Meet Ethan McDowell

Today we’d like to introduce you to Ethan McDowell.

Thanks for sharing your story with us Ethan. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
Before I was ever protecting the universe as Captain Jack Kemmer of “Space Command,” pushing superheroes to their limits as Agent Charles Forsythe in DC Comics’ “Doom Patrol,” or raising the DeBarge family in TV One’s biopic TV Movie “The Bobby DeBarge Story,” I was just a little kid from Wyoming who had a big imagination.

I have always had a love for Film and Television, but growing up in a small town in Northern Wyoming, I never thought I was actually going to be Acting in them. That didn’t stop me from cutting my hair like “Dutch” from the movie “Predator” and figuring out a way to “Get to Tha Choppa!” playing in the mountains and forest of my upbringing. I was a creative kid; Always sketching cartoons, writing little short stories, and making a fool of myself in most situations just to get a laugh from my family and friends.

My brother and I would gather a group of buddies to make random short films just for an audience of us, but that is about as far as my performance background went. I laughed through the entire production of each of these short films and realized if there was a way to actually do this full time, then I’m all in.

So, with a new outlook on life and a creative path to follow, I went to college and did nothing of the sort. I studied Exercise and Sport Science, earning a Bachelor’s Degree in Kinesiology at the University of Wyoming. After graduating, I moved out to California to live with one of my coolest roommates, aka my Grandmother, to finish my internship as a Physical Therapy Aide.

As it goes, my Grandmother had a friend, who had a daughter, who was putting on a local community theatre show and needed a “stagehand.” I didn’t know that meant, but I wanted to help. I placed my “professional” career on hold, just to see what this stagehand thing was all about.

I stood in the dark wings of a small black box theater, waiting for my cue to drag out a park bench between the scenes, and couldn’t help but laugh with the cast having the time of their lives. I had caught “The Bug” and wasn’t even on the stage. After one of the shows, a woman from the audience approached me as I was cleaning up the place and asked if I wanted to play a Waiter and a Cop in her upcoming theater show, “Guys and Dolls,” and I said yes… joined the cast… and met my wife, Athena.

My wife and I then moved to Los Angeles to dive into the world of Acting for the better part of 11 years. For anyone who has done it can agree, pushing through a decade of the Entertainment Industry in Los Angeles is a long trek. But, it’s important to find people in your life that will help keep you afloat along the way. We found our people in the many, many, odd survival jobs, classes, short films, student projects, lucky breaks, and heartaches that all share a part of being a professional actor.

Then, at one point along the way, my wife and I agreed, with a mild push from a couple of friends who already did it, and a huge push to get out of our current living situation in Los Angeles, we decided to move on to greener pastures, and set course for Atlanta, GA.

We moved to Atlanta in the fall of 2017 to discover a wonderful city, with great food, a great community of similar souls, and a better chance to continue to live in our dreams. The move changed our lives.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
No, it has not been a very smooth road, but that doesn’t mean it hasn’t been rewarding. There are so many random factors that go into being an actor that we all just sort of push through and figure out along the way.

Scheduling a normal life through the odd survival jobs has easily been one of the biggest obstacles for me. At one point in Los Angeles, I was a resident manager for two apartment complexes, meanwhile working for a party entertainment company, background actor, and navigating the graveyard shift as a pastry delivery truck driver around the greater Los Angeles area… all in a day’s work.

On the performance side, I learned quickly that with the few and far between opportunities given for auditions, it really is a crap-shoot to who’s getting the job. It was hilarious to me the first time I walked into a big audition room and saw 30 doppelgangers of my unrelated twin brothers all packed in for the same thing.

It is challenging to “forget” about each audition you finish. We should learn to just move forward and consider each audition a win. In my opinion, that takes years and years of developing a thick skin and building a tougher soul for each “no” that you hear or don’t hear.

Then, if you hit the bullseye and book a gig, it opens a whole new wonderful door of new exciting challenges and obstacles. But, these are the good kinds. The fun is doing the work.

A big part of this actor’s journey is believing in yourself and facing the inevitable obstacles as they come, but always remembering to take to the time to celebrate every size of victory along the way.

What do you do? What do you specialize in?
I am an Actor. It took literal years of my life to become comfortable in admitting that I am a professional Actor. There is always a strange reaction to that question of “What do you do for a living?” with rebuttals like the following: “So, you’re a waiter? (haha)” or the never satisfied “Well, what have I seen you in?” or the always humbling “Ohh… that’s too bad.” and the dismissing “So, you’re a professional liar (haha).” But, it’s true… My occupation is Acting. Sure, I wait tables, and yes, I have been in things that you may, or may not, have seen, and it is “too bad” for some opinions, but wonderful for others and a whole bunch of fun, and as for being a “professional liar,” I guess in a way it is, but I see it as being a deeply connected and involved storyteller.

I started out in short films and student films, some of which have won awards and some that have even become feature films. I’ve played motion capture characters in video games and have had great experiences playing in live theatre shows and events, and have had wonderful experiences in much larger film and television shows.

I’ve slung broadswords on the battlefield in suits of chainmail, faced a band of angry pirates with a cutlass, and donned the horns of a Viking to settle some differences with a war hammer. I’ve suited up as Super Soldiers to blast laser guns across North America and in the Top of the South in New Zealand. I’ve fought dinosaurs on an alien planet and thundered into small villages on horseback firing six shooters on Sergio Leone’s sets in Spain. We grow as artists every step of the way, learning new things, meeting new people, and believing in each other to tell a great story. In all of my experiences, thus far, being an Actor has allowed me to meet life-long friends around the World, to which I want to continue forever.

I was very lucky to win a Worldwide Talent Search, over 7,000 submissions, to play the Lead Role, Captain Jack Kemmer, in the upcoming television series, “Space Command” acting alongside many talented sci-fi greats, and getting a chance to work with an amazing crew of filmmakers whom I now consider family.

When my wife and I arrived in Atlanta, we hit the ground running by signing with the fast-rising Privilege Talent Agency in the SouthEast, and have been given a beautiful amount of opportunities to expand on our careers in the Hollywood of the South.

For a quick list of projects, I’d love you to watch:

– “Space Command” as Captain Jack Kemmer coming to a platform near you (Pilot episode available on YouTube)
– “Doom Patrol” recurring as Agent Charles Forsythe currently streaming on the DC Universe
– “The Bobby DeBarge Story” as the father, Robert DeBarge, on TV One
– “The Bounty Killer” as Joe Cavendish currently available on Video On Demand platforms (Amazon, iTunes, Apple TV, and DVD)
– “Stained” as Stephen Seyton available soon to be available on VOD and DVD
– “Dead Silent” as Gary Miller on Season 3 episode 2 on the Investigation Discovery channel

To answer the question of what sets me apart from others, I can confidently admit that I still enjoy doing it. Through the trials and tribulations of this business, I can still smile at it all and I truly love what I do. You have to believe in yourself, and you have to have people around you who you believe in, as well. Work hard and challenge yourself to get better at what you want to do with what you got.

Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
A major quality that I have learned, and maybe it’s genetic, but I think being kind to others has had a major impact on my success. I love to hear people laugh and I can’t help but smile when I see people who are enjoying whatever they are doing.

I am a firm believer that a little goes a long way when it comes to kindness. I think we need to help each other out more. Hold the door open for someone, help somebody fix a flat tire, work with kids in some way that makes them laugh because they are our future, if they’re happy, we’re happy.

Work hard, but don’t stretch yourself in too many directions.

Try to live a bit more “normal life” along the way, which I am working on now and it’s worth the peace of mind.

I highly recommend falling in love, it’s a beautiful thing.

I recommend going outside more. Go for hikes, learn new skills, and laugh with friends.

Don’t worry about what’s next, live in the moment, and find something that makes you smile.

and finally…

Call your Mother.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2745208/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ethanmcdowell12/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EthanMcDowell6/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/EthanMcDowell12
• Other: http://spacecommandmovie.com

Image Credit:
TV One, Isadora Tast, Space Command, The Bounty Killer, Wounded Heroes, Adam Sonnet, Daniel Abatan, Savvas Christou, Getty images-Tibrina Hobson, Melissa Mars, Doom Patrol, Dead Silent

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