GEORGIA ACTOR Anthony J. James Contemplates the Magic The thoughtful up-and-comer talks art and life—and embracing the unscripted in each By Ca ro l Bada r acco Padge t t I t’s funny how success works,” says Atlanta-based actor-director-producer Anthony J. James. “Any time you go through something tough or have problems, it’s teaching you and building you into the person you’re supposed to be. And then all of a sudden, the clouds break and the magic happens.” And for James as an actor, filmmaking creative, Of the project, he notes, “Basically, it’s about the Snoopy characters, and they’re in high school and coming into themselves— some dealing with drugs, some with relation- ships for the first time. And I played CB (for Charlie Brown), who’s gay and has a relation- ship with Beethoven, who commits suicide.” Another recent project is the film short La Anthony J. James
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and one-time Hollister and Abercrombie model, when it happens, you know it beyond a doubt. He’s experienced it personally throughout his 18 years of acting since start- ing in theatre as a child. Case in point: an audition he went to in 2018 for the lead role as a star high school athlete who develops cancer. “It was an open call, which means that they don’t set a specific audition time for you,” James describes. “You could go and there could be a thousand people waiting for an audition.” And this is the exact scenario he encountered when he auditioned. “I had this gut feeling. I had read the breakdown. And I’d had cancer as a kid. I spent a lot of time in hospitals, and I knew I could vibe with this,” he notes. To stand out from the crowd, James drove up to the audition hall in Norcross, Georgia, on his motorcycle. “And good or bad, I got pushed right up in the line,” he states. While reading over the part and rehearsing in a hallway at the audition site, James heard a watchful producer say, “I like this guy.” “As soon as I auditioned, I knew I booked it,” James states. “I had this feeling, and it felt like magic.” In the film, which is currently in production with potential licensing interest from Netflix, James finds the very phenomena he speaks of—lows leading to highs, trials to triumphs, and adversity to achievement that he has experienced in his own life. “This young guy is on top of the world and then finds out he has leukemia,” he says of the bittersweet role. “But the whole story has faith-based ties. I’m not really religious, but it brings about this positivity that people really need to see.” The heavy topics, it seems, are drawn to James. And he is equally drawn to them. Although he has appeared in, produced, and directed a number of films and TV series, including having a starring role in Amazon Prime’s 2021 film Beyond Adversity , his favorite piece of work wasn’t actually a film or a TV show, it was a play called Dog Sees God.
maison de l’hypocrisie , in which James, who’s fluent in French, both produced and directed. The film, in French with French sign language and captions, is about a virus-ravaged, post- apocalyptic world. Another recent project that’s a favorite is Netflix’s Bad Trip , a hidden-camera movie that has afforded him the opportunity to work alongside major stars, produce, and experience working with a multimillion dollar budget. When asked to think back to earlier days over the past 18 years, and what gigs have helped mold him for the film work he’s doing today, James says early modeling helped him get comfortable in front of the camera, as did time spent in a French/Haitian soap, La Fleur de Mai . Equally formative lessons came from simply being hungry, both literally and figuratively, as a starving college student in expensive San Francisco. “There was one teacher in particular, and I didn’t really think I liked him, but he told me, ‘You look terrible. You’re falling asleep in class. You’re already working (in the business), so why are you going to school?’” James adds, “He talked me into not coming back. But in his own way, he was very supportive. We still communicate on Instagram to this day.” As for the future, James contemplates his next welcome dose of magic, saying, “I’m still auditioning. All leads. For a big series last week, plus two studio films on the weekend. And any of these can pan out at any minute.”
Photo by Marcus Nelson
@anthonyjamesoff icial
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