Q: Hi Seth, welcome to Close-Up Culture! You danced and acted in the 2023 film ‘The Portable Door’ this year. What was it like to shoot this?
A: Working on ‘The Portable Door’ was a lot of fun. I was still in school when shooting this, so being able to leave to film a fantasy/adventure movie for a few weeks was the best. I played ‘Zyg’ the Tunnel blaster goblin in the film. It was a heavy prosthetics role. I would wake up at around 3:30am, drive to set and start prosthetics which typically took about 3 hours each morning. I’d spend the entire day filming scenes and exploring the incredibly detailed sets with some amazing people I met on and off screen.
I remember thinking the entire time I want to be doing this all day everyday.
Q: How do you think the two disciplines of dancing and acting go together, and do you think each benefits the other?
A: I think both fields are very different but aspects of each greatly benefit the other. Dance teaches a work ethic and an endurance which can cross over into acting when you have late nights on set or are doing heavy emotional scenes. Acting forces us to dive deep into our emotional state which makes evoking emotion in dance effortless for me. I have also been able to do all my own stunts and anything that requires a great level of physicality on set because of dance.
Q: As a dance choreographer on the show ‘Viv’s Silly Mango’ you must have had to embrace your dancing history and adapt it to the show’s niche. Did you find it difficult to adapt your style?
A: When I got cast in ‘Viv’s Silly Mango’ as a dancer & choreographer I was so excited. I was so happy that all my hours of fulltime dance training were paying off. Not only did I get to play the role of Brad but also dance and choreograph in the show! As far as adapting my style of choreography to fit my character ‘Brad’ and the shows overall themes, it was very easy. I usually dance & choreograph to high energy, hip hop/commercial jazz style, so I really just got sent the track and had a blast creating to it.
Q: You’ve worked alongside Christoph Waltz and Sam Neil in your acting career. What was that like?
A: I think to work with any OG pro in the acting industry is such a blessing and so beneficial. For me I was a massive Jurassic Park fan growing up so to then be in a movie with Sam Neil was something I never expected! I got to spend a few days in a tunnel set with him. We were both all goblin-ed up so it was very sweaty but a lot of fun. I loved learning from him and Christoph by watching their process on and off screen.
Q: What are your hopes and ambitions for the future?
A: My hopes and ambitions for the future is to move to LA for a while as a performer. I’d love to be in dystopian films & musical films.