Meet Eddy Roberts | Actor & Graphic Designer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Eddy Roberts and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Eddy, where are your from? We’d love to hear about how your background has played a role in who you are today?
Well I’m from small town on the eastern shore of Maryland. Usually when you tell people you’re from Maryland, their first response is “Oh you from Baltimore?!” haha, nah. Although I do have plenty of friends, family, and memories there, I was raised in a suburban yet country like area. A town where everybody knows everybody and there’s not a lot of opportunities there, but It will always be a place to call home. I knew early on that I wasn’t meant to stay there, I always felt God had other plans for me, but I just never knew what or how I would get to it.

I grew up around music…my father was well known DJ on “the shore” and he introduced me to so many legends. It was through music I found out I had passion to dance as well. Although my parents were the life of the party they always kept God first and kept me in church as well. It was through church where I got my first introduction to acting, by doing different play productions. So I guess you can say I’ve always had a connection to art, whether it was through music, performance, or simply drawing and sketching which was something I loved doing as a kid.

All of these things tie into who I am today, as well as the career I long for which is becoming a full time actor/creative. I loved the response I use to get from people whenever I would act or simply do impersonations as a kid, they would always say “Boy you belong on TV”. It’s that rush you get, that alive feeling and I knew I wanted to experience that more. So moving here to Atlanta from Maryland I set out on a journey to become something I’ve always wanted to be.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
Since I’ve embarked on this acting journey I have worked on multiple short film projects, student films, and most recently I’ve booked roles in a couple of web series. I think one thing that has always sets me apart in my auditions is my training. A lot of people get into acting thinking “Oh that’s easy, I can remember my lines…or I can cry on cue”. But acting is much more than that, and I’ve learned that through my training at ActHER studios. So I think my approach to the characters I am auditioning for sets me apart. Making emotional choices that make sense to the scene, and understanding my characters objective and what they want in this scene. Using my script analysis training to breakdown the subtext within each line…and even breaking down my scene partners lines. Acting is a lot more complex than some people may think it is. It’s truly art form and when done correctly you can create some of the most beautiful scene work to add to your body of work. This art form can make its viewer laugh, cry, angry and really allow them to connect to a fictional character based on how the actor brings that character to life. And we as actors do this by living authentically in our performance. One of the reasons I love acting so much is because it allows you to tell these stories, and live a life that may be much different from your own.

As a new actor when I started out, it wasn’t easy getting roles. I didn’t really know where to start but finally I landed a student film and shortly after I did a couple of short films. I was so excited when I got those and I felt so accomplished, but then I hit a dry spell and started to question my acting abilities. One thing I’ve learned is that its not about booking the role. If you book, then great that is an awesome achievement but as an actor auditioning is the fun part. So I had to learn to just have fun with the audition and not just focus on “am I going to get this role? What if they don’t like me? I need to book this!” Because when you focus on just booking you won’t be able to live authentically in your self tape, and it sucks all the fun out of the audition process and your performance suffers. So the minute I started to just have fun with it, I noticed I was booking more.

I think that is one of the biggest challenges actors face, focusing on booking the gig. We often can get inside of our own heads so much that it effects our performance. We can think of so many choices to make and the minute we press record all of those choices are out the window and we begin to over act. We do multiple takes and it still seems like we are never satisfied with our own work. Acting is a competitive market because there are so many talented people out there, who all want the same thing as you. Casting directors watch hundreds of self tapes all day, so of course as the actor we want to do something that helps our tape “stand out”, but the problem is we end up doing too much or not enough. So just focus on the character, and have fun regardless if you book or not.

It may seem like you aren’t booking enough but trust the process. One of my most recent accomplishments I am proud of was two films I had a supporting role in that recently had red carpet premieres. One based here in Atlanta which I attended, and another which premiered in LA. Both films earned me my first IMDb credits and that was a big accomplishment to me. I’m heavy on prayer and manifesting things into reality, and I can slowly see my manifestations coming to fruition. I have an affirmation that I say to myself daily, I stand on it and I believe it. I was raised in church and the Bible says “Speak those things that be not, as though they were”. So I love to speak positive affirmations over my life, my career because I know I am on the right path to get to where it is I want to be. The world will one day see this gift and know my name.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Honestly, I’ve been living here for 3 years and I still haven’t done half of the things there is to do around here. But I would take them out Ponce City Market or Atlantic station to hang out, grab food and just catch a vibe. I’m big on getting some fun things to do off tiktok, so some of my friends and I recently did a karaoke night at Impulse lounge and we had a time that night! Haha! There’s a spot in college park called Nouveau Bar and Grill that’s pretty good, and a few doors down is a bomb brunch spot called “The Real Milk & Honey”. I’m a big foodie so we probably would be eating most of the time. Besides food I like going places that have games and interactive things to do, like Slingshot ATL. You can say I’m a big kid at heart, so anything with arcade games, plus some good drinks and good music is always a good time in my book.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Yes I would love to give a shout out to my acting coaches (Angela Davis & Racquel B. John) of ActHER Studio’s as well as my ActHer family/peers in our Saturday class. I can truly say when finding that studio I found my “tribe” as I refer to them. Being surrounded by like minded individuals who are so talented, creative, and bring out the creativity in me. Everyone that attends ActHER studios are amazing at what they do. They keep me on my toes and push me to want to step up my game each and every class. My coaches are the truth, they’ve poured so much into me and I can feel myself flourishing as an actor. So Shout out to the dopest acting studio in all of Atlanta! I would encourage anyone looking to get into acting to check out Angela’s classes, you will not be disappointed and you will feel your craft growing stronger and stronger.

Also my wife, my 2 children, and my parents/immediate family back home who supported me from day one when I said I wanted to leave Maryland and move here to Atlanta to build and go after my dreams. They’ve never doubted me or my talent, and they support me in all I do. I’m putting in the work now to get to a level in my career that would allow me to provide and take care of them. I do this for them….I love you all!

Image Credits
Slavery Scene from House of Deborah Jane Studios ( Production: Strange Fruit: The Hip-Hopera)