Victor Rasuk

In some ways, Victor Rasuk's debut role in "Raising Victor Vargas" (2002) wasn't that much of a stretch. Both Victors grew up in the chaotic streets of the Lower East Side, came from outspoken families (Rasuk was Dominican), and shared a brash, go-for-broke attitude. But where Victor Vargas was forever a teenager stuck at home with his grandmother, Victor Rasuk grew up to become a talented actor. After making his debut in the short film "Five Feet High and Rising" (2000), which was later expanded into "Raising Victor Vargas," the fearless actor was cast as legendary pro skater Tony Alva in the biopic "Lords of Dogtown" (2005). Rasuk, a graduate of the High School of Performing Arts in NYC, showed his dramatic side in the Iraq War drama "Stop-Loss" (2008) and on NBC's "ER" (1994-2009). He landed a major role on HBO's 2010-11 series "How to Make It in America" as Cam, a suave street entrepreneur trying to hit it big, and portrayed one of Steve Jobs' early Apple employees in "Jobs" (2013). As restless as the city he called home, Victor Rasuk always had one eye towards the future.

Born and raised in the Lower East Side of Manhattan, Victor Rasuk knew early on he wanted to be an actor. While enrolled at the prestigious performing arts high school, Rasuk met the NYU student film director Peter Sollett, who cast him as a feisty Dominican teenager in his 2000 thesis short film, "Five Feet and Rising." The film, which won numerous awards at Sundance, Cannes, and SXSW, led to "Raising Victor Vargas," starring Victor's real-life younger brother Silvestre as on-screen sibling Nino. After a string of TV roles, including appearances on both "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (NBC, 1999- ) and "Law & Order: Trial by Jury" (NBC, 2005-06), in 2005 Rasuk portrayed groundbreaking skateboarder Tony Alva in "Lords of Dogtown." Eager to do many of his own stunts, Rasuk endured a fractured orbital socket and various other skate-related injuries during filming, which took place in many of the original Los Angeles locations. His next role came in the little-seen Iraq War drama "Stop-Loss," in which he portrayed a soldier gravely wounded while saving the life of a friend and fellow soldier (Ryan Phillippe). A recurring role as neurotic New York City doctor Ryan Sanchez on "ER" in 2008 proved another look at the normally lighthearted actor's serious side. Two years later HBO gave him a home on "How to Make It in America," a sort-of East Coast version of "Entourage" (HBO, 2004-2011) centered on Ben (Bryan Greenberg) and Cam (Rasuk), two streetwise best friends trying to break into the NYC fashion world. Though the show captured the vibrancy of downtown NYC and the enormous hustle it required, HBO cancelled the series after two low-rated seasons. Rasuk later portrayed computer architect and early Apple employee Bill Fernandez in the 2013 biopic "Jobs," starring Ashton Kutcher as the titular visionary.