- 5 weeks ago
Abdi is best known for his Oscar-nominated performance alongside Tom Hanks in 'Captain Phillips,' where he played a Somali pirate who took Phillips's (Hanks) ship hostage.
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Short filmTranscript
00:00Hi, this is Mariah Gullow from The Hollywood Reporter. We're in studio today with Barkhad
00:08Abdi and Brian Buckley and we're talking about the Pirates of Somalia. Thank you for having us.
00:13Yes, thank you so much for coming. So Brian, tell me about how you came across this project
00:19and why you decided to write the script. Well, I've been involved, I was involved with UNHCR
00:26working with refugees on a short film, short doc. And that doc I shot in northern Africa,
00:35Kenya and southern Sudan. And ultimately that film, we finished it and the idea was to show the value
00:42of refugees to the world. And I fell in love with the Somalis at that point. They were in the camp
00:49in Kakuma, coming in by the thousands. And when I was there, BBC was there and their correspondents
00:56were saying that they couldn't go into Somalia at that time. It was too dangerous. And the film,
01:02we finished this short piece and it really got watered down and no one really saw it,
01:07mainly because it had to fill what needed to be done with the UN and sort of it couldn't have,
01:13I think, the edge that we were hoping for. So I shot another film, independently of that,
01:18called Assad. And that film was using the refugees as actors. And then shot in southern South Africa,
01:27but the Somalis and told the same, basically the story we tried to tell on the doc, but using them
01:32as actors and told the tale. The reference piece for that piece of work was Pirates of Somalia. And that
01:41book was written by Jay Badur. And we were using it when we were down there in South Africa,
01:48shooting because there was no other material. And his book told the whole story about the piracy
01:52and told about Somalia. It was the only thing out there. Our film would go on and get an Oscar
01:57nom short, Assad. And that sort of fueled the interest. We bought the rights to the book. Jay was on the
02:05Daily Show at that time. And he was funny and engaging. And so we said, we got to tell his story,
02:12which is about a 24 year old kid who goes to Somalia to sort of investigate piracy and falls in love
02:20with the people. And what made you decide to kind of bring Jay into it? I know you're saying that he's
02:27funny and engaging. But why did you decide it was best to just bring the author into the piece?
02:33Well, because his book, it was interesting, because his book was about piracy. And it was
02:36about Somalia. And it was actually about the newfound democracy in Somalia. That was his real love.
02:42It was so interesting to me that he, you know, in 25 pages of the book, or maybe the first chapter was
02:47about him. He didn't even want to write about himself. He cared so much about this other stuff. And
02:51he didn't go to journalism school. He was this kind of like, he's like many of us kind of come on,
02:57you come out of college, you're going, you've made this career choice or lack of career choice,
03:03and you're stuck. And you're like, is this it? Like, am I done? Or I want to bring change,
03:08and I don't know how to do it. And this is one guy that actually crazy as it was, he took it upon
03:12himself to bring change. He went there to sort of tell the truth. And didn't have a news organization,
03:17didn't have anyone behind him, just went there. And that to me is inspiring, like that we need
03:24that. I mean, right now, this time, you know, never more important than right now, I think,
03:30to have people that take it upon themselves to to expose things, you know, and or help the world.
03:38And he was one of those people, you know. Right. And what were some of the risks that
03:43you show in the movie of how, you know, journalism can be used in different ways to, you know,
03:52I mean, there's the whole kind of conflict between the danger of a Muslim country being
04:00represented in a negative light, if you're doing these like journalistic pieces on them. And can you
04:06just talk a little bit about, I mean, I can talk about, I mean, the height, the, yeah, unfortunately,
04:11and this was even going back to when I was working on the doc, I mean, people talked about Somalia in
04:17three ways. It was either Al-Shabaab, you know, there was a famine, and there was piracy. And no one
04:23knew anything about the culture there, like zero, like you could tell me nothing about the culture,
04:28because that's what gets ratings. That's what gets people interested in the story, you know. And that
04:35is the world that we're in right now, unfortunately, the headline grabbing world. Even Jay went there,
04:43his intent was the democracy part, which is interesting to him. But really, he knew piracy
04:48was his way in there. The danger, of course, is you're running with, with a group of people that
04:54are, you know, dangerous people, you know, like generally speaking, and in a very dangerous country
04:59for reporters. And there were, you know, there, he was really solo there on his own,
05:06with, you know, obviously in support of the president there, but he didn't, in Poland, but he
05:12didn't have the, the, this, you know, he didn't have guards and everything that were provided by
05:20the local government. So it's real, the danger is real. Kidnappings are real, all this stuff is real,
05:26I mean, no one could speak better to that than Barcon. But, but to find the truth, to pursue that,
05:33he's there now. I mean, he's still going in there. I mean, he shot pieces of footage in that movie,
05:38I sent them in with a camera, come back, and there were the trucks behind him with the guns. Still,
05:43to this day, he's going in and out of there. So it's like, it's real. The dangers are real. He is,
05:49I feel like he's like, sort of an angel. And ironically today, you know, just minutes ago,
05:55I think the travel ban just went back through again. I don't know if you saw that, but um,
05:59so it's sickening, you know, and what's the urgency, um, for this movie now that needs to happen.
06:08Absolutely. Barcon, can you tell me a little bit about how you became involved in this project
06:13and your character? Because it's such a great character. Well, first, um,
06:19um, uh, when this script came to me, you know, it did have a different name,
06:25but it was the same script and I fell in love with it. Well, from the first time I read it,
06:30it's just, uh, written in a very, very beautiful way. And, um, it was just a whole different side to the
06:38piracy and to the culture. And so it was, um, I loved it from the second I read it. And to be honest
06:47with you, it came better than I thought it would be. So, you know, it was just, um, you know, it was
06:55just like really unbelievable. You know, the first time I seen it, I can remember, you know, I was,
07:00you know, head over heels and I was really excited and happy and couldn't wait for the world to see it.
07:06Yeah. Yeah. So it's, that's what happened. You know, my agent sent me the script and, um, you know,
07:13I liked it from right away and I ended up speaking to, uh, Brian, I got to know him. Then I already
07:18knew some of his work I seen, I said, you know, which was an amazing, um, short film. And so it was,
07:26it was really exciting. So we got to know each other from there and we spoke on the phone and,
07:31you know, he was just, you know, really a good person. So we went there and, you know,
07:36we did it and we got to know each other really well. And it was, you know, it was just a great
07:40journey and, um, I enjoyed working on this movie and it was, it was really a great experience.
07:48What was this experience like working with Evan Peters? Because, um, in your previous movie,
07:54Captain Phillips, you famously were not allowed to meet Tom Hanks until you were on set filming your
08:00scene. So what was it like kind of having a different approach, like a different collaborative
08:04process with your co-star? Yes. Um, well, Evan is, is a great actor and, you know, he's, um,
08:10just an amazing human being as well. You know, we, we first met at the airplane,
08:16actually on our way, Cape Town. And it's, you know, it's kind of, you know, while we were getting to
08:24know each other, we were shooting the movie. So, you know, as you watch the movie, our chemistry is
08:29kind of building up as the movie goes. And that's somewhat was how our relationship was going.
08:37By the time the movie was over, you know, we had a good relationship. You know, we
08:41understood each other and, you know, he's, I think he did a phenomenal job in this movie. You know, he's,
08:46he did, um, a great, uh, great, great part in this movie, starring this movie for us. And,
08:53you know, I enjoyed working with him. He's, you know, he's really, um, a good person.
08:57Yeah. Um, so this is basically kind of a period piece because it takes place in 2007.
09:03And it's interesting. There's a lot, there seems to be a lot of interest around this time period
09:08because it's such a crucial time period in, uh, modern history. Um, the financial collapse,
09:15um, you know, so many conflicts abroad. Um, what is it like to kind of tell that story,
09:21but also kind of, uh, have a story that's so relevant right now?
09:25It's, I mean, it's interesting because it was like, I know you're going like,
09:29is this now? Or is this that? Like it just, the cycles are so quick now, like, you know,
09:34um, that, uh, and also like, that doesn't seem like that long ago, but the technology
09:41obviously has changed, but this has changed, you know, this or that has changed. You're talking
09:44like a semi period piece, but I don't know, like that sort of desperation that,
09:50that I think in some ways exists now in a different form. Then it was funny,
09:55like financial people came out of school and they were sort of stuck or the world sort of collapsed
09:59and they had to rebuild their lives in this moment. Now I think it's more like a
10:05more political sort of situation currently, because you had, you know, obviously at that point,
10:09there was a, you know, Obama just coming to office. But in this case, I think that there's a political
10:15sort of, I got to bring change sort of moment, um, that I think people tap into. So they both,
10:20it works on both levels, you know? Um, but it was, it's interesting just, but I think you come out
10:25of school, you want, you want to bring changes where you want to do something. I think many people
10:32want that. And I think that's, people relate to that now, you know? And, uh, and Somalia right now,
10:38I mean, politically speaking, I don't, listen, awareness of Somalia is probably at all time high right
10:45now because of the stuff that's going on. So in essence, to get, there's no better time to get
10:50to know the culture than it is right now. So I feel like that's good because I think people are open to
10:55that, you know? And, uh, in the credits of your film, you list, um, all of the cast members who are
11:01refugees. Why did you find it important to do that? Well, I mean, I even did it on the short, um, mainly
11:08to show that the, we're, film is an ecosystem, you know, a film is an ecosystem. I mean, it's this
11:16incredible thing where everyone sort of works together from all different ways to bring this
11:20entertainment, to bring this thing to you that you can sit and enjoy and laugh, like comedy, humor,
11:26okay? Yeah. Right. And there is a lot of humor. There's a lot of humor. We don't talk about it
11:30because like, oh my God, Somalia humor. Oh my God, it's terrible, terrible. But there is in,
11:36and in, that's what I've discovered about the culture. The number one thing I discovered about
11:40it. So a refugee who might be going through incredible hardship, doesn't mean they don't
11:44laugh. Doesn't mean that they can't, they, they, they're, they're fully, they're wonderful, fully
11:48full human beings. You know, like, it's like, I just, the idea was like, this was a collection of
11:53people that brought this to you, you know, it's really important, I think, to know that.
11:58Yeah. What was Jay's reaction to the film? Has he seen the film?
12:05It was really funny. Yeah. He got drunk before he saw the screening. He said, I had a few drinks.
12:11He's stressed out, huh? He was so stressed out. We did a screening for him in New York.
12:15And he goes, I have to be honest, I had a couple of drinks before I'm going to watch it in the middle
12:19of the day. What was he worried about? Because he's 32 years old, he's already seeing his life. Like,
12:25you're not supposed to see your life at 32, you're listening to be a rock star or something.
12:28Like, you know, and usually it ends very badly. You know, oh, let's do that, you know, that biopic
12:33on the, on this rock. So he, he was sort of like in a situation there where he was really nervous,
12:42really, because it all just happened. I don't think he thought this would happen. And now I'm watching my
12:49life. I'm watching my mom get depicted, my dad, you know, my life, my, my ex-girlfriend,
12:54all that stuff. Like all these things that suddenly become like fully formed. And it was,
12:59I was equally nervous that he was going to go like, dude, this is not even close to what happened,
13:05you know, because you always hear those stories. You're like, what do you do now? Like this person
13:08thinks that you didn't, you know, and that would never be the intent. And it was really great because
13:11he was so, so supportive of it when it was over. Yeah. He loved it. He said, oh, you know,
13:16you, you made him funnier than me. You know, I think he liked Evan as, you know,
13:22Evan's a pretty good looking guy to have to play. I'd love Evan to play me. I mean,
13:25I think he's pretty happy with that. So he, he got that, you know, so I don't know,
13:29I think he was pretty happy in the end, you know. That's great. That's good.
13:32Um, now with the, the post coming out around, uh, Christmas time, there's a lot of like renewed
13:37interest in, in, you know, the, the role of journalism in our country, especially this year. Um,
13:44you know, what kind of statements do you want to make to that? Like your film makes a lot of
13:48statements to the, uh, the fact that, uh, journalism can be used in many different ways.
13:54And, um, you know, right now, uh, how, how do you feel like narrative film is being used to kind
14:00of do the same thing? Well, I think we have a tremendous, tremendous responsibility.
14:06The narrative film has a tremendous responsibility. Hollywood has a tremendous responsibility.
14:10And it's a hard road to be that responsible. I'm not, it, it, it is not easy. You know,
14:16like no one was dying to make a film on Somalia from the Somalia position. It just isn't,
14:21that's unfortunate, but it's the way it is. And, um, so I, I feel like right now, like I said,
14:28I think there's a, there's such an interest in the truth, you know, and it's such an interest
14:32in journalism right now. I mean, there's never been a higher amount of that. So for us to find these
14:37stories and sort of tell these stories about the pursuit of that, and even if you're not in a news
14:41organization such as Jay, and he's out there, you know, gunning and making that happen, if the story,
14:47if the film can, you know, whatever story you're out there telling and comes back true to that sort of
14:54goal of that writer, hopefully that's an inspiration. Hopefully that brings more stories,
14:59you know, and I think, uh, you know, this is, it's strange because I've never seen so many,
15:06uh, all the president's men references this year. Like this is all done before, like literally before
15:11the, you know, you know, it's like, it is so topical right now, which I guess it's a site,
15:17it's a cycle, but it's an important kind of like check the, like we must check this, we must,
15:22is a desperation to it. I feel, you know, that way with this film, very, very much like,
15:28there was no choice but to make this movie, there was no choice when he read the script,
15:31I think he said to me, to make, he didn't want to do a pirate movie, I didn't do anything to the
15:34pirates, read the script, he didn't, he said I didn't want to do it, but it's like, because he's done,
15:39he's done that, you know, and I'm not itching to go run off and go do this thing, but it didn't even
15:43happen. How many Somali pirate scripts do you get a year now? Not that much.
15:49You know, but you know, this, this script is way different, so, you know, I'm, yeah,
15:55I'm really proud of this movie, and I'm really proud of the screenplay that he wrote, and you
16:00know, how he directed this movie, you know, so, it's really exciting. Yeah.
16:04And what is, I mean, we touched on it a little bit with the travel ban, but what's happening
16:08with Somalia right now? I mean, I know that at the end of your film, there are some facts about what
16:13had happened since the film transpired, and now things have changed again. Yeah. Well, I mean,
16:19they have and haven't. I mean, the U.S. is still, you know, and I'm far, far from an expert at this,
16:23but they're, you know, military-wise, we've opened up relations, we are there, boots on the ground,
16:28in Somalia, you know. We're using them to fight against the South, you know, or working with the
16:35Somalis government. So, I mean, and some of these other governments are also involved that have been on
16:41the ban list that have been involved in fighting terrorism, you know, and yet their people are banned
16:46from coming to the United States, which is sort of not, certainly not, I don't think sending the
16:51right message at all, and it's sad. I think that, you know, I remain very hopeful, you know,
17:00we're talking about this, the fact this film's breaking this week is sort of ironic that this
17:04would happen right now, but to educate is the only way to sort of, I think, overcome this sort of
17:11prejudice behavior that we're, you know, and fear, I should say, a lot of fear of Muslim countries
17:18that is based on lack of knowledge about their cultures. I think it's come straight from that,
17:24you know. Right, and just like a, people seem to have a problem understanding what a, what a refugee
17:30is, which is kind of amazing considering that our country is built on refugees. Right, like none of us
17:37would be here without it. Yeah. And then, you know, so it, you know, the refugee, I mean you're
17:42talking, it was interesting, I mean real quick, it's like when we were in that camp in Kakuma,
17:46the average amount of time a refugee remained in that camp was 17 years. Oh my god. And they could
17:51not get out, and that's a prison in northern, in Kenya, you know, basically prison, jail, you know,
17:56you can't get out, but the best education there was available really was in that camp, and the only way
18:01to get out is either another nation takes them on or they go back to their war-torn nation. It's not really a
18:06choice, and so now they're there. And the, and there's so many people that can contribute so much
18:13to our culture, to, you know, to, to the world. This man, right here, look at what he's, you know,
18:18I use this, I was talking about this the other night, look what he's done. He's on your show twice
18:22now, he's filling 10 minutes of very important airtime. But it's like, it's like, like, but, but he,
18:29you know what I'm saying, he's a gift, a gift from a country, you know, a gift. There's, there's a lot of
18:35gifts that, that are going to contribute, contribute to our art, you know, I mean,
18:39to what we are as a, you know, whether it's a soft and wear company to, to acting, whatever,
18:44you know. Yeah. What do you think people, what can people do if they see your movie and they're
18:49motivated to act on, you know, the plight of Somalia or Somalian refugees, what could people do?
18:56Well, I think, listen, um, I, it depends on what position they are in life, you know.
19:02Definitely, yeah. Yeah, I think that really is, is wide open, right. Um, I think that
19:11remaining, you know, whether you're, if you're an, if you're an employer and the ability to employ,
19:15then, you know, employ, you know, if, if you have the ability to send, you know, help, you know,
19:22food or whatever, that's fine. But I actually feel that, and obviously there's, there's great crisis
19:28there. But I think really reaching out to your government and trying to get people to,
19:33to the U.S. government, whatever, to get, to get them to open their eyes, to bring, to allow,
19:38the travel ban to me is a really strong indication of what needs, that this is a very unhealthy thing
19:44for America. To, if the people should be able to move freely, um, we should be able to, you know,
19:50if you also look at another country and I just, you know, screen films all the time,
19:54there's so many parts of the world, but not just Somalia. I mean, Somalia is just one place,
19:59just one, that we just need to learn more about. Go to that country, go find out about another
20:03culture, go create the movie, go make, go do the thing that's going to bring that change.
20:08You can do it. If Jay can do it, you know, if, if he's here, if I'm here, trust me, I can't speak
20:13for me, I can't speak for him. We're, we're all came from nothing basically, but we're able to sort of
20:18bring, be in this moment and, and very appreciative of where we are now today, you know. So I think we can,
20:24you can do it. You can bring change a lot easier than you think, you know. You don't need the,
20:27the big organizations, you don't necessarily have to go join the UN to make that change, you know.
20:32Yeah. That's an excellent quote. Um, so I have four questions before we wrap up. Um, it's, uh,
20:39first, best, last, worst. Um, the first movie that inspired you to make films?
20:44Uh, for me? Yeah.
20:49Uh, I would say City of God. Oh yeah. Yeah, I would say that movie. It's,
20:59after I watched that movie, it's just, you know, it's kind of talk, you can't talk to me in a way.
21:06Yeah. So that was really inspiring movie for me. Um, you know, I mean, this,
21:12it's just how it was done. So it's just kind of motivate me to, um, do something. And that was
21:18like in my early stages. That's, you know, when I decided to, uh, you know, do a little movie in my
21:23neighborhood. Wow.
21:25So you don't, you don't start it for me from that way. Yeah.
21:30Oh, cool. Uh, best day of filming, um, on the set of Pirates of Somalia. What was your best day of filming?
21:40Well, for me, the best day of filming would be, um, every day. Because I enjoyed every single day
21:50filming that movie. I mean, I, you know, the cast, the crew, everyone was amazing. So, you know,
21:57it's, it's one of those things that just, you know, come together, you know. And we really enjoyed,
22:05I really enjoyed, uh, the set of the Pirates of Somalia, even though the name was different than.
22:10Yeah.
22:12Was it as hot to film as it was? Like the movie really, you know, it's showing that the heat.
22:19Oh, it's pretty funny. It's pretty, actually, it's sort of funny. You just take this part.
22:23All right. So the tree, the, when he walked out to the tree. Yeah. Yeah. With, with Evan,
22:28to do the interview with Boya. It was really cold.
22:33It was really cold. It's a cold day. Oh, shattering cold. Really cold. It might look hot.
22:38But we put the waves in later. They're like, we had to take the chatter out of the sound. Like,
22:43get rid of the chatter. Like, I don't know how the chatter is. Anyone gonna think they're
22:46chattering? No, just put some heat waves in there. That's great. Um, last person in Somalia
22:53you've spoken to. Who have you spoken to last in Somalia? Who's in there right now?
22:58In Somalia. Ooh, I got, mine's easy. Um, the last person in Somalia I spoke to
23:05who was my, um, my cousin. I spoke to him and, you know, he just finished, uh, he just
23:14became a doctor, he told me. Oh. So I was really happy for him. I don't know exactly
23:20what kind of doctor he became, but it was, um, it was really exciting. You know, he just
23:25finished, uh, doctor's school in Somalia and, you know, I was really happy for him. So that was the last
23:31person. Um, Ibrahim is his name. Yeah. Mine's Jay. Yeah. Yeah. And I think
23:38the fact that he's still, you know, actively involved and, um, he just could never get,
23:46you know, he's just part of that world is, you know, in Nairobi and, and I think he, I mean,
23:51I can't, I can't speak technically to what he's doing now. I'm not supposed to.
23:54So I won't. Okay. But he, but he is in and out of there a lot. Uh-huh. Okay. Does he stay in touch
24:00with Marion? Um, so, no, Marion, no. So Marion, that's right. So Marion was true.
24:07This is really the secret. True character, just to be like, all right.
24:10Is she amalgamation of characters? She was like, she, she was a real girl of Marion
24:13that was a girl, he had a drug dealer who was Gerard's wife. Okay, true. And hot.
24:20Yeah. That I never saw her, but he said was hot, like the most beautiful girl he saw. And then he
24:26had, I believe, conversations with her, but he did not go so far as, you know, and then the girl
24:30that showed up in the room did show up in his room just before he left. Uh-huh.
24:33So that was real. Um, so those two parts are real, but I pushed things obviously, um, uh, a bit beyond that.
24:41Yeah. Excellent. Um, worst misconception about Somalia?
24:46Wow. The worst misconception. I, I really think
24:58that the strength of the Somali as a person, um, and beauty as a culture
25:09is completely non-appreciated or understood. I think that, that the most inviting, warm
25:18people that, and I've met a lot of cultures that I've come across are Somalis. They brought
25:25me into their home when I was in the camp right away, um, to drink and, and hang out, insisted on this.
25:33And very open, warm culture. Um, and that, we just don't, we see a certain part and we, and that, that to me
25:47is a misconception. So I'd say that's the greatest thing.
25:49Mm-hmm. With me, um, and this movie, I mean, I just want to add my two words in there.
25:56Mm-hmm. But my, basically what I'm trying to say is, um, whether it's Somali or not, it's every culture,
26:04you know, need to be understood, you know, and it's never how it seems, you know, and how people betrays
26:13it. You know, you, people can say, oh, that country or that people are like that, and, you know, but
26:18until you take the risk, and go like Jay, and go to that culture, and understand them, you shouldn't
26:25be judging people. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So that's, um, you know, the main point of our film is, I believe,
26:34it's, um, that goes to a lot of different cultures, you know what I mean?
26:39You know, it's, I mean, you can say that a lot of different people, honestly, yeah.
26:43Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. It's easy, it's easier, again, if you look at film, to take the obvious road,
26:51it's harder to go the other road, it's a much more difficult road, of it showing the warmer side
26:56of things. Yeah. You know, um, so, um, that's, or to go under there, it takes a lot more work,
27:03um, and, uh, but I, I, I think you, to your point, pick your culture, you can find it. Yeah.
27:11You can, you know, I just happen to be obsessed with small, you know. Yeah. Yeah, but every,
27:15people have the good, the bad, and the middle. Just like you walk into a second grade
27:22class, and then you see the two smart ones, uh, you know, a few dumb, and the middle.
27:28Right. You know, it's... Never talk to the first person who talks to you. Yeah.
27:31So it's, you know, it's just... Don't hang with them. That's always trouble.
27:35Yeah. Well, Barkhad and Brian, thank you so much for being here with us today. Thank you.
27:40Thank you. The movie is Pirates of Somalia, theatrical release December 8th.
27:43Yeah. Great. Thank you. Thank you.
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