An Interview with The Red Machine Actor

Actor and Rutgers alumnus Donal Thoms-Cappello's first feature-length film, The Red Machine, is a heist film set against the backdrop of Japanese-U.S. tensions a few years before World War II. The Navy needs to sneak into a Japanese diplomat's home, and they hire Eddie Doyle, a safe-cracking thief (Thoms-Cappello) and pair him up with one of their own (Lee Perkins). The Red Machine is screening at the New Jersey Film Festival this weekend, so Thoms-Cappello answered a few of Inside Beat's questions about his latest endeavor.

Inside Beat: Congratulations on your many accomplishments! What inspired you to first go into acting?

Donal Thoms-Cappello: I think it was a few things. My father had done it for a few years and although he had given it up, film and theater were pretty dominant in the household. Once, my mother caught me playing hookey from junior high and agreed she wouldn't tell my father if I had a typed essay on Arthur Miller'sDeath of a Salesman by the time he got home. That play got me very interested in what performance can teach people. Also, I'm just a huge goofball and acting is the only career where being a goofball qualifies you for union membership.

IB: How did your experiences at Rutgers affect where you are today?

DTC: I'm very grateful for my training at Mason Gross [School of the Arts]. They struck a perfect balance of teaching all aspects of a certain acting style while simultaneously exposing students to other contradicting styles as well. There was no ideology or rigidness. At the same time, they instilled an immense amount of habit, structure and discipline in us, which these days, is what every artist is silently craving.

IB: What was one of the biggest challenges you faced while filming The Red Machine?

DTC: This was my first feature film and right off the bat, I realized some things I do on stage were not going to work in front of the camera. I was very lucky that the directors, Stephanie Argy and Alec Boehm, allowed me to study early dailies to modify my performance.

IB: How did you prepare for your role as Eddie Doyle?

DTC: Movement was important, specifically how someone moves through the world, constantly having to look over their shoulder for cops or other thieves. I spent a lot of time walking around my neighborhood in L.A. at two or three in the morning. Cities can get very exhilarating at that time of night.

IB: What do you plan to work on after The Red Machine?

DTC: I just finished a film called Mimi by the insanely talented Masami Kawai, which should be having its first screening sometime in spring. I am also performing at Upright Citizen's Brigade, The Comedy Store and Sacred Fools Theater back in Los Angeles throughout the next couple months.

IB: What advice do you have for aspiring actors or for anyone looking to enter the film industry in general?

DTC: Net. Work.

There will be an in-person appearance by Donal Thoms-Cappello at the NJFF screening of The Red Machine in Voorhees Hall Room 105 on the College Avenue campus at 7 p.m. on Jan. 28. Tickets are $9 for students. For more information, visit njfilmfest.com.