«No, I wasn’t a huge fan. But the Moonwalk I did it. The first time when I was twelve.”
Do you remember it so precisely?
«Because I associate the faces of my middle school classmates with the moment. “But how do you do it?”. I attended the Parini institute in Via Solferino.”
Michael Jackson, “the other”, is Milanese. While the first images of the Biopic that Antoine Fuqua is shooting in the USA with Jaafar Jackson in the role of his superstar uncle are bouncing around the world, on this side of the pond work is being completed on a second film dedicated to the singer. It is written by Liana Marabini, the cast is international and the protagonist grew up in Milan: his name is Joshua Consigli. Actor, singer and dancer, 28 years old, mother from New York and father from Milan, even in his thin features he resembles Jacko. “They didn’t have to do much to the make-up, just the hair.” The film written and directed by Marabini, producer and director resident in the Principality of Monaco, is entitled «A gift from God» and tells part of Jackson’s life by observing a singular perspective: «We want to highlight an aspect practically unknown of the king of pop – explains the author -: we focus on the relationship between Michael and religion”. The period brought to the screen goes from 1982 to 1989, years in which Thriller, Billie Jean, Bad and other hits climbed the charts.
And what was happening in the meantime?
«Michael Jackson – continues Consigli, who grew up in the Pagano area – had received a sort of ultimatum: either music or remaining among Jehovah’s Witnesses. In fact, he embraced his mother’s religion to which he was very attached. But pieces like Thriller they were frowned upon, it was said that zombies conveyed occult messages. He chose art at a high price: with his mother – they were the rules – she was never able to talk about faith again. In the film we talk about a heartbreaking phase and more that I won’t reveal. A spiritual journey began there. He greatly admired John Paul II.”
A non-mainstream topic.
«Liana Marabini faces something that has never been faced».
Are you a fan of Michael Jackson?
«Not crazy. Of course I knew him. I discovered that his sources of inspiration – he was a tip-tap dancer like I was later on – were mine too. Studying him, I understood how much he suffered from the media fuss: it was said that he wanted to become white out of shame for being black, but instead he was trying to hide his vitiligo.”
He was also a controversial figure.
“I know well. But I learned about aspects that I didn’t know, including his great suffering.”
Filming is over. Does the character come back every now and then?
“The voice. I studied it for a long time and modulated it. However, I try to distance myself: once the work is completed, it ends.”
Isn’t it strange to present the film while another blockbuster biopic is in the works?
«First of all, it’s not uncommon for it to happen, let’s think about films about Steve Jobs. Then it doesn’t worry us because ours is a completely different theme from the all-round biography and this is a European film: we shot in Menton.”
When is the release expected?
«It will be presented in Cannes on May 14th».
How did you get involved?
«I was born a dancer, then I did music and acting. During the auditions – I recently shot the commercials for the probiotic Milk, many years ago I worked on the Pokemon commercial for Nintendo – I was noticed. In December I received the proposal: would you like this part? Of course! Then the test script was delivered: help.”
Why “help”?
«Because up until then I had only had small parts. My strength is improvisation. Instead in that case, for the audition which was required anyway, they sent me six scenes, 18 pages, to be prepared in 4-5 days. However, I am dyslexic and I really struggle with this type of study. I concentrated, I don’t even know how much I slept (little): unlike others I can only free myself if I know everything by heart, every word, comma, detail. I finally did it. It went like this on set too: once filming was over I rested, then when it was still night I woke up and started learning everything by heart again. I can say that I have exceeded my limit and I am very happy. Imagine that a few days ago we played a game: they picked a random word from the script and I had to recognize and recite the line. All right. Someone on the set was in disbelief.”
Do you also dance in the film?
«There was supposed to be a stunt double but, for various reasons including the fact that the dancer turned out to be too tall, in the end Liana chose to focus only on me. It wasn’t easy but we solved every problem.”
His beginnings?
«My mother, the singer Tracy Carol Hamilton, used to show me Fred Astaire video cassettes when I was little. I got hooked on tiptapping. Later came the lessons at the Bendy Dance Center in via Telemaco Signorini, with Ben Elman Johnson who for me was an all-round teacher: he explained how to bring everything to the stage, not just the dance. Then, around the age of 16, my life changed. I had already started making music, singing (I’m self-taught), I was on holiday in Barbados and I met a producer who decided to invest in my songs. I said yes. And off we go: back and forth from Italy.”
Were you studying at that time?
«At the Leonardo Da Vinci high school. But the two things couldn’t coexist, I traveled too much. So I left before graduating.”
Do you miss finishing your studies?
“I have no regrets. It was the right choice there. My pseudonym is CJ Hamilton (a portmanteau of his initials and his mother’s surname): among his works, the single Take to Flight became the theme song for the Caribbean Carnival in 2016 and then for the presentation of the WeChat campaign in Milan. And I never stopped auditioning.”
So here it is.
«The film with Liana Marabini is a special occasion».
Has he returned to live in Milan?
«Now yes and I feel great here. I am also co-founder of an events agency, Jumar Events: where if not in Milan?”.
Tags: Stunt tall anxious scripts overcame dyslexia
