| Michael Goorjian: Acting in the Balance |
| Written by Assistant Admin |
| Thursday, 11 January 1996 11:11 |
 Michael Goorjian However, besides his wish to skip a little school, other early factor helped him choose acting as a profession. “As I was growing up, my family had friends who had season tickets to Berkeley Rep and they would always give them to me,” Goorjian relays. “Seeing shows there really just blew my mind. Not necessarily from an actor’s point of view, but it was that whole magical kind of experience. That [theater] company creatively influenced me and gave me the desire to be involved with theater.” From there, he began studying with San Francisco’s American Conservatory Theatre youth group and soon was appearing in plays. His first professional job in Los Angeles was as a dancer. “My agent in San Francisco sent me on one last audition before I left for Los Angeles to attend UCLA. He called me in and said, ‘I want to send you on this audition, but do you dance?’ I said, ‘No, not really, but I’ll fake it.’” On the audition, he met choreographer Kenny Ortega, who went on to cast Goorjian as one of the key news-boys in the Disney film Newsies, as well as several episodes of Hull High. Small roles in Forever Young with Mel Gibson and Chaplin with Robert Downey, Jr. followed. But it was his recurring role as Ray Nelson on the critically acclaimed series Life Goes On that first caught the attention of viewers, as well as the industry. This eventually led to the role of Justin on Party of Five and the title role in David’s Mother. Of course, his stunning performance in David’s Mother earned him an Emmy, beating out such well-known and talents as Sir Ian McKelllan, Alan Alda, Richard Gere and Matthew smiling on camera,” he explains. “For me, it was exciting because I was finally using all of the stuff that I had been working to ward for the majority of my life. I finally got the chance to do something with it. I finally go t to use all of the things that I had been taught about acting. It was a job and I definitely feel that I earned my money.” And indeed he did! With his relatively swift ascension up the success ladder, it is only natural to speculate whether Goorjian has been spoiled by the temptress known as Hollywood. Are his nights spent prowling the Viper Room or beating up paparazzi? Hardly. For starters, this fast-rising actor doesn’t even live in Los Angeles. “About two years ago, I moved back to Oakland. I didn’t care how much it cost, I was determined to live up there and fly back and forth to do my work. I have a lot of good friends down here [in Los Angeles], but I had to get away and have friends who talked about things besides headshots and how much they hate casting directors,” he laughs. “Now I have a pretty good balance.” Another reason for his move back to Oakland involves his creative interests. Goorjian admits that everything that happens in Hollywood isn’t always his cup of tea. “It’s not that this is corrupt and evil L.A., but it [offers] a mode of creativity that doesn’t seem that creative to me. It’ a business first here,” he says. “I have an affinity for the Bay area, because that’s where I’m from. But there are many different [creative] aspects which aren’t explored in Hollywood, and that, to me, is what stirs me or interests me. The harmonious balance that Goorjian strives for in his life often brings him scrutiny as an actor. “People ask how can I be a serious actor, if I’m spending time learning to play the accordion (which he does) or traveling or being in a relationship or writing- spending time doing anything but acting? Some say that if you want to be a serious actor, focus on acting. Concentrate 24 hours a day on acting. That’s ridiculous!” Goorjian exclaims. “If you do that, you’re going to be the most self-centered, egotistical, limited actor ever. I’m not saying that there isn’t an importance in putting energy and time in to that, but aren’t you going to learn more about acting and portraying life or people if you know it- if you experience it, rather than learn it from a classroom scene copy of it? So in that respect, I think it’s very important to take acting seriously, but also have a life.”  Michael Goorjian Headshot Goorjian also spend time with a San Francisco-base group of young artists who call themselves Malodor, name for the 19th Century novel La Chantes de Malodor. The concept of Malodor. The concept of Malodor, which Goorjian co-founded, is somewhat loosely defined. “We come up with a large-scale idea-a story,” Goorjian explains. “We have artists in various fields who then, depending on their time availability, contribute to the project based on their own venues. For example, we have musicians who crate music base on the story that we are doing. We have a cartoonist who does a comic book based on characters in our story. The second film that I’m doing is a segment from a story of our project.” In addition, Goorjian is a founding member of Buffalo Knights, a theater organization in Los Angeles formed by UCLA alumni who present new play-wrights. The company recently presented Salome, which he choreographed. It was during this production that Goorjian met his current girlfriend, actress Sydney Bennent. Goorjian admits that he was always weary of dating another actor, but when he met Bennent, his mind was changed. To aspiring actors and artists, Goorjian offer this: “If you want advice and opinions on that. But if you’re interested in the creative, artistic side of it- leave!” he laughs. However, you sense that he is only half joking. But on a more serious not, he advises actors to avoid certain Hollywood traps. “You can end up self typing yourself and putting yourself into this little cookie cutter duplicate of whoever is the hot actor in town,” he explains. “Everybody starts imitating everybody else, and even you start imitating your friends. It’s awful! It’s really hard not to do that because you want to work and you see that that’s what they want, so everybody loses perspective of themselves. I think it’s very important to separate yourself from it and keep your own person.” |
| Last Updated on Tuesday, 26 January 2010 14:54 |