Believing in your dreams is one thing but making them come true is entirely another. For one thing, along with talent and persistence, there’s an element of being in the right place at the right time that can’t be discounted. And sometimes the world tries tells you that your dreams will have to wait.
To make it through, you find you need to forge your own path. For Jamaican born writer-director and actor Adjani Salmon, the path he forged eventually led him to co-create and star in excellent new six-part series Dreaming Whilst Black, but it was far from an easy road.
Originally conceived as a webcast back in 2018, the series didn’t exactly have blockbuster beginnings, but Salmon’s semi-autobiographical tale of a young creative attempting to break into an industry that refused to open the door resonated. So began a journey that saw the webcast garner critical acclaim, eventually becoming a BAFTA-winning television pilot a couple of years later. Now, Salmon continues the story in his sharp and surreal comedy-drama about the challenges of convincing others to believe in your vision.
Adjani Salmon as Kwabena in 'Dreaming Whilst Black'. Credit: Domizia Salusest / BBC / Big Deal Films
Twenty-eight year old Kwabena Robinson (played by Salmon) is its protagonist, and from the outset, there’s no denying he’s a talented filmmaker. At least, Kwabs knows there wouldn’t be if he could just get the chance to actually make a film. Instead, he is languishing in an uninspiring recruitment job dreaming, quite literally, of being a successful writer and director. As the only person of colour in his team, Kwabs’ role also has an unwanted extra responsibility that he didn’t sign up for: being the office expert on all things Black. As he fields a daily slew of cringeworthy and insensitive questions that are unfortunately not as farfetched as they seem, it’s fair to say that Kwabs’ corporate life is more nightmare than dream, stifling any opportunity for creativity and leaving him wondering if it’s even possible for a young Black-British filmmaker to get a fair shake.
At the office: Adam (Alexander Owen), Vicky (Meghan Treadway), Kwabena (Adjani Salmon), Director (Graeme Hughes), Jamie (Tom Stourton). Credit: Anup Bhatt / BBC / Big Deal Films
To make ends meet, Kwabs is living with his highly strung cousin Maurice (Demmy Ladipo) and Maurice’s heavily pregnant wife Funmi (Rachel Adedeji), an arrangement that is mutually beneficial for the time being, but does have some downsides. Hynobirthing practice after work, anyone? Though the set up means any privacy is fleeting, it becomes a much-needed safety net for Kwabs when a social karaoke event with his colleagues proves to be the final straw, and he is placed under renewed pressure to turn his aspiration into a rent-paying, tangible reality.
Funmi (Rachel Adedeji) and Maurice (Demmy Laipo). Credit: Domizia Salusest / BBC / Big Deal Films
Luckily Kwabs knows his idea for Jamaica Road, a story inspired by his grandparents’ migrant journey, has the potential to be great, not least because it means so much to him, but getting others to see what it could become requires a level of self-belief that is harder for him to access. An open call pitch session was the break Kwabs was counting on but, once again, a shot at realising his goal is just out of reach thanks to the impossible choice between keeping his head above water and pursuing his passion.
Thankfully, Kwabs’ unsuccessful pitch session isn’t entirely in vain, as he reconnects with film school friend Amy (Dani Moseley) who, having just returned from three years working in Nigeria, proves to be the unexpected ‘in’ that he has been waiting for. As Kwabs learns that, in creative industries, it’s who you know as much as what you know, Amy pushes him to take back control of the project and give filmmaking a serious go.
Amy (Dani Moseley) and Kwabena (Adjani Salmon). Credit: Anup Bhatt / BBC / Big Deal Films
As Kwabs and his friends balance their financial responsibilities, familial expectations, and love lives, amidst a world that would rather exploit their talents than reward them, their fast-paced, ferociously funny exchanges are comedic gold. Whether it’s Maurice’s daily freak outs about becoming a father, Amy’s struggle to bite her tongue as her incompetent boss takes credit for her work, or Kwabs’ clumsy attempts at romance with high-flying dream girl Vanessa (Babirye Bukilwa), their experiences manage to be entirely relatable without diminishing their individuality. At the centre is the recurring tension for Kwabs between the freedom afforded by his imagination and the real-world limitations he must contend with, brought to life with such vividness that you can’t help but share in his frustration and want him to succeed.
Though the series is largely fictional, Salmon’s own experience remains the secret ingredient that allows Dreaming Whilst Black to be both a properly funny comedy and a story with real heart. It authentically captures the impermeable nature of creative industries from a perspective rarely given the limelight, and allows its laugh out loud funny moments to also hold a mirror up to prejudices, subtle and otherwise, that endure. At every stage, there is a real sense that Salmon has refused to compromise in the telling of this story, and what has resulted is a series that stands alone and makes us so glad he did.
Dreaming Whilst Black is streaming now at SBS On Demand.
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Dreaming Whilst Black
