Lights, Camera... Action!
You may not be aware, but we have many stars here on our doorstep who are part of big Neflix productions. The south of Spain is the backdrop for various feature film productions and many well-known working actors come from right here in Marbella!
You may have heard of the Netflix series´ ‘Warrior Nun’ and ‘The Witcher’? Well, cast members Mahesh Jadu & Fred Pritchard come from Marbella.
Mahesh Jadu plays the character ‘Vilgefortz’ in ‘The Witcher’, an important character in the villainous side of the story. Mahesh is a tremendous actor who is well known for starring previously in ‘Marco Polo’ on Netflix. Every summer Mahesh teaches master classes at Marbella Film School. I personally attended one of these courses, where he focused on tackling villainous characters, and I even got to film a short scene under his direction. This entire experience was hugely rewarding, and I extremely enjoyed it. He helped me understand what mindset you must put yourself in and refined my skills and techniques.
One of our wonderful teen students at Marbella Film School, Fred Pritchard, secured a role in ‘Warrior Nun’, playing the role of ‘Diego’, a sick orphan who shares a room with the lead character, ‘Ava’, played by Alba Baptista. To date he has starred in two episodes, so we decided to sit him down and find out a little more about his experience.
Can you tell us a little bit about how you got into acting?
After moving to Spain 5 years ago at the age of 9, I developed a love of acting through performing in drama lessons and productions at my school, Laude International College in San Pedro. I continued to learn and broaden my experience through attending classes with Nicole at Marbella Film School.
My first experience of filming was appearing in a live action trailer, Anthem Conviction, for the EA Sports video game which was directed by Neil Blomkamp. It was filmed in Ubeda and Sabiote in Andalucia in a spectacular medieval castle. The experience was amazing but performing in a Netflix series felt even more exciting.
What was it like being on set and how did you feel?
The excitement started when I arrived and was given my own trailer to relax and get ready into my costume, that is when it really began to feel real. I was driven to the location with my fellow actors which made me feel very important.
When we arrived on set it was a hive of activity. I couldn’t believe how many crew members are involved behind the scenes from the lighting, sound, props, make up, wardrobe and camera operators to name just a few! Each person plays a crucial part and seems so busy, but as soon as the director calls ‘silence’ and ‘action!’, everyone stops completely still and you could hear a pin drop. Each scene was shot several times with different camera angles, or until the director was happy.
What was it like working with the rest of the cast?
I feel so lucky to have worked with such professional and talented actors. My scenes were mainly with Alba Baptista from Portugal who is incredible in her role, Frances Tomelty, who is a very experienced and well-known actress from Ireland and Tristan Ulloa, a popular Spanish actor. Although I was very nervous, they were all so patient and kind to me and gave me plenty of advice. I worked with two different directors on different episodes, Jet Wilkinson and Agnieska Smoczynska. They had different styles and I realised how each project can be given a different dynamic by the director.
It was an incredible and exciting experience for me, and I have learnt so much about how the film industry works. In the future I would love to continue my acting learning journey and I hope to study Drama at University one day. In the meantime, I will carry on enjoying my classes with Nicole at Marbella Film School.
Fun Fact: Did you know director Jet Wilkinson, who directed Fred’s scene in Warrior Nun, taught a master class at Our film school in Australia (Perth Film School)?
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Nicole Moerland - Founder of Marbella Film School
Nicole is of Dutch and Indonesian descent born in Holland and raised in Andalucia, Spain, and attended Aloha College. In 2004, she attended the prestigious Stella Adler Academy of Acting in Los Angeles and graduated in 2007. She has worked and lived in Holland, Spain, UK and USA gaining invaluable experience working with some of the world’s most talented Actors and Directors including Rutger Hauer at The Film Factory, as well as Director, Peter Yates. She founded the Perth Film School (Australia) & Marbella Film School (Spain).
Pablo Martel - Administrator of Marbella Film School
Pablo is a half Spanish half English young actor, currently on a gap year working at and attending Marbella Film School, after having finished studying IB at Swans School International. He is continuously working on his professional acting career, through auditions and working on his skills and techniques, and is planning to attend a screen acting Bachelor's degree in Berlin by the end of this year. He is eager and passionate about acting and can’t wait to get started with his professional career.