Forging a New African Image

By Debi Williams
SeeingBlack.com Contributing Writer

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Actor Eriq Ebouaney, hailed by critics as "the African Denzel Washington," is ready to blaze new trails in Hollywood, but on his own terms. Are the studios ready to bag the stereotypes and deal with a strong, compelling actor who specializes in portraying multi-dimensional characters that show Africans in a rich new light?

One look at Cameroonian actor Eriq Ebouaney and you know he was meant to be on the silver screen. When he walks into a room, his smoldering good looks, charisma and elegance instantly command attention.
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Ebouaney and his friend, fellow actor Djimon Hounsou represent a new force in modern cinema, the undeniable African leading man. In 2000, Ebouaney mesmerized audiences worldwide as the star of "Lumumba," director Raoul Peck's award winning film about Patrice Lumumba, the former Zaire's first elected prime minister. A young politician, Lumumba served only two months in office before his assassination in 1961.

This spring, Ebouaney returns to the African continent in two new starring roles. In "The Silence of the Forest" (Le Silence de la Foret), the first feature to be set in the Central African Republic, he plays "Gonaba," a young idealistic school inspector who abandons the good life in the city to live in the forest with the Babingas Pygmies. In his second film, "Cape of Good Hope," Ebouaney plays a Congolese immigrant who faces both racism and xenophobia in modern day South Africa. In a recent interview, he spoke about his artistic journey.

While Hounsou left France over a decade ago to find a place in Hollywood, Ebouaney, who is lesser known on these shores, chose to stay closer to home in his native France and built a name for himself first in the theatre. Born in France some 35 years ago, Ebouaney first played the role of dutiful son. He earned a degree in business and started a small company import/export company, selling computers in Africa and across Europe. "I was so bored with his life when a friend dared me to try my hand at acting," he says.

Ebouaney quickly rose to the challenge and found a home on the stage. That was eight years ago and since then, he has not looked back. He first landed small roles and independent projects before his big break came as star of "Lumumba." After receiving acclaim worldwide for his performance, Ebouaney patiently waited for the opportunity to be cast in another challenging role. Instead he got offers to play more African leaders, who, unlike Peck's "Lumumba," were sketchily drawn. Like many African actors in Europe, he had to face the reality that plum roles are scarce. To pay the bills he returned to the stage as interesting supporting roles in film started to come along. "Blacks and Whites still lead very separate lives," he said. "And the doors to the movie industry in France are opening slowly thanks to a new generation."

While a bona fide star in African cinema circles, Ebouaney always aims to satisfy his passion by playing roles that push and challenge him to become better. He says he took the roles in "The Silence of the Forest "and the upcoming South African film, "Cape of Good Hope" because they offered him an opportunity to grow as an actor. "So far, I've played a cop, a mercenary in Ridley Scott's film "Kingdom of Heaven" and a jewel thief hell-bent on revenge in Brian dePalma's "Femme Fatale. I'm excited about the roles in "Silence" and "Cape of Good Hope" because they take me back to Africa to play fully developed characters."

Acting appeals to Ebouaney because he thrives on drawing out intense and multi-faceted characters. Like Denzel Washington in Spike Lee's epic 1993 film "Malcolm X," Ebouaney played Lumumba with such talent and precision, it was as if he channeled the young revolutionary from the grave. "It's funny because originally, I wasn't cast to play Lumumba. Four weeks before shooting the movie, the previous actor just quit. He freaked out and said he didn't want to do it anymore. So I just did it, sort of in a state of unconsciousness. I think that's how Lumumba lived, very in the moment, he just did what he had to do. So, I had to lose weight in four weeks, read books and look at archival material. I trusted the director, Raoul Peck, because he knew his subject very well. Ten years before he did a documentary called "Lumumba Death of a Prophet."

When asked if doors opened wide for him after such a powerful role, Ebouaney shared how his portrayal of such a strong character actually became a double-edged sword. "I was typecast because all these producers wanted me to play all these African political leaders," he says. "I was fed up with the lack of imagination and returned to the stage. Unfortunately, that's the way it is. But, I need to be typecast somewhere probably. I know that in France, I'm typecast as a bad guy because I'm Black," he laughs.

Ebouaney grew up in a banlieue or suburb of Paris, where Blacks, Arabs and whites mixed a little bit more. Yet, in Paris, people still lead very separate lives and he says that has a profound effect on moviemaking in France. The doors in the movie industry are opening slowly there thanks to a new generation who have become accustomed to metissage, a mixing of French, black and Arabic cultures. But Ebouaney offers this word of caution, "as Black actors we shouldn't wait for opportunity because they're not going to come quickly. We still have the old wave of producers and directors in France. We need the young ones to take over. But most importantly, we need Black scriptwriters, producers, and directors."

Ebouaney has plans to step behind the camera by serving first as producer on a documentary." We need to be responsible for our own culture, " he says. In less then ten years, Ebouaney's acting has taken him across Africa and Europe and now like his friend Djimon Hounsou, an Academy award nominated actor, he is ready to try Hollywood. "An agent told me once when I was in L.A. you have to be in it to win it. But I can't stand that. Life in France is so different than life in U.S. So I can go there, spend three months working and then go back to Europe. I need my real world. I need to see people on the street, to talk to people in the restaurants, to share things. That's why I'm doing this job to share emotions with people, to try to read their souls because I want to share mine."

Debi Williams is a writer and former NPR producer who lives between Paris, France and Washington, D.C. Listen to her NPR 100 features on Stevie Wonder and Mahalia Jackson at www.npr.org or write her at debi_williams@hotmail.com.

Related Links:

• Review of "Lumumba"
• Review of "The Silence of the Forest"
  
  

— April 16, 2004

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