It’s been an eventful year for Niamh Algar. Her previous film, Calm With Horses, earned her a BAFTA nomination, her role in TV’s Raised By Wolves turned her dream of working with Ridley Scott into a reality, she’s currently in Channel 4’s true-crime drama, ‘Deceit‘, and now this Friday sees the cinema release of Censor, which attracted plenty of attention when it debuted at this year’s Sundance.
Directed by Prano Bailey-Bond, it’s horror with a decidedly psychological twist that sees Algar playing the censor of the title. It’s the 1980s, the era of what became known as “video nasties” and the panic that surrounded them and she’s under pressure to either make cuts to the ones that land on her desk – or, better still, ban them altogether because of their graphic content. But, during the course of her work, she becomes obsessed with the films of one particular director and, in particular, his regular lead actress, who bears such a striking resemblance to her long-lost sister that she becomes convinced her sibling has returned. But this could be a case of the dividing lines between her work and reality becoming so blurred she can no longer tell the difference …..
In the interview below, Algar talks about her reasons for wanting to make the film – being a horror fan was just the start! – and also how she researched the usually secretive world of a film censor. She also reflects on why she’s attracted by emotionally demanding roles and gives a small hint of what we can expect from the next season of ‘Raised By Wolves‘.
‘Censor’ is in cinemas from 20 August.
