Mathew C. Martino is a Zimbabwe-born English actor, writer and producer who currently lives in London. In this interview he talks about his early training as an actor, the movies he produced, the book he wrote, and his plans for the future.
Voicu Mihnea Simandan: How much has the drama club you attended at Shenfield High School influenced you as an actor?
Mathew C. Martino: The drama club I attended influenced me a big deal, it was obviously in a school environment but it empowered me to grow further interest in the acting trade. I never knew I would go on to be a producer at this stage so I just went with the flow and did my best at all the exercises. Some stuff we had to do used to be rather lame and boring, and it was an after school club so that just made it worse but I kept going strong.
VMS: You have written, acted in and (co)produced quite a few shorts. How important was this in understanding of how the film industry works?
MCM: My writing, acting and producing of shorts was quite important as it does allow an opportunity to learn more about the film industry and any mistakes at that point wouldn’t cause a huge windfall, for instance in one of the first shorts I produced I hadn’t signed a location agreement with the owner of one of the locations and something went wrong, had that been for a feature film or TV program it would have caused a huge backlog as well as been very costly. I personally feel short films are a good learning curve. My advice to filmmakers would be don’t make a feature film until you have made at least three shorts.
VMS: Your also have experience related to making documentaries. How has this influenced the way you see the world around you?
MCM: Yes, documentaries, I hated them as a kid, I was once the driving force against Discovery Channel and their like minds but since I worked on one and saw how it worked as compared to a film, I gained more respect for them. Making my directing debut with Lets Fly Documentary helped me in seeing the aviation world in further detail and to understand it more. Documentaries can be quite interesting as well as spread a real and true message as opposed to films where fiction is being promoted.
VMS: Your works seems to gravitate between acting and producing film. Which do you prefer and why?
MCM: If I had to choose it will always be producing, you sign your happiness away when you agree to produce a film but it’s always been a rewarding experience for me. What I love in production is having the capability to make the film better, as an actor you would just listen to what a director or someone tells you but as a producer you make it happen. Sometimes when I used to act, I would look at the location they are using and I’d think to myself ‘I could get a better location than this’ and as an actor you can’t make that impact onto a film. I think despite all the production headaches it’s always a fruitful and learning journey.
VMS: Your first book, Lets Fly, is an aviation guide. When did your passion for planes start?
MCM: My passion for planes started from a very young age. I used to be amazed; obviously growing up in Africa there weren’t many planes there but when one flew past I knew that was something special. I would follow a plane in the sky until it was out of view and I’ve grown with this passion. I don’t know what the future will bring but I would love to be a full time commercial pilot in the future. Truth is I’ve since realised that I can always do the flying as a hobby and focus full time on my other passions.
VMS: What book are you working on at the moment?
MCM: At the moment I’m not writing anything, I thought I would give my hands a rest although I’ve just polished up a screenplay I’m hoping to develop soon. I’ve been concentrating on marketing my books Lets Fly and Go For It which isn’t always as easy as it seems but so far it’s all going well.
VMS: What movie projects are you involved in right now?
MCM: I’m just finishing of Ortega and His Enemies which is currently in post-production and I’m also holding talks about a possible return to Zimbabwe as I’ve been invited in for talks for a film with working title Project Rhodesia. I can’t say too much about that and my other future projects but it’s all very busy on the production side and I like it.
VMS: Thank you for taking the time to “talk” to us.
