Brand new movie Sprinter, hit the cinemas this week. Set in Jamaica it’s a refreshing and authentic take on the Caribbean experience, displaying spirituality and sacrifice through a hopeful athlete’s journey to becoming a sprinting sensation. Jamaican actress Shantol Jackson plays Kerry Hall, a fellow athlete and a driving force for Akeem. We spoke to Shantol about preparation, difficult scenes and future opportunities outside the Caribbean.
Congratulations on Sprinter, it’s such an eye opening and important movie. Your character Kerry is Akeem’s teammate who gives him much needed advice and is probably his only true friend, how did you know this role was right for you?
Thank you, to be honest, I was excited to do a film because it was my very first film. It’s sprinting, which is a major phenomenon in Jamaica so of course. I was excited because that’s totally outside of my character so that means more work for me which is challenging because I have to become a sprinter, there’s a change of diet, there’s training, there’s a different kind of discipline that I’m not generally accustomed to, so I was looking forward to that. Sprinter speaks to immigration, there’s this thing called Barrel Pickney phenomenon which is when a parent leaves and sends several barrels’s at a time with food, gifts, clothes to somewhat compensate for their absence and that’s similar to my own story because my mother to this day is still travelling months at a time meanwhile working overseas so she can provide for the family, she also send barrels, I have a barrel in my kitchen, a barrel outside up to this day. So the story is very close to me.
So Track and Field is an important sport in Jamaica and it also surrounds the main plot in Sprinter, you’ve basically told us how you prepared to play an athlete but have you ever ran track before?
I ran track once, I was about 12 in primary school. I realised it’s not for me so I moved on from that. During the process of preparing for Sprinter, I appreciated athletes so much more. I was doing minimum training to get the form just to look like an athlete but imagine the athletes who are doing this every day for hours at a day. I appreciate athletes way more because of the amount of work they have to put in and the discipline it takes to do all this.
Growing up did you always want to become an actress?
Initially, I wanted to be a veterinarian I think I was just fascinated with the word veterinarian. One then day my dad got a dead frog and he told me to dissect it. I looked at the frog and then I looked at my dad and said daddy I don’t think I’ll be able to be a veterinarian. I didn’t know what I wanted until I started high school and joined the drama club, at that moment I said I want to tell stories; I want to give a voice to the voiceless. Most of us would need an escape from our own realities and the drama room gave us a space to tell our own stories, to tell our own truth. I devoted my life to doing that and I think that’s my calling and every opportunity I get to contribute to the growth and develop my craft, Sprinter being my first film gave me that opportunity.
There was also a difficult scene where Akeem tries to force himself onto Kerry and their friendship is left hanging in the balance, what was the environment like on the set and how did the crew ensure you were comfortable?
They did say that before that it would be a closed set and they did ask the comfort levels. The thing is I understand the importance of that story because Akeem at the stage he’s hyped, being hailed the young Usain Bolt and all the girls in school are throwing themselves at him. In his head, he feels that he can do whatever he wants with anybody and they’ll accept it and it’s a misconception so I understood the reason why that needed to be shown. I was very open to it and very appreciative of them acknowledging my comfort level, so we did that and I didn’t mind it, as I said it was a closed set and of course I was able to kick him so there was some redemption. It was very quick that scene was done in twenty minutes or less.
What do you want viewers to get out of the film?
It’s a feel-good movie so I want them to go and have a great time it’s very entertaining. London loves reggae and dancehall and dancehall is a major aspect of the film. Also, immigration is a major theme here, most of our grandmothers and great-grandmothers in the Caribbean came to England, I think you’ll appreciate it for that because we don’t see these stories being told, especially outside of Jamaica and its very refreshing to see, so its something for everybody to see and appreciate.
Do you have any plans to start exploring film industries outside of Jamaica – e.g. UK and US?
Of course, that’s the plan, as I said I love telling stories. I’ll never leave the theatre because that’s my heartbeat but I do enjoy doing film and I want to explore every aspect of acting, so theatre, film, Broadway at different levels. That is definitely the plan to try and learn everything and develop my craft in every way I can.
Is there a Jamaican story that you would like to tell, yourself? An inspirational figure or event that you’d love to star in?
Funnily enough, I just wrapped up a pilot for a TV series in Jamaica, it focuses around Jamaican ancestry and characters. I play Nanny of the Maroons, there’s a Junkanoo at almost every independence because Junkanoo is a major part of our culture and so I’ve always wanted to do something like that, also there some magical element that I’m excited about. We have funny stories and Nancy stories, further in the scene his character develops and my character interacts with his character. So I’d love to see that being developed because those are stories that we grew up on as kids: Nancy, Three Fingered Jack and Nanny of the Maroons and these people so I think I have touched on it a bit.
Catch Sprinter in cinemas now
