Wassim Hawat, Actor, Producer, Stuntman Talks Career, Business, and Future

Wassim Hawat is a TV, Film, and Theatre Actor/Producer/Stunt. A Versatile actor who is trained in the Meisner and Method acting technique. After a few stage gigs and a handful of made-for-TV and Film movies, Wassim scored roles in well-known TV shows,” Dracula “, Monsters Vs Aliens, Motor week, Home and Away, Atomic Kingdom, Here come the Habibs! Wassim has also appeared in a few diverse roles in well-known theatre productions such as the heartfelt play Life lines, playing The sympathetic husband “Mac”.

The comedic play The Bet, in which Wassim played Eric the next-door neighbour, who is described as a manipulative yet charming contractor. The drama plays Jonno in which Wassim played Brian the unreasonable sleazy boss. Last but not least, the political play Unveiled playing the Body Guard to the President. The versatile actor has been steadily working both on stage and screen. Over the next few years, Wassim tried to up the ante with a series of highbrow projects including Journey, Postman Pat: The Movie, Gods of Egypt, The Killing Field.

Most recently Wassim starred in a Dark Comedy Play/Musical Monster Big Ball playing the infamous character Count Dracula. Wassim is hard at work, attached to pre-productions such as Mesopotamia, The Unhallowed, Conquer, The Magnificent Raiders of Dimension War One, The Last Immortal, Out for Vengeance, and many many more. Following these roles, Wassim developed quite a fanbase and began appearing on lists everywhere. Wassim has now popped up on critics’ radars with his diverse performances.

Wassim Hawat is known to exude a very warm, strong personality with charm and true life experience. While he runs a self-made construction business, he has been gaining recent footholds into the acting/producing world and thus far has steadily honed his craft. Directors and film buffs who look for a realistic and naturalistic style of acting would find Wassim a delight to work. His ability to take very minimal direction, whilst adding texture to his character and convincing audiences, has made this fine actor a delight to work with directors and producers.

At the drop of a hat, Wassim is able to exhibit anger and ferocity that comes from his very core, but also can play the exact opposite and be very warm, light-hearted, and compassionate. Wassim has been known to shock filmmakers with his ability to tackle any project and character that comes his way.

The official Wassim Hawat Showreel

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indieactivity: How did you become an actor?
Wassim Hawat (WH): In my early acting career, I was always inspired by the great actors such as Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, Gerard Butler, Tom Hardy on their method, and natural approach to bringing a character alive and truthful. The freedom to utilize your imagination, body, mind, spirit, senses, and instincts to portray a live character which is not yourself. Also the opportunity to step into a spectrum of characters and voice-overs. That’s what inspired me to become an actor.

indieactivity: What acting technique do you use?
Wassim Hawat (WH): I like to think that my technique is a blend and progressive balance of different techniques. What I have been. Acting technique is very personnel to an actor, so every actor has his own process, I use both ‘Meisner’ and ‘Method’ Technique. Method Acting actually involves a series of approaches but its overall aim is to develop lifelike performances by encouraging the actor to replicate the emotional experience of the character through his or her own emotions.

In essence, in method acting, the actor is asked to internalize the emotional life and thought processes of the character. The actor is expected to literally feel the same emotional impulses as the character would in circumstances described in the script. The classical approach, in contrast, focuses on externalizing these processes of character development by developing a certain set of skills (i.e. voice, movement, imitation etc.)

Meisner Technique is based on “truthful acting” and promotes a type of acting I like to call Behavioral Realism, a form of acting that it shares with Stella Adler’s work. The other major division of American acting can be called Psychological Realism, and is represented by Lee Strasberg’s “Method” acting. Both have a commitment to a sense of reality in acting, but Meisner emphasizes truthful behavior and imagination, while Strasberg emphasizes personal memory and emotion combined with imagination.

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Meisner Technique is known throughout the acting world as a “real people” technique that is able to train actors to appear and act like actual human beings rather than like actors. The measured and integrated behavior that Meisner-based actors provide makes the technique popular among filmmakers who like to see varied and specific behavior on film, and gestures and facial expressions that will stand up to a tight closeup without seeming forced or phony. Filmmaker Sidney Lumet, who recently passed away, was a trainee and disciple of Meisner, and his intense version of realism in many courtroom and police dramas and other streetwise films set a standard for in-your-face reality on screen.

What wrong impressions do actors hold about acting?
WH: One of the biggest challenges of being an actor is to be “a” working actor, but also not to take audition outcomes personally. Also be willing to handle rejections and criticism well, its what makes a strong actor survive through a tough industry. A few lessons:

1. Always be confident in your performance and never doubt yourself.
2. Always know your lines like your name and also know your character very well before shoot dates.
3. Enjoy the journey
4. Be very open and receive the directions given.
5. Always be professional and dedicated.
6. Never take things personally i.e. rejections of roles.

indieactivity: Do you take courses to improve your craft?
WH: Of course, acting is like going to the gym, if you want to be fit and look good, you need to always train, the moment you stop training you become rusty, your muscle needs momentum to keep going, similar with acting, its called the acting muscle, to improve my craft:

– I always attend workshops
– Drop in classes
– 1 on 1 coaching with my acting coach.
– Doing scenes with other good actors you trust
– Reading scripts, plays, improvisation
– Auditions
– Just practise alone, practise practise practise

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What acting books do you read?
WH: The actors’ art and craft, Sanford Meisner on acting, The art of acting, Respect for acting, Acting in film, An actor prepares, A challenge for the actor, The power of the actor

How do you keep fit as an actor?
WH: The way I have been true and honest to myself is simply by focusing on myself as an actor and not being distracted by the superficial nature of the industry.

When you’re offered a role, what do you do next?

• Read the script until I know it like my own name
• Meetings with directors and producers.
• Ask a lot of questions about script and character
• Work on the accent/voice that the character calls for
• Research on the character, script
• Invest in the character’s emotions, thinking, being, etc…
• Transform into the character mentally and physically
• Meetings with other actors in the scenes I am in
• Rehearsals with other actors in my scenes

How do you create a character from a script into a person?
WH: When the begin the screenwriting process, always ask yourself the why: Why does the character ask to be in a story? What is it I feel about him or about her? Because then you begin to find out why you want to write the whole story, and what the passion of that character is, and why he wants what he wants. Eventually, you reach the moment where you can dream for your character, where you can remember for him or her everything that happened in his or her past. When that happens, then you are safe because the character (not the screenwriter) will find his/her way towards the resolutions of the story.

At this point, the problem is how to hit that character in his most vulnerable spot. How to put him in the worst predicament imaginable. How to strengthen that predicament, and how to increase, at the same time, his desire to achieve his objective.

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Once you get that, you’ve got a story growing, and there is no problem what to do next. You just use the rational approach and start asking yourself: What are the sequences in which this character tries to get himself out of the predicament? That’s screenwriting!

And you put him in that predicament. Then you have the steps from the set up of the dramatic situation to the culmination. When you can see the sequences and you start asking what event you can put in the center of each sequence, the story begins to unravel and then you have a chance to feel quite safe. You begin to have an outline, and after that, you can begin to write your screenplay.

How do you stay fresh on set?
WH: Actors, especially if they are methodical, will usually spend a few minutes re-wrapping their mind around the character before a new take begins. It depends on the difficulty of the role, but it’s safe to say that challenging roles would require that the actor focuses in-between takes as well, and they would be highly aware that this is something they ought to do. Therefore they would scarcely let their mind wander far from their role and its lines when they know they will have to act again soon.

Now if you mean during the take, well they simply know that they have to focus in order for their performance to be satisfying. It’s in their contract, it’s the first reason why they are payed and given a role, and so most serious actors would simply not allow themselves to have their head in the clouds while the director is right there expecting them to do the work. Of course, everyone is only human and bad moods, bad thoughts can always intrude in the process. A director and a crew can understand that, and the actor can be granted time to focus again, or an entire take can be postponed until they’ve regained their perspective.

But there needs to be a good reason as there is an implied rule that the actor must do their best to keep up with their role and go along with the established schedule. Most of them would simply not take the risk of thinking of anything else and would just… focus and do the thing.

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Describe a memorable character you played?
WH: Dracula, in a theatre Production.

What do you want most from a director?
WH: To be open to my suggestions; Work closely with me on the script and my character; Give clear and concise directions; Have a lot of 1 on 1 meeting; Answer all my questions; A lot of Rehearsals; have detailed discussions with the director and actors involved in the scenes I’m in.

indieactivity: What actors do you long to work with?
WH: Gerard Butler, Tom Hardy, Liam Neeson, Joel Edgerton, Meryl Streep, Brad Pitt.

indieactivity: Why?
WH: These actors will take my acting to the next level.

indieactivity: What advice would you give to actors?
WH: Always be confident in your performance and never doubt yourself. Always know your lines like your name and also know your character very well before shoot dates. Enjoy the journey. Be very open and receive the directions given. Always be professional and dedicated. Never take things personally i.e. rejections of roles.

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