How to Fake Cry

Co-authored by Ben Whitehair and Hunter Rising

Last Updated: January 21, 2023 References

Whether you’re acting a scene that requires you to cry or if you want to grab someone’s attention, being able to fake your tears comes in handy. Crying will make people empathize with you and they will believe what you’re saying. While you shouldn’t use it to manipulate people, you can pull from your emotions or use an artificial product to make your tears come faster!

Method 1

Method 1 of 2:

Pulling from Your Emotions

1
Think of a real or imagined sad situation. Think of a time when you were feeling sad and remember the emotions you felt at the time.^{[1]
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Expert Source

Ben Whitehair
Acting Coach
Expert Interview. 3 June 2021.} If you can’t pull from any moments from real life or you’re afraid that your personal experience will make you feel too much, make up a scenario that makes you sad or think of a part in a movie that made you cry.^{[2]
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- Some examples you can think of to help you feel sad are the death of a pet or someone close to you, a memory of someone or something you miss, or a really bad breakup.
- If you’re fake crying for acting, find a situation that relates to what your character is going through.
- Focus on the emotions you want to feel rather than trying to cry. When you tell yourself you need to cry, you’re focusing on the results rather than what you need to feel at the moment. Focus on your body, breathing, and expressions instead.^{[3]
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  Expert Source
  
  Ben Whitehair
  Acting Coach
  Expert Interview. 3 June 2021.}
2
Keep your eyes wide open. Keeping your eyes open will dry them out, causing your body to produce tears. Pretend you’re holding a staring contest with someone and keep your eyes open for as long as you can. If you haven’t made tears and you feel the urge to blink, hold your eyes open with your fingers.^{[4]
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- Fan your eyes with your hands to make them dry out faster and produce more tears.
- Sometimes if you keep them half-closed, tears will start to form in the corners of your eyes.
- Don’t let anything harmful get in your eyes as you keep them open. Practice doing this indoors where there is less likely of a chance for something to blow into them.
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3
Take shallow breaths. Many times when you cry for real, you’ll start double breathing or hyperventilating because of stress. To simulate crying, recreate the effect of hyperventilation by taking rapid, shallow breaths. Not only will add to your believability, but it will help your body make tears.^{[5]
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- To calm down, start taking deeper breaths.
- Hyperventilating too much will prevent healthy amounts of oxygen from getting into your blood. Only do this in short bursts to start your tears.
4
Make a sad facial expression. Think about what your face does when you cry. Replicate the emotion by trembling your lip while frowning and scrunching your eyebrows. Practice in a mirror to make sure you aren’t overacting or looking unbelievable.^{[6]
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- Watch your favorite movies that have a crying scene to see how the actors look when they’re about to break down. Try copying their facial expression.^{[7]
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  Expert Source
  
  Ben Whitehair
  Acting Coach
  Expert Interview. 3 June 2021.}
5
Combine the techniques and let your tears flow. Practice everything in front of the mirror all together to see if you can force out a few tears. If you don’t get it the first time, continue trying it every day until you can make some tears.^{[8]
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Method 2

Method 2 of 2:

Using Products to Force Tears

1
Drip eye drops in the corners of your eye for the easiest crying effect. Purchase any lubricant eye drops or artificial tears from your local pharmacy. Drip them either into your eyes or on your skin near the inside corners of each eye. Use the drops right before you need to look like you’re crying.^{[9]
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- Eye drops will roll down your cheeks quickly, so they should only be used in a pinch.
2
Rub petroleum jelly under your eyes to make it look like you’ve been crying. Rub a thin layer underneath your eyes and on the tops of your cheeks. The product will give your face a shiny and moist look as though you’ve been crying for a bit of time.^{[10]
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- Avoid getting the jelly directly in your eyes since this could cause severe irritation. Rinse out your eye with cool water if this accidentally happens.
3
Rub a menthol product just under your eyes to form real tears. Either use a vapor rub product or a tear stick from an online makeup store and apply it carefully beneath your eyes with your finger or a cotton swab. The chemicals in the menthol will slightly irritate your eyes and cause tears to form. They will also make your eyes look red and puffy to make them look more realistic.^{[11]
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- Vapor rub products can be purchased at your local pharmacy.
- Keep the product out of your eyes since it will cause severe irritation. Immediately rinse your eyes with water if you get any product in them.
4
Hold your eye open and have someone blow on it to create natural tears. Keep both eyes open and have someone blow a puff of air into each eye. If you find yourself blinking when someone else blows, use your fingers to force your eyes open.^{[12]
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- Tear blowers are sold by online makeup stores and contain menthol to promote tears faster.

Expert Q&A

Question

Should I force myself to cry?

Ben Whitehair
Social Media Expert
Ben Whitehair is a Social Media Expert and the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of TSMA Consulting. With over a decade of experience in the social media space, he specializes in leveraging social media for business and building relationships. He also focuses on social media’s impact on the entertainment industry. Ben graduated summa cum laude from The University of Colorado at Boulder with BAs in Theatre and Political Science as well as a Leadership Certificate. In addition to his work as CIO, Ben is a certified business and mindset coach and National Board Member of SAG-AFTRA. He is also a successful entrepreneur as the Co-Founder of Working.Actor, the premier business academy and coaching community for actors.

Ben Whitehair

Social Media Expert

Expert Answer

Rather than focusing on crying or tears, just try to match the emotions of the scene so you have a genuine moment.

Warnings

Don't do it too often. Especially if your aim is usually to manipulate someone. People will take hints and will notice that you manipulate someone by fake crying.

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Be careful not to get any menthol products in your eyes. They could damage your eyesight permanently.

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Don’t cry fake tears to manipulate people you care about. Once they find out you are faking, they will stop believing you.

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