In an exclusive interview, Flickering Myth sat down with actor/director Adi Spektor to talk about his latest award-winning film A Miracle of Hanukkah…
You have been an actor for many years now, was it always your dream to be an actor? How did acting come about for you?
I don’t know if I always knew. I always had a curiosity about being an actor, so I wanted to try it to see if I liked it. It wasn’t a simple task for me though. I grew up in communistic Poland, in a small town called Legnica.
In my hometown, there wasn’t an acting school and my parents’ dream for me was to become a doctor. I did have some artistic outlet to express myself, since my parents enrolled me into a music school, which I attended for 10 years studying the cello, piano and the theory of music. However, music wasn’t my favorite way of expression.
Since I can remember, I knew I wanted to leave Poland and move to a western country where I would have more possibilities to grow as a human being and as an artist. Traveling wasn’t easy at that time though, since the Polish police would keep every Polish citizen’s passport. Each time you wanted to go somewhere, you had to be interview and they would decide, if they would allow you to leave or not.
I knew whenever the first opportunity presented itself, I would need to take it. So, in 1988 I had an opportunity to go on a trip to Israel, and because of the unstable security situation over there at that time, the police decided to let me go. That was my opportunity – I went to Israel and never looked back.
When in Israel it was hard for me to enroll into an acting school, because I didn’t speak Hebrew. I arrived to Israel without any money, so I had to be more practical. I graduated in Economy and Management at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem instead. For a while I worked in Tel Aviv, but my creative bug was still there, so once able I sold everything I had and jetted to Los Angeles. Within a few weeks I enrolled into my first acting school the very prestigious Lee Strasberg Theatre & Film Institute and the rest, as they say, is history.
I understand you were born in Poland. How does living in Poland compare to life in Los Angeles?
This is a very interesting question, since the Poland I remember, is not the same as Poland we have today. The first thing I noticed during my transition into Israel was the huge difference between life in Poland and life in Israel. For example; in communist Poland, there was a deficit of everything. You couldn’t go to a store and buy whatever you wanted. I remember that oranges were only available before Christmas and there were times that you couldn’t buy toilet paper, since there was a shortage of it. I lived in a building with 55 apartments and only 3 families had a car. There weren’t many opportunities in Poland at the time.
Israel was so different, besides the hot weather, I noticed how modern the country was, and how open the people were. Almost everyone had a car and on weekends the bars were open until 8 in the morning. People knew how to have fun and there was plenty of venues to do so. There were many more opportunities than in Poland at the time.
For me though, there is no other place like Los Angeles. Here every artist has an opportunity to grow, but not just an artist. I think the U.S. is still the place where you can achieve anything, if you are focused and work hard. I find life easier in Los Angeles than both Poland and Israel, but it’s not fair to make a full comparison now, as I am no longer the same person and those countries are not the same now either.
Fun fact: when I was visiting Warsaw last April for my latest project ‘A Miracle of Hanukkah’, which premiered at LGBT Film Festival in Warsaw, I learned that there are many Israeli companies investing in Poland and opening businesses. So it looks like now Poland has pretty good business opportunities. Also, now that Poland is part of the EU, there are so many cars that traffic is often unbearable!
What and who inspired you to become an actor?
I always had the acting bug. As a child, I would often create puppet shows for my sister. We would play for hours. I would hide behind the chair and create stories on the spot. It was my early understanding of improv and I loved it, she loved it, it was a win – win situation. Other times I would create different characters and would interact with my sister as a character. She was very little at the time and she actually believed that it wasn’t me and treated me like I was someone else. It was great. It was my first “acting” experience and I have never forgotten it. She was the one always telling me I should be an actor and I never got over it. I had to at least try it.
Did you have any formal training to be an actor? If so how important is training for you as an actor?
In Los Angeles, I studied method acting at The Lee Strasberg Theatre & Film Institute, graduated from the 2 year Meisner program at Joanne Baron’s Acting School, and have studied with a plethora of other acting teachers. I think that training for an actor is very important. Going to an acting school, or taking acting or casting workshops gives an actor the opportunity to grow, to explore, to try new things, and to see what works and what doesn’t. In acting workshops, you can take risks in a safe environment. One of the classes I liked the most was Bill Howey’s Acting Workshop. Almost everyone there was a working actor, we had similar goals, everyone was focused and serious about the craft. When we weren’t working on a project, we could keep “in shape”, by taking on different characters and exploring them from different angles.
It is incredibly inspiring. One day you would work on a scene with your friend and the next you would see him or her on a hit TV show.
You have been in over 40 TV shows and films so far as an actor, and have successfully directed 2 films. Can you explain the transition? Do you have a preference?
Acting as a career is very competitive. Normally there are thousands of people auditioning for just one role. So even getting an audition is a success. So, if you are lucky to be invited in the room to audition, you must prepare as best you can. You show up on time, you give your best performance and the rest is out of your hands.
When I got to a certain point, I didn’t want to just wait for the phone to ring so I started producing my own projects and helping my friends to produce theirs. Obviously, I would cast myself in my productions, so I was basically creating an opportunity for myself. It is a great feeling, because you are in control of your career. Through my own projects, or my friends, I have learned so much about the entertainment business, and with hand-on experience. I would produce a project, help with the casting and of course act in it, but someone else would write and direct, so I had no influence on what the project looked like at the end. Sometimes I would look at the finished product and imagine what I would have done differently. I started craving more creative input. I decided to write a screenplay and direct it and that’s how I made my first film: ‘How to Rob a House’ – and I am delighted to say it was very successful!
Acting and directing is a different experience. I love acting, but I also love to direct. So far I have only directed films that I have also written, which is very fulfilling. I also love that I am creating jobs for my friends.
Do you prepare differently as a director to that of an actor? What is your process for each?
The preparation is definitely different. As an actor, you prepare your character, explore different options, ideas, do your research, if it needs to be done. Many times, you don’t have the full script or the idea how the whole story will be told. You are just one component of the bigger picture. You are responsible only for your performance and it’s the director’s job to guide you.
As a director, you basically have to prepare as if you were acting all the roles. You need to know how they fit into the whole film. You need to understand each character, who they are, what drives them, what are their goals, habits, what they like, why they do what they do etc. It’s important not only for directing a film, but also for casting. To cast the right people, you need to understand each role and visualize that character.
For my projects, I oversee even wardrobe, and the choosing of costumes, know what music would work, understand the “mood” you are going for etc. The job of a director is far more complex than the job of an actor.
It’s worth mentioning that I act in the films I direct, so the challenge in my scenes is: how do I direct while I am also acting?
Your directorial debut of ‘How To Rob A House’ was filmed on a iPhone 5s and collected multiple film festival awards. How did you find that process in comparison to filming on a more traditional camera?
In 2011 I was a juror at the ‘iPhone Film Festival’, and was so impressed with the quality of the films made on mobile devices, that I decided to produce one of my own, and play the lead. I collaborated with a screenwriter and a director from Spain. It was a pretty complicated film to produce but I learned a lot from this production and with that experience decided to shoot my directorial debut on an iPhone, just to see if I could. I am proud to say the film has won multiple awards and screened all over the world.
The process is very similar; you still prepare like any other production. However, you need to know the “features” of the phone. We needed to make sure that the phone had enough storage space, make sure that the battery didn’t run out, since you can’t replace it. We needed a special “holder” for an iPhone, so we could use different lenses and attach it to a tripod. For ‘How to Rob a House’ we used the lenses made specifically for the iPhone, and we couldn’t control the depth of field with those, so we knew everything would be sharp. We also used an app for filming, so the phone had more camera like features and we didn’t have to deal with auto focus.
For my second film, ‘A Miracle of Hanukkah’, which was filmed on the iPhone 6, I was going for a specific darker feel, so we used the professional lenses adapter for it. For sound, we used an external sound recorder with a boom, so it’s very similar to any other film production.
Your most recent film, ‘A Miracle of Hanukkah’, also filmed on a smartphone, has just won its first award in Miami. Can you tell us a bit about the film?
‘A Miracle of Hanukkah’ is a story of a man who arrives home early from a business trip to celebrate the first day of Hanukkah with his loved one, all to find a twisted supernatural surprise waiting for him. It’s LGBTQ comedy shot on an iPhone 6. It began as an idea of making a Jewish version of ‘The Exorcist’, but then I combined it with LGBTQ, BDSM and time travel. The combination makes it unusual and controversial, so I am very happy how well the film is being received around the world. In my opinion, human beings are wonderfully complex and “type casting” in life, will prevent us from fully getting to know and understand each other.
We are all wearing many hats, nobody is just one thing. You can be a father, a son, Jewish, gay, a boss, a subordinate, a teacher, a student, and we are still talking about the same person. I hope the film will promote openness and acceptance. We are all humans after all.
As an actor, do you have a particular genre of film you prefer? If so can you explain.
I don’t have a film genre preference since you can have different roles in any genre of film or TV show. For me, because of my body type, my facial features and my knowledge of different languages, I am usually cast as a bad guy, mafia, ex-military etc. I enjoy playing every role, but I get especially excited to play someone I have never played before. That’s why when I write a script and direct, I cast myself in something new and fun!
Are there any actors or directors you would love to work with in the future? Any actors you’d like to play alongside?
There are so many people that I would love to work with because they inspire me and because I can learn from working with them. A few directors worth mentioning: Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese, Quentin Tarantino, Christopher Nolan, Peter Jackson, James Cameron, David Fincher, Luc Besson. As for actors: Meryl Streep, Robert De Niro, Tom Hanks, Gary Oldman, Matt Damon, Jean Reno. The list is endless – these are just a handful off the top of my head.
Do you get to go to the cinema much? Any films you have enjoyed lately?
The last film I saw on the big screen was ‘Jason Bourne’, Matt Damon is fantastic in this role. I really enjoyed ‘Warm Bodies’ too. I recently watched it on DVD, I like their take on zombies. Nicholas Hoult in the role of “R” is very captivating even though, he barely has any dialogue in the movie. I have also seen a lot of good films during the film festivals I have been participating in.
Finally, any advice you would give any actor, or aspiring filmmaker, who is trying to break into the entertainment industry?
Be focused. Know what you want and keep working towards your goal. Believe in yourself. Don’t listen to negative people. I think with the technology we have available today, actors should create their own content. There are so many great webisodes and short films. You never know who will see it. The aspiring filmmakers shouldn’t wait for the huge budget directing opportunities. There are ways to make a film inexpensively with DSLR camera of even with a mobile phone – like I do.
Our thanks to Adi for taking the time to do this interview, as well as Liz Rodriguez from EMR Media for helping us with the interview.
