, as it is to be scary.

Lastly, (please no one get offended) no in your face, high pitched screaming.
It comes off as more annoying than scary.
Remember, your your not 6'4", 260lb.
Try to stick with "anticipation fear" instead of "intimidation fear".
I'm sure that might sound alittle sexist, but I'm just trying to help you get the best out of it.


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## jabberwocky

Oh and Happy Halloween.
Robert


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## Copchick

I don't do any acting, but in going to some of the theme parks and such, one thing that I find creepy in the females is them not saying anything at all. Just staring, straight into my eyes and walking into my personal space is unnerving to me. I will say what irritated me most was just a constant screaming. Just screaming. It's not necessary unless it's in an appropriate setting. Good luck, I'm sure you'll do fine with all the advice you've been given here. Do what feels most natural to the setting or scene.


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## RoxyBlue

I second the "no screaming" recommendation. Not only is it annoying and unimaginative, but it can really do a number on the actor's voice.


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## GhostshipManistee

For me it's timing...I can be dressed in my regular clothes and get a good response if my timing to jump out is spot on..
B


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## Stazy101

These tips are helpful! I'm a female narrator on a hayride and try to come up with different ways to scare or be creepy as well as different ways to dress. Screaming is out. Even talking loud can hurt your throat after awhile.


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## Chatty_Patti

I enjoy being the unbalanced, insane, or possessed female. Characters such as Annabelle, Valak the demon nun, or an insane clown are some of my favorites. I feel that downplaying or being subtle more effective. Staring at them in silence with crazy contacts and a cocked head and ending with a crazy laugh and skipping away. Or staring as they pass then turning to following them. Silence is scary, they don't know what comes next.


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## xredge

Chatty_Patti said:


> Silence is scary, they don't know what comes next.


Very True, in years past I wouldn't move, only on rare occasions for that startle scare. Wore a mask wear you could not see my eyes at all. Freaked lots of people out trying to figure out if I was real or not adm would eb questioning it the whole time. Had one kid that was offering people money to come hit me. Think he spent at least 10 minutes trying to figure it out and would try to get me to move. Just kept perfectly still standing with my back against the tree.


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## fontgeek

I second the no screaming routine. It gets really old for the patrons as well as for you, the actor. Try this instead, start whispering a conversation with someone or something as you wander towards guests. Let the discussion become a little more animated as you get nearer to the guests, and "argue" so that "one of you" has to tell the other to shut up/be quiet.
Kind of a Smeagal/Golum routine. People want to hear so they get quiet and try to follow the "Discussion" as you approach, and your discussion can be as bizarre as you want, maybe something about eating guests, whether you like light meat or dark meat, eating bugs, whatever. You can ask guest for their opinion on "Who's Right" for whatever your conversation or argument is centered around. Getting the guests involved can help freak them out for who or what might come at them next too.


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## Mother Topia

Chatty_Patti said:


> I feel that downplaying or being subtle more effective.


 I agree. I work at a horror- themed escape room as a game master. Granted, this is easier than a crowd because all eyes are on me, but to stay in character the entire time is tough. I found that keeping them off balance by sometimes smiling nicely then cutting to a 'deadly' line with eyes wide and mean, has them jump more than ghoulish laughter.


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