Ventriloquist, comedian, actor, and writer are just a few roles Nina Conti has under her belt. Her new comedy film, SUNLIGHT, in which she stars alongside Shenoah Allen, also marks her directorial debut. Using dark humor as a tool for survival, this film certainly doesn’t shy away from tough topics. SUNLIGHT is a 96 minute long humorous journey that displays a beautiful way of addressing sensitive subjects such as trauma, domestic violence, and mental health using her infamous ventriloquist character Monkey. To learn more about Nina Conti and SUNLIGHT, read on.

Where are you based?
London

You are an incredible ventriloquist! Can you tell us a bit about how you got into ventriloquism?
A maverick visionary called Ken Campbell, who was a theatre director and truffle pig for lost artforms forced me to try it. He’d been to a ventriloquist convention in Kentucky and came back from there quite maniacal about bringing ventriloquism back to life in the UK. I wasn’t keen at all, but he was very persuasive and, when I gave it a go, I found it all unfolded very naturally for me.

You do this very interesting human ventriloquism, which we have never seen before. Is this something you invented? If yes, how did you come up with this? If not, where does it come from and how did you find your way to it?
The ventriloquist masks have been around for a long time and a brilliant ventriloquist called Ron Lucas was the first to do a brilliantly funny act with them. Where I’ve taken it is into unscripted comedy, my shows are different every night and I improvise nightly so no two shows are the same.

Can you tell us a little bit about your character Monkey? How did he come about?
I picked him up over twenty years ago, when I first started learning ventriloquism and he hasn’t shut up since. Its a brilliant face he has, which you can project any emotion onto. He has a very steady persona and through it I’m able to voice all my uncensored thoughts. The monkey character has been a real liberation for me.

You recently released your new film SUNLIGHT, which you wrote, directed, and starred in. Congrats! What inspired you to pursue a career in the film industry?
I’ve always wanted to make a film. Its been a life long dream and when the idea came to me I knew I’d have to everything it took to make it happen.

SUNLIGHT is a really unique story! Can you tell us a little bit about the story behind it and where the inspiration for it came from?
The story of a woman who doesn’t want to come out of a monkey suit is a giant metaphor for my life. But I also had a chewbacca-sized monkey made by the star wars creature department genius Vanessa Bastyan. I started performing comedy in it and met Shenoah Allen, Monkey and he had an unparalleled chemistry and I felt compelled to find them a vehicle.

You co-wrote and co-starred with Shenoah Allen through this SUNLIGHT adventure. How was it working with him on this movie? How did this story evolve through the two of you?
Shenoah is amazing, so creative and exciting to work with, he has a dark and wicked wit, and is an incredible improviser. We built the film through acting out potential scenes in my living room, with a big white board, I spent a lot of that time in the monkey suit.

The film is a comedy, but it has a really beautiful and sensitive way of addressing trauma. Why was it important for you cover these difficult issues like depression, suicide, domestic abuse, sexual abuse, and probably a lot more, like this?
We both feel at its best comedy can alchemize that stuff. Shenoah and I have been around the block a bit and have had enough of life's knocks to want to make a comedy that had some substance and didn’t shy away from the dark stuff, and we both use dark comedy as survival and to some extent an escape mechanism.

We love how you bring in your well-known ventriloquist character, Monkey to represent Jane’s alter ego. How did this all come together? How does Monkey protect Jane?
Climbing into a larger body, with and impenetrable face brings about a place of safety and mischief. When I first climbed into the suit, despite the fact it was hard to see or breath I instantly recognized it as my happy place.

What do you hope viewers take away from this film?
I don’t want to prescribe that necessarily, something about survival through an a-typical avenue, something about identity, but truly I’ve been delighted by the myriad ways it effects people.

Can you tell us a little bit about how you approached storytelling for this film?
We took our time, it took years to write the screenplay, with constant structural and dialogue changes which continued into the shoot and then again into the edit.

With this new film you have officially made your directorial debut, congratulations! What inspired you to start directing?
It felt like a very personal piece, and I couldn’t imagine anyone else doing it.

How has having prior experience as an actress impacted your skills as a director and the way you choose to approach directing?
Shenoah and I liked being in charge of when we felt we had nailed a scene. We did a lot of improvising within the scenes until we felt wed got it right.

How is writing for a live comedy show different from how you approach writing a comedy screenplay?
There’s a lot of cross over, you can only explore the routes that feel truthful, or you hit a brick wall.

What advice do you have for young girls wanting to pursue a career in the film industry whether it be for directing, acting or ventriloquism?
Do it all yourself, as much of it as possible, seek out the advice you need, and no more.

Do you have any advice for anyone struggling with mental health?
Far be it from me to be qualified in offering advice, I can only say that for me, metaphors help to unpack stuff.

Are there any upcoming projects you are currently working on that we should be on the lookout for?
Shenoah and I have a couple ideas on the fire, but too soon to say!

It has been a rough few years, and we expect at least four more. How have you been staying positive?
I try to focus on doing what I do.

What is your motto in life?
Got no motto — shit no wonder I’m in trouble.

To learn more about Nina Conti, please check out the links below:
Instagram: @theninaconti
TikTok: @theninaconti
Facebook: @nina.conti

Nina Conti's Dark Humor Shines a Light on Sore Subjects