Play It Safe is the debut short film by Mitch Kalisa. This stunning debut raises the curtain on prejudice in the classroom. Drama schools in Britain now deal with accussations of hypocrisy in recent anti-racism statements.
Play It Safe is a window into institutional micro-aggressions of perceivably liberal safe spaces. It won the Oscar Qualifying Grand Jury Award for Narrative Short at South by Southwest® (SXSW®)
Synopsis: Jonathan plays a character in a drama school play. His fellow coaxed him into playing a racial typecast. Jonathan must either challenge prejudice, or play it safe.
Mitch Kalisa is originally from Rwanda. He arrived in the UK as a child via Uganda. He started out as an actor, explored his passion for film and theatre through acting before immersing himself in writing and directing as his creative calling.
Logline: Play It Safe is a personal experience of Mitch in drama school education, and it is how some perceivably liberal and safe spaces can brim with just as much ingrained prejudice.
The Official Trailer for PLAY IT SAFE written and directed by Mitch Kalisa and stars Jonathan Ajayi
Jonathan recognizes his role as an all too familiar experience. It became an intimate and personal journey for him. The Screenstar of Tomorrow delivers a brutally blistering performance. Originally of BBC’s Noughts & Crosses fame, he received prestigious drama school training in London.
Chris Toumazou is at the helm of the development and production. A founding partner of COMPULSORY, an award-winning entertainment company in London.
Mitch and Jonathan attended The Arts Educational School in different years. Their combined awareness led to the casting and production of the film. While, the school served as its backdrop and resource. The school’s newly appointed Head Of Drama Julie Spencer worked with the team to tap into an authentic casting process. This has further emphasized a honest approach to the film.
Toumazou focuses on breaking in new voices in the narrative space. This led to a record of premiering work at SXSW, Berlinale, and Sundance. He is passionate drive is for for relevant stories. This defines the growing success of his burgeoning film department.
Jamie Ackroyd shot the film on Kodak 16mm film, and he is a talent to watch. A London-born Cinematographer, he started off assisting on features and documentaries. He worked up shadowing the likes of Linus Sandgren and Barry Ackroyd.
Play it Safe is in selection for numerous Oscar and BAFTA qualifying festivals. A few are London Film Festival, Telluride, Nashville, Palm Springs, and AFI.
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