Meet Robert Q Jackson

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Robert Q Jackson a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, so we’re so thrilled to have Robert Q with us today – welcome and maybe we can jump right into it with a question about one of your qualities that we most admire. How did you develop your work ethic? Where do you think you get it from?

I get my work ethic from being in the Air Force. I served for 12 years total. It elevated my entire approach to life. Growing up in Detroit gave me grit, the foundation of our “blue collar” standard. But the military gave me structure. The discipline, daily standards, and accountability forced me to sharpen my work ethic in ways I never expected. Traveling to different countries and working with people from every background expanded my perspective and taught me how to adapt anywhere. Those experiences made me more focused, dependable, and intentional — the kind of man who takes pride in how he shows up.

Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?

Currently, I am focused on my acting career and expanding my knowledge of all the things needed to grow to be better. I am taking some formal classes with the DETROIT DRAMA STUDIO. I am also working with my talent agency WINK TALENT to start doing more commercial work. Next on my normal weekly schedule, is working on finalizing a restaurant venture. I have been working with my partners at BETTER MANAGEMENT GROUP (BMG) to bring our journey of opening our sushi concept to life. SUSHI RITAS is located in Midtown Detroit on Woodward Ave. It’s been a long process and lots of work to get this finally done. We should be opening at the beginning of the year. Lastly, i’m also finishing up 2 scripts, for a total of 12 completed, for my self owned production company. GET YOUR POPCORN PRODUCTIONS (GYPR PROD) has been something I have been quietly putting together for a year or so as I worked on other films. I have been studying the processes of other productions to make sure I am able to uphold the standard and also be even better.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

Three qualities that helped on my journey the most were emotional awareness, discipline, and faith. Emotional awareness allows you to be vulnerable. Then that allows you to be free. When you are afraid of looking silly, weird or crazy you hold yourself back from completely being committed to the role. Discipline keeps you training, memorizing, and showing up consistently. It’s the grind. Can you be committed to the process without being worried about not winning as much as you like. Lastly, faith is so important because you will walk alone on some days, weeks, even years. It’s a long and tough journey, you will lose more than you win, at first. But you have to stick with it and know it will work out eventually. That’s what matters.

For newcomers, study people as much as you study scripts. Stay curious about human behavior. Watch great performances and break down why they work. I would suggest practicing daily. Act out scenes at home. In public places. Role play with friends and family. The more you get comfortable with “pretending” with others, the more comfortable you will be with the actual work. Keep busy, look for voice work, character work, cold reads. And most importantly, put in reps: short films, classes, self-tapes, anything that builds muscle. Growth comes from doing.

To close, maybe we can chat about your parents and what they did that was particularly impactful for you?

The most important and impactful thing my parents did for me was allow me to be ME. My mother was very outgoing and a people person. She was the life of the party. So, as a kid I was always allowed to have a blast and have as much fun as my heart could handle. She was also very optimistic, filled with grand thoughts and ideas. So this translated into me having a great imagination and finding fun in anything I did with friends. My father was very reserved and smooth. He was the “book worm” and very organized. This translated into me being very clean cut and dressing well. I took pride in my appearance and held my head high as a young man. I knew who i was and wasnt afraid to show it. I was very good at school, especially math. My father loved math alot. This helped me later to manage money and assets well as an adult. And thru all the things they taught me, they still allowed me to adapt and become my own version of myself. I was blessed enough to have parents that understood to show me guidance but allow me to walk my own path.

Contact Info:

Image Credits

Kandis Page Photography
Ira Carmichael Photography
Q11 Photography
Erins Vision Photography

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