ActorCEO 101: A Life in Acting with Paul Calderon

From his early days fresh out of the army and using his G.I. Bill to attend the Sonia Moore Acting Studio, Paul Calderon has been working on his craft. On stage he has had the pleasure early on of premiering Off Broadway in Short Eyes directed by Kevin Conway, and then joining Robert DeNiro in Cuba and his Teddy Bear on Broadway in 1986.

Since then Paul’s work has grown and encompassed all mediums including film and television, but he insists he’s still learning and refining what he does. You’ve no doubt seen the fruits of his labor as a co-founder of the Labyrith Theatre Company, in his roles in Miami Vice, The Equalizer, The Firm, Pulp Fiction, Clockers, New York Undercover, Third Watch, 21 Grams, multiple Law and Order series, Hostages, Boardwalk Empire, Elementary, Blue Bloods, The Blacklist, Fear the Walking Dead, Madam Secretary, and now Bosch on Amazon Prime. Even with a list of credits this impressive, and this much experience under his belt, Paul says he takes notes after each scene to learn what he can work on to deepen his practice and improve his craft.

Clearly a passion like this gives him the drive to pursue this career, but his focus on improving his craft and avoid complacency is what gives him the edge to sustain a career. This focus is what he and his wife, Cathy, help inspire in their students when teaching classes in Los Angeles. You can find these classes at PaulCalderon.com and it’s here where Paul emphasizes that the new landscape of “content creation” has given actors of this generation a huge advantage. Actors can now audition remotely for series and movies shot all over the world with new platforms popping up all the time looking to develop new content for their growing audiences. This is an incredible time to be a creator, but building the discipline to curate your craft and understand your position in this business year in and year out will deliver sustainable results. 

Paul’s work is always powerful, grounded, specific, and engaging. He’s certainly not slowing down anytime soon and with his continued focus on improving with each job, I can’t wait to see the evolution of this incredible artist.