The Indie Weekly with J. Robert Zanfardino
J Robert Zanfardino discovered he had a passion for acting when he was in college. He started out in theatre but quickly realized that television and film was what he really wanted to do. After college he returned to NYC and decided to seriously pursue his dream. After knocking on doors and hitting the pavement his work paid off when he got involved with WESTCHESTER. Get to know him better in the latest instalment of The Indie Weekly
Q1: How did you get involved with the pilot for WESTCHESTER?They say timing is everything in life and I just happened to be in the right place at the right time.
Q2: What is it about this show and character that made you want to get involved? I found them both to be just very relatable. Everyone in the show has his own thing going on, as is the case in life. It’s not like four friends just trying to mooch off the other one. You know Bobby is trying get ahead in the ways he feels best suit him as is Twin, Marc, Rome and Sully. We are just doing what we feel is natural to us
Q3: Bobby like a lot of people is trying to work beyond his means in order to sustain the lifestyle he hopes for; in doing so he makes some bad choices along the way. How much can you identify with this character and how much did you have to compensate/ research for? After reading Bobby’s character description and talking to Donnie about what he was looking for from this character I found myself saying, in a lot of ways Bobby Amaroso is me. You get the sense that he is driven, that he has an acumen for business, and that his dreams transcend the town limits, but that he is limiting himself for whatever reason and over the course of the show we come to learn those reasons.
Q4: What is it about his struggle that you think people will identify with unilaterally? Sometimes when things are not going one’s way people have a tendency to internalize their pain and get down on themselves. How people handle adversity is really compelling. After all everyone has his/her own coping mechanism. Bobby’s is drinking, but I think eventually one has to recognize that their mindset is only furthering their seeming demise.
Westchester Trailer
Q5: The core friend group displays an organic chemistry on screen. How did you work on creating that authenticity? I think from the beginning we all, cast and crew, just sort of clicked. I mean I came to the table later even after rehearsals and at no time did I feel out of place. This group really just had a way of connecting, like one big family; I know that sounds cliché, but its true. It’s nice to hear that the camaraderie we had off screen translated on screen.
Q6: What was it like working with Don Capria?nbsp; Tremendous. He knew exactly want he wanted from his actors and for his shots. Moreover, he has a way of making everyone on set feel comfortable, which is important. As an actor there are times a scene calls for a certain vulnerability or what have you and as an actor if you don’t feel comfortable on set you may force it, and this is never good thing because then it doesn’t come across as being natural.
Q7: What’s the Westchester “family”/ on set experience like? It’s a blast. Not only we were able to produce an awesome piece of work, but we were also able to have fun doing it. We definitely joked around a lot and that’s great some times to help cut the tension. During filming there were some pretty long days so laughing definitely helped get us along.
Q8: What do you think this show has to offer audiences? Originality.
For more clips and behind the scenes footage and more trailers you can find WESTCHESTER onfacebook and myspace
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