Today we’d like to introduce you to Ben Darby.
Hi Ben, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I honestly never imagined that I would be doing what I am doing today. When I was in high school, I always thought I would pursue athletics as far as I could take them, but I never thought I would be into acting, so I never did any kind of drama class when I was at that stage. Several injuries from sports stopped me from pursuing them any further in college, so I decided to attend the University of Nebraska and study nutrition, exercise, and health science. I had also begun practicing Krav Maga and slightly later on, I trained with a mixed martial arts team during college. As I proceeded through college, I excelled in the sciences and got certified as a personal trainer; I thought my ultimate purpose was to train athletes and to get as far as I could academically.
During the summer of 2019, I was living in Lincoln, NE taking a summer class and working, and to be completely honest, I just got bored. In this boredom, I recalled a friend seeing my senior photos and suggesting that I get into modeling, a suggestion that I scoffed at initially, but in the position I was in, I was willing to try anything new. I began reaching out to agencies in Omaha and got a surprisingly good response. I did some interviews and ultimately decided on the agent I would work with. Upon our first time speaking my agent asked me: “Have you ever thought about acting?” to which I promptly responded “Not at all.” He had said that I had the personality for it and asked if I would be okay being submitted for small acting roles and even though I wasn’t sure, I agreed. Funny enough, the first job I ever booked was a small commercial role for a local credit union and even though I had no idea what to expect because I had no training, I had an absolute blast being on set for the first time.
Fast forward to my final semester of college, I needed elective credits and I figured since I was an actor now, that maybe I should try doing an actual acting class. I enrolled for “Basic Acting Techniques’ at the Johnny Carson School of Performing Arts at the University of Nebraska where I was introduced to a wide variety of acting techniques and got to work on monologues, scene work, exercises, improv, and more. It got to a point that this was the only class I had looked forward to attending and I spent most of my effort on this class as opposed to the classes that pertained to my major. While I was enjoying this class so much, I was also losing enthusiasm for the field I had chosen to work and study in. At the end of the semester following the final class in “Basic Acting Techniques”, my acting professor asked me to stay after class. I did and she had asked if I had ever considered making a career out of acting to which I replied “No, not really.”
She had told me that I was very talented at it and that with my creativity and work ethic, she believed I could do well. This was all I needed to hear. Not long after, I had packed up my things and made the move back to my home in Colorado where I began reaching out to agencies in Colorado and surrounding states. Since then, I have had the opportunity to work a variety of jobs in film, commercials, TV, and print. I also spent a couple of years training with a terrific LA coach and I currently train in an on-camera acting class. I am continuing to train and work and I am learning new things all of the time. At this point, it still feels like play to me and as long as it continues to be as fun as it is, I don’t see myself stopping any time soon.
Can you talk to us about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I would love to tell you that the road has been smooth and easy but that would just be dishonest. A major obstacle I have had to work on has been reminding myself to focus on the process rather than the outcomes. Oftentimes, we hold a great deal of our self-worth in our numbers and external successes, so during the inevitable times when we aren’t getting the results we want, it can be very discouraging.
I have had times where I have booked multiple jobs in a month and I have gone multiple consecutive months booking nothing at all. I have also had times where I was a finalist for a major role and casting decided to go in a different direction, which is always disappointing.
During the slower periods and close calls, I find it valuable to remind myself that the reason why I act is because it is so much fun to do, and that instead of worrying about my outcomes, I should spend the extra time that I do have working on my craft. It is an enjoyable use of my time and it ensures that I will be ready for the next job when it inevitably comes.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I am a professional actor working in film, TV, commercial, and print work and I have had the opportunity to work in multiple regions. I have trained in a wide variety of acting techniques under multiple excellent teachers and I am also an avid martial artist. I currently instruct Krav Maga and practice Brazilian Ju-Jitsu and I have completed a workshop in combat choreography for film as well. I am hoping to have the opportunity to combine my martial arts skills with my acting skills for roles soon.
I would say what sets me apart from others is the pure obsession I have with the craft of acting. I am adamant about maintaining a student’s mindset and making it a goal to learn something every single day. I have a great interest in human psychology and I try to learn it to the best of my ability to inform and fuel my performance in any given role.
I feel a great weight of responsibility to do justice to any role I am given because I am ultimately responsible for fulfilling someone’s vision to the best of my ability. I am proud of the countless hours I have put in thus far and for all of the amazing people I have had the privilege of meeting and collaborating with along the way.
Can you tell us more about what you were like growing up?
Growing up, I always had a humorous bent. Everyone in my family that I talk to has told me that I could be funny ever since I could speak. Even though I always say that I never had the intention of being an actor, looking back, it is pretty obvious that I would end up here.
When I was a kid, I always enjoyed pretending to be a Power Ranger a Superhero, or a Jedi on the playground with my friends and I eventually started filming home movies and got into making small stop-motion animation movies with my legos and action figures (which I did the voices for of course, haha). I also really enjoyed drawing pictures and when I was young I would sometimes add voices to the picture that I was drawing while I was drawing it. I was always very curious about everything around me and as a kid, I would spend hours playing with bugs, looking in my fish tank, and just exploring outside.
It wasn’t until I grew a bit older that I became athletically coordinated and got more into sports. I always did some kind of sport growing up, but I was never very good at any until I was about 12. Once I started getting more into sports, my artistic side took a bit of a back seat, but it never truly left. Once I got back into acting, I rediscovered this creative side and immersed myself in it once again.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://resumes.actorsaccess.com/bendarby
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bensdarby/
Image Credits
Ralph Giordanno, Ryan Chandler, and Ben Lutze
