SPOTLIGHT INTERVIEW: BRENDAN ROBINSON

February 16, 2015

I met Brendan a few years ago while attending acting classes in Los Angeles! We were both pretty new to the acting world but quickly started auditioning and booking parts around the same time. He was one of the actors I always looked up to as far as work ethic and having outstanding talent in our class! I’ve always wanted to interview Brendan because I know he has so many great stories and knowledge to share with his fans and my readers! I always love interviewing inspiring people who are passionate about what they do. Brendan is an example of someone who is hardworking and successful but still has fun and loves what they do!

In this interview, we talk everything from how he first got interested in acting to his character Lucas on Pretty Little Liars to his cool hidden talent! He also shares with us how he landed his part as Lucas on Pretty Little Liars and gives advice for anyone aspiring to be an actor!

xo,

Katelyn

1.  Tell me a little bit about where you grew up and what it was like growing up there!

I grew up in Portland, Oregon.  We lived in the suburbs, but my parents worked downtown, so I was constantly in the city.  I eventually went to high school a couple of blocks from my dad’s office.  I feel like going to school in an urban environment really exposed me to a vibrant culture and people who were from all different walks of life.  It was a unique way to grown up.  But, it was also nice to go home to a very traditional house in a traditional neighborhood at the end of the day.  My parents still live in the house I grew up in and I visit regularly.

2.  What got you interested in acting and how old were you?

I’ve had an active imagination from a very young age.  My brother and I used to put on little plays for my parents in our bonus room.  It would usually be some kind of variation of “Peter Pan.”  I was obsessed with the Disney move when I was little.  I would always play Peter and my brother would be all of the other characters.  When I was 5 or 6, my dad saw a poster for a local theater production of “Peter Pan,” and he took me and my brother to see it.  I was glued to what was happening on the stage.  I wouldn’t stop talking about it for days after.  That same theater also offered acting classes for kids and teenagers.  My parents signed me up for a class, and that was it.  That’s literally what I did as an extra-curricular activity every weekend for years, take acting classes.

3.  When was the moment you realized you wanted to be an actor and pursue it

full time?

Probably by age 9, I had a pretty good idea I was going to do this forever.  After I’d been taking classes for a couple of years, I began auditioning for plays at local theater companies.  Portland actually has a very vibrant theater scene.  There’s nearly two dozen theater companies.  So, I would play the “kid” roles in these productions all over town.  I did almost 25 plays between the ages of 9 and 18.

4.  For most actors, living in LA and pursuing their dream can be exciting and scary for the first time, what was your first experience living in LA like?

Yeah!!  It’s a very scary and exciting thing at the same time.  I was really young when I move to LA.  I was 18 and I had only graduated highschool a month and a half earlier.  I had actually never been away from my parents for more than a week at a time for a couple of school trips.  I think I probably went through what a lot of kids go through when they first go away to college.  All of the fear and anxiety, but also the excitement about starting a new chapter of your life.  The only thing different was that i didn’t have anybody else around who was going through the same thing.  So, looking back, that part was tough.  Also, being so young, I don’t think I had any idea how difficult building a career in Hollywood really is.  It took a couple months of auditioning and getting turned down for that to really sink in.  I was very fortunate though because I had already secured an agent between the time I had graduated and when I arrived in LA.  So, I was able to start auditioning immediately.  I’ve met actors who had been Hollywood for years before scoring an agent.  I can imagine that would be really tough.

5.  Tell me how you got the part of Lucas Gottesman!

Getting the part of Lucas on Pretty Little Liars was one of those examples of the right thing coming along at the right time.  The part was just “so me” that it was a natural fit.  I knew the casting directors because I auditioned for the role of Aria’s brother, Mike.  But, I just wasn’t right for that part.  Luckily they asked me a couple weeks later to come back in and read for Lucas.  Like I said, it was such a natural thing, I almost felt like I wasn’t really doing any “acting.”  And I guess they saw that too!

6.  What is your character Lucas like? Can you relate to him or is he completely different from you?

At this point in the show, the best way for me to describe Lucas is “misunderstood.”  He’s gone through a lot of changes the past five seasons.  Often, you’re not totally sure if he is a good guy or a bad guy.  But I have always felt like he acts with the best intentions, even if it doesn’t come across that way to the audience.  I also think he has real feelings for Hanna.  Although he’s gone through all of these changes as a character, I still relate to him on some level.  Particularly the “misunderstood” part.  I know that there were some people I went to high school with who perceived me as somebody I really wasn’t.

7.  Pretty Little Liars is such a popular show and has a huge fan base! What was it like when fans started recognizing you on the streets? Any crazy fan stories?

Yes!  We are all very, very grateful that the show has become this phenomenon and we have such amazing fans.  PLL fans are so passionate!!  I started getting recognized about halfway through season one.  I don’t have anything that’s crazy, but more eye-opening to how many people across the world love this show.  I was in Washington D.C. a few years ago with my family.  We were walking around the monuments, and all of a sudden four girls ran up to me.  They said they had traveled all the way from Morocco and were huge Pretty Little Liars fans.  That for me was an incredible experience.  Getting to meet people from halfway across the world who knew and loved the show.

8.  What is your favorite PLL episode you have done so far?

There has been a lot, but I think my favorite so far was our first Halloween episode.  We do a lot of night shoots on this show, and this particular episode was almost entirely at night.  I have fond memories of the whole cast lying around and eating junk food really, really late at night while the crew set up the cameras and lights.  It was like we were having a sleepover.  It’s those bonding moments with the cast that are the most fun for me.

9.  Tell us something most people don’t know about you! Any special hobbies or hidden talents?

I can juggle!  I learned when I was really little in an acting class.  I guess they thought it teaches strong hand eye coordination.  It took me forever to get the hang of it, but I finally got it.  Its kind of like riding a bike, once you figure it out, you never forget.  Maybe it will sneak it’s way into a PLL episode one of these days.  Can you imagine Lucas juggling?!

10.  Do you have any advice for anyone aspiring to be an actor/actress?

It’s very, very important to develop a strong sense of self.  I feel like you have to bring elements of yourself to every character you play in order for it to be truthful.  Know what makes you happy, angry, excited, and upset.  You have to “understand you” before you can step into anybody else’s shoes.  That being said, stay true to who you are.  Worrying about or trying to become like somebody you aren’t will drive you crazy.  You have something that makes you special, and if you embrace that, other people will realize that special thing too.

Pictures by: Melly Lee