Scene Editor Selina Pope chats to Nicholas Galitzine, an up and coming actor, musician and model on how he fell into acting, what it was like working with choreographer Dave Scott and the BIFA awards.
Can you tell Scene a little bit about yourself?
I’m twenty years old and I’m a Londoner born and bred. I’m still based here, which is great for my career as most of the casting agencies go through London. I have been acting for a fairly short period of time. It’s been a year and half since I first started, a bit less that I have been in the ‘professional’ acting industry. I feel blessed in a way that my interests do lay mostly in my profession; I’m a film fanatic and an avid music listener with an eclectic taste. I write my own music and hopefully one day as I mature I want to write my own screenplay. But apart from that I am passionate about anything based on creativity. Oh, and I’m very into my sports as well!!
Do you consider yourself firstly an actor, a musician or a model?
Well, firstly I can’t really call myself a model, as I haven’t done much of it although its something I would be willing to do more of in the future. It kind of scares me being in front of a camera where you have to be so conscious with your movement. I have never really thought of myself as very photogenic, I’m a bit goofy! As with my music, I’m very much an aspiring musician rather than an established one. It gives me a totally different feeling than acting does. Writing music is a unique way of expressing who you are as a person and what you feel, rather than acting in which you’re thinking how best to portray someone else. I would say the performance component of the two is something that excites me and inspires. I guess I would have to consider myself an actor first, considering it’s the only one I can officially say I have pursued professionally. Attaining a balance between the three is simply based on what creatively I feel like doing. If it’s not something that motivates you in that moment you have to move on to the next. And whatever pays best. That’s nice too.
How did you first get into acting, and how long have you been doing it for?
I first got into acting towards the end of my last year at school – left it a bit late. All my best mates at school were actors and studied it throughout their school careers. I guess I was always fascinated by the idea of performing, despite have a crippling shyness of performing in front of others that repelled me from ever auditioning for a part. A year before I had taken up music and sung in front of other people for the first time since I was in the choir aged 10. That gave me a bit of a buzz and in effect I think urged me to try out for the school production of Guys and Dolls. The audition process went very well and I got down to the last two to play Sky Masterson, the lead role, eventually being pipped to the post by my best friend (well-deserved). As an ensemble member I didn’t have the pressure of learning lots of lines but was simply able to enjoy the experience in a raw and stress free way. Having had so much fun in the play, I chose to go audition for the Young Pleasances’ adaptation of Spring Awakening, which was being taken up to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. The company was loosely connected with my school and my friends from school had been involved in the past few years so it seemed like a fun thing to do. Even then I was petrified by the notion of performing in front of people. I remember standing outside the building on the phone to my dad saying ‘I can’t do this, I’m completely out of my depth, they are all proper actors in there’. Eventually I managed to goad myself in a got one of the main roles playing a boy who was in a clandestine relationship with his best friend, also a boy, very taboo at the time. I had such an amazing experience in Edinburgh, but despite feeling exhilarated after every show, acting never seemed like a career option to me. The actors of today are so defined that becoming one seemed a whole world away. Towards the end of the run I was contacted by a couple of agencies about signing with them and suddenly I was opened to a world, which had never been a reality to me before. Shortly after signing with Curtis Brown I got my first audition script called The Beat Beneath My Feet and here I am a year and a half later.
You have recently starred in two major films – High Strung and The Beat Beneath My Feet, and in both movies your character is a musician. In what ways did these two characters differ, and which did you like playing the most?
I always think its quite funny that my first two roles involve music. However despite this similarity, I think the roles are worlds apart. In The Beat Beneath My Feet I play a character called Tom Heath, a lonely teenage boy who suffers from crippling shyness in a bleak lifestyles and a broken home who has a deep-set passion for music. Johnny Blackwell from High Strung is a completely different character all together. Confident, poised yet mysterious, Johnny chooses to live in solitude rather than Tom who seeks the affection of others. I think both share pain and a history under their skin. Another huge difference between the films is that I actually performed all the music and singing in The Beat Beneath My Feet. I don’t know how to play to violin so the director, Michael Damien, took a big chance on me on High Strung. I had two weeks to get to a suitable standard where I could effectively ‘fake’ playing the violin. I have to say, considering how hard I found it and how surprisingly different it was from the guitar; I have a newfound respect for violinists. I did manage to teach myself the main melody by the end, although the rest of it sounded like a dying cat. Let’s hope you can’t tell that in my acting!
In High Strung you worked with choreographer Dave Scott, who has worked for Step Up, Stomp the Yard and You Think You Can Dance. How did you find working with him, and what kind of things did you do together?
Dave is an awesome guy and a real talent. There is nothing more intimidating than working on a film where everyone is a professional dancer, with supernatural dance powers and I’m standing there like, “my go-to club moves aren’t gonna cut it”. Luckily the audience wont have to suffer 90 minutes of me shaking my hips, only a five-minute segment of a tango. In the least arrogant way I do think I’m an O.K mover and I love to dance anyway so I picked it up quite quickly. With something like the tango you have to be masculine and passionate and intense and Dave really helped me get into that mind set to act this part while executing all of the difficult footwork. I’m praying its not just five minutes of me tripping over my feet.
What are you working on right now?
Right now The Beat Beneath My Feet has come out and after a few months of screen time has already achieved things beyond what I could have imagined. We have had great reviews, a nomination for the British Independent Film Awards, which we closely missed out on, and as of last week a Generation Award at the Berlin Film Festival as well as a screening at the BAFTA headquarters in search for another nomination on this side of the channel. Apart from that I am still learning my trade and meeting some amazing people in the industry. When you start out it’s all about building relationships and making contacts. It might not be the fun side of the industry but believe me its entirely necessary. I enjoy it though. Every time I go in for something new I’m learning, and simply being able to be associated with films I love or franchises I have followed all my life is surreal.
What kind of acting opportunities are you looking for right now?
I think I need to stay away from musicians! Any character that goes near an instrument is dead to me. No in all seriousness I just love challenging roles. Despite the similar nature of my two roles so far they are entirely different and I want to keep on doing that. I love complex characters that are really going to challenge me and better me as an actor. That being said I do love big blockbuster action films so J.J. Abrams if your reading this don’t be afraid to give me a ring for that next Star Wars film.
What kind of music do you like to write?
Good question. That’s a difficult answer because I don’t believe I have found my final sound yet. I think good musicians are always developing which is why people like Coldplay have managed to stay popular for so long and I’m trying to achieve that in the music I write. I find it easier to write from what I know, past experiences. I think you just need to look in the charts right now to see how many people have been through pain of some sort in their lives and I think music is one of the best ways to express that and patch yourself up. I would say sound wise, I’m going for a mix between an alternative rock vibe mashed up with hip hop kind of like The Weeknd and BANKS, two of my favourite artists. Apparently I also have some Spanish influences in there because I really identify with the passion they express in their music.
What has been your greatest career achievement so far?
I would have to say The Beat Beneath My Feet being nominated for an award at the Berlin Film Festival is up there. To think that a year ago this wasn’t even an option in my head and now my first film is receiving such great feedback is just crazy for me. Although I can’t lie, standing a metre away from Keira Knightley and Benedict Cumberbatch at the BIFA awards was pretty good too. I don’t know what it is about famous people I just couldn’t stop staring.
What advice would you give to other young actors or actresses who are just starting out their careers?
Go for it! Don’t let anybody tell you that you can’t or that its too late or you need to train to become an actor. Yes the industry is difficult and there is a lot of job insecurity and rejection, but so is there in most of the jobs around the UK. Even people with great degrees from the top universities might find it hard because that’s the harsh competitive climate we live in today. If it inspires you, if it motivates you, if it’s something that just makes you happy then do it. Its not going to be easy and I’m hardly into my career at the moment so I cant speak from a perspective of enlightenment or wisdom, but from what I have gone through so far I would just say if you want it make it happen. Get involved in whatever you can even if it’s out of your comfort zone. From what I can tell the industry is mostly about hard work. The rest is down to luck. And a tiny little bit of talent. Or, for those without talent, great genes.
Who would be your dream director and co-star to work with, and why?
Oh so so many! I mentioned J.J. Abrams before because I have loved his stuff ever since he did Lost. Seriously though what was that black smoke? Still don’t get it. But yeah, he has such a great vision when it comes to these science fiction/other worldly vibes. But as a seriously dramatic actor, I’m a massive fan of Martin Scorsese – he and his muse Leonardo Dicaprio have achieved amazing visual and dramatic feats together. Also David Fincher, Fight Club being my all time favourite film, and of course other greats like Steven Spielberg, Christopher Nolan, and Wes Anderson. Oh and I love Quentin Tarantino. No one is able to combine such grotesque violence and humour so effortlessly.
Where would you like to see yourself in ten years’ time?
Winning an Oscar isn’t entirely realistic but it would be nice. The greatest gift any actor could hope for is longevity. I just want to keep being involved in great projects and keep pushing myself to be a better actor and a better person. I don’t know where I will be in ten years time but as long as I’m happy who am I to complain. So, like I said, an Oscar would do just fine.