The Talented and Charming Manuel Soro

Hollywood is calling actor Manuel Soro

“All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players.”  William Shakespeare wrote that now-famous line in his play As You Like It, and Italian actor Manuel Soro understands what old Bill was talking about better than most thanks to a lengthy career in the entertainment industry through which he has brought to life characters who must themselves act for a number of reasons.  In fact, many of his best characterizations are as men whose outward actions belie their inner feelings, themselves playing roles; this has afforded Manuel many opportunities in which he has delivered commanding performances.

 

One of Manuel’s favorite roles was as Mr Corson in the acclaimed Meeting Mr. Abbadon.  The short film tells a satisfying story of comeuppance for a villainous variety of characters, the most intriguing that of Manuel’s Mr. Corson. Corson is an unscrupulous businessman who sells bad mortgages knowing full-well that his customers will lose their homes.  Manuel speaks to the depths that went into portraying him; “Often it’s tempting to oversimplify a role like Corson" to just play the ‘evil,’ character, but what’s a lot more fun is to portray him in a way that’s a little more surprising in how he may or may not grow.” 

 

While Corson appears to have no guilt whatsoever, on a deeper level the scam artist is tormented by his life-ruining choices.  Without spoiling Meeting Mr. Abbadon’s plot, not even his conscience and confronting his crimes prevents Corson from changing his destructive role, a late-game opportunity for redemption surprisingly squandered by a final outburst of familiarly self-destructive behavior.  This unpredictable character was perfect for Manuel, who revels in challenging himself through deeply layered roles and excels in portraying authentic figures who fall outside rigid morality.  Manuel artfully blurred the lines between performance and life through Corson, a talent that earned Meeting Mr. Abbadon official selection at the coveted Short + Sweet Film Festival.

 

Manuel solidified his reputation for masterful portrayals of demanding characters through his role as Kit in Trick, another character that both tested and honed his skill.  The film sees cynical doorman and experienced fighter Nicki Davis (Del Weston) step in to protect a call girl pursued by criminals, cops, and politicians.  Manuel’s Kit is a ruthless crime boss who tirelessly chases Nicki until, when the protagonist is within inches of losing his life, he rescues him, astonishing audiences with a sudden shift in motivation.  Like Corson, it was the contradictions in Kit that inspired Manuel.  “To turn the antagonist into the hero was a bold move in terms of writing and a great acting experience because I had to show Kit’s inner conflict, then make his sudden change of heart believable" the process definitely made Kit one of the most enjoyable and challenging roles I’ve ever had.” 

 

Manuel also considers Trick to be one of his most memorable projects thanks to the close collaborative relationship he developed with multi-award winning Hollywood great Stan Harrington, who provided Manuel with the foundation for Kit, but allowed him to take the character in his own direction.  Manuel also worked closely with entertainment industry heavyweight Del Weston, who penned Trick’s screenplay as well as performing its lead role.  Weston was deeply invested in finding just the right actor to take on this difficult role and inevitably turned to Manuel, whose track record of embodying complex characters made him the obvious fit.  Manuel built off a solid foundation to construct a fully realized Kit who convincingly changed his ways, and his execution of the role clearly spoke to moviegoers and critics alike, apparent in Trick’s official selection by the Action on Film Festival and bright future on the upcoming film festival circuit.

 

Manuel’s roles are dynamic and inarguably thought-provoking, compounding his already superior skill.  “Thanks to Meeting Mr. Abbadon and Trick,” Manuel says, “I feel like I can give my future roles even greater dimension than before.”  Manuel has vindicated Shakespeare’s famous line many times over and rightfully gained his prominent place in the spotlight.