Chris Heuisler, Class of 2001, took on the role of Cole Dumbrowski, "the new bad boy in town" on CBS' As the World Turns about two weeks ago.
"He is an insecure singer/songwriter ... [and] he's not a very good boyfriend," said Heuisler of his character, adding that he didn't want to risk spoiling the show by revealing too much.
The Penn State alumnus said he works a pretty busy schedule, beginning with As the World Turns around 6 a.m. daily.
"We rehearse for about an hour and then begin the actual taping around 8:30 [a.m.]," he said. "The show does an episode a day, so the pace is extremely fast."
A normal week for the actor comprises about three to five commercial auditions and one or two television show or film auditions. He added that there have been a few occasions where he would have to pass on an audition because of the show's taping.
The 27-year-old actor will also star in two films making their debuts in 2008, Placebo and a movie about Ernest Hemingway.
Heuisler decided to get into acting while in middle school and has been acting his whole life, he said. While at Penn State, he was in a show with the Resident Theater Company and, in his senior year, went on a trip across the country.
"I was in California for a week and I got an agent in three days," he said.
After graduating from Penn State, he moved to Los Angeles to pursue acting. He recently moved to New York City to continue acting.
Heuisler said acting is a relatively unstable job.
"You wake up, go to work, go to an audition," he said. "Sometimes there are spurts where there is no work or auditions. It's very dynamic."
While filming the movie about Ernest Hemingway, Heuisler said some production took place in Bulgaria. He called it "the strangest experience of my life" because he was the English speaker and needed an interpreter.
Heuisler said he would always take his Penn State pride everywhere he goes.
"There's a solid Penn State connection here in NYC, and I stay in touch with a good number of my friends from college," he wrote in an e-mail. "We all share the belief that Penn State is simply the greatest place on earth."
