-after British actor with Guyanese roots motivates local film enthusiasts

By Faith Greene
THE participants of a Guyana Film Festival workshop have proved that Guyanese are talented and have the potential to prosper in any part of the world.

With the assistance of British actor and filmmaker, Craig Talbot, who has been conducting a series of acting workshops in Guyana, the short film “Welcome to Guyana” was created.

“In a collaborative effort with Craig Talbot of Rollick Films in the UK and the Georgetown Film Festival, participants of one of our filmmaking series workshops created this film entirely with just minutes of rehearsal, and now it’s being screened in Italy in the Ivrea Film Screening! Love how the Georgetown Film Festival pushes local Guyanese talent to every part of the globe!” a post on the Guyana Film Festival Facebook page said. The film was screened sometime last month.

The Buzz recently had the opportunity to interview Talbot whose father is British-born but has Jamaican and Guyanese parentage. His mother is Jamaican.

Over the years, Talbot has made quite a name for himself in the film industry. Talbot under Rollick Films has produced films such as Montague (2017), Dead Drop (2019), The Psychic Medium (2020), and his most recent film, Twenty Quid Change (2022).

He recalled that filmmaking was a childhood dream. He began to take acting seriously when he was about 13 years old and from then he has not looked back.

According to him, it was from that tender age that he knew he wanted to act in films as this would take him to many parts of the world. He has travelled to countries in Asia, America, Africa and the Caribbean.

“The older I’ve gotten, the more fire and passion is growing there. So it’s quite nice because it feels like I’m still living my childhood dream, which is great,” he said.

Talbot was born in the United Kingdom and his first visit to Guyana was in October, 2022, when he hosted an acting workshop at the Theatre Guild in Kingston.

The participants of the workshop, in collaboration with the British filmmaker and the Georgetown Film Festival, created the short film “Welcome to Guyana” which was directed by both Talbot and Guyanese filmmaker and director, Rae Wiltshire.

In talking about some of his challenges, the ‘Songs of Solitude’ filmmaker said that finding the right location, resources (camera equipment), and right amount of finances are the biggest trials any filmmaker would face..
“People are easy. You can network. You can find…Caribbean creatives and black creatives, but when it comes to resources and money, those are always the big challenges,” he noted.

Furthermore, he emphasised that making films have been extremely beneficial to him, since he learns something new each time.

CREATING SOMETHING SPECIAL
Meanwhile, Talbot said that he started Rollick Films two years after he graduated from Guildhall School of Music & Drama.

“When I graduated, I guess there was gap in the industry. The kind of work that I wanted to do, didn’t exist… so instead of complaining I thought I’d start to create the work myself and hopefully the industry will catch up. It still hasn’t caught up yet, but it’s getting better. I founded Rollick to start making films and then from there it just kind of expanded. It definitely has been fulfilling every step, challenging but fulfilling”, he said.

Moreover, Talbot added that the film, “Milonga,” which he wrote, directed, acted in, and co-produced, was one of his most successful films, particularly because of the time and effort he put into perfecting it.

“I’d say because we put so much time into that film, when the results came back, and the response globally, especially people online, has made it all worth it.”

He further noted that the film was created during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the increase in people’s screen time resulted in the film’s success.

When asked about his plans to shoot another film locally, Talbot noted that he will be here for the Georgetown Film Festival this November. While here, he plans to film something longer than the “Welcome to Guyana” film.

“The making process is the most important. So it’s great to plan. It’s great to write scripts, watch YouTube videos, read books, but actually, the more you physically make, the more you learn. And I’ve been running a lot of workshops, especially online that Guyanese can get involved in which is making films on your smartphones.”

He encouraged persons interested in filming to start using their devices to record short films which will get longer overtime.