Rising Stars: Meet Anthony Montes

Today we’d like to introduce you to Anthony Montes.

Hi Anthony, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I was born in “The Bronx,” New York. I am Puerto Rican (my father) & Italian (my mother.) I have always wanted to be an actor from the time I was five years old. I used to act out scenes for my family from my favorite movies and T.V. shows. When I was in Junior High, I told my father that I wanted to get involved in theatre and his response to me was, “Whatta are you a faggot?” My father was a physically, emotionally & spiritually abusive alcoholic. He made it clear that there was no way that I could pursue acting living under his roof. I graduated H.S. in 11th grade and at 17 years old I joined the Navy. When I got out of the Navy, I started pursuing my dream to become an actor by going to H.B. Studios and then moving to Los Angeles.

Now I am an award-winning Actor, Director, Writer, Acting Teacher, and Producer. I have been part of the film and theater industry for over 40 years. I have written over 40 Plays, published 22 Books (available on Amazon), and Written 11 Screenplays. I have had two of my Screenplays made into films, THE LAST NIGHT INN and THE LAST TRAIN (which I also star in) which can be rented on Amazon. OUTTA THE DARKNESS INTO THE LIGHT is a semi-autobiographical piece inspired by my suicide attempt when he jumped in front of a train when he was 27.

I have been teaching and coaching actors for over 30 years. I have taught acting around the world in Paris, Strasbourg, London, Liverpool, Berlin, Frankfurt, Stockholm, Helsinki, Mumbai, Dubai, Istanbul, Johannesburg, Seoul, Bangkok, Mexico City, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Seattle. My proudest production is being a father of my son, Matthew Lawrence Bohn-Montes who has taught me much about life, love, and being in the moment.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Moving to Los Angeles, I thought that I was going to become the next Pacino. I had no idea how difficult it would be. I’m Italian & Puerto Rican but grew up Italian. Because of my Spanish last name, I became tired of auditioning for the Truck Driver, Mechanic, or “Gang Bangers,” so I started a theatre group I called, The Artist Theatre Group, so I could act in a variety of roles. In a 12-year period, I produced 90 plays and lost money on 89 plays. I acted in over 50 and directed over 30. I found myself $65,000 in debt. I have always been a storyteller and in an effort to cut costs, I began writing. I was always working paycheck to paycheck. The most important thing to me was Acting and that was how I saw myself as an Actor. A struggling actor. I’ve been married twice and both my wives didn’t like being second to my acting.

In 2000, as I was ending my 2nd marriage, we got pregnant. I wasn’t going to stay in the marriage, I had a shit father, I was in debt, didn’t want to be a father, didn’t want to be tied to this woman for the rest of my life, didn’t think I would be any good at being a father… I had believed that the soul picks the parents that will best provide what that soul needs to learn in this life, so I told my soon-to-be ex-wife that I wasn’t going to stay in the marriage, but I will be a father. I dropped my agent & manager and became dad, which has been, hands down the best part of my life. On Oct. 16th, 2000, my Son, Matthew Lawrence Bohn-Montes was born. My ex-wife is a teacher so I had my son every day from 5 am – 5 pm, every other weekend and during this time I began to write and write and write.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I was lucky that through my group, The Artist Theatre Group, which I began in 1987, I began teaching. I found that not only did I have a feel for it, but I also loved it. Because of my lack of opportunities, it became clear to me that we can’t complain about there being no roles for me and that we had to create our own opportunities. I didn’t begin writing until 1999, and it has also become one of my loves. In my classes, I teach and encourage others to do the same. I teach by example. What I am most proud of seems to be whatever it is that I am working on at the moment. If I had to pick a moment one would be when I and my production team were doing a crowdfunding campaign for my second feature film, The Last Train. In the video, I spoke openly about my attempted suicide by jumping in front of a train when I was 27.

Since my film was inspired by that jump, I had to. Two weeks after the video was up, I and my co-star got an email from a mother in Texas. Her 13-year-old daughter had attempted suicide by cutting her wrists. The mother showed her daughter our video and the girl felt that I and my co-star were the only people who might understand her, and she wanted to know if we would talk to her. We did and we became mentors to this kid. I ended up writing a small part of the film and she appears in it. This moment, and my current project, my One-Man Show, Outta The Darkness Into The Light, are my proudest moments. Since doing my play, there have been 5 people that have reached out to me when they were suicidal, and in each case, I have been fortunate enough to talk them out of it and get help. It is my goal to continue to do this show. I would like to do it on college campuses, theatres around the country, and around the world and give more people hope. I do a Q&A after the show and begin a dialogue on the subject of suicide.

Can you tell us more about what you were like growing up?
I was the class clown. I love the audience an making people laugh. I still do. I am a serious acting teacher, but my classes are fun and I am still that class clown, loving having and audience and making people laugh. I love encouraging my students and helping to guide them on their path. I teach by example.

Pricing:

• My 4 classes International Zoom classes are per month is $200. The classes are 4 hours each
• I do private coaching for $165 per hour. Current students get a discounted price of $130 per hour.
• I have Veteran Discounts
• I have single parent Discounts
• I do many free classes throughout the year.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.themontesmethod.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mattiedaisy/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/anthony.montes.actor
• Youtube: YouTube.com/MontesMethod
• Other: www.anthonymontes.com