"Miha Rodman: Passion for Truth"..

Miha Rodman, is a leading Slovenian actor, with  major credits on stage. As part of the Prešeren Theatre  Company in Kranj, Miha has toured all over Europe with  theatre shows, winning multiple awards.

He was recently cast as the  main supporting role in the  feature $lm Amre (2018)  directed by Je- Vespa, starring  alongside Abbie Cornish, Sanjar  Madi and Ben Aldridge. Recently he was here to perform  'The Jewish Dog'  directed by Yonatan Esterkin at the Kalindi Bratyajon's sixth International Theatre Festival.

Pic courtesy - http://www.miharodman.com/

What excites you about theatre?

Oscar Wilde said "I regard the theatre as the greatest of all art forms, the most immediate way in which a human being can share with another the sense of what it is to be a human being." What excites me is the energy and connection with the audience that happens during a play or performance. The power an actor has, that there in that moment and time, he can effect the audience , change them in a way.

You have acted in several films. Is it easy for you to switch between mediums? What are the advantages and challenges that come with each?

For me acting is acting. No matter if it is infront of a live audience or a camera. You always try to give them the truth. Make them believe. But, when you are on stage I feel an actor has more control over the whole performance. You go from beginning to the end without stopping. And you know exactly what your character is going to go through. While on film, a lot is done in the editing room. Scenes are shot in different timing, so you might shoot the end of the film on your first day of filming, then the beginning and on your last day you shot the middle. So it's harder to keep your characters story in check.

Pic courtesy - http://www.miharodman.com/

As an actor, what kind of opportunity excites you? Is it working with a certain kind of director? Is it a certain kind of screenplay?

I find the most important thing for me is the people involved in the process. If I know the director and co-actors are good and there is a creative energy between us then I know the end product will be something we can be proud of. I always see myself not just as an actor acting in a film or play,  but as  a collaborator working with a team. Always thinking and searching for new ideas how and why to better the project. Sometimes directors won't let you get too involved in the development process and those kind of project I try to stay away from.

What was a great moment for you as an actor?

Last year a got a chance to act in my first Hollywood movie along side a big director and some incredibly talented actors. It was the first time I was in such a big international project and it felt amazing and very creative. The director allowed me to fully take control of my character and there were a lot of things we ended up changing from the original script. I can't tell you more at this moment as it is still in post production. But hopefully it will come out next year and I can't wait to see it. Be on the lookout ... 

One film character you would love to play...

Oh, there are so many brilliant characters written and already played. I don't think I would like to play a character that was already performed by another actor. Then people always compare the two and I hate that. A character always comes from within the actor and of course they are always different. But who is to say which is better? Who is more "right"? Otherwise I would love to portray any character of Quentin Tarantino. I think his characters are just genius and so much fun for an actor.

How challenging was it to play in The Jewish Dog? What do you hope the audience will get out of this play?

The Jewish Dog was a very tough process for me physically and mentally. Firstly, because we only had one month to prepare the play in two languages – Slovenian and English. My director Yonatan Esterkin came from Isreal to do the play and so we only had this small window of time. And secondly because of the enormous amount of text. It is about 40 pages of just text for one language so around 80 pages altogether. I had a different theater premiere just two days before and therefore didn't have any time to prepare before we started. We planned our rehearsals to try to do 4 pages each day. We needed to go through the text and clean it a bit, stage it, develop different characters and accents, work on the emotional journey of my characters and then I would go home and study. We worked eight to ten hours a day, every day, even weekends. And on the final day, on the day of the premiere, we finally got to the end. It was nerve wrecking. But the show was a great success and the audience in Slovenia and abroad seems to love it. I hope it touches the audience and shows them man-kind from a different perspective. A dogs perspective, but it is only a metaphore. A dog does not understand racism, war, etc.. he only sees the world as good or bad. To give food or not to give food, to help or not to help. I wish more people could see the world in that way.

Do you think film training is important for theatre students?

I think any kind of education for actors is necessary. An actor needs to learn different techniques and tools that he can use in his work. I studied at the Slovenian National Academy for Theatre, which focuses mostly on theatre acting. I took it upon myself to get the training needed for film. Applying to different courses and workshops. Film acting is very different from theatre acting, and there are a lot of »tricks« that an actor must know how to use. But someone needs to teach you. Also there are a lot of good books on film acting that students can find online, and a lot of material can be found on YouTube and the internet. You don't need to spend a lot of money for courses. But you must make a plan and study. And enjoy the process with all your heart.