Actor Damian Hardung: "Actually you want to be happy, but you know that's not possible"

Mr. Hardung, you are an actor, were on your way to becoming a professional soccer player and are studying medicine.

Does it annoy you to be called jack of all trades?

Kim Maurus

volunteer.

• Follow I follow

No, but I'm incredibly bad at taking well-intentioned compliments.

I'm consciously working on just accepting that.

I feel like it exposes me sometimes.

What do you mean?

There are two sides to everything: you do a lot, but are easily discredited for not doing anything right.

For example, am I good enough in medicine?

Or am I just doing as much as is possible?

That's not what I demand of myself.

Also in acting: I want to be perceived as an actor, not as an influencer.

That's why I use social media to a very limited extent, if at all.

Talking about something else all the time can shift that focus.

There is still a certain pigeonhole thinking, even with casts.

Nobody should ask me: "Can I fill the role with him, he's just doing politics?"

You used to play football for Fortuna Köln, most recently in the A youth and DFB youth teams.

It is said that you gave up your football career for acting.

Is that correct?

I don't think it was an active decision, but the factor that came into play was that at some point you can no longer do everything well.

For example: I have a fractured shinbone and this is making me want to do more acting because I just don't have the resilience in the sport yet.

Then it develops and you go down this path.

Did the broken tibia really happen?

I actually got it playing soccer in the US.

The other one was just bigger than me and I was left behind.

Do you miss playing soccer?

Yes totally.

When you grow up with something and there's not a day that you don't do it - and suddenly you break your tibia, that's obviously a big part that then falls away.

Friends of mine always say if there's a ball somewhere, I'm like a dog.

I have to run after that.

You are 24 years old and have been in front of the camera for twelve years.

What do you

Basically - wow, now it's getting blatant - we all strive to be happy.

All the time we make choices to be happy in the end.

But there are many situations in my job where you know: your friend is dying or you want to kill yourself.

And that's in your head days before.

You wake up and actually you want to be happy, but you know that's not possible now.

You mean because of the role?

Yes, but that's the difficult thing, separating that and conveying it to your private environment.

Friends want to meet up in the evening and they say: No, I can't because I have to act this scene tomorrow and that's what keeps me busy.

It's sometimes stressful and frustrating.

But that doesn't happen that often either.

Does that mean you don't separate role and personal?

It's the case in all jobs that you can't draw that line so well.

I don't want to say, oh, acting is "so different".

But when I have emotional scenes with a co-star, I don't get out of that interaction very well.

If I totally dislike someone in the film, I can't joke around with them over lunch.

Or when I love someone on a show, I tend to develop a crush on that person

.

That's just the way it is.

Do others have a clear on and off switch?