Because my dogs are actors in movies that my husband and I produce, I don't want them always looking at me when responding to a cue. I want them to perform what I'm telling them to do as if it were their own idea, not in the intense, immediate response, obviously-cued way seen in the obedience ring.
Basically, to teach my dogs to respond to cues while NOT looking at me, I teach him to look at something else in his environment. I train this by having the dog focus on an object rather than my face when responding to a cue.
All cues are first taught with the dog looking at me and then, when he solidly knows the cue, I ask him to do it while focusing on a toy or a piece of food. Ultimately, for acting purposes, my goal is for the dog to look at whatever I indicate while performing a cue I've given.
