Calabasas actor finds Hollywood niche

SILVER SCREEN DEBUT—Agoura Hills resident Robbie Kaller appears in the new Tony Scott film, “Domino.” The film marks Kaller’s first time on the big screen, though he’s appeared in several television shows and in commercials. In the 1967 movie “The Graduate,” Dustin Hoffman’s character finishes college with excellent grades, but he goes home with no direction, no sense of purpose and no ambition. Calabasas actor Robbie Kaller, 30, said that he, too, had no aim in life when he returned home from the University of NevadaLas Vegas in the summer of 1999.

Last Friday, however, Kaller hit the big screen in Tony Scott’s new film “Domino,” the true-life story of Domino Harvey, who left a career as a Ford model to become a bounty hunter.

“I went from a high school football kid—I was captain of my high school team—to a guy who was lost, to a guy with some direction,” Kaller said.

An accomplished football player at Westlake High School, Kaller received a scholarship to play for the UNLV Rebels. He played football between 1994 and 1996 and studied hotel restaurant management. But close to graduation, Kaller discovered that he would have to take an entry-level front desk job at a hotel to get into the business and he wasn’t anxious to do that.

“After college, I moped around and didn’t really do much . . . I was lost,” Kaller said. “So I decided to move back home and I started working for my parents. My dad is a business manager.”

Kaller’s father manages the finances of doctors, dentists—and several actors.

“I thought, wow, (actors) are making a lot of money in commercials,” Kaller said.

Kaller signed with an agent and soon after began working as an actor in commercials. When work slowed, Kaller replaced his agent and the work flowed smoothly. He landed some parts on TV sitcoms, including “The Mullets” (2003) and “Infamous” (2004).

“I’m a big guy and so I have the advantage of having a certain look,” Kaller said.

Once Kaller got comfortable with acting, he found that it wasn’t just the money that kept him in the field. He enjoyed acting, so much so that he took several classes and hired an acting coach to improve his craft.

Kaller said he enjoys the large scale of the entertainment industry. Many people come together to make a commercial, a music video or a movie, and he thrives on the energy of such an operation, he said.

“When someone wants you to be a part of one of these big projects, that’s a good feeling,” Kaller said.

The young actor also thrives on the attention he gets as an actor. In a recent commercial, he received the greatest respect from the cast and crew, he said. “I like to be treated first class. And I deserve that. I treat people with respect.”

Kaller also enjoys entertaining an audience. While he had no intentions of being an actor when he was a kid, he took great pleasure in entertaining a stadium full of football or baseball fans and also in entertaining classmates and friends with his humor.

As a youth, Kaller hoped to be a professional football player. But as he got older, he realized that he didn’t fit the build of NFL football players and he couldn’t perform at the same level. His life goals changed so often that he lost track. But he’s not alone, he said.

“There are a lot of kids out there who have no clue what they want to do,” Kaller said. “I’m 30 and just figuring it out.”

Youth can often get discouraged when they have no direction, but they shouldn’t give up on finding their life work, according to Kaller. “There isn’t an age limit where you have to figure out what you want to do.”

Kaller hopes to, one day, act in movies alongside his two favorite actors, Sean Penn and Adam Sandler. With his latest movie accomplishment, that goal seems to be within his reach.

Keep an eye on Kaller’s growing credits at www.imdb.com.