Published: September 14, 2010 2:21 AM EST
By: Isaac Davis Jr., BGS, MBA (Juniorscave.com)
JC Interview Exclusive (Celebrity Interview with Actor/Musician/ Film Producer/ Writer/Poet, Nevin Millan) September 2010 Edition
Nevin Millan as Persian Prince in "East of Byzantium"
Our Webzine is excited to bring to our online pages for our readers to enjoy the multi-talented ambitious Nevin Millan. This superstar entertainer holds many talents including that of an Actor, Musician, Film Producer, Writer, and Poet. His passion to successful work in many genres at the same time is what we find intoxicating. He has already had some earlier successes in his career, and he expounds on those successes and other cool facts about him in this ultra cool exclusive spotlight. Enjoy!
Isaac: Hello Nevin! I hope your summer is going well for you. Thank you for taking the time to work with our Webzine on this interview. Let’s talk about how did you first become interesting in acting, singing, and modeling?
Nevin: Hi Isaac! Well, I first got into music when I was very young, about 4 years old, I started playing the violin. Shortly thereafter, I switched to piano, which I played until I was about 13. I started singing in grade school choirs at about 10, but always sang Christmas carols and holidays songs with my mother, who had quite the voice herself. Then, in high school I started on guitar and drums whilst remaining in the high school choir, developing my voice. Eventually, I started a rock band when I was 17 and have pursued music professionally ever since. As far as acting, I had a taste of it when I was 12 years old playing Donald Duck in a grade school play. It wasn’t until college that I began to dabble in acting again where I performed in improv skits and eventually plays, commercials, and bit roles in films, finally getting bit by the acting bug very hard and took serious training in LA – Meisner and Classical / Shakespearean. With modeling, I never really had any interest in it at all, but living in Miami, FL, that industry is all around you, especially on South Beach. I was about 22 when I was approached by a photographer to do a shoot. I thought it would be an interesting way to springboard to my other endeavors while making some extra money on the side.
Isaac: What has been one of the best rewarding experiences you can talk about from acting?
Nevin: I’d say it would have to be from a short film I produced / adapted / starred in called ‘In Another Time’. It was originally from a play I had done and there were a few scenes I thought would be great to mesh together to make a poignant short film. After all, the hard work on the character, accent, mannerisms, relationships, as well as all the producing aspects – set design, shooting, editing, etc., it was quite rewarding to have a thought or idea in your mind come to fruition after so much hard work and have the finished product be something you’re proud of…it’s a great feeling.
Isaac: What has been one of the worst experiences from acting?
Nevin: Although I can honestly say I haven’t had any horrible experiences yet, I know one of the hardest lessons I learned in LA was after I had auditioned for my first major part in a major studio film. I felt I had done a great job, and the casting director gave extremely positive feedback to my agent, so I was sitting up nights waiting for that ‘phone call’ that never came. It was very early on in my career, they ended up going with a ‘star name’, so I learned after that experience, once you leave the audition room, you just let it go, hope for the best, and move on.
Nevin Millan as Hughes de Payens in "Didgori: Land of Sacrificed Knights"
Isaac: You have worked on a variety of exciting and interesting projects. What do you feel has been your favorite project that you have completed and why?
Nevin: Other than the previous project I mentioned, ‘In Another Time’, I think my favorite project would be a film I also starred in called “Didgori: Land of Sacrificed Knights”. It’s about a group of Georgian warriors and Templar Knights teaming up to overcome insurmountable odds to defeat a massive invading enemy. Not only was the story very compelling and the character an amazing one to sink my teeth in to, there were many other circumstances involved with the project that made it an honor to be a part of. The story is an important one to the people of Georgia, and it’s the first time the story’s been brought to film. In addition, there were several historical characters that were being depicted in a narrative film for the first time, including my character ‘Hugues de Payen’, the founder of the Knights Templar, so along with a great experience, we were making history on multiple levels. We actually shot the film in the Republic of Georgia and wrapped shooting about a month before they were attacked by Russia in 2008. It was a fascinating experience to learn about a country nestled in between Russia and Turkey with its own culture and language. I made friends on that set that I’m still very close with and will be for many years. We hope to shoot a longer, more in depth, much higher budget version of the film within the next few years.
Isaac: What movie/film do you consider a masterpiece and if you had the opportunity to make something similar briefly describe what type of film it would be?
Nevin: Because of my love and passion for film, it’s extremely difficult to choose just one film that I think is the best, so here’s a few. I find the movie ‘Braveheart’ to be a masterful film in every way, it’s definitely one of my top favorite films along with ‘Gladiator’, ‘Dances With Wolves’, ‘Shawshank Redemption’, ‘Godfather Parts 1 & 2’ and the ‘Lord of the Rings Trilogy’. If I were to make my dream project, it would be in the same epic feel of these particular films that move the soul, touch the heart, mixed with intense action, stunning photography and a mellifluous score. I’d like to write, star in, and potentially direct it as well. I’m already putting scripts together for a few potential epic stories I’d like to tell.
Isaac: What type of roles do you find to be the most fun portraying and why?
Nevin: The roles I find to be the most interesting are historical/period roles. I think there’s a lot we can learn from those stories in order to make better choices in life, not only on a personal level, but society as a whole. Bringing to life these historical characters makes those lessons more accessible and palatable to general audiences and can further permeate these stories into society by getting through to more people. And I think there’s a lost art of honor, dignity, duty and respect that existed in the lives of many historical characters that I’m interested in exploring and living in those shoes. Also, the sword fighting, stunts, and horse work is something I truly enjoy and have a lot of fun with… there’s something about sitting on a horse wearing armor, wielding a sword that I find to be intoxicating!
Nevin Millan playing a rocker in a Toyota Sienna commercial.
Isaac: Who are your musical influences that prompted you to want to perform music?
Nevin: Although I was quite obsessed with Michael Jackson when I was very young (I had my very own ‘Beat It’ jacket, parachute pants, and white glove!), I’d say the first major musical influence I had was The Beatles. I was about 8 or 9 years old when I got a compilation tape from someone and I listened to it every day for years. After that, I really got into music where groups such as Led Zeppelin, U2, Metallica, Pearl Jam, SoundGarden, and Live have been a major influence.
Isaac: What do you want others to take away from your music?
Nevin: I’d want them to be inspired to view life from a different perspective and open their minds.
Isaac: How would you describe your music to others who are new to it?
Nevin: It’s rock music with a bit of blues mixed in along with some arrhythmic, ethnic beats. I’m not sure what ‘category’ that would fall into, but its most likely alternative or hard rock.
Isaac: What do you feel it takes to be a good songwriter?
Nevin: You’ve got to tell a story or share something in a personal way in order to connect to the listener, and the music itself should come from the heart, written with passion and soul. If you’re passionate about what you’re singing about, the listener will be too.
Isaac: You have a production company that is aiming to produce original quality indie films. What is the main drive for starting this production company and what type of projects are you most likely will produce (drams, sci-fi, romance, comedy, or something completely different) under this production company?
Nevin: Silver Square Productions (click on Silver Square Productions to access website) was created so that I could make films that I want to make, films that I’m passionate about. I started producing because I realized I wanted to get involved in every aspect of filmmaking and producing my own passion projects through my company was the best way to facilitate that. I’m personally interested in dramas/historical epics, although I love sci-fi as well, so that would be an option in the future.
Isaac: You have two short films already produced from your production company. What can you tell us about these short films and what type of reactions have you been receiving from these two projects?
Nevin: Our first short film, Balance, was a very low budget short with a great, interesting story, and was very fun because we were just getting our feet wet with filmmaking and explored many ‘creative’ ways to get some of the shots we needed without necessarily having the right permits, etc. The film screened at the Los Angeles Short Film Festival and people really enjoyed it. Our second short, “In Another Time” which I mentioned earlier, had a higher budget and a much more structured shoot, has done really well. It screened at the Los Angeles Short Film Festival, the Palm Springs Short Film Festival and a few places in Europe. It received a lot of great reviews from festival-goers which was really exciting.
Isaac: What do you want to achieve for your career in the entertainment business?
Nevin: I’d like to be successful in all the various artistic endeavors I’m passionate about – acting, writing, and music. Most people pursue one, or maybe two of those, but I have a lot of ideas inside that I want to share with the world and to be able to realize those creative dreams and passions would definitely be a career goal.
Isaac: What are some currently projects you are working on now?
Nevin: Right now I’m working on two scripts, a book, a music EP, and pre-production on a feature film called ‘Mexican Soda Pop’ that I’m producing with a few other people through their production company.
Isaac: Words of wisdom and final thoughts….
Nevin: Follow your passion! Don’t talk about doing things, just do them… so many people sit around making plans for things they want to do and excuses for why they can’t do them, and before they know it, their life has passed them by. I’m all about going after it, living life, achieving dreams. Thanks for the interview and best of luck with your online magazine!
Isaac: thank you Nevin. We enjoyed it. And the best of luck to you too.
