People who are a movie buff or have a passion for acting will have a mutual hatred for over-acting. Nothing is more cringe-worthy for the viewers than overacting or ‘over-the-top’ expressions. It has the power to ruin a perfect movie. Many great movies get completely ruined because of overacting in one or two scenes. No matter how great the action scene was or how nice the story was, all you end up remembering is, is that one particular scene.

Importance Of Micro Expressions

When you start taking classes from any reputed acting academy in Kolkata, one of the first things you will be taught about is micro-expressions. Simply said they are the minute changes in facial expressions which last only for a second. The two main features of micro expressions are:

  1. They bring about only subtle changes in the facial expressions.
  2. They last for not more than fraction of seconds.

Micro expressions are extremely important from an acting point of view. They are very helpful in creating the mood of the scene. A person might not even say a word but through his /her micro-expressions, he /she can bring the whole focus onto himself /herself.

So without delay, let’s talk about the 7 universal micro expressions:

Disgust

One of the easiest ones to recognize, disgust captures more attention in a room than any other expression. The two main points of expression are our nose and mouth. Wrinkling around the nose and rising of upper lips are the two main features of a face, screaming disgust.

Fear

Tense brows, wide-open eyes and long heavy breathing are the major signs of fear. No matter how much someone tries to hide it, it will come through. According to an acting institute in Kolkata, fear is one of the most primate feeling and expression.

Anger

All of us are highly familiar with this one. Anger is expressed with lowered and scowled eyebrows. The mouth is tightened and tensed. If the lips are apart, one can easily make out the clenching of the teeth.

Happiness

You can make out that a person is happy when their brows are relaxed and the corner of their lips increases in height. The lips are in symmetry and the eyes are highly expressive while smiling.

Surprised

“Oh! Look how surprised she is. She almost had a heart attack.” Wide-open eyes, raised, arched eyebrows and loose jaws are what ‘surprised’ looks like.

Disdain

Disdain or sadness is one of the toughest micro-expressions to recognize. There might not be any change in the face altogether. While trying to identify disdain or sadness, you need to carefully observe the lower part of the face. The downward pull in the lips is a common giveaway.

Not only acting, but expressions are also an important part of dancing too. If you want help in improving your dancing skills, consult an excellent dance academy in Kolkata to work on them.