Abubakr Ali
Interviewed by: Elizabeth Berra, CSA
1) Has there been a Casting Director that has encouraged and/or supported you in your career?
One of my first auditions out of school was with Findley Davidson and Matthew Wise, and after it, they took me around the office and gave me a tour of the floor, getting to know me for almost half an hour. It was wonderfully disarming and a great reminder of how much we’re all collaborators in the simple pursuit of telling a good story.
2) What work are you most proud of?
It unfortunately never got to see the light of day, but leading the Netflix series, Grendel, was a privilege and a joy for me. The character was this sociopathic, deeply troubled guy, and the incredible crew would constantly come to me and say “I’m always shocked with how nice of a guy you are in comparison to this character”. It was my first time as number one on the call sheet, and that responsibility was not lost on me. Managing to tell that incredibly dark story, while leading and carrying everyone around me with joy and positivity was something I was very proud of. Seeing people exhausted at the ends of long days and having the ability to make them smile through a simple exchange and share in wonderful memories, while flipping the coin to do my job as an actor once action was called, was the joy of my life.
3) What or who inspired you to pursue acting as a career?
I wish I had an inspirational story to tell here. I had a teacher, Mr. Beerman, who pulled me aside one day and said “you should consider pursuing this professionally” and I was like “cool cool”. Looking back, I think there was more to why I was drawn to it. My family moved to the US right before 9/11, and something happened in my community where every space you walked into, you had to smile and assure everyone that you were not a threat, that you were one of the “good” Muslims, and you had to hide the other two thirds of your humanity, your sadness, your anger, you couldn’t be seen in a bad mood. Any negativity, you had to shut down. So in hindsight, I think I kept doing it because it was a space where those other two thirds of your existence were allowed to exist and be seen, and even celebrated, and I was attracted to that.
4) What was your first IMDbPro credit and how did you feel when you saw it?
It was a music video for an LA artist where I was a random office assistant, it was called Someday Soon. I’m so proud of it. I think often it’s so easy for people to witness your successes and just see the shiny, and it’s easy to forget that there is so much work that no one has seen that has led you to where you are. I’m incredibly proud of those moments.
5) How has IMDbPro helped you market yourself to filmmakers?
IMDbPro is one of the best sources of tangible access into this industry. I have so many friends starting out who reach out asking for advice, and IMDbPro is the first place i send them to for research and to learn more about representation, other artists, casting, and more.
6) Any funny casting room stories?
My first audition out of school was, to this day, the worst audition I ever had. It was a 7-page scene where there were multiple focal points and my brain could not make it happen. The casting director said, “Forget the different eye lines, just take it to me.” And it was still so painful. Funnily, very soon after, that same office was where I got my first role as a series regular. I still lose so much sleep over this audition.
7) Tell us a fun fact about you outside of acting:
I really like whales.
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