Another new interview!

Thanks to JVibe.com, we now have another interview with Adam! The interview is rather brief, but nonetheless very interesting.


From Disney to Indie

“I was kind of the black sheep with the Disney kids... I didn't really fall into ‘the Disney mold.'”
By Jen Jones

You might recognize him as charming mop-top Gordo from Disney's smash hit, Lizzie McGuire, or from the irreverent Jewish comedy, When Do We Eat? where he acted alongside Ben Feldman. Either way, actor Adam Lamberg is all grown-up now and a student at the University of California, Berkeley.

When I called him, he was strolling through Central Park. It's no surprise that he was out and about, considering that he only gets to spend time in his hometown of New York City during school breaks. During his walk, I was able to get the scoop on his latest movie projects and his time in the Mouse House.

Change of Luck

How did you get your acting start?
When I was 7, my cousins were young, funky bohemian students at NYU and were making friends in that scene. One of their roommates was a casting director who got me an [American Express] audition, and I miraculously booked the job. I was hooked on acting from that point forward.

As a die-hard New Yorker, what inspired you to make the eventual move westward?
I moved to L.A. when I was almost 16 for Lizzie McGuire and lived there for about two years. My mom is a public high school teacher, and with [the benefits of] pension and sabbaticals, she couldn't really afford to leave her job, so I moved out there with my father.

Some Hollywood types predicted Lizzie McGuire wouldn't make it. Did its success surprise you?
I always had a bad string of luck when it came to pilots and commercials. I never really got those kinds of jobs, so I expected [Lizzie] probably wouldn't get picked up, knowing my luck. There was certainly a lot of eventual success.

In what ways did television differ from your previous theater experiences?
It's a lot more rewarding to go out and do an hour-and-a-half play and nail it. The live audience makes it so much more satisfying. You actually feel like you're acting. The workload was relatively comparable. While working on a play, I'd go to school from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. and rehearse from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. On a TV show, you're there for nine hours a day, but you're only working two or three.

Were you tight with Hilary Duff and other cast members?
I was kind of the black sheep with the Disney kids. I was uninterested in making friends with most of them. I didn't really fall into “the Disney mold.” I was more or less the kid hanging out with the crew members and got along with them far better.

Beyond Lizzie

Tell us a little bit about your Jewish upbringing.
My father is Jewish; my mother is not. All the influences came from the Jewish side of my family. You wouldn't think my mom was a nice WASP-y French-Canadian. I definitely consider myself a cultural Jew.

Your background must've come in handy when filming When Do We Eat?, right?
It was very zany and madcap. Working on it, you really felt that vibe. It was a great cast with interesting characters. The film was a little over the top, but when does a Passover seder go smoothly?

So how did your turn in When Do We Eat? lead to your current role in Beautiful Loser?
Beautiful Loser was a really raw independent project. The producer of When Do We Eat? decided to help out this little fledgling project and recommended me to the director. He was a first-time director who was very intent on listening to his actors and getting feedback.

How did your close working relationship with the director enrich the experience?
After 15 years in the business, it can get a little repetitive and boring. This was the first project I've worked on where I felt like I really pitched in and helped get it made. It was a blast. I've always had that desire to write, direct and produce, and this was the first time I experienced that side of it.

Anti-Celebrity

It's funny that you're the only Lizzie McGuire cast member to not release an album. Was that a conscious choice?
Mostly due to lack of talent, even though that doesn't really stop everyone. I have no desire to be a massive celebrity.

Now you're studying at UC Berkeley. What do you do in your precious off-set time?
I enjoy the good company of friends and stimulating conversation. I've seen the U.S. pretty extensively and gone on some cross-country road trips. I've also been to the Caribbean and Europe. [My love of travel] is one of the reasons that I'm a geography major. A Birthright [Israel] trip is definitely something I would like to do one day.

If you care to check out the website, go to:
http://www.jvibe.com/popculture/from_disney_indie.shtml