Gabriel Darku was born in Saint John, New Brunswick and raised in Yellowknife in the Northwest Territories, Canada. Growing up, Gabriel did not know he wanted to be an actor. In grade school, he was well known for his athletics, and at one point, he even competed as a national level gymnast. He also had a significant interest in music; playing saxophone at high school concerts and jazz bands, as well as teaching himself to play guitar and drums. However, a chance opportunity to feature in a corporate TV commercial triggered his interest in acting and the rest is history. We had the opportunity to speak to him about his career, including the Netflix sci-fi series October Faction which premieres this January 23rd.
Hi, Gabriel! Thank you for granting the interview. Congratulations on your career to date. How did you get into acting?
Thank you very much! You know, that’s actually a cool story. Back in high school, I worked part-time at McDonald’s, and this one year they announced a contest that would have the winners feature in the next national TV spot, which also happened to be the spot for the 2012 Winter Olympics. My friends convinced me to enter, and the next thing I know I’ve been shortlisted, and they want to fly me out to Toronto (I was living in Yellowknife at the time) for the live audition round, of which I also made it through. I was in awe of pretty much the entire process of making that commercial, and everything that went on behind the scenes. I knew instantly that if there was something I could do as a career for 13 hours a day, this was it. So, I took that as a sign and decided to apply to a filmmaking program for post-secondary education. And it was later on, during my time at Toronto Film School that I discovered my passion for the actual craft of acting. So, while most people give credit to their favorite actor or piece of media that inspired them to get into showbiz, I’m over here crediting my career to a McDonald’s commercial!
You moved from Yellowknife, Northern Territories to Toronto to pursue your passion. Please tell us more about your experience attending the Toronto Film School and auditioning for roles such as Reboot: The Guardian Code?
Attending TFS was one of the best decisions I could have made, just simply for the sake of taking action and pursuing something that interested me. I knew I was on the right path because I was actually looking forward to class every day! I can’t state how much I appreciate what Toronto Film School did for me, running their program in a very hands-on and practical manner. It allowed me to become fully immersed in the art and craft of filmmaking and solidified for me that it is indeed filmmaking as a whole that I’m passionate about and not just the aspect of being in front of a camera. I was also fortunate enough to land a great agent before graduating, so as soon as school came to an end I was immediately auditioning for a lot of the big tv projects that were happening in the city at the time. I was nervous but so unbelievably excited at the same time, knowing that it usually takes a lot longer to find a good agent, let alone be auditioning for and booking union credit roles right out the gate. I remember when the Reboot audition came around, I immediately recognized the IP from watching re-runs on YTV when I was little. That was exciting, auditioning to be a part of something that I was into watching as a kid. So surreal.
You appeared in several popular programs including Shadowhunters: The Mortal Instruments (FREEFORM/NETFLIX), Private Eyes (GLOBAL), American Gods(STARZ/AMAZON PRIME), Slasher (NETFLIX), and Impulse (YOUTUBE PREMIUM). Which have been the most memorable roles and why?
All of these roles have been important and memorable to me, all for their reasons. Being so early on in my career, every job I get holds such significance as I’m still learning so much, and constantly meeting and working with new and incredible collaborators. Reboot: The Guardian Code will always be VERY special to me because the onset experience was the most positive and most fun work environment I’ve ever had the pleasure of being a part of. So much so that it never actually felt like work! But Slasher was also a crazy cool experience for me because I LOVE horror and had always wanted to do a project like that. Besides, who doesn’t love breaking for lunch in the middle of a gory scene and having to eat their food while covered head-to-toe in blood and guts? It doesn’t get much more glamorous than that!
You’ll be appearing as Geoff Allen in the new highly anticipated Netflix Series ‘October Faction’. Please tell us more about your role and what audiences should expect?
October Faction is a story about the Allen family; Fred and Deloris are career monster hunters, unbeknownst to their kids Geoff and Viv, who believe they work as insurance agents. After an unfortunate event brings the family back to its roots, secrets emerge and unusual happenings shake the family to their core. It’s a very tragic and heartfelt story, and a smart adaptation of the graphic novels, focusing heavily on very relevant themes that I think are going to hit home for a lot of viewers. My character Geoff; he’s a very sarcastic and charismatic individual, confident and highly comfortable with himself. Yet despite this, there’s a necessity to always fit in and be loved by others; his self-acceptance usually accompanies acceptance from others, and betrayals are extra painful. Despite this being a show about the supernatural, it really comes down to being a story about family, their struggles, and the consequences of harboring secrets, and that’s what makes the show so compelling.
Are there any actors, directors, and producers you’d be overjoyed to work with?
Outside of listing some big names in Hollywood as most filmmakers would, I can’t say that I’m particular about who I’d want to work with in the future. As long as I believe in the material, and understand and support the vision, I’ll always be overjoyed to get on a set.
What advice would you give budding young actors, looking to be successful in film and television?
NEVER GIVE UP! Follow your passion, no matter what. Ground yourself in it. It’s gonna get tough, and you’re going to face a lot of rejection before you find success, so being mentally equipped to continue pressing yourself forward is vital. And create your own content! Technology is astounding, and you’d be surprised what you can accomplish with the camera on your smartphone and virtually no budget. Surround yourself with other creatives and, well, start creating! Who knows what’ll happen.
So where can we keep up to date with your activities? I’m on Instagram and Twitter! Follow me @GabrielDarku to stay up to date will all my projects!
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