Photos: Emily Chalk
He’s a famous face from movies and TV, but when Westside and The Panthers actor Jordan Mooney first asked out his partner, writer and director Liv McClymont, two years ago, he was inadvertently friend-zoned.
After following each other on Instagram, the pair chatted back and forth, before Jordan suggested they meet in person, but Liv didn’t get the hint.
“She wasn’t quite picking up what I was putting down, so I had to be a little more explicit and say, ‘You know I’m really asking you out on a date here?’” laughs Jordan, 33, who also stars in the just-dropped drama series Dark City: The Cleaner.
Warning her it would be an early and short date because of his hectic filming schedule, Jordan met Liv, 30, at an Auckland wine bar, where they proceeded to talk for hours.
“We had an immediate connection and understanding of each other’s backgrounds,” says Liv, who has an impressive portfolio of award-winning short films, documentaries and music videos.
And while it could be easy to write off Jordan as someone not to be taken seriously – especially after his role as larrikin Eric Grady in Westside and playing his cocky namesake Jordan Luck in the 2017 TV movie Why Does Love? – Liv very quickly saw there was a side to the actor that not everyone gets to see.
She recalls, “I learned how seriously he takes his work, how much he cares about it and the way he was basically telling me, ‘Look, here I am, this really serious, intelligent, funny, witty and emotionally available person.’”
Since then, the pair have become a powerhouse of on-screen creativity, working together and separately on projects that have attracted international acclaim.
Liv’s debut doco I Stand For Consent addressed the challenging issue of sexual harm and her darkly funny short film Mothering Sunday won awards at festivals worldwide. Meanwhile, Jordan has recently wrapped filming for Pike, a movie about the Pike River tragedy starring Kiwi acting royalty Melanie Lynskey and Robyn Malcolm.
But there’s little time for the pair to rest on their laurels. Right now, they’re both hard at work writing, producing, financing, directing and acting for projects that’ll confront hard topics, push for social change and, hopefully, pay the bills.
So how does mixing work and play go down for two creative people in a competitive industry not known for its small egos?
“When you’re working with someone you trust, you can be really open and honest through the process,” explains Jordan. “It’s good that we’re in adjacent careers, rather than both being actors or both directors.”
Being able to run auditions, scripts and proposals past one another is like “having a little genie in a bottle”, he adds.
And while much of the writing takes place in the home the couple shares, Jordan and Liv have a strict approach to scheduling in time for both work and play, even going as far as having colour-coded calendars – quality time together is marked in lavender.
But when you both live and breathe TV and movie production, is it even possible to sit back and enjoy some Netflix together? Or are they always talking through it and watching it critically?
“We are definitely talkers,” chuckles Jordan, while Liv nods in agreement.
They’re looking forward to chatting their way through the actor’s new thriller Dark City: The Cleaner, which they’re watching on Neon along with the rest of us.
The Christchurch-based series, in which Jordan plays witless police officer Brian Travers, follows an unlikely serial killer through a succession of comic twists in a style that is fresh and uniquely Kiwi in
its self-effacing style.
Jordan feels confident it will do well internationally. He says, “It’s a show that isn’t afraid to really grab you and push boundaries – it’s gritty, funny and dark all at the same time.”
The pair believe our local film and TV industry has matured in recent years. Liv explains, “We’ve been a little bit safe in how we portray ourselves, but it’s more real. We acknowledge there are imperfect people in New Zealand and there is darkness.”
They’re both looking forward to exploring that more in their work and taking their Kiwi talents to the world. Liv smiles, “It’s exciting to sink our teeth into bigger things and to continue to evolve.”
Dark City: The Cleaner is streaming on Neon, and screens 8.30pm Mondays on Soho.
