There are several tattoos on the body of Harris Dickinson (London, 29 years old). On his right shoulder, as seen in some of his films, it reads “KES,” in reference to Ken Loach’s 1969 film of the same name, which was also Krzysztof Kieslowski’s favorite film. This is a statement of intent. San Sebastian Film Festival. Rascal, Dickinson’s directorial debut – which opens in commercial theaters this Friday – is screening in the Perlak section, and the Londoner handles press. So when asked about the tattoo, he holds up his short sleeve and proudly displays the reference. “Loach is one of my boys,” he laughs.
Dickinson’s image before the world is probably mediated by his work as an actor: he starred in The triangle of sadness (2022), by Ruben Östlund, the same year in which he is seen in the saga The king’s man, He was Nicole Kidman’s rowdy lover in girl (2024) —Banderas speaks wonderfully about him during filming—and appeared in blitz (2024), by Steve McQueen. But his career is much more, given that in 2017 he made his debut in Beach rats; AND He allowed himself to be moved by authorial and risky projects (The Souvenir: Part II, The Iron Clan, The Wild Child) more than those who come to him for his handsome face (Maleficent: master of evil).
Everything will change when Sam Mendes’ quartet of Beatles films, in which Dickinson will play John Lennon, are released. At least, that September morning in San Sebastian, the actor is calm, checks his cell phone for a moment, and smiling, speaking slowly, explains why he directed, and why he made his debut with an eminently social film like Rascal. “As a child I thought I would be a cameraman. I made videos skate, then, in college, I started making my own short films and a comedy series that I posted on YouTube every week.” But film school was very expensive for the son of a social worker and a hairdresser. “Acting became a more realistic project. I started theater at 20, 21, although I never stopped writing.” There was also a period when he risked enlisting in the Royal Navy. “I’m already writing my second feature film.”
The momentum was maintained and that’s why he directed the short 2003 in 2021, when he was already emerging in acting. “I felt like I already had permission to make the movie.” And you wonder how the public will take this change in your career? “People probably don’t know what I’m dedicating my time to. When I said I wanted to make this movie, and even when I did it, there was a general sense of… ‘Oh, you wanted to make a movie? Are you a privileged actor who decided you wanted to try directing?’ What they don’t know is that it was actually my goal. I just didn’t go around saying it. From the outside it seems like a frivolous thing, but they spent years on it.”
Rascal It comes from what he has seen through his father’s profession and his own experience. “I worked in 2019 and 2020 with an organization in my community in east London with people who have been living on the streets for years. It was a topic that both interested and outraged me. Local government doesn’t necessarily help in the right way despite its efforts. These gaps were what motivated me to try to tell the story of someone who is fighting against themselves.”
Its protagonist, Mike, begins the film sleeping stretched out on the pavement of a London street. It’s daytime, pedestrians surround him in a hurry. A preacher shouts trying to convince passersby of the wonders of his religion. These screams wake up the homeless man, who after having argued with the enlightened man, gets up and begins his journey, in which he will attack, to rob, the only man who helps him. “It’s important to love your characters, even when they have questionable behavior,” observes Dickinson. “I wanted to show someone’s struggles in that scenario, without focusing on the institutions, as if it were an odyssey, not reflecting the shortcomings of parole or prison reform. I really admire the people who work in those fields, like my father. I don’t want it to seem like I’m blaming anyone.”
And it’s time to delve deeper into the message of your tattoo. “My mother is a huge movie buff. She took me to the movies when I was little. She introduced me to Mike Leigh and I identified with the characters in his world. I felt like they were people like the ones in my life and I found that intriguing.” Then came “Ken Loach, Lynne Ramsay, who started with social realism, Shane Meadows, Andrea Arnold, Sarah Gavron, Clio Bernard, all British filmmakers, even Joanna Hogg… They are the foundation of a tradition that I am grateful to be part of.”
Its protagonist, Frank Dillane, son of acting legend Stephen Dillane, appeared in the series Fear of The Walking Dead. “When we started auditioning actors, he came into the room and gave an incredible test. I found it intriguing. I was clear that I didn’t want to fall into the stereotype of a young rebel. Frank represented exactly what I needed, because he had to be charming and strange and he had to be embarrassed and pathetic at the same time. An imperfect human being.” And did he keep the secondary character for himself? “What’s up! A week after filming, the hired actor left and Frank looked at me and said, ‘You’re the only one who knows the whole script.’ I had no choice.”
Rascal it’s not a political film, says the director, but… “I wanted to commit to a cause, I wanted to mobilise, even if I didn’t know how. Many people feel the same level of frustration. We want change, but we don’t know where to start. Whether through activism, through legislative changes decided by the government or through individual support. There is an incredible charity in London called Under One Sky. They go around the city in groups of five and find people in vulnerable situations. They give them food, they deliver sleep Maybe not the entire landscape is changing, but they answer one question: what can be done today that is effective?” And he launches: “We have lost trust in hierarchical structures, we have lost trust in politicians. I don’t want to be cynical, but where do we go if there is so much distrust in people? The change is in the community, in local efforts, in understanding and empathy. However, I don’t have a prophetic answer.”
Religion appears in the first and last sequences. The street preacher story is inspired by my experience. “He wouldn’t stop talking and shouting, as if he was going from innocent religious rhetoric to blind rage. Something confusing because religion is supposed to be something kind, even though we know it’s not,” he reflects. “I’m interested in faith and spirituality. Perhaps many of us share that feeling of confusion towards faith in general and feel part of something bigger, but without knowing what it is and without wanting to label it.”
