Chad Faust – Human Nature

Q.  What are the current projects that you are working on?

A.  Well, I have got two different scripts that I’ve written, one is coming close to being in production.  It’s close, it’s called Izzy Underwood, it’s a project I’ve been working on for about four and a half years.  It’s a personal little tale about this young guy who falls in love with an older prostitute.  It’s truly a crazy little story, that’s my little baby that I’ve been working on forever that’s hopefully going to be coming to fruition soon.  That’s pretty much all I’m focusing on now, a couple options and so forth but nothing’s grabbed me yet, I haven’t really agreed to do anything yet.  That’s sort of where I’m at, we just finished like two days ago and I’m just holding out for something that really interests me.

Q.  What can you tell us about the premise for the movie Tamara and your character Jesse?

A.  It’s weird because I haven’t seen anything of it, I’m not sure how it’s going to turn out, I have no idea.  I mean the people involved are very talented, I’ve got hopes for it.  I haven’t seen it, it’s sort of a Carrie-esque horror movie, plot wise anyways, my character is sort of the innocent one that gets wrapped up in the murder of this girl.  He’s sort of the innocent eyes that the audience gets to watch this tale of corruption through.  It’s very interesting because on the paper there wasn’t a whole lot going on with him, at least on first read.  I sort of did some reading and found he had, it was odd because he was always following his girl Chloe around.  I tried to figure out why he was always following her around and it seemed like he was just doing everything she said.  At first I thought it was the weakness in the character but then I just found he had this need to be taken care of.  It was interesting because it wasn’t necessarily a single element to the story but it was undeniably there.  I played the whole story from this kind of twisted perspective, hopefully it works out, I’m not sure I haven’t seen it yet.

Q.  What made you want to be a part of this movie?

A.  I just really liked the director, he was a really nice guy, he had a really hopeful vision for the project.  Really just him, I actually met with him before I even read the script.  He told me right off the bat that he wanted me for the project and then I read the script and I wasn’t crazy about the script.  I wasn’t crazy about it at first but once I talked to him about it and he explained his vision to me I just took a risk.  So, I am hoping that something positive comes out of it, I’m just not sure. 

Q.  You’ve also been working on the show “The 4400,” what do you think it is about the show that keeps drawing viewers in?

A.  Well, the thing I love about the show, and I’m assuming that other people feel the same way, is this global phenomena that happens, this extreme situation, this extraordinary event that happened.  Basically we’re seeing it all from the perspective of very ordinary people.  It’s extraordinary events and I think that something people can relate to is the fact that it’s not about, sure it’s in the Sci-Fi genre, but it’s not about spaceships or aliens or things that we can’t relate to.  It’s about people trying to deal with loss, love and separation and abandonment and all these things that human beings deal with on a daily basis.  It’s an extreme situation in order to portray universal emotions and universal situations.  Everything going on with the show is very universal and it’s all about family and love and I think that everyone can connect with those. 

Q.  Do you have a most memorable moment from filming “The 4400”?

A.  I think that the first thing that comes to mind is when we were filming the finale of the mini series, of last year.  It was the moment when Joel Gretsch grabs my arm and they get swept up into this cyclone of events and we end up getting thrust into this world of human beings in the future talking to him who is giving him a message. That feeling when he actually grabbed my arm, the first time that Joel did it, he did it with such commitment that I just started laughing.  For some reason I just started laughing and the second time he did it, we both just cracked up.  We had to do it and the sun was coming up and we had to shoot this scene, we had to get this scene shot by five thirty when the sun came up.  It was our last day of shooting actually in the mini series and Peter Coyote came out and he just started laughing.  We couldn’t get the shot and eventually our producer came out and had to pretend that he was very angry.  Eventually we shot it but the most difficult situation was trying to get this shot, that was definitely a memorable moment.

Q.  Your character Kyle’s life ambition has always been to be a doctor.  Has acting always been your ambition?

A.  Yeah, ever since I was probably twelve I watchedEdward Scissorhands and I remember watching that movie and there is something so magical and imaginative in that world that Tim Burton created.  I just wanted to go and live in it!  Ever since then I started taking theater classes and what not, I never really got into it until I was about twelve.  There is just something magical in that world and I think that how magical that made me feel was basically what I wanted to do with my movies and my projects.  I think that the greatest thing about movies is that we learn about ourselves and each other and we learn to accept.  When we see something that we can relate to we can say “Oh my gosh, I’m not the only one who went through that in my life, I’m not the only one who did this or that.”  I think that is something really powerful about that kind of acceptance, that suddenly you don’t feel so alone.  Ever since I kind of had that feeling from that movie, I’ve tried to do that with my own projects. 

Q.  What is it like getting to work with such a large cast and crew?

A.  It’s the best cast that to ever worked with, I’m sure that everybody says that, I really feel that way and I think it’s sort of a consensus.  It’s very special, I don’t know what it is exactly, I think it’s like we all came from the same star or something, we all really care for each other.  There is no ego between the main cast, so nobody is competing for the spotlight, every body wants to go through the journey and tell these stories together.  We all really care about each other and the show is all about family at the core and we have a sense of family.  I think that there is something that translates to the screen that is very genuine and sincere.  When filming a scene with Joel Gretsch who plays my dad, I mean I don’t really have to project anything upon him.  He kind of thinks of me as a son and we have this great bond that lends to the characters very well.  It’s a really special thing and I think that even if the show doesn’t continue you on, we’ll be friends for life.  I think that comes across, I hope that comes across on the final product and if not it’s a really great group of people to work with, we’re all very blessed. 

Q.  With the next season of “The 4400” being filmed, what would you like to see happen with Kyle?

A.  Well, that’s a great question, the great thing about the show it’s constantly evolving and the characters are always changing, there is no status quo to the show.  I think that makes it very unique and this year there has been a whole new incarnation of Kyle from last year.  I am hoping that they do something completely new next year, I’m hoping, I’m sure they will.  Something happens at the end of this season that I can’t fully address yet because it hasn’t aired yet.  But, something happens at the end of the season that will definitely change Kyle’s life forever, I’m not sure it’s going to be eternal damnation or liberty, it’s going to be one or the other.  Yeah, he’s either going to be damned or set free, I’m not sure what it is, maybe a little bit of both actually.  So, I definitely think I feel like by the end of the season Kyle becomes a man and owns up to his responsibilities and takes responsibility for his actions.  I have a feeling we’re in for a new chapter for him, I feel like he’s going to become a younger Tom Baldwin in a sense that he is trying to make the “right choice.”  I think that he is becoming his father in a way, he’s still his own unique being, so I am hoping that it has something to do with that journey into manhood.  I am not exactly sure what that means, I’m being vague, but I think that’s the way things are going for him, becoming his own human being.  As opposed to his father’s son and a messenger from the future, he’s sort of becoming his own adult and I don’t know what that means but I think it’s going to be something interesting.

Q.  Besides acting, writing and directing, what else do you enjoy working on?

A.  Well, I play music as well, I play the guitar and write my own self.  For a while I was pursuing it more heavily, and the script that I was telling you about Izzy Underwood is a musician so I’ll be doing all three of my passions, writing, acting, music on that project.  That’s a big one, I’m just trying to explore this city more, I’m in L.A. and there is just so much to do here.  I’m trying to go to some of the different places that one can go in this city, there is so much to do and city.  I’ve been trying to play as much sports as I can lately, beach volley ball and soccer.  I played a lot of sports as a kid and so I am kind of reinventing that passion, that kind of competitive, physical, impulsive love. 

Q.  You were in the hit movie Saved, while working on it, did you ever think it would get the attention that it has?

A.  I guess I knew it was a possibility just given the cast alone and the producers.  I knew there was a potential but I didn’t really want to put the pressure on myself, it’s very easy to do when you know something is going to do well, have that pressure on yourself that people are watching.  I tried not to think about it too much but yeah, I had a feeling, I think I went to the gamut thinking it was going to be massive and then thinking it was going to be nothing.  Then just sort of letting it be whatever it was going to be, let it do whatever it was going to do.  The thing I was most excited about was that the film I thought was a beautiful story, I loved the message of the movie. For me that was the most exciting thing, to be a part of something that just spoke in the voice that I agreed with.  So, that was a very big pleasure, I think it was as successful as it could possibly be.

Q.  What is your latest obsession, are you into any particular book, sport, or activity?

A.  There is an album out there now that probably most people wouldn’t know about that’s my favorite album of the year it’s so incredible.  It’s Citizen Cope and it’s this album called The Clarence Greenwood Recordings.  This guy, I don’t know why he’s not the new Jack Johnson or something, but he is sort of Sublime meets Jack Johnson, this guy is just into something so truthful. 

Q.  What would you like to say to fans and supporters of your career?

A.  First, thank you because it’s sort of a new thing to have fans and supporters, I’m just really grateful that there are people out there that have a reaction to what I’m doing.  I think that for me, acting is all about telling a story if I can, and what I try and put out there is my own truth.  It’s a really beautiful thing when people respond to that truth and relate to it.  For me, that’s been a really special thing getting letters from people and hearing back from people that they respond to it, that it effects them.  For me, that’s been a really wonderful experience so I am going to keep trying to put things out there that I believe in and I hope people believe in them and that’s really awesome.