Today we’d like to introduce you to Sam Cole.
Hi Sam, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
My story really has been quite a unique one, fairly scatological, to be honest. I think, firstly for me, I dreamed of being an athlete in combat sports from an early age; I never felt like I fitted in at school, and training in boxing and wrestling helped a lot with keeping me occupied and out of trouble. Unfortunately, I got a lot of bad concussions and long-term health issues, so my attention pivoted on the only other thing I seemed to be good at and that was creative arts, performing on stages, writing singing acting, this world aligned with me a lot. I have no qualifications from school of any regard. I still do simple math on my fingers with great difficulty, but I know what I’m good at. The key factor for any kind of success I have ever had or hope to have in the future likely comes down to my obsessive enthusiasm to keep going. I am by no means the most intelligent, skilled, or talented, but when everyone else has stopped, I’m still there. I outwork everyone and do the things that most others wouldn’t do or fear to do in order to get where I need to be no matter how uncomfortable that may be or how far I have to go, my life has been very challenging but I take pride in everything I have experienced up to today.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Yes, of course, I have achieved a lot in my life, to be honest; from where I started to where I am in my career, business, and my goals, there are highlights for sure. I’ve been lucky enough to shoot and perform in places across the world that I only dreamed of, worked with some amazing people and also worked in so many industries over the years trying to get on by, especially early on in my early 20s. Along with that came some immense personal challenges that life throws at you; we all get them some more than others; perhaps if I hadn’t had the right people at the right time come into my life, I wouldn’t be here; there were some seriously sh*tty dark moments, that’s why I will always be an advocate for mental illness and overcoming mental health, were fortunate enough to understand more about mental health in our world today and how it affects us as people, I’m very pleased about that recognition.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
Primarily I guess you can call me an Actor, I get paid to portray and tell other people’s story which is a blessing, it’s the only job I’ve had where I can be someone else for a day or several days depending on the shoot. It’s not really work or a job, I love it too much, it’s escapism for me. I’ve done my share of voluntary projects, and to tell you the truth, you can work just as hard for free as you can for a big budget picture, the only difference being in one, you walk away with the experience, and the second you walk away with the experience and 10 million in your pocket if you’re lucky enough to be at the top of the game. To me that’s what it this is, a game, I don’t take anything to heart, rejection, let downs, wins, losses, it’s all part of the game. At the end of it all, its legacy is very important, yes, but looking ahead, what really means something is to go home, live your life, raise your kids, lead by example, and be a good father and husband; that’s what really matters to me in the end.
Regret though isn’t something I can live with, so I give my all to everything I put my name to, I guess that what separates me, I’m the first and last of me. I’m proud of being able to still be here and actually be in the position I am in, by no mistake I’ve sacrificed a lot but there is so much more left to do and if I can help others along the way then that’s just as good.
We’d love to hear what you think about risk-taking.
Ah you know that’s a great question, I’ve taken a ton of risks and along with that is many failures and the occasional success. I’ll keep it simple: risk is the currency of the Gods, in my view. You get one go around at life, no one ever got anywhere without a degree of risk.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.filmmakers.eu/en/actors/sam-iqbal-cole
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scundercover/?hl=en
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CCV8mAO2RKM
Image Credits
Phil Sharp
