Eric Close Reflects On Work-Life Balance And His Career As An Actor - Exclusive
Work-life balance — it's the goal so many of us have that seems absolutely impossible to achieve, and a pandemic lasting year after year has made it that much more unattainable. How do you separate your work space from your living space? How has your mental health been impacted amid challenge after challenge? Will we ever get to a point that feels balanced and mindful? There are many questions and not many with answers, but one person who certainly has figured it out is Eric Close. The star of the upcoming film, "The Mulligan," Close has worked with storied directors, amazing actors, and taken the helm as director himself. You'd think that as someone with eyebrow raising credits to his name, Close would be a workaholic, but in an exclusive sit down with The List, he shared that balance in life is key.
"The Mulligan" tells the story of a complex man in dire need of a guiding hand. Through the game of golf and with the help of an old pro, Close's character is taught lessons such as forgiveness, acceptance, and compassion. In addition to a heartfelt story about life's greater meaning, Close gave us insight into his own life and how he's gone about finding harmony between personal and professional goals.
Eric Close witnessed meaningful on-set practices from a storied director
Starring in "The Mulligan" is he latest achievement on Eric Close's resume. Having acted and directed, Close has starred in "Without a Trace," "Nashville," and "Suits," and joined Bradley Cooper and storied director Clint Eastwood in "American Sniper." With all these credits to his name, Close told us that it's been through his work that he's realized that you have to know when to call it a day.
"At a certain point, you got to say, 'That's good enough,'" Close told us. "... there is no 'perfect' in what we do, and a lot of times, people, they push to try and make it perfect."
Juxtaposing directors who "do 80 or 90 takes" with Eastwood's tactics, Close told us that when working with the "American Sniper" director, the cast did "maybe two takes." "If he's happy with it on the first take, move on," Close explained. "What Clint learned early on was, you know what, you have so many other resources that are involved in the storytelling. You have editing. You're going to add in sound and music and all these other things, and so I think he realized that it's never going to be perfect."
The Mulligan star discusses balance amid the entertainment industry
Accepting that the work of a creative is always in progress, Eric Close reflected on his life outside of the entertainment industry, and told us that the business has to take personal lives, long hours, and the wellbeing of the cast and crew far more into consideration.
"We're trying to cram too much into a short amount of time, which I think is the same negative effect as if you're working 20 hours a day," Close explained to us. Reflecting on balance, "The Mulligan" star went on to explain that finding harmony between hours and expectations would allow cast and crew members to go home at a reasonable time, not run the risk of falling asleep while driving due to workplace exhaustion, and come to work the next day ready to go.
"At the same time," Close continued, "they're not being expected to cram an unrealistic amount of work into a limited amount of time. That, I think, is irresponsible as well."
Ultimately, Close told us that the key to anything in life is to find harmony between all the moving parts, and to give yourself time outside of work to enjoy the little things in life.
"The Mulligan" will premiere in cinemas nationwide for two nights only on April 18 and 19. For more information on getting tickets, visit themulliganmovie.com.