CAREER PROFILE : This ‘odd’ world of script writing

Hamadi Mwapachu is a film director and script writer who also doubles up as a classically trained actor.

Hamadi is a keen writer just as his father Juma Mwapachu, so he says it runs in the blood.

He taught himself screen writing quiping that you don’t need to go to school to write.

Working in the industry, he was able to meet and have conversation with some legends who gave him advice.

Nowadays there are so many free resources online; from you-tube tutorials to websites that offer advice to budding screenwriters.

He stated earlier that if you want to become a good writer, you need to think of a film you like, go online, find the script and study it. Read articles on the script writing, find out the process.

Here is what he shares with Succes.

What makes a good film director and script writer?

This is up for debate. My preference in the case of a director is that you need to be visionary. Moreover, I gravitate towards entertainers.

There is a tranche of film makers from England that rose to prominence is the 70s and 80s - Tony and Ridley Scott. Adrian Lyne, guys who came up making adverts - these guys made films like “Blade Runner”, “Top Gun” and “Flashdance”, if you watch “Dar Noir” closely you will see bits that draw from those three films for sure, but that is my preference, I like stylish directors.

In the case of a scriptwriter, I look for writers with an original voice, but please understand, reading a script and watching the film are different experiences. I like writers with flair, who are daring, people like the Coen brothers are a must read as their characters are so rich and their dialogue is incredible. I would recommend “The Big Lebowski” and “Miller’s Crossing” to everyone.

What are some of the tasks that you are responsible for as a film director ?

A film director oversees every detail of film making, from working with the set designer on how sets and locations should look, to working with a costume designer, to working with the director of photography on the overall look of each scene. Day to day on set, the director is especially involved with the director of photography, letting him know what is needed in terms of the shots, and working with the actors going over what they will be doing in each scene. There are a lot of moving parts and a lot of decisions that need making and the responsibility for these decisions rests with the director

Describe a typical working week for a film director?

There is no typical work week for a director. It depends on whether a director is working on a production or not.

Film making is broken down into three phases, you have preproduction which involves casting, location scouting basically preparing for the film shoot - here the hours are the normal 9-5. During the production phase - the actual shooting of the film a director’s schedule can vary. On “Dar Noir”, because most of the action occurs at night, the work days were very long. Working from noon till 2 or 3 am was not uncommon.

Then there is the post production, which is when the film is edited, music is sourced, the sound mix is done etc. Here the hours revert to the normal 9-5, generally.

This was not the case on “Dar Noir” as I edited the film, sourced and arranged the music.

We also had to ADR the whole movie which means we had to re record all the voices in the studio as the sound we captured was terrible. As I had no money on this project we would only record on Sundays so as to get a better rate, and this led to delays on completing the project. Start to finish “Dar Noir” took nearly three years to complete and when you hear the sound you will understand why.

When not on in the midst of a production a director looks for projects. As a writer/director I create my own projects. I am currently writing two screenplays.

Where would you like to see yourself in 10 years?

I hope to have a written and produced romantic comedy.Romantic comedies are difficult.

What are the most enjoyable aspects of your job? The least enjoyable?

As a director, I really enjoy working with actors. I would call everyone who worked on “Dar Noir” an amateur, most of them were first time actors - but what they were able to do - performance wise was incredible.

Not only do they have to learn to act but they had to learn to act in different styles in a relatively short period of time. What my niece Inaara, who was seven years old at the time did was extraordinary.

There is no way I could have delivered a performance like that as an amateur. Sabrina Muya, Hatibu Madudu, Khatibu Musa, Juma Nkwabi all did exceptionally well, with not a lot of rehearsal. Jenerali Ulimwengu,who I did not rehearse with at all because he is a busy man, understood the style required and delivered.

A lot of what he did was done in one or two takes, because he would have to rush off to meetings straight after.

The least enjoyable part of film making is the time keeping. No one can seem to keep time in this country.

What is your favorite book?

Again, I am my father’s son so I read a lot. At the moment I am reading a lot of books on the American financial markets as this is the subject of a script I am writing. The book on my night stand is named “Why I left Goldman Sachs” by Greg Smith, it is an expose on the world’s largest investment bank. Cue: greed, corruption, an entire manner of unethical business practices. Wall Street is the new Wild West.

What do you do for fun?

This may be a bit of a cliché but I enjoy my work. Writing is a hobby, not everything I write sells or gets optioned, but I still do it. It is a craft that one needs to work on continually. I am also a frustrated standup comedian, I wanted to do comedy after acting school but you need to be really brave to stand in front of an audience and tell jokes. I could not do it, but as a writer I can scratch that itch. “Dar Noir” is largely a comedy routine.

Everything I write contains a lot of humor, even in films you wouldn’t expect to have humor. “Aisha” has a lot of jokes in it and that is a film about sexual abuse.

I enjoy reading, going to the movies, I watch a lot of movies. I am a Tottenham Hotspurs fan, I watch all their televised games. I enjoy eating out, Thai Kani is my favorite restaurant in town. I enjoy night drives whilst listening to music. Music is a big part of my life, I am also teaching my self to dj at the moment. At some point I would love to start a music label.