Nominated for the LFC Awards 5 in the Best Supporting Actress category for her role in the film L’Accord by Frank Thierry Lea Malle, Cameroonian actress Reine Mpouadina has accepted with great enthusiasm to answer the many questions of your magazine. Without a tongue of wood and with her huge bursts of laughter, the actress takes stock of her film career but also of the latest professional experiences she has experienced. A refreshing conversation that will surely catch your eye and allow you to discover and rediscover an actress who will certainly need to be counted on in the years to come.
So I can say that the cinema chose me.
Ayila : How did your meeting with the cinema go and how would you describe your journey so far?
Reine Mpouadina : As a child I dreamed of being an actress but nothing more. My encounter with cinema is really in 2008 when, at university, I accompanied a friend to cast a short film [Oser ou S’exposer de Gervais Djimeli Lekpa, Editor’s note]. At the end of that day, the director insisted on giving me the casting too and that he let me go, I ended up accepting without much conviction, finally I was chosen for the main role. I will describe my career as atypical because at the beginning I never thought of making a career in cinema, I had quite diverse professional experiences. So I can say that cinema chose me. As soon as the thirst for art was stronger, I decided to make it a profession and give myself the means to succeed.
Ayila : This year, you are nominated for the LFC Awards in the category of best supporting actress, for your performance of Amélia Koum in the film L’Accord by Frank Thierry Léa Malle. How did you feel when this appointment was announced?
R.M. : It was obviously the joy that dominated, I was very happy when I learned it because I did not expect it at all. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the promoter Françoise Ellong, the organizing and selection committee of the LFC Awards. For me to be appointed to this 5th edition, knowing that professionals of the trade have selected me among many others is already a great pride, a sign of encouragement and an additional motivation to even more work. Then we cross our fingers for the evening of November 24 [Editor’s note: the 5th edition of the LFC Awards will be held on November 24, 2022 in Douala]
Ayila : With the film L’Accord you return to the cinema after 10 years of absence. Why this absence, what happened during this long period and how did this return happen?
R.M. : My last film, the medium-film Le désert ou le maquis, I shot in 2010. Between 2010 and 2021, the year I shoot L’Accord, which is my first feature film and also the film that signs my comeback, I simply lived my life. I put priority on personal, family and professional life projects. In 2018 I discovered dubbing and it is during my dubbing sessions that I was born the desire to reconnect with the actorat. So when the opportunity presented itself for the casting of L’Accord, I did not hesitate, I thought that this time I would give everything.
“When I see the reaction of people after the screenings, their emotion, their joy, their astonishment etc. this is my greatest satisfaction.”
Ayila : What motivated you to become an actress?
R.M. : Ah lala! The idea of being able to live several lives has always fascinated me (laughs). At dubbing I could be whoever I wanted. In cinema it’s a bit the same, I like this ability to slip into the skin of the different characters I play. In addition, cinema inspires thousands of people every day to change their lives, their opinions. I want to be able to inspire, move, send messages, make people dream. When I see the reaction of people after the screenings, their emotion, their joy, their astonishment etc. this is my greatest satisfaction. It is all the more a grace to participate in beautiful projects that it is not obvious because being an actor is an activity for which there are many contenders and few elected ultimately.
Ayila : In L’Accord, Amelia Koum, whom you embody, is a charismatic politician with long teeth, ready for many tricks to save the honour of her family and her son. Even if at times the character really does not go far in his characterization, why have accepted this role?
R.M. : ‘Long-toothed politician’? (Laughs). Already it should be known that I had not applied for this role but rather for that of the prosecutor. Not having enough experience, I did not feel up to wearing the role of Amélia Koum, I who returned to cinema without real training and after such a long absence. I accepted the role because Primo, I liked Innocent(e) and I really wanted to work with Inception Arts & Com, but I had no idea it would be so soon. Second, writing the script, the story of the film thrilled me a lot and I liked the character of Amelia. For this role, they could have retained any other more experienced or better known actress, but they chose me; when they told me I had a big push. They believed in me, so I promised myself I would do everything to make it work. Third, playing under the direction of Frank Thierry Léa Malle was already unexpected for me, so I wasn’t going to miss my pleasure or risk missing such a great opportunity.
Ayila : How did you approach this character and how did the process of building this role go?
R.M. : As I said, I liked this character. It’s also important to be able to invest in it. In addition we had with the other actors of the film, four months of rehearsals during which we worked both technique and emotions. Personally, in order to build and appropriate the role of Amélia Koum, I represented myself as an archetype of political woman on whom, and following the scenario, we worked and grafted characteristics, emotions, gestures, a voice specific to Amélia. Apart from very intense rehearsals, I became Amélia Koum part-time, wherever I was, I worked on my posture, my voice, my look, my emotions, my texts etc. A little anecdote in passing, Before the casting I practically did 3 years without wearing heels, except that the character only plays with it, so I had to get used to being comfortable with it and even during rehearsals I had to wear them, So my sports outfits with heels often created unassortis and funny looks that made everyone laugh, including me!
Ayila : Could it be said that there is a small part of you in this role? Or in your everyday life you are quite the opposite?
R.M. : Besides lending my physique and my voice to Amelia, you can say that there is a small, very small part of me in this role in the sense that, like Amelia, I don’t like to lose, as she is a mother hen, very protective and like her, I quote, “I dare not imagine what I will do to someone who touches my child”. Apart from that, I am the complete opposite of Madame la Maire because in everyday life I am a real hotshot, always smiling, not careerist, but ambitious. Finally my family and especially my children are my priority and come first.
I assume that the notion of sacrifice comes naturally into our lives once we become a mother/father because it is every parent’s duty to protect their child.
Ayila : You are also a mother in real life, do you think that the desire to protect your child justifies all sacrifices?
R.M. : I assume that the notion of sacrifice comes naturally into our lives once we become a mother/father because it is every parent’s duty to protect their child. As a mother I will do anything for my babies. Now all reason kept, it must be recognized that the desire to protect his child does not justify committing the unthinkable or the immoral.
Ayila : What is your view on the presence of women in the socio-political environment of our society?
R.M. : Women are part of society, so it is normal for them to participate in the march forward. Although things are changing, they are still under-represented in senior positions such as elected assemblies, the public service or academia. In terms of the notion of women’s leadership, we see that it is still a sensitive issue, as are all gender issues, Only the urgency and the importance of facilitating women’s access to leadership roles remains relevant, especially as they play a vital role in overcoming the greatest challenges we face today. This being so, they must be heard, valued and appreciated throughout society so that their talents may flourish and reflect their perspectives and choices for their future and that of society.
Ayila : What about the representation of women in Cameroonian cinema in general?
R.M. : Cameroonian cinema already has very beautiful women. Whether they are actresses, directors, producers or even technicians, they are more and more involved in the film industry and that is very commendable; We must continue to support and encourage the women who are committed to it and who invest in it both in front of the camera and behind it, because they also have their place, their voice to be heard, their vision of things and the world to be made known, their emotions to be transmitted. As everywhere else, it is not always easy for them to lead a professional and a personal life. For the younger generation at any rate, it is motivating to see this enthusiasm.
Ayila : What was your leeway in terms of creation on the set?
R.M. : Throughout the four months of rehearsals already, the team has done an outstanding job. Personally, knowing that Amélia Koum was me without being me, I simply avoided giving her attitudes, manners that are mine. And especially F.T Lea Malle and his team were quite open and listening to my proposals and my sensitivities, they were respectful and kind to me and helped me to appropriate this character. We were all pulling at the same rope to make the film successful, so it was a wonderful experience.
Ayila : We also saw you recently in Madame Monsieur Saison 3, in a role somewhat similar to what you play in the Accord. Is that all you choose or is that all that’s happening so far?
R.M. : I actually had the pleasure of playing in Madame…Monsieur Saison 3 de Ebenezer Képombia. Only the character of Liliane Ebongué that I play there is not quite similar to that of Amélia Koum. Unlike the Mayor, who is a politician who abandons her home and is willing to do anything to ensure that nothing harms her career, here we have a wife, wife of a notary, ready to do anything to save her couple and recover her husband entangled in a fraud case a little despite him. The commonalities between these two women, however, are their strength of character and boldness. I am the one who ultimately decides the roles I play, it can happen that they are in the same register except that it is not only that that is proposed to me. I like the challenge and navigating between different universes does not frighten me at all, on the contrary I take care to make sure for future projects not to remain locked in a single kind of character.
Ayila : How did the experience go, sir? What was the effect of leaving the cinema for television?
R.M. : The experience Madame…monsieur was pleasant. The shooting took place in Douala, and although the rhythm on the set was very fast, it was nice. I must admit that with the success of the series, having had the confidence of Mr Képombia for a role in this season 3 was very rewarding for me and I am grateful for this opportunity. From cinema to television… wow! (Laughter). It is both impressive and interesting in this sense that TV reaches a wider audience than cinema, therefore, thanks to the feedback of the audience, you realize how much you are watched from around the world, we also recognize you more in the street. It can also be a good way to be seen by other professionals in the trade, which can lead to new collaborations.
“The world needs inspiration.”
Ayila :Is acting a vocation for you?
R.M. : Aristotle said: ‘Where your talents meet the needs of the world, there is your vocation’. I really believe that if by being an actress, I can be able to positively influence people, get some people to believe in their dreams, then I will have more merit because the world needs inspiration. Moreover, looking back on all these years, I have the clear conviction that this is really a vocation that I tried to repress or that the situations of life have temporarily ruled out but that eventually caught up with me and I chose to comply with it. This is true of cinema in particular and art in general (I wrote a novel at the age of 14 and also of songs, all that remained in the drawers); I always felt like an artist.
During a dubbing session at 237 RE Studios.
Ayila : Today you are getting closer and closer to the theatre with some projects in this direction. Theatre, cinema or both?
R.M. : Well, you’re a hell of a detective! Both, cinema and theater and even more, why choose? In another life I will surely have been an explorer as I like to navigate between different universes, which I find very fun and rewarding. Of very curious nature, I am what is called an epistemophhile, so in life in general and in art in particular I am very eclectic. I certainly do not want to confine myself to a single area, which is why I accepted with great pleasure some of the proposals that were made to me especially in the theatre. Keep in mind that I will soon be able to surprise you in a completely different field, it is a project in progress, please God.
Ayila : Any plans for the future?
R.M. : Oui plusieurs, mais pour l’heure je ne peux encore en dire plus. Toutefois mon actualité se dévoilera au fil du temps.
interview conducted by Rostand Wandja
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