Meet Nathan Clarkson | Actor, Author, Filmmaker

We had the good fortune of connecting with Nathan Clarkson and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Nathan, what do you think makes you most happy? Why?
I remember shortly after arriving in Hollywood being on a real movie set for the very first time, and even though I was just working as a background actor, my heart raced with joy and excitement at being a part of the world I had dreamed of for so long. But after about a dozen times of working as a background actor, I noticed that childlike joy of being on set faded and was replaced with a new desire for something more — having my first line in a movie. So I spent the coming years chasing that line for what seemed like an eternity. I auditioned and struggled until finally I was given an opportunity to play a real part with my own line (one word) in a TV show. After finishing shooting my line, I was on top of the world. A flood of happiness swept over me and for the next month. I was on a high of positive emotion. But in what seemed almost like a momentary shift at the end of that month, I suddenly found myself again dissatisfied. The happiness of that moment had faded and I was again left waiting more, the line no longer able to bring me the fulfillment. It wasn’t enough. Now I needed a bigger part — two lines, or three, or a starring role, or a bigger movie. I was a little bit shocked by myself, as for years I had fantasized the moment I would get my first line. I believed that would be enough. But here I was, the feeling of happiness having faded and again I was left wanting more…

Happiness is a tricky emotion. It’s essentially a temporary high and when it fades it leaves us more depressed than when we started and in desperate need of another hit. Throughout my years living and working in Hollywood, I’ve watched many people chase the high of happiness, placing it at the center of their sights and letting their desperate need for it lead them to dark places that only leave them worse off than when they began. I decided early on that instead of happiness, the thing I would chase would be more substantive, something with more lasting power, something that could build and be collected, and didn’t fade with time. That thing is purpose and meaning. Purpose and meaning are admittedly less flashy than happiness and they take a lot longer to accomplish, but they’re things that when realized, have more long term fulfillment. Purpose and meaning don’t leave me depleted but instead make me excited to get out of bed in the morning and get back to work. The things of lasting purpose that I’ve chased have been difficult and time consuming, but their rewards have lasted and given my life a greater sense of joy that doesn’t fade in a moment.

To answer the question more specifically, the things I have found purpose and meaning in are being a part of telling good, beautiful, and redemptive stories, be that on a screen or on a page. To be a part, even a small one, of creating a narrative that seeks to offer the world truth, hope, and goodness is a feeling that never seems to leave. There is a happiness to be felt when digging into a character and acting with an amazing cast in a great movie, getting a bigger role than I have before, or seeing my book on a bestsellers list. But those feelings soon fade and when they do, the more important emotion of having done something purposeful and meaningful remains, offering the superior and lasting feeling of fulfillment I have learned to value the highest.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
When looking back at my story of pursuing a creative life, it didn’t feel like a choice I made but rather it felt more like discovering the thing I was made to do. I was always drawn to stories, good ones — stories of hope, redemption, and inspiration. But I don’t think I’m the only one. I believe we all are story oriented creatures, longing to find in the narratives we watch and read understanding of our existence, catharsis for our pain, and hope for our futures. So I have spent my entire adult life attempting to tell good and connective stories through the mediums of movies and books.

And while I’ve always felt this is a worthy pursuit, it most certainly hasn’t been an easy journey. Breaking into the entertainment industry as an actor or filmmaker or into the publishing world as a writer is no easy task. Unlike many professions that, more or less, have a set path — get a degree, get an internship, get certified, and viola! — the journey for a professional creative or artist is far less structured, and can at times feel overwhelming, confusing, and disheartening. But while the lack of a set method for achieving success can be hard, that lack of formula can also be a positive thing. There might not be one path for us to follow, but that means there are a million ways we can actually use our creativity to achieve our goals. When a door closes, there’s a million other routes we are able to explore and take.

This idea of forging my own path took some time for me to grasp, but when I did, I allowed myself to step out of the narrow idea of how success would look, and step into a world of possibilities of things I could try. When I thought I had hit a roadblock because I wasn’t booking the roles I wanted to play, that ended up being why I made my first original feature film. When one of my feature films fell through, that’s when I wrote my first book. The very thing that can make the creative’s journey difficult is also the thing that makes it amazing. It allows us to use our inherent creativity, not just in our art, but in our pursuit of finding success with it.

But the thing that has kept me going and kept me from giving up when I’ve experienced setbacks, roadblocks, and difficulties is what I referenced earlier — I articulated and believed in the “why” of what I was doing and the purpose and meaning behind what I was pursuing. I believed, and still do, that good stories matter. I believe the world needs more stories of truth, goodness, and beauty. This belief that is tied to something greater than myself is the thing that keeps me going on the difficult but rewarding road I’m on.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Unlike many big cities around the U.S. and world that are like one great monolithic movie you watch, Los Angeles is a city of a thousand cities. Like an anthology TV series with dozens of episodes. And while there are common themes running through all of them, each episode, each neighborhood is entirely unique with its own stories, culture, characters, aesthetic, and mood. I’ve lived in multiple places around Los Angeles, all the way from the deep valley, to the hills, to the middle of Hollywood and in that time I’ve been able to formulate a couple different tours that depended entirely on the person visiting.

The first is the classic one — the one that reveals the Hollywood that lives as a fantasy in our mind, made up from old movies, magazines, and postcards. On this tour I take my visitors to all the sights and places that reveal the Old Hollywood magic of this place: a Warner Brothers backlot tour, a drive down Sunset Boulevard, a walk at the Griffith Park Observatory with a picture of the Hollywood sign in the back, a movie at the Chinese theater. And while this might feel like a cliche tour, it’s a wonderful one that reminds me of why this place is still such a powerfully important place that tells the stories the whole world watches.

The second tour is one that is more off the beaten path, this is the one that explores the lesser known but just as important places. And on this tour there’s a thousand different directions it could go. It could be a sandwich at the best hole-in-the-wall donut shop, a quiet moment at the Brand Library and Art Center, a hike to an abandoned mansion, a drive north on the PCH, or even out to Joshua Tree.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I was an outside-the-box kid. I had a host of learning disabilities and mental illness diagnoses. I was constantly getting in trouble and had a difficult time understanding school work, much less sitting still for any long period of time. But my parents, who could’ve seen me as a problem to fix, instead saw me as a story to understand. Every step of the way they made the choice to not try to fit me in a mold that I would’ve never fit into, to not compare me to other kids or show disappointment at my differences, but rather celebrate my uniqueness and do what they could to help me fly. When acting, writing, and creative pursuits came into my life, they were the ones to support me in my passions, not just in word, but in deed — driving me to auditions, getting me lessons, helping me memorize lines, and celebrating every small and large win I have experienced along my journey.

Website: https://www.nathanclarkson.me

Instagram: @nathanjclarkson

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nathanclarkson

Image Credits
All photos are taken and owned by myself (no need to credit)