By Frederic Germay

Energetic, enthusiastic, and determined are a few words that I would use to describe Phillip Jordan, one of Hollywood’s rapidly rising film stars. After getting his big break in the 2007 independent film, “For Heaven’s Sake,” Phillip Jordan credits have now spanned television and film, in shows such as “Hannah Montana” and “Young & The Restless,” and films, such as “Imperial Violet” and “The Weight.” Phillip just finished shooting his latest film, “Couples Retreat,” starring opposite Vince Vaughn and Malin Ackerman. Recently, Phillip took the time to discuss what it was like working with all those A-list stars and his own personal acting experiences with MediaBlvd Magazine.

MediaBlvd> So how did you get started in acting? Have you always wanted to be an actor?

Phillip> Well, I always wanted to perform. When I was younger I used to dance – my sister and I, we used to have a dance group. We danced for a Chicago group, and we also danced for a big Chicago hip-hop group. So I’ve always been into the arts and performing. As life would have it, I went on to receive a scholarship to go study at the Illinois Institute of Technology, and I kind of put my love for the arts on the backburner, and then after September 11th and everything that was happening at that time, I really wanted to get back to something that I loved – something in the arts. And acting was just a natural progression, because I’ve always performed. It’s just the best decision I’ve ever made.

MediaBlvd> Yes, I’ve read a lot about how the tragedy of 9/11 had a major impact on your decision to become an actor. Tell us a little bit about that.

Phillip> Yeah, at that time, I don’t know if you’re familiar with the dot-com boom – it was just a lot of dot-com’s going up, a whole bunch of jobs and a whole bunch of money, and a whole bunch of perks. And immediately, I jumped into that. I went to school and I got a degree in Mathematics, and I was web developer by trade. So I jumped at that opportunity, and after that [9/11/01] happened – it was around the same time that the dot-com bubble burst, so I would see people who I had grown close to losing their jobs every quarter. I knew a couple of people who were affected by 9/11, cutbacks, and losing jobs, and I was just livid about that. A lot of stuff was going on, and life is really too short and you really have to follow your dreams, follow your heart, and follow your values – and not necessarily do what other people want you to do, or do it because you think it will make other people happy. I was one of the few people to actually attend college in my family – my sister before me, and my mother paid for both of us on her AT&T salary job to put me and my sister both through college. So I kind of felt obliged to make her happy, but now it’s time for me to make me happy.

MediaBlvd> Right, I understand completely. You mentioned that you went to the Illinois Institute of Technology, where you received a Bachelor’s Degree in Applied Mathematics, which is also very impressive. What kind of job in that field were you initially interested in? Essentially, if you hadn’t become an actor, what would you probably be doing?

Phillip> Web development, because that’s pretty much what I was doing. I started out in computer engineering, and I hated it – it drove me crazy. I’ve always loved how things work. Math and science have always been things that I’ve loved. So I went to do Math, because the options were endless if I wanted to do anything. With Math, you can be an accountant, you can be a teacher, you can be an actuary – you can pretty much do about anything with Math, because Math is the basis of mostly everything.

Web development was what I was already doing, so that’s probably what I would’ve continued doing, but I would have always had endless options with that Mathematics degree.

MediaBlvd> Let’s talk about your upcoming film, “Couple’s Retreat.” How did you nab that role?

Phillip> Yeah, I met a young lady in a workshop who used to work at the casting office. She was working at Fox Atomic Digital at the time, and we totally just clicked and we hung out. And I met with one of her friends who currently still works at the casting office, so she called me one day and said, “Do you mind working as a reader?” And you know how actors, when they go to auditions, they get people who read for them [read the opposite role], and you get to work with other actors and help them have a shot at what they want to do, and I love it too! I ended up being the reader, and Peter Billingsly (The Christmas Story) the director of the movie, and he saw me being the reader on the prints and he asked the casting office “why don’t you bring your reader to the producer session?” That was just a big compliment in itself, so I went to the producer’s session meeting. And Vince Vaughn was there, who is also the producer of the movie, and at one of the particular sessions they were still looking for the final person for one of the particular roles, and they were still going over some of the roles they had locked – and while they were going through those, Vince looked over at me and says “hey, do you want to play this role.” And I’m like “yeah” [laughs]. And that was like one big good moment, because I’m just sitting there playing with the cuticles on my fingernails, forgetting that I’m in the presence of such comedic royalty, saying to myself, “Idiot, Pay Attention!”. So it was just awesome that he thought so highly of me, with me just being the reader, that he thought I should also be in the movie. It was wonderful being on set with him, I really learned a lot.

MediaBlvd> Tell us a little bit about your role, Alex, in “Couple’s Retreat?”

Phillip> Alex is how you would describe a personal home depot consultant. The movie is about 4 couples, who go on this island resort vacation, and [although] they think of this as a vacation, but what they don’t realize is that they have to partake in the couple’s therapy sessions that go on there. So before they embark on this adventure there – [what’s] going on with their regular lives, the characters played by Vince and Malin are going through a home remodeling so on this island there are consultants there that help them deal with their problems. So, it’s really great.

MediaBlvd> What was like working with all those A-list actors, such as Vince Vaughn, Jason Bateman, and Malin Ackerman? Did you develop any close friendships with them?

Phillip> Yes, I did. I mostly worked with Vince and Malin. Vince, I don’t even know where to start…he’s amazing. He’s a very gifted actor, a very giving person – he encourages you, a lot of the stuff we did was improv, and he encourages you to improv. If he thinks of something or likes what you’re doing, he’ll tell you, and… while he’s doing [all that], he’s focused on the integrity of the story. And that’s a hard task, because you know with improv everything comes off the top of your head, but he’s just so great at it. And he’s just so focused on what you’re doing and what he’s doing, all to make it a better experience, not only for you but for the viewing audience. It was just great working with him. I also got to meet his sister, Victoria Vaughn, who’s also a producer on the film – she’s really funny like him. So it was really great being around them. And they’re also from my hometown, which made even better. And working with Peter Billingsly, who didn’t grow up watching “A Christmas Story,” unlike my family – who, to this day, still watches that movie. And Malin is such a sweetheart. I cannot describe just how sweet and open she is, just talking about how she got started and her path and just overall sweet and nice. There was no arrogance with them, I just felt like I’d known them for a long time, because they’re just so open and willing to talk to you. And just talk about their experience. It was really great, and I wouldn’t trade it for anything.

MediaBlvd> That’s great! So what was the most pleasant (or unpleasant) experience you had on the set of “Couples Retreat?”

Phillip> There wasn’t anything unpleasant [laughs]. Not at all, even the food was great! I’m glad you said that, because I’m like a vegan, and yes I did say ‘like,’ because I used to be strict vegan for like 2 years, and then I realized that I didn’t like vegan desserts. Momma makes a mean lemon cake, so I eat regular desserts now, but [laughs] everything else is vegan diet. But yeah, the food was great – they had stuff that I could eat. So there really wasn’t anything that I didn’t like there. But what I really enjoyed about the movie was … the cast and the crew, everybody was just so warm and welcoming. They [the crew] treated you like you part of the family – that we were in this thing together. And that was just great!

MediaBlvd> Your first feature film was the “For Heaven’s Sake,” back in 2007. How was that experience, being your first big role? Were you intimidated? Nervous?

Phillip> Um, yes and no. I wasn’t intimidated, but I was a little nervous at first. Once you get there, the nerves kind of go away, and everything kicks in, and it was really fun. I worked opposite James Tupper, and he went on to be in “Men in Trees,” and he has a new show that’s on now [Mercy, NBC]. It was just so great … working with him right before his career took off, just to see people in the same struggle that you are trying to do, and to see them succeed. It was truly a great experience working with the director, Nat Christian – he was just really great!

MediaBlvd> Your acting credits range from “Hannah Montana” to “The Young and the Restless,” while your background in indie films ranges from “For Heaven’s Sake” to “Imperial Violet…” What would you say has been your favorite role, or your most enjoyable experience?

Phillip> Out of all them? Or specifically for film or for television?

MediaBlvd> Out of everything.

Phillip> Um, that’s a good question. [laughs] Well, while I loved working on “Couples Retreat,” I think that one of the best shoots that I had was a project I did called “The Weight.” It was produced by Fox Atomic Digital, and it was written by Jonathon Levine, who wrote and directed “The Wackness,” which won the 2008 Sundance Award for best Dramatic film [2008 Sundance Audience Award for Dramatic film]. And Nicholas Jarecki, who was executive producer on the documentary, “Tyson” and co-writer of the movie “The Informers,” … [Jarecki] was also the director of it. [The Weight] … [There were] these very gripping details that I experienced – it was very independent, it was in California – 100 degrees, and we were parked inside a car that was probably 110 degrees, and we were on camera for 14 hours. It [seems] like it was excruciating but it was just so much fun, shooting something that was so independent with a small crew, with such great people thinking of stuff on the spot to make it better, asking me “what do you think about it?” It was great!

MediaBlvd> Who would you love to collaborate with in the future? Writers, directors, Actors?

Phillip> [For] Actors would have to Jeffery Wright. I am a big Jeffery Wright fan. I think he is such an amazing, amazing, amazing actor. He would be my number one. Number two would be Chiwetel Ejiofor. People say that I favor him, which is a great thing because I’m sure there’s always a part for a younger brother. So those would be my top two actors. Directors… Michael Bay, and I really love Guillermo Del Toro. He is amazing. He did “Pan’s Labyrinth” and…um…

MediaBlvd> Hellboy?

Phillip> Yeah, “Hellboy,” I couldn’t think of that one. … I love that movie! And writers…hmm… who do I like as writers? [There’s] too many of them. It’s hard for me to pick a favorite, because it changes every week, and there’s some really great writing out there. .. Well, from a comedy [perspective], Seth Rogan and Judd Apatow are great when it comes to writing comedy. I think Jon Favreau and Vince [Vaughn] are great comedy writers. I would love to work with them again. Shonda Rimes, the creator of “Grey’s Anatomy,” she’s a great writer, [and] I love her writing. John Wells, “ER” and “Southland,” [I] love his writing. Those are probably all I can think of right now.

MediaBlvd> Do you ever see yourself doing perhaps some writing or directing in the future? Would that be something you’d be interested in?

Phillip> Yes, definitely writing. I have co-written two comedy pilots with actor-friends of mine. And I’m also in the process of trying to write my first feature [film]. Writing has always been a passion of mine. I’m a poetry writer as well. I’ve always had it in my mind never to be only an actor, I’ve wanted to be an actor/writer, because content is king. I think that creating your own content is really the one way to go about this business. One of the people I like to talk about is Harold Ramis. He wrote and starred in “Ghostbusters.” [Another person would be] George Clooney – people like that are people I look up to. They’re not just actors, they’re entertainers…and I just enjoy stuff like that!

MediaBlvd> Do you find that you get recognized a lot in public? Is that something that you’ll ever get used to?

Phillip> Um, there aren’t [very many] many times that I get recognized. And I think that’s a good thing – because I try not to be recognized. I’m a very private person, and privacy is really something people count on in this business. … I just like to go hang out, and that’s if I [choose] to hangout, I’ll then hangout with a couple of people that are working recognized actors/actresses and we don’t try to be recognized [don’t try to get in the public spotlight] – we just try to enjoy ourselves.

MediaBlvd> I hear you’re quite a tech geek also. Building DVRs and computers? Tell us a little bit about that!

Phillip> Yes sir! I recently just built my own DVR, and I love technology! I keep up with everything that’s coming out and new. They had this technical conference, I can’t think of the name, but they have this new 6 tuner card that you can put into a computer. And get a cable card from your cable provider and you can tune to [roughly] 6 channels and record – I just love stuff like that! I’ve always been the type to [figure out how things work] – my mother had stop giving me watches as gifts when I was a kid, because I’d pick them apart, and could never put them back together [laughs], because I wanted to know how it works. My grandfather used to work on TVs and radios; he had his own shop – that’s always been a part of his world, the artsy side. So one day, I was sitting at home and I was like “Okay, I’m going to miss this show, and I really don’t want to pay 9 bizillion dollars for a TiVo and all this other stuff,” while I could really build it [DVR] myself. So I got online, did the research, got all the parts and built my own HD-DVR.

And I’ve been testing out now the release candidate [RC] of Windows 7. Windows 7 is great! [laughs] After all the issues with Vista, Windows 7 is back on track. This needs to get in there [the interview] – it is just great! … I tried a lot of it out … and [particularly] Windows 7 Media Player is great! And now the cable cards have alleviated the restriction on being only for providers, and it’s now in the hands of consumers – people who are building their own home theatre PCs to the way that [they] want to do it. So I just LOVE that! I love building computers, I just love technology! I probably trained myself to build one every six months [laughs].

MediaBlvd> Also, are there any other future projects that you’re working on?

Phillip> I am actually working behind the cameras on a particular project. It’s this great little web series that was co-executive produced and written by a great friend of mine. Her name is Chane’t Johnson and she’s a wonderful actress. We would have these ‘pow-wow’s, and we’d talk about stuff – and she’s really the kind of person that I look up to, not only as an actress, but as a friend [too]. She’s also about creating content – content is king. She created this great little web series, and I’ve been involved with helping her on the back end of producing, and viral marketing materials for the show. It’s a great show, they have an excellent cast – Tony nominee Valerie Pettiford, and Emmy award winner Kathryn Joosten. It was just so amazing, and I was like “How can I help you with this? What can I do?” So I’ve been producing a lot of behind the scenes viral marketing material, cast interviews, music videos and things like that – which is very good, because it [teaches] me another aspect of the business that I want to go into. You have to create your own stuff, so you can do what you want to do, and [avoid] what you don’t want to do. So keeps your eyes open for that. We’ll have the website up, so you can see some of the viral marketing that we did, pretty soon.

MediaBlvd> Finally, what advice would you like to give to aspiring actors in the business?

Phillip> It’s difficult to pick out [specific advice], because there’s a lot, but I think that the one that I’ve been given the most is ‘Don’t be an actor for hire.’ What I mean by that is that on this journey a lot [of actors] get agents, and [they] think that agents should do all the work. That isn’t necessarily the truth. They make a certain percentage, and you make a certain percentage. So you should really be on top of your business, because you are a business, you are a brand. You should be aware of your brand, and what you want to do to take it to the next level. On this journey, I think that [often] times … we just sit around and wait for people to call us, to hire us. But technology is ever-changing – [for example] YouTube is popular – it can get a group of like-minded people together and you can create content. People have become stars on YouTube, because of the content they create. And make sure that your content is of great quality, you can get an HD camcorder for 800 bucks now. And I’m talking about 720p, 1080i [pixels]. Then just get together with your friends and create content, come up with ideas. Because it’s really two things – 1 is it teaches you [to be] creative. It doesn’t allow you to be stuck, or waiting under pressure for someone to call you [with a job]. 2 – It also helps create your own path. You never know where that content is going to go, or who’s going to see it, or what’s going to come out of it. We all have great ideas; I just think fear overcomes that response to extricating those ideas. So, don’t be afraid, and don’t be an actor for hire. Go for what you want.

MediaBlvd> Any other comments or advice?

Phillip> Be patient, that’s a big one. You just have to be patient. If you want it and you love it – be patient. Go for it, but [remain] patient, nothing happens overnight. Just be patient. And never give up on your dreams. It makes me think of a quote by Will Smith, I’m a big Will Smith fan, and there’s this video on YouTube called Will’s Wisdom which has a lot of clips from interviews about some of the stuff that he’s said.. One of his quotes was “There’s no need for Plan B, because it’s distracts from Plan A.” Always know your Plan A. Never think about the Plan B, because if this is what you really want – that’s your Plan A. If you ever think ‘oh, I’m going to be doing this just in case,’ then you’re always going to be doing the ‘just in case.’ So stay focused on the goal.

MediaBlvd> Alright, thank you very much for taking the time to talk with us today. We greatly appreciate it.

Phillip> Thanks so much for letting me talk to you guys. Have a great weekend!