Whilst attending the Horror-on-Sea Film Festival in Southend I got an opportunity to talk with actor Darren Kent about his new film project In Two Minds. A new short film which deals with mental health issue, which will be premiering at the Southend Film Festival.
We are here at Southend-on-Sea, Darren and you have a new project coming out, can you tell me a little bit about that?
My next movie is In Two Minds which has a mental health aspect. I don’t want to give too much away because it is a short film, but we are having a world premiere at the Southend-on-Sea film festival in May. My character is a mass murderer, so I do kill a few people in this, it’s no Rom-Com! That’s the way my character’s going, but the underlining story is more about the police officer; how he suffers and the after effects that it has on his career; his marriage and his general life following this trauma. I am trying to not give too much away, so I am trying to keep the story to my belt a little bit.
How did you get involved with the project originally?
A writer called Dom Hill, who was a very good friend of our director David Streames wrote a one-man monologue which was an hour long theatre show. I fell in love with the play, the script and I thought I would love to play a character like this – but where we were adapting a theatre show to a film script we needed to bring a lot more elements and layers to make it work. After I spent months writing the script but it was still missing something, so I thought we need to hit the mental health aspect. It’s got depression, suicide, anxiety, PTSD, which I still feel are not getting the recognition they deserves. So, we put a few spins on the script and now we feel like we have got something quite special to be fair. Not only is it educational with awareness, it is also quite cinematic. For a general film goer or audience member you are going to have a bit of action and a good movie, but for someone who looks into films for a deeper aspect and wants something a bit more than just a film – your in for a treat with this one!
In Two Minds is relatable and is going to touch home with a lot of people suffering at home right now. 85% of the population around the world have some form of mental health and this touches on three or four of the main subjects in that area. This is not only something that I am super proud of but being an ambassador for Mental Health UK it is so close to my heart. I needed to make this movie, not just for me but people that I know that are suffering. Soldiers that are coming out of the army in a mess, the police officers having to deal with knife and gun crime on a daily basis, you just assume that they have it covered. What you don’t know behind closed doors they are suffering. The only thing I can do is make a movie to reflect that and open people’s eyes. These are the real heroes, not the actors you see on TV or the faces on a movie, because that is all we are. We are no more important than plumbers. We are just doing a job, telling a story. They are the real heroes and the ones we are looking to portray and that is why this is so important to me.
It’s a personal project, especially as you are a spokesperson for mental health, did you draw on your own experiences from the people you have met with mental health issues?
I did. I had to phone a lot of people up who I know are suffering, obviously anxiety is huge right now, depression, suicide, people feeling isolated and alone. I have worked very closely with a lot of people that are suffering right now. I think you need to do that for research purposes number one, which is important to me. I love intense research to get a character portrayed in the right way. Also, to see friends suffer, nothing hits home more… It hurts a lot and the only thing I can do is get the most accurate knowledge to do this. Obviously, I had to speak to them in person, I spoke with the charity as well and found out about their own personal views and how they approached it. Not getting over it, but how they dealt with it as an illness. I also spoke to those offering counselling to get it as accurate as possible. We have a few names, its not about that for me its about delivering the right performance and telling the right story to get the awareness out there. Many people have a story to tell and its about telling it in the most accurate way for me.
Who else is involved in the project?
The director is David Streames who is also an amazing actor. He actually directed the theatre version and won best director, so he is obviously winning awards, I am super jealous. (Laughs). My actors, I have my psychiatrist Sandi Bogle from Gogglebox and Celebrity Big Brother. Most people see her as a reality TV star and that’s what she was known for, but I auditioned actresses from Game of Thrones, Holby City, Eastenders and Gogglebox, but Sandi Bogle’s audition was phenomenal! So much naturalistic acting and realism you just warm to her. She took it seriously, she wasn’t overreacting or trying to act, she just really believes in the stuff we gave her and blew us away in the audition. She is going to wow her own fan base and anyone else who gets the pleasure of seeing it.
Then we have Elliott Jordan who is a big star of Eastenders and Benidorm, he’s obviously smashing the industry right now and his work speaks for itself. He is playing the police officer who suffers the trauma. I have worked with him on a film called Community (2012) many years ago with New Town Films and he was phenomenal in that, but I have the pleasure of working bang opposite him on this.
I’m a psychotic killer in this but you still kind of relate. It’s a bit like Dominic West when he played Fred West in Appropriate Adult (2011). Although he is a psycho and you know the story of Fred West there is something really likeable and if he was in a pub, I would probably have a beer with him. It makes me sound like a psycho, but my character is very similar. He has got a heart, he pick and chooses who he kills, he doesn’t just kill anyone. He has a motive and a reason for everyone he chooses. He also chooses not to kill some; it doesn’t make him normal, but it does make him a little bit more relatable. He is a mass murderer and there is no way of getting around it, he is a killer and deserves to get locked up, but when you see what he has been through… It doesn’t justify what he does, but it makes you realise he has been through a lot.
It’s quite a deep subject which you are dealing with in the film, at what point did you suddenly think we have something really special coming together?
It was probably on set. When we were developing the script and bringing in the mental health aspect it added so much more production value to the movie, but for me being on set filming opposite Elliott in particular, he took it to a different level. I am not a method actor, but I engrossed myself in the script embodying myself in a way that I can deliver my lines in a natural way – but when you have someone as good as Elliott opposite you, who is such a generous person as an actor it makes my life so much easier. That’s the moment the penny dropped and I though wow! We are onto a winner because Elliotts gold dust. I am so privileged, humbled and lucky enough to work with someone in his calibre. To have Sandy on board is amazing and Streames is amazing, but Elliott Jordan brought something special to the table.
Did you experience any issues during filming bringing it together?
Yeah, we did, obviously I do everything above board, there’s nothing gorilla style and I don’t cut any corners. On the day that we filmed on location, it was in a derelict building that is part of the Southend Football Club, so I had to approach the chairman Ron Martin who was happy for us to film there which was amazing. We turned up on the day and we had a homeless guy living in the building and a wasp’s nest luring outside, so I was like, oh my god the health and safety will be going through the roof! For the building itself we had a specialist clear it out, it had asbestos everywhere so we had a clean up mission which cost more than the movie near enough. Then obviously the wasps, I was thinking please don’t sting anyone, but we got away with that. We couldn’t clear the wasp nest on the day because pest control was too busy with flies or whatever they were doing, so we just worked around that in the safest possible way. The homeless guy, bless him, we left him duvets, pillows and loads of food, so by the end of the four days although he was kicked out at seven in the morning, he came back to a bit of luxury he probably wasn’t used to. He is a young guy bless him, in his twenties. I didn’t expect to see a guy that young and vulnerable. Some of the guys were like “We are filming in this location lets kick him out” but I went No! I have a lot of respect for someone who needs a bit of a hand or love. I don’t know if they are all genuine, but I am going to give money to them just in case because I don’t want that conscience hanging over me. They were are our only issues, but we battle through it.
We are nearly finished, within a week we will have a final film and I am so thrilled with the results and I cannot wait to show the world what we have done. This is by far the strongest film I have made, I wouldn’t say it’s the strongest I have starred in because I have been lucky and privileged to have starred in some good stuff. This is a role you have not seem me in before, it’s a look I have never shown before and it’s a character that’s so crazy; I have not done anything like this.
Do you have any other projects you are working on at the moment?
I am doing a music video very soon which I am starting in February and I am doing a short film with Mark Rathbone who is part of the festival (Horror-on-Sea) where I play an Arab. I am also in a feature which is Middleborough based, again with Mark Rathbone so I feel very blessed. I am also in a TV series, but I can’t disclose the name right now for obvious reasons. I also star in Les Miserable which is playing on BBC 1 every Sunday night at 9pm. So that is doing me well and my Facebook is going mad. Everyone feels a need to send me pictures of them watching the telly which is great! I love my fan base for what they do and what they love, for recognising my work and making me feel a little bit more important every year. I am just grateful people are believing in me and giving me opportunities.
If anyone is looking to write their own script what advice would you give?
I would say to them, don’t over complicate it, don’t make it dialogue heavy. Cut to the chase and get to the point quick as possible. Actions speak louder than words and that rings so true for a script writer. An actor can tell so much more in his eyes without you having five lines of dialogue to explain what he is feeling. Most writers when they start, they can’t help but explain everything and it does my nut in, because I was once that guy (laughs). Believe in the actors! Just think, an actor’s eyes tell their own story. So, if you are writing something make it believable, relatable and something close to your heart – something you know a lot about. If its Sci-Fi that’s something different because you are making it an apocalyptic world or whatever it may be, but be creative, original, true to what you believe in and don’t let anyone change your story. If you’ve got something that is your baby, don’t let anybody ruin it, believe in it, support it in the best way you can. I will respect you more and I am sure everyone else will too!
Published in various websites, Philip is a reviewer who is best known for his interviews and media coverage of independent projects including; films, books, theatre and live events. Always on the lookout for something different to cover!
