Refining her art

FROM being calm and collected as Dr Natasha, a psychiatrist in the telemovie, Komplot to Sandra, a drug addict who works in a club in Lara Aishah to acting Zuyyin, a playful character like herself in Hero Seorang Cinderella, Jasmine Suraya Chin can surely take on many different characters on screen.
However when she first learned about acting, a short course she took in the UK, she got into a certain confusion because she did not understand what needed to be applied or rather, she could not connect. But during her time in London, one of her teachers spoke a lot of sense to her.
"He said the very first thing is to not try to be someone else because then you are acting and people will know you are acting. You should retain certain elements of yourself that you understand in that character; then it is more of a natural transition.
"That especially, spoke a lot of sense to me. It is not about what you show, but what you hide. When you think about it, it is quite true. When you are going through the lines, you are thinking what the character is thinking and that changes everything; the way I behave, talk and move," she said.
Many characters Jasmine does, somehow, are like her in real life and she tries to bring a part of her into acting. If you really want to be the character, you got to first think like the character and it takes time to believe in the things surrounding that character.
"I work a lot on a character's physicality; I work on my body gestures and the way I speak. I rehearse the lines and add certain pauses to certain lines or add certain actions to certain lines, depending on the scenario. What I enjoy most about acting is working on something plain and building on that," she said.

But Jasmine says she hasn't got to play a character she really wants, and that is acting in an ancient Chinese setting and the kind of roles Zhang Ziyi plays.
"I watch a lot of that and I love the costume, drama and conflict. It is so much richer. It would be nice to act in pre-war times or during the war itself, or during the Nyonya days," she said, adding that her favourite Chinese actress is Betty Sun or Sun Li.
As of now, Jasmine is determined to focus on her craft, turning down three dramas to pursue a short course at Mountview Academy of Theatre and Arts whose president is Judi Dench.
"I am quite honoured because only eight were accepted out of all the entries. At the end of the day, I won't be accepted, won't be able to do well for long and wouldn't be able to sustain myself if my craft is not there yet. If I want to retain a long term career, taking the course is more important now; drama offers can always come later," she said.
Jasmine has always been performing since a young age and continued during her university days where she pursued a degree in Political Science and Economics which landed her a job as a business writer.
A colleague at that time briefly glanced upon an audition for a television host and asked her to join. She sent in her application and was asked to go for the audition the next day, but she was working in Kuching at the time. At first, she rejected it but then she regretted, and told them she would go for it. She booked her ticket there and then and by the evening, she was already at the airport.
"Coming to Kuala Lumpur on a spur; that is the most daring thing I have done. I still remember, I was on the plane and I was like, 'what have I done? I just quit my job, got on a plane and left everything behind'. It was one decision and everything changed in just two hours; I couldn't believe it," she quipped.
She started through reality shows and got herself into acting as well as hosting. She had a chance encounter with football hosting, and it was Abu Bakar Atan who gave her the opportunity and the one who mentored and taught her everything.
"He thought by bringing in a female element, he could soften the sport and appeal to different people. And it did work. I felt it sparked a trend because more television stations started using their female reporters more. That was the comment I received from the more senior people in industry," she said, adding to her, the best local players are Safiq Rahim and Muhammad Shukor Adan.
Going back to her acting, Jasmine feels she hasn't hit a ceiling instead it is more of a renewal. She has reached a certain point and now, she is moving forward and innovating herself. She really does think acting is a business and like how any company needs to innovate, she is re-branding herself.
"I am more composed now. I know how to study the script better and I learned how to be more still in front of the camera. Observation is very important for an actor; nobody knows where your character comes from.
"You just have to pick one person and copy the way that person walks, talks and the little habits they do, and you already are a different person. As long as you don't look like 'you' all the time with all the characters; that is the easiest way to understand things," she said.

At the moment, she is more open to doing English projects which she knows isn't available in Malaysia and why she chose London as a place to learn her art. In a way, it is also an escape for her because she feels more inspired there.
"At the end of the day, Malaysia is a small market and because of the market segregation, film-makers and producers don't want to invest in something that is risky. Their budget is limited so they are going to sell to this market because they know the format has worked many times before and it will work again.
"We have never really evolved from there and even if there are good stories, how many are there in a year? It can't sustain my living nor my interests. That is why I look abroad as an opportunity to explore, but I wouldn't say that is my goal. I do want to retain my roots in Malaysia and I don't want to let go of what I have here because I have also worked so hard to build it.
"I don't want to be a one time person, a one hit wonder. I would see myself acting until old age. Probably when I am 40 or 50, it would be a hobby or pet project but for now, I am just enjoying the learning," she said.