We recently connected with Petar Arsić and have shared our conversation below.
Petar, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?
Without risk, there is no growth in life. Everyone of us is faced with some decision making in our every day life, and almost every decision is a risk in some way. Every little decision can influence your life in a grand manner let alone the huge ones. Like any other, my life also was filled with some important decisions that I had to make. Every choice carried a certain amount of risk. Various experiences have taught me that, somehow, the path that seems the most difficult, and carries the greatest amount of risk is actually the one that should be taken. Such decisions lead to leaving the comfort zone, and creating a favorable environment that tests us, pushes us and allows us to grow and develop. Whenever I made a big and difficult choice, took a big risk, I profited. It was hard and painful sometimes, but, somehow It always turned out fine in the end. Maybe I had luck, but I risked it in the first place, some people never do. For example, I was in love with a friend Tanja, but I didn’t know if she felt the same way about me. I was afraid that I was in the friend zone, like so many guys, and that there was no way out. After several months of suffering and questioning, I made a decision, gave myself an ultimatum, either I will be with her or I will not be around her any more. I gave myself a choice, so, come on Petar, let’s see what you’re made of. To cut a long story short, we’ve been together for over 10 years now and I can’t imagine a better and more fulfilling relationship than ours. Likewise for work, every choice within creating a role is a risk of itself, but, I’m not going to philosophize about that too much. Acting is simply a way of life, and anyone with the slightest common sense can see how insecure, unstable, and complicated it is, facing constant evaluations. Simply, you HAVE to develop a thick skin, and just accept that you are faced with constant existential risk. It’s enough that one person doesn’t like what kind of hairstyle you have, so that you don’t get a job, especially in Serbia, where nepotism is one of the strongest categories, not to mention the esoteric approach to work and people keeping projects secret until the actual beginning of the shooting, so almost no auditions or small number of rigged ones. Regardless, the point is that in spite of all that, I took a big leap of faith. Without a dollar in my pocket I’ve jumped into that world with great amount of love. Then I successively demolished challenge after challenge. From several personal crises, and temptations to give up, borrowing money, working and studying at the same time, trying to find an exit from the great pressure through unacceptable behaviour. To going to US three times for more than 4 months each time through the work and travel program. Earning a serious amount of money, paying off not only my overpriced academy, but also some previous debts and loans. To changing my lifestyle, nutrition, serious training, losing over 15 kilograms, stopping all consumption of whatnot, travelling the World. And now I have just finished shooting of a big comedy series in which I have one of the main roles. Honestly, after all this, giving up is no longer an option. I have proven to myself through numerous situations that I am a survivor, a capable individual. And that I can do almost anything I imagine, with a good amount of concentrated effort and a pinch of luck. One of my goals is that when I build a fruitful enough career in Europe, to try and make my way in US as well. I hope that it will be in the next 5 years, and I see that as potentially the biggest risk in my life. But taught by experience, I can confirm that catchphrase – Who dares wins.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
Through acting and creation of any kind, be it filmmaking, scriptwriting, or painting, rehearsing a monologue, dancing, stage performance of any kind, I feel freedom while doing it. As someone brought up on modern values, for me one of the most important categories is certainly freedom. At the age of 5, I ran away from the war in Kosovo and Metohija, with my family, and in just a few years I changed three cities and several areas where I lived. I would always meet new people, and adapt to others mentalities, energies, temperaments and accents. Through all these adaptations, somehow, I had to find something that will ground me, some place or activity, that will give me the feeling of belonging. I felt that I was wandering. Acting somehow accidentally entered my life, even more accidentally it got under my skin. Luckily I am talented for it, otherwise I would be in serious trouble. I started as a kid, I was 10 years old, and it simply started growing on me. Soon I couldn’t be without it for long, like some kind of a rush.
My older brother started acting, and it looked dull to me at that time, soon I give it a try too, and I have unexpectedly found a place of my own, a place of freedom. Gradually, through acting, I began to discover both myself and my talents, as well as the world around me. Best experiences, best friends, first loves and all that, came from all activities related to acting. In addition, other school and extracurricular activities were much easier for me. Because I knew that I always have some place, some other world where I can be whatever I want. Many years later, when I was old enough to choose a profession, I had a serious dilemma. Whether I try acting professionally or enrol in Faculty of Medicine, which was somehow a logical continuation of my Medical High School where I was pretty good. The choice between an idealistic, romantic calling, full of insecurity and uncertainty, without much support. Or a pragmatic, logical one, which everyone around me cheered for, even with promises of employment after. I thought for a long time, I even started preparing for the entrance exam for both acting and Faculty of Medicine at the same time. Of course, as soon as I would started reading the biology book, I would gag, so I decided to follow my inner feeling. I knew very well what dangers lie in the calling of an artist, but I told myself, and everyone, this is my choice, if I fail, I am to be blamed, nobody else. I entered the university as one of the best in the entrance exam, I felt like I was on top of the world, the only problem was that I didn’t even have 10% of the money needed for tuition. The mentor insisted with the people from the faculty administration, to allow me to enrol with less money, so that I can try to pay it off with delay. The amount of pressure I felt was almost unbearable. But I knew I had to endure. Long story short, I managed to crush all the obstacles with the great amount of effort and sacrifice.
Few years after academy, with a great gratitude and humility I can boast with numerous roles in huge, booming series and many more theatre roles. In the last year only I had two big roles in two American movies, and in one comedy Serbian TV show, I’ve written, directed and produced a theatre play. At the same time I am working on animated voice over projects, where I mostly have leading roles. I formed a team of people with whom I have written 4 screenplays so far, several more are in the making. We registered the company and we are in negotiations to release the first feature film in our own production by the next year or so. I am working on my skills, languages and accents.
At the end, I have to say that, working with all bunch of different people made my love for acting, and creating even greater.
Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?
When you are an artist of any kind, you always question everything, yourself and your motives especially. We all have some selfish, and some selfless motives. I have been thinking a lot about what is my mission, or missions, motives, and ideas. I have to say, fame and money were never a priority. Of course, you need to live off of something, but my mission is not to have the most money in the world or to be the most recognised man. I would describe one of my missions in life through the song Piano man by Billy Joel. It’s nine o clock on a Saturday, and there is a lot of different people in the bar, all of them have their own problems, and good or bad fortunes, but they are all there to listen to that Piano man for couple of moments to forget their lives for a while. So if I can do that through my acting, or some movie that I wrote or participated in any way, If I can help just one person to forget about their problems for a moment, than I’d say I have succeeded. Let’s go one step further, If my performance or something in that movie I made, help somebody recognise and deconstruct some of their own hardships, and help them learn of it, and battle with it, than I’d say my mission is done.
Do you think there is something that non-creatives might struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can shed some light?
I think every single person is creative in some way. We are all very talented, but some of us have the opporunity to explore, and develop it, and some don’t. I’m sure that a lot of people don’t even have an idea what they can do, and how powerful they are. So first of all I’d say, you gotta find out who you are, what are you made of, and you can do that only when you leave your zone of comfort. When you have tackled with yourself, you gotta tackle with the world. You gotta understand how things work, and what are the steps that you have to do in order to succeed. It is not all fun and games, you gotta work like a crazy person. People usually see the red carpet and glamour, and say, oh I can do that too, they were just lucky, or whatnot, but they don’t see hours and hours of hard work behind it. So you have to work, don’t wait for an inspiration! Just start doing it, put your self in a right environment and mindset, and inspiration will follow. You must have discipline, so you don’t drift. And God knows, we all drift and procrastinate a lot, especially when we are not on some specific contract. That is the time when you have to put up the most work, and when it’s the hardest. You have no promise of success, but you have to keep on going and put up that blind and silent work. Eventually it will pay off I promise, but only if you don’t quit.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.slavicartists.com/actors/petar-arsic/
- Instagram: @peramunja
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/petar.arsic.395/
Image Credits
Saša Mirić