The very first time I got to act was when me and my girlfriend at the time were walking in the mall and got spotted by a local director who happen to be shooting a clothing line commercial in the mall, and asked could we be in the commercial because we had the perfect look for what he was shooting, we said yes and shot the commercial two days later. Then one day, three months later I’m sitting home and the commercial comes on and I freeeeaaaakkk!!!!! I was too hyped!!!! ,But in that instant I knew acting is what I wanted to do for the rest of my life, I was seventeen then.
indieactivity: Did you study acting?
Gregory: WI started studying acting when I was twenty seven years old at KD college/conservatory for film & dramatic arts in Dallas Texas. KD was the building blocks for my acting career because I didn’t know much about acting back then so being at KD was a way for me to learn the fundamentals. We had multiple classes each semester consisting of stage combat, acting I, voice I, scene study, auditioning and on camera work. we got to perform for the entire school, we would put on a full stage production towards the end of each semester and it would be a chance to showcase what you’ve been training on in class. This ultimately helped me to become more comfortable in my own skin and really let go when it came to performing. I would recommend KD to anyone who is just starting out and wants to build a career in acting.
indieactivity: What acting technique do you use?
Gregory: I think Denzel Washington got it right when he said “I don’t have a technique I take a little bit from each one and make it my own” and that’s what I’ve been doing for a while now not just sticking to one style/technique but taking a little from each one trying to make it my own so it comes from a real place and the acting doesn’t come off systematic, you know really experimenting to find what works for you to have a great performance.
Gregory Gordon as Eddie’ in Hesperia (2016)
indieactivity: Do you take courses to improve your craft?
Gregory: Fortunately I’ve been blessed to always have a busy schedule so I really don’t have the time to get into classes as much as I would like, so I do casting director Workshops when the right one comes along. it’s a good chance to get real feedback plus some pointers and advice from the casting directors you’ve auditioned for or will audition for ,it really gives you a chance to showcase your skills in front of the right people with honest opinions. Workshops also gives you the advantage to meet
decision makers in film/Television who could possibly kick start your career and with all the talent and competition these days you need relationships with casting directors to stay ahead of the bunch.
indieactivity: What acting books do you read?
Gregory: A History In Narrative Film by David a. Cook, The Arden Shakespeare Complete Works by Shakespeare, The Film Actors Complete Career Guide by Lawrence Parke, Acting I by Robert Cohen and Stella Adler’s Guide To Acting by Stella Adler and How To Make It In Hollywood by Linda Buzzell, these are some of the books I’ve e read, I use them as a reference whenever I need to know something or I know someone trying to get into acting I let them use these books for references.
indieactivity: How do you keep fit as an actor?
Gregory: I usually keep fit by staying in the gym five days out the week, the two days I’m off I still do cardio to keep my endurance up plus I have an extra bonus on the side because my wife is a personal trainer so she stays on top of me to make sure I’m in the best condition for whatever role I might land. Mentally I try to always get some alone time when I am at home to go over my thoughts and do some self-evaluation to see how I feel, where I stand with things at the current time and what can make me a better person/actor going forward.
indieactivity: How do you prepare for a role, when you get it?
Gregory: I personally like to read the script multiple times before I do anything else I want to find the tone of the script so I can be comfortable with saying the words. I read the whole script out loud over and over until it hurts so saying the words become almost second nature that gives me the room to play around to find the character. I also like to do a lot of set rehearsal because I always tend to find out more about the character when I’m on set and can actually see the setting ,that’s when I get even more ideas that will give the character more layers and make the performance stand out and memorable.
Gregory Gordon as Eddie’ in Hesperia (2016)
indieactivity: How do you create a character from a script into a person?
Gregory: Its very simple I find out what the character is fighting for in the script and I build around that. Whatever the character is fighting for helps me understand what type of person they are which I can build a back story from to give the character a life. This helps me to get in character even more because of the work I’ve put into script to find the realness/personality of the character.
indieactivity: How do you stay fresh on a production set?
Gregory: I stay to myself between takes, It helps me stay focused and in the scene, sometimes random conversations can throw me off so I put on headphones with no music and keep far away until it’s time to shoot. I want to be fully involved in the scene so having alone time and silence is key for me to putting on a great performance.
indieactivity: Describe a memorable character you played?
Gregory: I recently got to play a the leader of a gang who was trying to go straight and rebuild his life so he could take care of his little brother before he makes the wrong mistakes he did but unfortunate circumstances lead to his brother deaths and he’s left trying to figure what to do next. For this role I really got to show range and a different side of the stereotypical thug /gangbanger I definitely think I took the character somewhere else by stepping out the box with the choices I was making and giving the role bit of a curve from the typical thug which makes this role super special for me because I really stepped out my comfort zone and tried something new.
indieactivity: Explain one creative choice you took on set?
Gregory: The best choice I ever took was when I was told by a director to improv a whole scene because he really wanted to see what we could come up with and I just ran with it we did four takes and each take was totally different from the next, he told me that in post-production each take was so good he had a really hard time choosing between them. I really enjoyed making this film just because of the free range I was given to play with the character which I think helped my character choices.
Gregory Gordon in The Mason Brothers (2017), Keith Sutliff (Dir.)
indieactivity: What do you want most from a director?
Gregory: This may come off wrong but the only thing I want from a director is to make me look good on camera, inexperienced directors tend to use bad camera angles, the lighting is wrong, the script is written badly, or post production isn’t that good. These are things that can make you look bad as an actor and we know in Hollywood image is everything.
indieactivity: What actors do you long to work with?
Gregory: Denzel Washington would be the main actor I would want to work with, his resume is outstanding, he’s humble beyond measure, his work ethic is crazy, he’s drops knowledge constantly and he’s one of the greatest of all time in my opinion.
indieactivity: Why?
Gregory: Denzel Washington epitomizes what an actor should embody, from the way he carries himself to the way he approaches acting he has so much knowledge that being on set with him you have no other choice but to absorb information. Being on set with Denzel Washington you would also have to be at the top of your game because he’s definitely going to bring out the best in you. The last thing is how he humbles himself, he never lets himself become to famous and he always drops jewels of knowledge that me and I’m sure others actors are using to push through Hollywood.
indieactivity: What advice would you give to actors?
Gregory: My advice to actors would be to master your craft ,learn as much as you can about acting, work stupid hard, chase down opportunities and never give up. Also I would say experience life as much as you can take up hobby’s , travel when possible, learn about other cultures, enjoy life to the fullest because those moments in your life will give you something to draw from and ultimately make you a better actor.
indieactivity: Briefly write about your career?
Gregory: As of right now I have a movie out in select theaters called The Mason Brothers check Rotten Tomatoes for local showtimes and also look out for it to be on Netflix this next year. It has a great story told by a great director who also chose some great actors to be a part of this film. I have another film that will be coming out soon called Hesperia directed by Steven Hellgoth that probably will go straight to Netflix so be on the lookout for that one too. I’ve also done food network as myself on a hidden camera show called Mystery Diners that was pretty dope, my crazy ex is another memorable television show I’ve done where I played a suspicious repo man. Another project I got to be a part of was a video game called Wasteland 2 on Xbox1 we got to travel to a national park to shoot the in video game scenes we really had a good time shooting this one. I have a lot more credits for awesome projects but I only wanted to point out the ones I really enjoyed working on.
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