The Fan Carpet Chats To… Actor And Producer Mani Nasry Talks About Encouraging Diversity In His New Film WE
Mani Nasry is an actor and producer who stars in, produces and directs the feature film 'We', which took over five years to make. The film follows Ethan, a man with big ambitions and an even bigger heart, as he searches for love in the years following the death of his parents. Mani Nasry brings authenticity and life to the leading character of Ethan, acting alongside a diverse cast.
Here Mani talks about acting with well-known names such as Dean Cain, and how that inspired him to go his own way; why producing is a dream for him; and how he’s giving a voice to under-represented communities.
Who inspired you to become an actor and why?
The three films I was most inspired by were Steven Spielberg’s ‘Saving Private Ryan’, Elem Klimov’s ‘Come and See’, and Sergio Leone’s ‘Once Upon A Time In America’. These movies were like dreams that you entered, fascinated and captivated. I started my journey by training as an actor at Equity Showcase Theatre in Toronto and headed to New York and Los Angeles to learn the art of theatre and cinema.
Once I returned from the US in 2002, I landed my first major role, a $5 million film called 'The Glow' with well-known actors Dean Cain and Portia de Rossi. In Canada, you only get the leftovers, the leading part is taken. There is a lot of politics and it's very Caucasian, there’s not much room for diversity. I knew that in order to be a leading actor, I would have to become a film producer. I was accepted into one of the most competitive film programs in Canada at Ryerson University and studied cinema for five years before I started producing and directing my first feature film, 'We'.
Photos credit: © 14 Films
‘We’ is out on Vimeo now
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