Then came the BAFTA nom.
Shell be back in time for the BAFTA ceremony at Londons Southbank Centre on Sunday, February 18.
Maybe, she answers, but then white female actors have been working visibly for a lot longer time.
Vivian Oparah, and ‘Rye Lane’Getty/Searchlight
Its just a matter of continuing to work hard and sometimes defining that path for yourself.
The good news is she is up for the challenge.
That doesnt intimidate me, she says.
David Jonsson,Raine Allen-Miller and Vivian Oprah at Sundance 2023Todd Williamson
The playing field still isnt level and thats fine.
I dont really internalise it.
I just know that I cant get swept away in the moment.
If she initially looked stunned, its because, well, she was.
Im just so happy to be there, man, honestly.
Oparah laughs when she notes, And now here we are three years on.
Thats a theme, by the way, that director Cord Jefferson observes in his brilliantAmerican Fiction.
Yes, Black people lead normal lives.
After the audition, she did a chemistry read and got the part.
Shes still shocked she got it.
I was like, You would wantmeto be in a romantic comedy?
I was like, Theyre picking us because theywantus.
For that reason, Oparah happily refers to the shoot as my best filming experience.
Everyday youre looking forward to be at work and seeing someone crafting something really masterfully.
Meeting with her CAA agents has given her a boost, she says.
She adds, I really want to actualise these writing projects.
The tome has been carefully preserved by her mother.
Oparah plays Jess a very insecure, grief-stricken girl, according to the actress.
Shes definitely up for more theatre.
Id be down for that, for sure, she says.
Out of nowhere, a line she utters inRye Lanecomes into my head[very mild spoiler follows].
Its where Yas announces that shes always wanted to own a restaurant called Maggots by Candlelight.
I dunno, its silly and just makes me smile.
Oparah indulges me, and thinks my point isnt as daft as it sounds.
Rye Lanemeans so much to people in our community and that means the world to me, she says.
I hope that it chrysalises in British culture.
Soccer fans will know where this is headed.
Is she a Tottenham Hotspur supporter?
Anticipating the question, Oparah quietly announces that shes always been a follower of Arsenal.
I raise my arms in delight.
Oh, wow, you too!, she cries.
Vivian Oparah will go far.
