Courtney (Christian Today): Michael, the film has been criticised for not painting a full enough picture of the horror of the slave trade. What are your thoughts on that?
Michael Apted: There are a lot of films to be made about slave trade, and this is one of them. The whole genesis of this film was the political aspect of the film and the anti-abolitionist aspect of the film. And the way that all the anger and frustration of slave trade was channelled and focused in parliament in an act of legislation. To tell that story properly, Wilberforce had never seen slavery, and never had direct experience of it. The only person that did have experience was Youssou’s character, Equiano. So I didn’t want to put the audience in a position different from Wilberforce. That’s the story we decided to tell. We could have made a film more about the slavery. But [Amazing Grace] was one of the stories of that. There are many battles in the war, and this is one of the battles. And that’s the one we chose.
Courtney (Christian Today): So is the film entirely centred around the life of Wilberforce?
Michael Apted: It is [focused] on the politics of it. I came to this film because I wanted to make a story about politics. I think people were too contentious about politics and regarded it with disrespect. My point was to get the Slave Trade Act passed and eventually to get to the emancipation in America, it had to take an act of parliament, so it had to be politicised and it had to take the political skills of Wilberforce and Pitt, and Fox and all of them to execute this idea. And that’s what I wanted to focus on - not so much on this spontaneous abolitionist movement or slavery - but the actual political aspect.
Rachel (Church Times): Ioan, was [Amazing Grace] just another film for you, or was it something that you really wanted to be involved in?
Ioan Gruffudd: I read the script and fell in love with it, and thought ‘I really want to be involved in it’. Initially, from an actor’s point of view, to represent this wonderful character, of course I’ve been educating myself to the abolitionist movement and the slave trade - being slightly ignorant to it. I really wanted to be a part of it. To get the message out there. I was entertained, moved, and educated. This is probably the most satisfying experience of my life - let alone my career. It was such a pleasure to go to work everyday with Michael and Youssou and all these incredible actors. I went to bed feeling satisfied everyday, realising that we were telling a very poignant and special story.
Courtney (Christian Today): Ioan, are you involved with the Amazing Change movement?
Ioan Gruffudd: I certainly signed the petition - absolutely. Being part of the film and part of the outreach of this film, I’ve been part of campaigns like Amazing Change. And again, I’ve been educated about the fact that there are more slaves in the world today than there were back in the period of the slave trade. So, yes, we’re very proud and we’re highlighting this modern issue through telling the story of something that we thought was eradicated 200 years ago.
Vicky (Premier Radio): What aspects of Wilberforce’s character really inspired you the most?
Ioan Gruffudd: I think his perseverance. It took about 20 years of his life to dedicate to this movement. And the fact that these were such young men. That was a very attractive thing about the script. When I was 21, when Wilberforce entered Parliament, I was entering RADA (Royal Academy of Dramatic Art), worried about my diction. He was a man entering a place where he can change the world. That was incredibly impressive. It would take me 10 lifetimes to achieve even half of what Wilberforce achieved.
Vicky (Premier Radio): Wilberforce was a Christian. How was it like to transfer his passion towards God onto the screen?
