In Camera - Film Review

Released on 13th September by Conic Films, highly intriguing British film by Naqqash Khalid starring Nabhaan Rizwan

In Camera follows the path of a young actor, Aden, portrayed by Nabhaan Rizwan caught in a cycle of nightmarish auditions and rejections across the industry. Directed by Naqqash Khalid, the film has won awards at Dinard and Thessaloniki film festivals and was nominated for two British Independent Film Awards.

Aden shares a flat with his long-time flatmate Bo, a junior doctor and a new roommate, Conrad (Amir El-Masry), who is a fashion influencer.

The film is attempting to make a statement on actors especially minority actors and the difficulties they have in breaking through to be taken seriously as actors in general and not on the periphery of situations and productions.

At times, Kafkaesque in the sense that our lead actor is lost in the vacuum of endless repeatable auditions and the notion that his ambition is being lost amidst the surreal nature of this all - this is a film full of ideas that is attempting to make semblance of it.

Over time as Aden struggles to gain work in the creative industry, he takes on a freelance role portraying the son of a grieving set of parents, taking on the guise of a white son for a middle-class family. Following this incident, when he feels more real and human, Aden slowly becomes jealous of Conrad's ability to gain what he wants by manipulating people and moments to his advantage and by being perhaps a more acceptable brown face - clean shaven, smartly dressed, clear English diction.

Taking inspiration from Conrad's Instagram feed, Aden morphs into the roommate, almost fooling Bo that he is him, adopting his mannerisms and image to play a new role in a single white female homage per se. Aden gains greater work by becoming less a deliberate actor and more an accidental person in the acting world. 

There is an interesting sub-plot involving Aiden's room-mate Bo, portrayed by Rory Fleck-Byrne, a junior doctor who is constantly hounded/harassed by a vending machine and the grind of his work load is taking over him. One set piece shows him being dunked by the blood on him by lives lost supposedly, he cannot stop the blood flowing and feels useless. He admits to drowning in the blood and this statement on the pressures junior doctors feel relevant and real. His story is a political statement, whereas the minority actor looking for recognition is the plot A strand. Roles are reversed seemingly for these protagonists. 

A revealing portrait of the male psyche struggling to adapt to the social media landscape, the pressures males find themselves under in this society - to look good, and be better than they are - in contrast to others who have it easy in comparison. Image is everything but what to do when your face just does not fit. 

For this reviewer though, In Camera is a film with a lot of ideas  and succeeds in wanting to say everything on its mind. It also cements the promise of Nabhaan Rizwan; a chameleon type actor who himself is doing away with pigeon-holing and type casting in his own career having recently starred as Dionydus in the recent Netflix series, Kaos opposite Jeff Goldblum and Janet McTeer. Rizwan is a highly talented actor who will grow into greater and bigger things.

Released by Conic Films.

Mem Ferda/Pusher Interview

Hello Mem, thank you for taking the time to talk to me again. We spoke previously about your role in The Devil's Double, and now we are talking about your prominent role in Pusher, the remake of Nicolas Winding Refn's 1996 Danish classic.

What can you tell us about it?

This is an English language remake, set in London instead of Copenhagen. It's about a mid level drug dealer, Frank, and his aspirations of making lots of money fast.  This slowly spirals out of control when he owes large amounts of money to Turkish drug dealers.  Frank's life soon descends into a living hell losing everything he has. The film is a no-holds barred, gritty and real look into the underworld of drug pushing.

Tell us about your character Hakan, who you play in the movie.

Hakan is a 'nice' tough guy of Turkish descent, who works for Milo a drug baron.  He is a victim of circumstance, trapped into doing a job he doesn't like. He is not your stereotypical villain he has complex layers and dimensions to his personality, which makes him a fascinating character to play.

What research did you do for Hakan?

I did a lot, as I view each role as a unique commitment and opportunity to research.  You have to research to understand the real motivations of a given character, the more intricate and involved you become the better the result.  For me, Hakan depicted an accurate reflection of how people find themselves entangled in crime when trying to better them-selves. The script had me engrossed when I read it, so thanks to Matthew Read for doing such a good job.

How did the opportunity fall into your lap?

The conventional way via my agent setting up a meeting. The audition process was tough, as they always are. I was prepared and confident I'd do a good job.  I liked the original Pusher trilogy, I felt it translated internationally, appealing to all cultures. There isn't a city not affected by an underground drug trade, so the message is universal in the film.

The cast includes, Richard Coyle, Agyness Deyn, Zlatko Buric and director Luis Prieto doing his first English language film. What was it like working with them all?

I've worked with Richard before so it was brilliant to work with him again, he is hugely talented and a hard worker, which helped a lot. Agyness is lovely, down to earth with a warm, vibrant personality. Zlatko was fun, I had to teach him some Turkish dialogue for the Milo role, he nailed the pronunciation in no time. I had seen Luis' previous work 'Ho Voglia di te' and was excited to work with him.  He is a fine director.

Remakes can endorse a lack of orginality, where do you stand on them?

Personally, I feel one should have an open mind regarding remakes, and judge them on their own merits, I can guarantee you this remake is on par, if not better, than the 1996 original.

You have hit a nice run with The Devil's Double, Pusher and the forthcoming Ill Manors, what was Plan B like to work with?

I like Ben Drew, aka Plan B's music. His lyrics have a rebellious spirit which appeals to me personally and when I learnt he was doing a soundtrack for the film also, I was eager to get onboard.  I was intrigued to see how he would work as a director.. he was unconventional and stayed true to his convictions, having a strong idea of what he wanted.  Ill Manors is very dark, gritty and harsh, it is a hip hop musical that follows six characters on East London streets.

You’ve garnered a lot of credits to your name, how do you stay ambitious?

It's my job, which I enjoy doing and hope to keep on doing. After I achieved my BSc in Psychology and Master’s in Business Administration, I went on to do a Postgraduate in classical acting at LAMDA (London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art), I was snapped up by a mainstream agent and many doors opened for me.

You have a strong presence which helps you play many villains, do you worry about being typecast?

No, I feel a lot of actors get stereotyped, which is actually a good thing for it helps establish an identity.  It is competitive in acting and the chance to give yourself that identity is vital.  Now my preoccupation is to expand my range and versatility even more, so I’m being very cautious in the roles that are kindly offered to me.

How do you deal with all the media attention?

It can be awkward, the press can badger your nearest and dearest for a story which is annoying. But on the whole the appreciation from genuine fans makes up for this intrusion.  I'm quite grounded as an individual, and on the odd occasion when I do drift with my ego, I have a great partner that brings me back down to earth.

What is in the pipeline?

I have four feature films, three of which I am the leading man, which is exciting.  Two are horror films, which is a new genre for me and a thriller and a comedy.  I don't want to tempt fate by talking about them until I have to, but please go to my website www.memferda.com or follow me on twitter @memferda1 for details.

Thank you very much for your time, I wish you every success with the films.

 My pleasure, anytime.