TIFF Recap: In Conversation with Halle Berry
BY SCOTTIE KNOLLIN
Halle Berry, the actress who became the first, and still only, Black woman to win the Academy Award for Best Actress for her work in “Monster’s Ball,” has celebrated a groundbreaking and transformative career. At this year’s Toronto International Film Festival, she debuted her feature directorial debut, “Bruised,” in which she also stars. After a remarkable bidding war, the film was acquired by Netflix for a price tag near $20 million.
In one of many “In Conversation with…” retrospective special events during this year’s mostly-virtual TIFF, Berry spoke with broadcaster and writer Amanda Parris about her career and what she had to learn early on to keep herself from becoming a token actress of color.
Halle Berry stars in her feature directorial debut, “Bruised.”
Berry’s varied career can be traced back to the short-lived ABC television series, “Living Dolls.” The spin-off of “Who’s the Boss?” only lasted twelve episodes before being canceled, but it gave Berry enough experience to move to Los Angeles and take up a career solely focused on acting. Her actual breakout would come just two years later in Spike Lee’s “Jungle Fever.” Though her role as Vivian, a drug addict, was small, her performance was memorable and sparked an elusive career of small, independent films and big budget franchises and everything in between.
At the start of the their conversation, Parris highlights just one of Berry’s many “firsts.” In 1986, Berry was the first African-American to enter the Miss World Competition. Though she had already achieved some success as a model, it was shortly after this that Berry looked to acting to fulfill her passions. “I was looking for a voice,” Berry said. “I was looking to find an outlet where I could express what I had to say, explore what I had to say.” She also shared that, initially, she wanted to be a journalist.
When equating her experiences becoming an actress and becoming a feature director, Berry highlights that she’s always been someone who embraces what’s around her. “I don’t always follow the path that I have set for myself, but I follow the path that is sometimes set before.”
Of her early acting work, in reminiscing about “Living Dolls,” Berry said she felt like a token on the show. “I never really had much to do. I didn’t have a real character or part to play. So, while I was grateful for the opportunity, the creator inside of me felt like I was missing something.” It became the experience that would shape how she approached every role she took from then on. When she first offered a role in “Jungle Fever,” it was as the beautiful wife. After reading the script, however, she knew she wanted to sink her teeth into something more challenging, like Vivian.
For other women and, especially, Black actors, Berry said, “Don’t allow yourself to be typecast and don’t operate as a token. Say no. You have the right to say no. I would say create your own stories. Write, direct, produce, create it for yourself. Create, create, create. That is power. Don’t take no. Be the hardest working person in the room. And I believe with that philosophy, you’re going to get to the other side of any obstacle that’s standing in your way.”
Berry took her own advice for “Bruised,” a film that finds her playing a mixed martial arts fighter trying to win back both her son and take a title. She shared that the role was originally written as a 25-year old white Irish Catholic girl. She convinced producers to let her star. Netflix has yet to confirm its acquisition or announce the release date for “Bruised.”
