Roman Blat - an interview, actor to photographer
Do you know Roman Blat yet? Well if you don't, it's your loss!
NEW YORK - The city is fun and all, but what really makes New York New York, is not the city itself. It's not the bars. It's not the clubs. It's not the shops. It's the people. New Yorkers like Roman Blat.
I met Roman Blat the same way I meet hundreds of New Yorkers every year, during a photo shoot. He was looking for a new set of actor headshots. He found my portfolio online and got in touch with me.
Roman Blat is an actor known for Brighton Beach (2017), The Purge: Election Year (2016), The Americans (2016), Daredevil (2015), Person of Interest (2014), The Blacklist (2014), and RabidArtWork.
Roman Blat is also a very chilled guy. He showed up with a bottle of wine and a present for me. Fun no? You can already tell this is not just a random guy.
We started shooting and he brought out what he calls his "Russian smile" you see below.
I could not stop laughing.
After that start, the shoot could not be anything but good fun and great shots. Roman is a charmer, in his most personal and unique way. He preserves his character, his personality, his own story. He's friendly but not fake. Quite rare in show biz.
I asked Roman Blat a couple of questions and I am glad I can share his story with you.
How did you ended up in New York?
My family departed Riga, Latvia and immigrated to New York in 1993. I was eight years old when we arrived and did not speak any English. I was enrolled in the fourth grade, at the P.S. 206 elementary school in Brooklyn. Since I was not able to understand the teachers, they gave me an exemption from all homework, except math. They reasoned that Russians know math. The following year, in fifth grade, I refused to do homework for the first two weeks. When asked why, I responded in English: "I can't do the homework, because I do not speak English." I was caught and had to start doing homework.
Why did you choose acting, how did you study/prepare for your career?
Like most people, I never knew what I wanted to do in life. I had so many different jobs and never cared for any of them. Jobs ranging from collecting cans and bottles on the street, to working as a banker for J.P. Morgan Chase. I enjoyed day trading for a while but even that wasn't my passion.
An ex-girlfriend, who was an aspiring actress once dragged me with her to an open call. On the way out we were asked if we wanted to be background in a big budget film. I agreed, without even knowing much of what that meant. That was my first taste of the acting world. I had always believed that becoming an actor was unattainable, not realistic, a fools errand. After that experience, I began to think that it could be achievable, and that I could get rich and famous with minimal effort.
After a year of dabbling and extensive research I began to understand that becoming a famous actor might take a little more effort than originally expected. I started to enroll in classes, workshops, and networking vigorously. Through the work in various classes, I began to developing a passion, a desire to get better, to excel above and beyond minimal effort! Soon after, I noticed myself standing out in classes and getting special attention from faculty. For the first time ever, I knew what I was supposed to do in life. This is an amazing and powerful feeling.
A comedian friend I met networking in the village, introduced me to my current manager. She hated me at first. I tried to sound like I knew more than I actually did and she saw right through the bullshit. I spent a year of harassing her to give me another chance. I would email her anytime I had a new small achievement. I would not get a response. Every time I took a new class, met a new casting director, got a role in a student film or a short, any photo shoot, any and everything that showed my effort and resolve, I would send her an email. With the help of my friend and all the emails she finally gave me an audition. After that audition she finally agreed to work with me. Since then we have become friends.
I have booked various roles on hit television shows, blockbuster films, many student and short films. I am progressing quickly, but there is a long way to go. Every few months the same feeling comes along. A feeling of greatness, a feeling of awareness, a feeling that says yes! Now I finally get it! I am so fucking good!! This feeling is directly followed by shit. A feeling of inadequacy and despair, a feeling of doubt and panic, a feeling of knowing nothing. This cycle repeats itself continuously. It is getting much easier to power through the shitty feelings to get back to greatness. I continue to take classes, workshops, seminars and combine everything I learn into my own style. Progress is key. Just keep going forward and getting back to the feeling of greatness!
Who are the people that inspire you?
One of the people that inspire me the most is my Mother. She is the strongest and kindest person I have ever known. Her super human ability to persevere and empathize in spite of extraordinary obstacles is inspiring. I also enjoy the work of actor Jeff Bridges. His abilities are impressive. Love The Big Lebowski and The Dude!
What do you consider your highest achievement?
My highest achievement to date is booking my first network role on NBC, The Blacklist. It reassured me of my progress and that I am on the right track. I auditioned for Director and Executive Producer Michael W. Watkins. At the audition he told me that the character was the opposite of what I just did for him. He gave me another chance and was impressed with how well I took his direction. He told me that is was highly difficult to change the character so drastically in an instance. He might have told me that I had the job right there and then but I couldn't really understand because I was concerned with my fuck up on the first try.
How about your everyday life, what is your favorite spot in the city?
One of my favorite places to relax is at the Spa88 on Fulton Street. The sauna is a big part of my heritage and I love it! For about forty bucks you can spend the whole day there. They have an Olympic size pool, a jacuzzi, one hot sauna, a steam room, a shvitz room, a cold room, an ultraviolet room, cold plunge, restaurant, drinks, lounging area, and a smoking room. I love that the crowd is always diverse. Feels like a day on vacation for me. One of my Favorite places to have a drink is at The Hudson Hotel on 58th Street, by central park. The drinks are overpriced but the atmosphere is amazing, the crowd is gorgeous and super friendly. This place feels like a castle with huge hidden rooms all over. There is a wonderful view from the 15th floor terrace, which has hammocks and a bar.
Famous actors and social causes: if you could change just one thing in the World, what would that be?
I would like to eliminate hunger. No one should be hungry in this world. There are enough resources to keep everyone fed. Some time ago, one of my best friends and I tried to start a movement called backpacking through hunger. We would take a small portion of our weekly income and combine it to purchase produce. We made ziploc bags of handmade delicious sandwiches, a piece of fruit, a bag of chips, and a juice box. Then we put them in our backpacks and went around the city giving them out to homeless people. Some of the people were highly appreciative and some were hostile. We stopped after just a few months and sort of gave up but I still think that solving hunger is a change the world needs and that it is achievable.
Roman Blat is an actor known for Brighton Beach (2017), The Purge: Election Year (2016), The Americans (2016), Daredevil (2015), Person of Interest (2014), The Blacklist (2014), and RabidArtWork. You can read more about him on IMDb, click here
Colby Keller - Porn meets contemporary art
Colby Keller, artist, actor, and honorary BEARD OF NEW YORK
New York - Colby Keller and I had a fun filled photo shoot in my studio last week.
We got started shooting on my "BEARDS OF NEW YORK pink" background. We wanted to do that since last year and I imagined Colby would look striking. I LOVE to be right.
Working with Colby is easy as it gets. He's always in a cheerful mood, always open to new ideas. He knows his body and knows how to offer it to the camera. But he also lets his personality surface, he's not scared to be vulnerable.
Most actors are amazing at flirting with the lens. While this is obviously a good thing, it can sometimes make it difficult to "get the real person" and portraits can look rehearsed, or even fake. This is definitely not Colby's problem.
He's big, bold, and blonde. It's like the human version of my little Bertie (that must be why they liked each other so much!).
If you know how I work, you know I like to give people the space and time to be themselves in front of my lens. I don't necessary hate directing (control freak!) but a portrait is not a fashion shoot.
With Colby Keller that's really not an issue. Put the lights on, talk about everything you're genuinely interested in, and the energy will start building up.
These above and below are some of my favorite shots. Half way through the afternoon (yep, I never shoot in the morning...zzz) the boy was hungry. I tapped into my Italian side and we went to the kitchen. I washed, peeled, chopped, grated, and whipped up an nice plate of pasta. Yes babe, fresh basil, garlic roasted potatoes on penne, sauté to perfection.
We ate our late lunch and went on talking, from childhood memories to relationship drama. A tea for Colby and double expresso for me, and we were energized and ready for a second round. Awesome.
More about Colby
Colby Keller is an American visual artist, blogger, and adult actor. Born October 18, 1980 in Michigan, Colby Keller was raised in Texas where he graduated from the University of Houston, with a bachelor's degree in Anthropology. In addition he is a graduate of The Maryland Institute College of Art, with a Master of Fine Arts (MFA), Visual and Performing Arts.
His career in adult film started in 2004 and he has amassed a large fan base with both his films and his long-standing blog, The Big Shoe Diaries. He has been nominated for a number of awards and in 2013, World of Wonder awarded him, the WOWie Award for Best Blog. Keller is nominated for 8 2015 Grabby Awards. Keller has also appeared in the short, Zolushka, a queer retelling of Cinderella and the popular series Capitol Hill both by the cult filmmaker Wes Hurley.
In 2013, Colby Keller collaborated with artist Cameron Stalheim on a project called Myth as Object, that resulted in a 2014 exhibit as Stalheim's MFA graduating thesis at the Maryland Institute College of Art. Keller's body was cast in silicone to create a thirty-foot long merman sculpture in his likeness.
In 2012, Keller appeared in a masquerade-themed music video for the song After Dark, by dance artists Undercover. And, in his 2013 music video for Cannibal, Natti Vogel enlisted Keller to play a hooded witch to his tempted Hansel in a recreation of Hansel & Gretel.
With $45,400 that was raised in a 2014 Indiegogo campaign, Colby Keller began shooting his own art/porn project, Colby Does America, a series of adult videos being filmed in every state across America as well as several provinces in Canada.
Read more about BEARDS OF NEW YORK
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