Blake Robbins

Last updated
Blake Robbins
Born (1965-06-17) June 17, 1965 (age 58)
Karamürsel, Turkey
NationalityAmerican
CitizenshipUnited States
Turkey
Alma mater American Academy of Dramatic Arts
Occupations
  • Actor
  • director
Years active1996–present

Blake Robbins (born June 17, 1965) is an American actor and director of film and television. He appeared in the films Wind River , The Ugly Truth , Jayhawkers , and To Leslie . Robbins is also known for his guest-starring appearances as Officer Dave Brass on the HBO drama series Oz , Tom Halpert on the NBC sitcom The Office , and Mitch Glender on the FX crime drama series Sons of Anarchy , as well as supporting roles in Firefly , Law & Order , 24 , Entourage , and The Bling Ring .

Contents

After almost two decades working as an actor, Robbins stepped behind the camera and made his directorial debut with the independent drama The Sublime and Beautiful, which premiered at the Slamdance Film Festival. His second feature as director, the modern-day western The Scent of Rain and Lightning starring Maika Monroe, received critical acclaim.

Early life

Robbins was born in Karamürsel, Turkey, where his father served in the United States Navy. [1] Robbins has one brother. His parents divorced when he was little and his mother remarried. Robbins had a strong connection with his stepfather, who passed away in April 2013. Robbins's biological father along with his brother struggled with alcoholism. [2] After earning a degree in Business Marketing, Robbins attended the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York City. [1] Soon after, he began to perform on Broadway, working also as an acting coach for a while. [3] Robbins currently resides in Los Angeles. [4]

Career

Robbins began his career in 1996 with a guest appearance in an episode of the ABC soap opera All My Children . He went on to guest star in television series such as Law & Order , Third Watch and Firefly , before landing a recurring role as Officer Dave Brass in the HBO drama Oz between 2001 and 2003. During the 2000s, Robbins continued acting on the series Charmed , Strong Medicine , Medium , Crossing Jordan , The O.C. , 24 , Without a Trace , Criminal Minds and Private Practice . Robbins also appeared as Tom Halpert on the NBC's comedy The Office , opposite Steve Carell and John Krasinski. [5]

Robbins' first film role was in the independent drama Going Under . Since then, he has appeared in other features including Love Comes to the Executioner , Bunker Hill , and the romantic comedy The Ugly Truth , in which he stars alongside Katherine Heigl and Gerard Butler.

Throughout the 2010s, Robbins guest-starred in several television series including FlashForward , The Closer , Rizzoli & Isles , CSI: NY , Sons of Anarchy, Masters of Sex and Legends . Simultaneously, Robbins worked on a number of independent films, namely Rubber , Jayhawkers , Martyrs and Wind River. More recently, he starred in the Marcel Sarmiento horror thriller Faceless. [6]

Robbins made his directorial debut with the independent drama The Sublime and Beautiful, which he also wrote and stars in as David Conrad, a father who loses his children in a car accident. [7] Shot in only 12 days on a budget of $30,000, [8] the film premiered at the 2014 Slamdance Film Festival. [7] Writing for Variety , film critic Ronnie Scheib stated that Robbins "brings nothing new to Hollywood's dead-children genre". [9]

Robbins directed his second film, The Scent of Rain and Lightning , starring Maika Monroe. Based on the 2010 novel of the same name by Nancy Pickard, the story centers on Jody Linder (Monroe), a young woman who finds out the man responsible for murdering her parents has been released from prison. [10] [11] Having its world premiere at the Atlanta Film Festival, [12] the film garnered a positive reception from critics; in his review for The Hollywood Reporter , Frank Scheck opined that it was "a well-acted, intelligent thriller". [13]

Filmography

Film

†Denotes productions that have not yet been released
YearTitleRoleNotes
2004 Going Under Axel
2005AliceThe IntruderShort film
2006Love Comes to the ExecutionerStuttering Guard
ArcThomas Blake
2007The Son of Sam's DaughterBen's DadShort film
2008Christmas BreakMr. ChatsworthShort film
Bunker Hill Delmar
2009 The Only Good Indian Moller
The Ugly Truth KPQU Big Wig
2010 Rubber Cop Eric
2011Part Time FabulousDr. Carr
DispatchKiller
2012The Men's RoomThe ManShort film
Between the Forest and the FieldDanielShort film
BlackoutJimmyShort film
2013ImprintsDoctorShort film
CliffDr. KeanonShort film
The Lull BreakerPaShort film
The Championship RoundsPhillipShort film
2014The Sublime and BeautifulDavid Conradalso writer, producer and director
Jayhawkers Dick Harp
Buttwhistle Mr. Blancmange
MothsMr. CunninghamShort film
2015 Martyrs Dad
2016Ctrl Alt DeleteCharlie
From Ashes to ImmortalityJon OrrShort film
2017 Wind River Tim
The Scent of Rain and Lightning Sheriff Don Phelpsalso director and producer
DriverXRick
2018 Funny Story Dan
BackpedalsHugoShort film
2019 Let's Scare Julie Uncle Vince One-shot feature film
Things That FallThe ProfessorShort film
2021FacelessTom
2022 To Leslie The Handyman
2023Line of FireBobbyPost-production

Television

YearTitleRoleNotes
1996 All My Children Valet1 episode
1999 Law & Order HeinrichEpisode: "Marathon"
2000Third WatchPeterEpisode: "History"
2002Push, NevadaLexus DriverEpisode: "Jim's Domain"
Firefly Agent McGinnisEpisode: "Ariel"
2001–2003 Oz Officer Dave Brass15 episodes
200310-8: Officers on DutyDr. LawrenceEpisode: "Late for School"
2004 Cold Case David LakeEpisode: "Late Returns"
Charmed Patrol OfficerEpisode: "It's a Bad, Bad, Bad, Bad World: Part 1"
Strong MedicineMorgan BenedictoEpisode: "Healing Touch"
2005 Medium TrooperEpisode: "A Priest, a Doctor and a Medium Walk Into an Execution Chamber"
Crossing JordanPeter EllisonEpisode: "Embraceable You"
Wanted Martin BeckwithEpisode: "The Promise of Darkness"
The O.C.Don2 episodes
2006E-RingJames OgilvyEpisode: "Five Pillars"
24 RossEpisode: "Day 5: 2:00 a.m.-3:00 a.m."
2007Without a TraceCraig DaltonEpisode: "Connections"
2008Eli StoneHoward MastersEpisode: "Heartbeat"
Criminal Minds Jonathan MorrisEpisode: "A Higher Power"
Private Practice Mark MillerEpisode: "A Family Thing"
Entourage Guy on PlaneEpisode: "First Class Jerk"
2008–2009 The Office Tom Halpert2 episodes
2010 The Forgotten Dr. Max RayburnEpisode: "Patient John"
FlashForwardSpecial Agent Buckner4 episodes
The Closer Mr. WittenEpisode: "Heart Attack"
Secret MillionairesDr. Cadillac1 episode
2011Rizzoli & IslesScott JamesEpisode: "Brown Eyed Girl"
The Bling Ring Mr. BishopTelevision film
2012 CSI: NY Jimmy PorticoEpisode: "2,918 Miles"
NCIS Scott MartinEpisode: "Gone"
2013Monday MorningsDr. David MartinEpisode: "Pilot"
Sons of Anarchy Mitch Glender2 episodes
Masters of Sex Security Guard BrownEpisode: "Manhigh"
2014 Legends Dennis Evans2 episodes
2015The Ultimate EvilDavid Berkowitzunknown episodes
2017 Law & Order True Crime Harry3 episodes
2021Bad VibesRob1 episode

Awards and nominations

Award ceremonyYearWork(s)CategoryResultRef.
Cleveland International Film Festival 2017 The Scent of Rain and Lightning Best American Independent Feature FilmNominated [1]
Kansas City FilmFest 2014The Sublime and BeautifulHeartland – Best Feature NarrativeWon [14]
Heartland – Best Narrative FeatureWon
2017The Scent of Rain and LightningBest Narrative FeatureWon [15]
Milan International Film Festival 2014The Sublime and BeautifulBest ActorWon [16]
Best DirectorNominated
Best Best ScreenwritingNominated
Nashville Film Festival 2017The Scent of Rain and LightningBridgestone Narrative Feature CompetitionNominated [17]
Newport Beach Film Festival 2014The Sublime and BeautifulDirectingWon [18]
Best Feature FilmWon
Best ActorWon
Slamdance Film Festival 2014The Sublime and BeautifulBest Narrative FeatureNominated [19]
Narrative Feature FilmNominated

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References

  1. 1 2 3 "The Scent of Rain and Lightning". Clevelandfilm.org. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
  2. ↑ "Blake Robbins' 'The Sublime and Beautiful' Is Anything But". TheBlot Magazine. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
  3. ↑ Pattnosh, Lynn (December 16, 2014). "Blake Robbins Interview: 'The Sublime and Beautiful'". Concierge Questionnaire. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
  4. ↑ Diab, Emma (February 23, 2014). "A Portrait of Grief: An Interview with Actor and Filmmaker Blake Robbins". GALO Magazine. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
  5. ↑ Vanni, Olivia (December 8, 2008). "Blake Robbins ponders Sundance trip". Boston Herald. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
  6. ↑ Billington, Alex (January 27, 2021). "Mysterious Face Transplant Horror-Thriller 'Faceless' Official Trailer". FirstShowing.net. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
  7. 1 2 Iwasaki, Scott (January 18, 2014). "Blake Robbins wore many hats for 'The Sublime and Beautiful'". The Park Record. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
  8. ↑ Lambie, Ryan (February 15, 2018). "Blake Robbins interview: The Scent Of Rain And Lightning, indie filmmaking". Den of Geek. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
  9. ↑ Scheib, Ronnie (January 23, 2014). "Slamdance Film Review: 'The Sublime and Beautiful'". Variety. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
  10. ↑ Sneider, Jeff (November 5, 2015). "Logan Miller, Mark Webber, Justin Chatwin Join 'The Scent of Rain and Lightning'". The Wrap. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
  11. ↑ Collinson, Gary (February 18, 2018). "Exclusive Interview – Director Blake Robbins on The Scent of Rain and Lightning". Flickering Myth. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
  12. ↑ McAllister, Cameron (March 13, 2017). "Atlanta Film Festival Announces 2017 Lineup of Features and Short Films". Atlanta Film Festival. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
  13. ↑ Scheck, Frank (February 15, 2018). "'The Scent of Rain and Lightning': Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
  14. ↑ Melin, Eric (June 22, 2014). "The films of the Free State Festival". Lawrence Journal-World. Retrieved November 5, 2021.
  15. ↑ "Kansas City Film Fest: "The Scent of Rain & Lightning"". Kshb.com. Retrieved November 5, 2021.
  16. ↑ "Vincitori 14ª Edizione – 2014". Miff.it. Retrieved November 5, 2021.
  17. ↑ Wynn, Ron (April 20, 2017). "Reel Nashville: Your Guide to the 48th Annual Nashville Film Festival". Nashville Scene. Retrieved November 5, 2021.
  18. ↑ Chang, Richard (May 5, 2014). "Newport Film Festival ends in black with record attendance". The Orange County Register. Retrieved November 5, 2021.
  19. ↑ Hanna, Beth (December 3, 2013). "Slamdance Film Festival 2014 Unveils Feature Film Competition Lineup". IndieWire. Retrieved November 5, 2021.
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