Her Excellence — Mouna Traore
Photo by: Chelly
Hailing from Toronto, MOUNA TRAORÉ is an actor, filmmaker, and writer making her mark in the tv and film industry. In our candid interview we talk about her start, lessons she’s learned, and what’s to come.
CHELLY IN THE CITY: Who is Mouna Traoré?
MOUNA TRAORÉ: I am an actor, writer, filmmaker, and a comedian-in-the-making born and raised in Toronto. I am also half Malian and half Haitian.
CITC: When did you discover acting was your calling?
MT: I think I knew from when I was three or four years old. I distinctly remember being very small and watching the television and thinking: “why am I not doing that? I should be doing that?” I had that nagging feeling literally all through my childhood; feeling like I should be doing what I was seeing on TV.
CITC: Fast forward, you have landed recognizable roles in Murdoch Mysteries, Condor, In Contempt, The Book of Negroes, Rookie Blue and Carrie. What was your experience like breaking into the tv and film industry?
MT: I would say that it has been a long, drawn out experience. I think that being young, I had a lot of expectations about how quick it would be, how easy it would come, and I would say that I’ve had an awakening to the truth of what the industry is.
For the first 10 years, I wasn’t so confident and I had all types of expectations. It was a tough experience entering the industry because I had to learn on the job and I had to reshape my understanding of what the job even was, and even now I’m still discovering new things about what the job is and how to go about it. But, it’s been a beautiful experience. I’ve gone above and beyond my expectations of myself, not to say I think that I’m a star or anything, but you know when I was a kid, all I wanted to do was just act. So, having been able to work on so many different roles and projects, it’s been such a revelation to be able to see the things I wanted from such a young age manifest.
Photo by: Chelly
❝ I’ve gone above and beyond my expectations of myself, not to say I think that I’m a star or anything, but you know when I was a kid, all I wanted to do was just act. So, having been able to work on so many different roles and projects, it’s been such a revelation to be able to see the things I wanted from such a young age manifest. ❞
CITC: Aside from acting, you are a writer, producer, and the co-founder of a production company called The Mini Films. How important was it for you to have something outside of acting?
MT: It was really important because I got to a place where I didn’t want to be dependent on other people for a job or for a sense of purpose within the industry. I also wanted to create a platform for other people because I saw so many actors who I believed in who I thought were talented struggle and if I have my own company or if I’m creating my own content, I can help elevate and give exposure to other people who I think are very deserving of the opportunities to work and do good work.
CITC: Looking back, was there ever a hurdle you faced in your acting career that taught you a lesson about yourself?
MT: I was going through a period in 2014 where I was auditioning all the time for a lot of projects and I wasn’t booking jobs. It would come down to me and one other person, but then I wouldn’t book it; I was feeling really lost and frustrated. The more I wanted the job, the more I was desperate to book a job, the further it went away from me. I was spending so much time, so much energy on every audition, preparing, just trying to do my best to get a job. I think that experience and what happened afterwards sort of taught me that you can’t squeeze this thing to death, you can’t force anything. You have to give yourself room to live, to fail, and make mistakes. For me, acting was so life or death and everything was so serious. I had so much stress and anxiety around it because I just wanted so badly to work. As soon as I let go of all that and made the decision to just live my life the way I wanted to live it and make acting and auditions less a part of my sense of identity, I started booking way more. I would say getting through the low points when you’re not working is always going to be a thing, but how I respond to it has been such a learning curve.
Photo by: Chelly
❝ You have to give yourself room to live, to fail, and make mistakes. ❞
CITC: Was there any advice you weren’t given that you can provide to young actors starting out?
MT: It’s not that I didn’t necessarily get this advice, I just didn’t really take it to heart the way I understand it now. So train, train, train! Training, going to acting classes, having acting coaches, and just exploring all the different kinds of methods of acting is so important. Another thing I would tell young actors is don’t take it personally. When I first got into the industry, I took so much of what happened in auditions, on set, with castings so personally and you cannot. This is a business. Yes, you as a person are your product that you’re pushing, but the decisions that people make around you as a product are not personal. It has everything to do with the story they’re trying to tell and who they’re trying to tell it to. Another thing is, the kind of professionalism that it takes to be able to sustain a career. I didn’t really have a mentor helping me transition from being a teenager at an arts school for high school studying drama to a professional actor on a set. The kind of preparation that you have to do with scripts, developing character, the way you conduct yourself working with a group of other people, and being collaborative. It was just something I didn’t understand in my late teens and early twenties and I wish that I just got some advice around that.
CITC: Tell me about a role you connected with the most and why.
MT: I think my character Vanessa Hastings on BET’s In Contempt. The show is a legal drama about a criminal defence office in New York City. My character is a rookie attorney who is from a very different world than the rest of the people in the office or the clients she works with. She doesn’t understand the rules, she doesn’t fit in, and her upbringing, lack of experience and background of privilege make her stand out from everyone else around her. Like Vanessa, I’ve often had trouble fitting in and I’ve been desperate for the acceptance and approval of people who may not like something I can’t even help. I was able to incorporate so much of my real life experiences into the character and her struggles, which made it so gratifying and cathartic to work on.
Photo by: Chelly
Photo by: Chelly
❝ I would tell young actors is don’t take it personally. When I first got into the industry, I took so much of what happened in auditions, on set, with castings so personally and you cannot. This is a business. Yes, you as a person are your product that you’re pushing, but the decisions that people make around you as a product are not personal. It has everything to do with the story they’re trying to tell and who they’re trying to tell it to. ❞
CITC: If you could work with any actress in the film industry under your own production company, The Mini Films, who would it be and why?
MT: The first person that comes to my mind is Viola Davis because she is the best actress on the planet and she’s f****** beast! I would love to just breathe her air and just watch her work.
CITC: Are there any upcoming projects or roles that you are working on that you can share with me?
I just finished two Netflix shows, one of them I am not allowed to speak about, but the other one is a show called Self Made: Inspired by the Life of Madam C.J. Walker. It’s a limited series about Sarah Breedlove (also known as Madame C.J. Walker) who founded a hair company and became America’s first self-made woman millionaire. It’s a really exciting true story that takes place during a time we rarely see depicted in tv or films about African-American experience, and it was such a pleasure to be apart of. I’m so glad this woman’s story is finally getting the attention it deserves, and I truly believe the star studded cast and crew behind this project will do it justice.
CITC: Finally, What makes you excellent?
The fact that I am okay with not being excellent? I’m finally in a place where I really love and accept myself for whoever I am that day. I’ve come to a more balanced understanding of what it is to be human. I think for so long when I was young, I really held myself up to a really high standard of perfection and I strove so hard to be an idea. The reality is, humans are messy, imperfect, inconsistent, and always trying to figure things out. I think it’s beautiful because that always gives us room to grow and discover and I’m okay with being in that place.
Photo by: Chelly
❝ I think for so long when I was young, I really held myself up to a really high standard of perfection and I strove so hard to be an idea. The reality is, humans are messy, imperfect, inconsistent, and always trying to figure things out. I think it’s beautiful because that always gives us room to grow and discover and I’m okay with being in that place. ❞
For more Mouna Traoré, visit her Instagram and check her out on Netflix’s Self Made: Inspired by the Life of Madam C.J. Walker which airs March 20, 2020.