Born and raised on Chicago's south side, Actor, Director, Producer Charles Andrew Gardner has a passion for telling the story of the underrepresented. Trained on the stage, he approaches each project with utmost care and empathy, placing authenticity at the cornerstone of all his creations. On-Camera credits include feature films, Olympia: An Instructional Manual for Being an Adult, The Defiled and Holding On, as well as multiple national commercials for brands including Liberty Mutual, Ford, McDonalds, Pepsi Co. and AT&T. Mr. Gardner appeared on Timeline Theatre Company's stage in John Conroy's My Kind of Town (BTAA nomination for Best Actor), for which Chris Jones of the Chicago Tribune named him as one of 2012s "Hot New Faces to Watch." Other Chicago theatre credits include Objects in the Mirror, Stop.Reset.(us), and Buzzer(us) at Goodman Theatre; How Long Will I Cry at Steppenwolf Theatre Company; Macbeth and Othello at The Suitcase Shakespeare Company; The Great Fire(us) at Lookingglass Theatre Company and Spectacle Lunatique at Redmoon Theater. In addition to his work on stage and in front of the camera, Mr. Gardner is a Chicago Local SAG-AFTRA board member as well as an arts education advocate, teaching acting with Gallery 37 and Timeline's Living History program.