Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Timothy Michael Blewitt. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Timothy Michael, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?
Everyone wants their life to be meaningful. As Artists, our work can sometimes become our life. And throughout the course of our lives, all we really have in this world is Time, and our Integrity.
I think you get to a point in your Artistic career where you have to choose the kind of work you want to create–
Do you want to make work that is meaningful for others?
Or do you want to make work that is meaningful for you?
Sometimes, the two overlap; but not always, and not often.
When I first started as an Actor, I would say YES to Every. Single. Project!
It was because I loved it! I wanted to learn, and I wanted to engage in a fun activity. I wanted to push myself, and I wanted all the aspects of social glory that came along with it. Most of that ideology has stuck with me, but I do find myself saying “NO” to projects more and more often now. Partly because of the professional trajectory I’m on, and partly because I’ve performed in so many different productions, that I want to make sure I’m spending my time doing something I truly believe in.
Over the years, I’ve definitely recognized and been privy to “The Machine” of Hollywood.
I understand that the industry is comprised of smaller cogs, helping the bigger ones move; and that the well-oiled apparatus is lubricated by the peppy momentum into and the weathered momentum out of the system. It is a system that can work… Some of the time. But I think that’s exactly why it’s so important now more than ever that Actors and Artists strive for meaningful work on their own terms. The current system can work for you, yes; some of the time, if you’re lucky. OR, you can explore your own work, on your own terms, and have it work out for you one-hundred percent of the time in a much more creatively fulfilling manner–
Pursuing work that explores the depths of your soul…
Pursuing work that explores where you are in your personal journey as a human being at this particular moment in time.
Who are you?
What do you have to say?
As I personally take on this concept of making meaningful work in my own life, I’m also putting my thoughts and words into action. Right now I feel that I am making one of my most meaningful pieces to date.
It’s a short film adaptation of a few revelatory verses from the “Tao Te Ching” by Lao Tzu.
So many of us over the past few years were looking for some sort of meaning in life–
Some sort of understanding in the midst of a global catastrophe…
Grasping for any sort of Truth we could get our hands on that would help us along to the next day, and then the next day after that.
I found (and still do find) myself in the midst of a Spiritual Awakening that was forcing me to question everything I “understood” to be True up until this very present moment in Time.
I think this piece is my attempt at addressing some of those questions and beliefs.
It is a very introspective look at Spirituality, Humanity, Nature, and the forces of give-and-take, push-and pull, yin-and-yang.
And the best part for me is that it is all being created from the ground up.
Based upon very real and very visceral conversations with my close friend and collaborator Paul Manganello, it explores the breaking point of Humanity, and the tendency to create an inner philosophy for ourselves, no matter how justified or misguided that philosophy may be.
It’s an energetic piece, being birthed out of an exploration of physically experimental improvisations–
Manifesting words and ideas from within the human body, all for the purpose of conceptualizing meaning from the stories we tell ourselves to keep ourselves safe; to keep ourselves moving forward in a socially acceptable direction.
And because we have full autonomy over the project, we can curate every aspect of the production and the performance without any influence of money, time, ego, distribution, politics, or social etiquette.
We work to serve the work… Nothing else.
And when the final product is complete, we have the full honor and privilege of looking at it and saying “This piece of Art is uniquely and distinctively ours.”
If you’re truly happy working on someone else’s vision, time after time, then go for it! Do what makes you happy! But if you find yourself fatigued and wanting much more out of the process, then it becomes absolutely necessary to make your own, meaningful work.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
I started in this industry by performing in Storefront Theatres all around the city of Chicago. If you know of a hole-in-the-wall theatre in the Windy City, I’ve probably either performed, rehearsed, or seen you in a production there. I came into the profession loving the innovative, grassroots contention of it all, and the no-holds-barred, explorative, risk-taking nature of the Storefront Theatre scene. It’s where I cut my teeth, and expanded my understanding of what is and what could be artistically possible on the stage.
I then honed my technique as an Actor at École Internationale de Théâtre LASSAAD in Brussels, Belgium; A physical theatre school that explored the elements of Neoclassical Mime and Movement for the stage. The training and the connections I made there launched me into several tours with independently devised works throughout Europe, performing in several different countries (and sometimes different languages) for months on end.
Now in LA, I bring those disciplines to the screen where I meld the classical American “Method” with the ever-alluring, avant-garde “Outside-In” approach. I love having incubated myself in the LA film industry for the last 5 years; enriching my entire perception and patois of the medium from both sides of the camera.
And while this is my own personal practice and journey, I also teach others how to do the same.
I teach artists how to make films, and how to work with a defined, manageable budget; creating strong characters and cohesive storylines.
I teach them how to get their product out to the public.
I teach them how to take up space.
I teach them about the intricacies of the industry.
I’ve had countless conversations with Agents, Managers, Producers, CEOs and content creators, and have a firm understanding of what it takes to get work done and seen.
I break down practical, tangible ways for actors to advance their dreams, and to make meaningful work along the way.
All that being said, I also practice what I preach.
Creating my own, personally significant pieces and exploring the different avenues and possibilities of physical storytelling and content creation through the medium of film.
I’m very proud of the independent work I create, and very proud of being a part of the conversation when it comes to modern-day, independent filmmaking.
We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?
Paradoxically, as much as I tout technique, it is also one of the biggest lessons I’ve had to unlearn. I think we all get into the Arts because of a passion within us; A passion that drives us.
And then in school, that passion is codified, and put into a vocabulary and methodology referred to as “Technique.”
Technique is a mutually understood, socially acceptable process of doing something. You get points for technique in competitions. People recognize it; they analyze it.
Acting (as an Art form) involves technique, often parsed out of different practices from all around the world: Stanislavsky, Miesner, Chekhov, Lecoq, Butoh, Suzuki, to name just a few.
As actors, it’s important to understand and to learn technique… But it can subtract from our own, unique brilliance. Eventually, we need to be ourselves on stage–
Utilizing what works for us, and not holding ourselves to any one particular form.
As an audience,
We want to see what makes you, YOU!
Not what others think is an acceptable manner of performance.
And good performances are based in magic.
If someone can analyze and recognize your technique, where is the magic?
We want an audience to say “How in the world did they do that?”
As opposed to “Oh, I see what you did there…”
When I was in Mime school, we had an end of the year exam based on 21 Movements.
Rooted solely in technique, these movements consisted of a very stylistically “correct” manner of exploring the different dynamics, limitations, and possibilities of the human body.
It was our Karate-style “Kata” discipline for the stage.
And we all tried to be perfect with it…. Only to realize that perfection within the movements does not exist. Because perfection does not exist in life. Everybody’s body is different, and no two people move exactly the same; so why try to force it? The techniques we learned were merely a springboard. If we wanted people to engage with our performance – To really FEEL something – We needed more than just technique… We needed Heart.
Because a room full of people who know EXACTLY what you’re doing and why you’re doing it makes for a very bored room full of people.
Technique can be learned; Heart has to be earned.
So I still try to walk the razor’s edge when it comes to honoring and utilizing the tricks of the trade, but I know that if I truly want to create something completely unique, I have to eventually detach myself from the codified way of thinking, and allow my own innate, passionate brilliance to take over.
Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?
Ultimately, I want to explore the limits of my life.
I always saw the pursuit of Theatre and Performance Art as one grand adventure!
The artform itself and the collaborative nature of it has compelled me to travel all around the world, meeting people of different nationalities and perspectives; speaking and performing in different languages; pushing myself to my own physical and mental limits.
It has been a very charactered life–
A rich life, very well lived.
Now I see that adventure as less of a geographical one, and more of an introspective, meditative one. Exploring my own beautiful qualities, shortcomings, demons, joys, and achievements in the pursuit of becoming my best self … Truly living my best life.
A life of value; filled with meaning.
And I think that’s why Meaningful Work is so important to me right now; because it is directly reflexive of a Meaningful Life.
I take pride in the Art that I create. The works that I am a part of. The stories that I tell.
My goal and mission for this next chapter of my creative journey is to create works that explore the compassionate side of humanity–
The side of humanity that does not look at the world in a binary, right and wrong, black and white, this-or-that way of thinking, but rather the side that is able to hold space and respect for all opinions, viewpoints, and characteristics, and to discuss them in a respectful, emotionally intelligent manner.
I think we’ve all seen too much pain when focused on what divides us.
I want to spend my life focusing on what binds us.
I want to spend my life focusing on what heals us.
And I’d like to inspire others to do the same.
I love telling stories.
I love the medium of film.
I love observing people, and emulating them myself; creating bold characters in a thematic, storylined arc.
I want to push the limits of my understanding of the medium.
I want to broaden my own empathy, as well as the empathy of the people around me.
I want my work to be more than just an escape.
I want my work to be healing; cathartic; inspirational.
I want to create helpful conversations and discussions; To bring people together.
I want to be challenged;
And I want to have fun all along the way. 
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.timothymichaelblewitt.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_feisty_rascal/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/timothy-blewitt-ba036959/
Image Credits
Lauren LoGrasso; Paul Manganello; Alejandro Ramos; Beau Moran; Jannik Ehret; Yvette Marie Photography.