The local film industry only stands a chance of rejuvenation if stakeholders in the sector unite and treat it as a serious profession, Zimbabwean-born Australian actor Rick Cosnett has said.
by Kennedy Nyavaya
Cosnett, who stars in the Hollywood series’ The Vampire Diaries, Quantico and The Flash, among many other US productions, was in the country for the week-long Zimbabwe International Film Festival (ZIFF) which ended yesterday.
In an interview with The Standard Style soon after a ZIFF film forum on Tuesday, Cosnett attributed the lack of sufficient time to practice as the major contributor to bad productions.
“I think it’s difficult in Zimbabwe because people do not get to practise as much professionally as they would like and that’s the one thing that makes you a better artiste. I would say just start practising,” he said.
“It’s something that I think Zimbabweans lack. What they could end up doing for themselves is to practise and dedicate themselves to their craft as much as they can.”
Locally, the revenue actors get from acting is not enough to pay for expenses, prompting many to opt for day jobs or the informal trading for life sustenance, turning acting into a part-time occupation.
The 34-year-old Chegutu-born Cosnett professed having had side jobs in a decade of failure to get roles in mainstream acting industries.
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“I worked at a restaurant, an office and just did it [acting] on my spare time,” he recalled, disclosing that the only way to scale up the success ladder in the industry is to work harder towards one’s goals.
“Whatever resources you have, use them to the best of your ability and start making stuff, start acting all the time as much as you can and just get people involved.
“The opportunity will come your way eventually, but will you be prepared for it and if you are, I think it will take you to places you have never really even dreamed of.”
Cosnett also encouraged content creators to take advantage of modern technology and the internet to improve their skills.
“In essence, the process is the same even if you film something on a phone, you get your shots then you edit them together, that’s pretty much what happens just on a very larger scale in Hollywood,” he said.
In the 1990s and early 2000s, Zimbabwe had positioned itself as one of the best in film productions in the Sadc region, producing impressive productions like Yellow Card and Neria.
The beginning of socio-economic problems did not spare the sector which also depreciated to a sorry state till date.
Of late, a great deal of local talent in the acting industry has been crossing the borders to seek better opportunities in South Africa, with some like Tongayi Chirisa making it to Hollywood where fellow compatriot Danai Gurira is also making strides.
