Danny Rhodes still remembers the advice that a teacher once gave the then-budding actor: "If you're not getting the roles that you want, write [ the production ] yourself."
He's done just thatand it's paid off tenfold, he said.
Rhodes has been acting professionally for 12 years and also has been spending time on the production side of the camera as of late, further expanding his resume and credentials.
His writing style is dark and gritty, he said. He often writes a production with a role in mind for himself to act, but he doesn't always take it.
Rhodes, a member of the Screen Actors Guild, has numerous film, television and stage credits. He's appeared on film in One Small Hitch, House of Purgatory and Stranger Than Fiction. His TV credits include Bad Sides and Detroit 1-8-7. In addition, his stage roles include Romeo & Juliet at the Chicago Shakespeare Theatre and Patsy's Bridal Shower at Theatre Eclectic.
"I'm interested in acting in a comedy, but more interested in writing and producing a horror [ film ] ," he said.
Rhodes' first acting role was as The Wizard in The Wizard of Oz at age 11 or 12.
However, he's wanted to act since he was 5.
That's when his aunt and grandmother took him, with his brother and sister, to see Indiana Jones and The Temple of Doom, and then for ice cream after the show. They explained to Rhodes that Harrison Ford and the rest of the cast was just that, actors.
"That's when I said acting was what I wanted to do the rest of my life, and there has never been a time when I've wanted to do anything else," Rhodes said. "The [ traditional ] 9-to-5 work environment just never appealed to me. I love the work I now do."
Rhodes has improvisation skills, along with comedy and vocal accents. He also has grown up in the industry, and is being considered for "dad" roles.
Rhodes was in Dallas in early October, then will be in Los Angeles in January, filming the principal role in a comedic feature-length film tentatively titled The Wonder Kids.
In November, he will be directing and acting in a short horror film, titled He Ain't Heavy, that he also wrote.
By next spring, Rhodes also will be writing and producing One Not Taken, a horror film that marks the first he's written and directed.
THE STATS
Name
Danny Rhodes
Age
32
Resides in
Elmhurst
Relationship status
Single
College
Columbia, class of 2002
Hobbies
Writing, independent films, bicycle riding, tennis and cooking
What's cooking
Is a server at The Capital Grille in Lombard
Photos by Ross Forman