Script plays pivotal role at film success: Actor

In an exclusive interview with ifilm, ‘3×4’ series actor Mehran Rajabi has talked about the pivotal role that film script plays in the success or failure of movies, TV shows.

ifilm English has conducted an interview with Mehran Rajabi who plays role in ‘3×4’  series currently being aired by the channel. Here is a selected part translation of the interview originally taken in Persian.

Read part 1:

ifilm exclusive interview with Mehran Rajabi

ifilm: In your opinion, What are the reasons behind ‘3×4’ series success? Why do TV shows like‘3×4’ still attract viewers although being aired for several times? On the contrary, some of the comedy series do not attract viewers even when they are aired for the first time. Could you elaborate on this?

Mehran Rajabi: Series like ‘3×4’ exhibit simplicity. Works written by Ali Mashhadi (the scriptwriter of ‘3×4’ series) seems to record some events which can be considered as the special characteristics of his works. The director of the project is also important. I want to add that currently I have been attending a project written by Ali Mashhadi called ‘End Line’ the shooting stage of which is to end around one month later. Like ‘3×4’ series, ‘End Line’ also depicts the simple life of the individuals based on normal and daily events. Attempts have been made to help the actors to play the roles very close to their real characters in everyday life and not to play the roles based on comedy genre. Basically, at the first month of attending a comedy project the actors themselves recognize whether a successful comedy would come out of the project or an unsuccessful one. This issue is revealed for the actors after one month of attending the shooting stage.  

ifilm: As you said, while acting in a project, you may come to know that the series or the movies would not be successful at attracting viewers. In such situations has it happend to you so far that you have had to decide to give up working at that project or have you proposed your solution to improve the weak points of the issue?

Mehran Rajabi: Suggestions to improve the weak points are sometimes accepted and sometimes not but, in my opinion, to give up the project is not fair because here are other people involved in the issue who earn money through working in that project and if I give up, they will face damage in their life expenses.  For example, when the sound mixer gives up, the project is not shotdown but the issue is different when the actor stops working in a project. In an occasion I did not receive money for ten month but I did not even think of cancellation.  

ifilm: What subjects do you think should be dealt with in Iran cinema industry and TV? How can we compensate for the deficiencies in this realm?

Mehran Rajabi: To my understanding, this issue relates to scriptwriting. Anyway, dealing with a good subject in a good film is like a good poem or a good book. It needs talented people to write good scripts for films. If the movies are made based on rich scripts, they can attract the attention of the viewers and shine at the box office.

ifilm: Therefore, do you believe that good script is the central pillar of a  successful movie or series?

Mehran Rajabi: Absolutely. Even if the script is a little problematic, it can be corrected with the help of the directors and the crew but the script must be rich to have the capacity for such interferences.

MMF/MMF