Acting off the stage

Theatre Professor Chris Nelson starred in a feature film over summer break

It is often said how important it is to form connections with people in college and on the job, because they may prove
useful later.

Such is true for Chris Nelson, an assistant professor of theatre arts at Liberty University, who starred in the film “As It Is in Heaven,” which was filmed in July.

Nelson became involved with the film because he worked with the director, Joshua Overbay, in graduate school at Regent University.

“I worked with him on a couple short films,” Nelson said. “He called me and said, ‘I’m doing this project out here in Kentucky (at Asbury University),’ gave me the dates and asked me what I thought.”

Several factors contributed to Nelson’s decision to star in the film.

“It was perfect timing, because the filming dates were the only dates that fit in my schedule because of running the summer (theatre) camps here (at Liberty),” Nelson said. “I also knew the director in terms of his work. It was also an opportunity for me to continue to refine my skills, which is important as a professor, because we’re out there continually doing as much as we can, while teaching at the same time. It gets tough to reconcile both schedules, but this was one time it
worked out really well.”

Nelson said it was the personal connection that helped him land the job.

“Even though it had been five years since I last talked to him, I was reminded of how important it is to create strong, working relationships with people, because smaller projects in the past may lead to bigger ones in the future,” Nelson said. “A lot of times in the arts and entertainment world, that is usually how things work out. I try to remind my students to keep that in mind. The relationships you made in the past can still come back and be a part of your future.”

In the film, Nelson portrays David, a recent convert to a religious sect. After the sect’s leader unexpectedly dies, David becomes the leader, all in the course of a year.

The leader, Edward, names David his successor, even though his son Eamon is capable of doing the job.

“It’s a Cain and Abel type of thing,” Nelson said.

Nelson said one of the challenges of filming “As It Is In Heaven” rested in how he portrayed his character.

“I couldn’t make him the stereotypical, evil cult leader like most people think of, but to find the humanity in him,” Nelson said. “It was definitely a challenge to bring a level of true humility, faith and devotion to what David really believes he is hearing from the Lord. As an actor, you are trying to find the positive, the negative and the human in characters because you want to be relatable in some respects. Otherwise, there’s a distance between the audience that never gets crossed.”

Nelson said one of the rewards of filming “As It Is In Heaven” was playing a character who had the chance to develop.

“My experience in film has mostly been supporting players and not so much playing a character that a lot of the story rests on,” Nelson said. “One of the most rewarding things for an actor is to have the opportunity to create a character with an arc and to hopefully maintain the audience’s attention throughout. That and working with people you trust and (who) understand the craft really well is what’s most rewarding for me.”

According to Nelson, there were some differences between acting on stage and in film.

“The principles behind the craft of acting do not change from stage to film,” Nelson said. “What changes is more of the proportions. It’s more
simplistic on film.”

To illustrate his point, Nelson compared film to making a cupcake and the stage to making a three-tiered cake.

“(And) when it comes to vocal projection, I have to make sure I reach the last of the balcony on stage,” Nelson said. “On film, the screen is maybe two inches to a foot away from your face. It’s like talking to a friend. It’s a cool challenge. I love seeing students deal with that in my film acting classes.”

To learn more about Nelson’s film and its upcoming releases, visit asitisinheaventhemovie.com.

MAURER is a feature reporter.