I never know how to start these deep blogs of mine. I always have the ideas stuck up in my head but never the starting point to get them down in an engaging way. Let me just start with the basic facts.
The other night, I was reading a fellow thesp of mine (Emma Dennis-Edwards)’s blog “NY-LON” and was motivated to write a sort of blog response to some pointers she raised and issues she addressed. Before I progress, I shall just post a reference link to Emma’s blog for you to take a read of her blog post and to also follow whatever she does next. (www.whatemmadidnext.wordpress.com)
Anyways, the issue that intrigued me to write this response was this issue of Black British talent and the struggles that we shall face in trying to make it big in the industry at home. Emma raised some pointers; that generally for a Black Briton to get any mainstream recognition, they must pack up, move across the pond and set up camp in America. Living, working and indulging in American life is generally most people’s ultimate fantasy, and they would jump at the chance to do so. Not so much for me.
If you follow my blog, and my alter ego ‘The Anglophile’, then you will know of my *cough* distaste for American dominance and influence. My aims and ambitions coming into this industry as an emerging British artist was to bring UK talent and the UK film industry to total fruition and a general big contender against Hollywood. Of course, Hollywood is where the money’s at. You can have an absolutely terrible script, make a terrible film, and yet rake in the millions. I believe that we have so much underrated and undiscovered talent in the film making world, acting industry and writing game.
I have an extreme fondness for British culture and history and an extreme patriotic nature for Britain. As much as I have nothing against anyone wanting to move over to America to launch their career there, I myself aim to drive through this business and my career sticking to the British aesthetics that I love so much.
It seems that the only circuit out there in the UK film industry for Black Britons is in the urban street genre. As much as I enjoy indulging into this genre with films such as “Kidulthood” and “Anuvahood”, I myself enjoy dramatic and historical TV programmes, films and books, and tend to steer clear of the urban genre as I find it quite stereotypical of ethnic minorities living in Britain. Not only for this reason do I prefer drama series such as “The Tudors”, “Downton Abbey”, “Silk” etc, but also because of my own characteristic taste. I am literally obsessed with British history and culture, with my main obsession being with ANYTHING! 16th century and Tudor.
There was a point raised in Emma’s blog how actors seem to have to be ghetto or “black enough” to play these urban roles. Not to blow my own trumpet or anything, but I must say that I am incredibly well spoken. As much as I can put on an “urban street” accent for a role, my personality just does not fit that genre and it quite alien to me and my being. The issue of skin colour and tone (an issue I touch on top in my documentary “The Anglophile: Being Black in Britain” which is coming very soon…) comes into play here were many films continue to pit white or ‘light’ actors in the lead roles. This boils down to selling their films, marketing to the audience and sticking to the inherently prejudice aesthetics of the white dominated film industry. Emma makes a very interesting and significant point when she says:
“No one wants to label their production as a ‘black’ thing instead we hide behind this dangerous and stupid moniker ‘urban’ […] In this country we are afraid to make theatrical and film productions with all black casts, “commercially it won’t work” we cry, “that’s not reflective of society”
Coming into the game, my main passion has always been to prove that success is not worthy of a person’s skin tone and appearance, but on what they can do. Now I know that I am not the best looking person, but I have to admit that I believe am a pretty damn good writer! Unfortunately for me, I have not yet found a successful black actor or writer, male or female, currently in the game, to which I can look up to and call an inspiration. Especially for the type of writing I do, it is very rare to find a writer of colour, especially a female, writing about Tudor history!
However, what really struck me and inspired me to write this response, is a comment Emma made in her blog about, will there ever be a black female lead in a drama series role (?)
Now, for those on you following me on twitter, I am positive that you have seen the countless amounts of tweets I have made about the period drama epic TV drama series that I am currently writing, to which I only refer to as “EOAGW”. I have been working on “EOAGW” since I was fifteen years old, and it took me two years to finally have a developed enough on the story to start writing it. I wrote the pilot episode script when I was seventeen in about a week. I took a two month break, and finally gained the confidence to continue on with my series in October 2010. Ten months later…three ten episode seasons later. I thought to bring this all up to illustrate the fact that I wrote my drama with black actors in mind for the lead roles. Now I won’t tell you all about my fantasy dream cast, but I will tell you that my fantasy casting for the main FEMALE role is…me! Without committing writers’ suicide, the main character of “EOAGW” is a twenty one year old black female who is in a relationship with a twenty two year old white male. A happy relationship. What do you think? In the series, she is woman from humble beginnings, who finds herself in an extremely influential and powerful position, one of great fortune yet great danger. Here’s a hint from Emma’s blog:
“There’s no way that in the UK I would play someone Royal or High Class […] those parts do not exist in this country for women of colour”
When I was fifteen, and had small aspirations of stardom as an actor and a writer, my powerful passion for history and film spurred me to decide on a way to create a period drama, one that I could be in. I absolutely love period dramas! However, name a period drama…a real one…that does not star an all-white cast? And period drama with black people as slaves or immigrants does not count. Exactly! I knew when I was fifteen, that whatever I devised from my knowledge of British history and my love for film and TV, would reflect something refreshing. I wanted to create a period drama, that reflects historical themes and events, yet made up of a total FICTIONAL story, but with a multicultural cast. After all, the storyline is FICTIONAL…why can’t my cast be whatever it is?! Do we solely care about the people in the roles, or the storyline at the end of the day? I mean…are we not watching the programme for the storyline, and not the colour of the people on screen?!
So, in response to what Emma states:
“It would appear that in the US clearly those roles are there for women of colour, why? Because over there they have black writers, producers, casting directors, film exects, artistic directors…”
For this reason, I understand that in this instance with EOAGW, it may come to the fact that I may have to pack up and hop over the pond to make my epic phenomenon. In all honest truth, I do feel that American film/TV making aesthetics best suit the show. Unfortunately British styles just won’t fit. But! That does not mean that the show cannot be produced by British production companies. After all…all we want to do is borrow American glamour aesthetics! I don’t see what we should forget about British production on the way.
This blog is in no way meant to be discriminative towards Emma, her thoughts, beliefs and ideas. This is just me, presenting to the world my aims and ambitions in this industry, what I am all about, what I want to do, and what I have currently in development.
Signed: Katrina Smith-Jackson
