Setbacks, loss and obstacles have not kept Southeast Texas actor Iman Shakur from finding that breakthrough role of a lifetime.
The 27-year-old spent most of his childhood in New Orleans, but moved to Texas
after Hurricane Katrina devastated his hometown.
Shakur attended Langham Creek High School in Cypress, Texas, playing football and
experiencing the typical ups and downs that most teenagers go through until the
fateful day that launched his journey.
“I experienced my first great loss in high school, losing my God brother to gun
violence and that sent me down a deep depression,” Shakur says.
“But on the other side of that depression was getting the opportunity to find myself
find what actually makes me happy. I learned how to deal with grief and found
acting.”
Shakur says he gets goosebumps when he thinks about his childhood. He always was
interested in storytelling, which he calls the root of acting.
“When I’m acting, I feel the closest I’ve ever felt to God,” Shakur says. “I feel as
though I am fulfilling his will over my life, especially when I’m on stage.
“When I’m on stage, it’s pure bliss. I feel like I’m floating, and nothing else in the
world exists outside of whoever I am doing the scene with. It’s the most amazing
feeling, and indescribable.”
Three years ago Shakur did a scene with actor Will Smith in the Apple TV movie
“Emancipation.”
“I was hired as a normal regular background actor, and through God’s grace, they
bumped me up from a background actor to a featured actor,” Shakur says. “I went
from just in the general crowd to sitting right next to Will Smith, an actor I grew up
watching, who was my favorite actor.
Shakur says he had an “aha” feeling like his life had come full circle.
“It was my breakthrough moment,” Shakur says
“God confirmed for me and validated for me that acting was my life purpose. Since
that point three years ago, I have devoted and committed myself to mastering the
craft.”
Shakur’s agent, Lydia Garza, works at the Blanco Agency. Garza who also serves a
Music and Film Commissioner for the City of Corpus Christ is selective about who
she represents.
Garza represents 200 actors in Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, and New Mexico.
“I look for bookable talent, people that have an interesting look, background, a goodhistory, a subtle talent for TV or film, and somebody that does not overact and can
internalize,” Garza says.
“I want strong actors, if someone is really honest and authentic that is basically what
wins me over,” she said.
Shakur says that Garza likes that he is believable, has a fearlessness of vulnerability,
and a good work ethic. Shakur never misses an audition.
Writer and director Ryan Holly recently cast Shakur for his film project “Method.”
Holly and his project collaborator, Jamie Gallagher, received more than 700
submissions nationwide.
Shakur was one of 12 people they called back after Shakur reached out to Holly over
Instagram.
“I could just sense his heart, passion, humility and how driven he is in the craft of
acting throughout the casting process,” Holly says.
“I get a lot of actors reaching out personally and claiming they’re right for the role. He
even said, you know, even if you guys don’t cast me, I just want to let you know how
much this role resonates with me. Gideon Martin is me.”
Shakur says the character, Gideon Martin, was autobiographical for him.
“There’s a monologue about trying to return to your father’s death bed and just
basically share and spill your guts as the father would and his on his deathbed,” Holly
says.
“The scene was very personal for Iman because his grandmother had recently passed
away, and it was his first audition after attending her funeral.”
Shakur says he has gained experience from his auditions for various roles.
“I would be lying if I said it wasn’t nerve wracking, but after so much experience
within auditioning, you grow a confidence about yourself and are able to be in a space
where you believe in yourself so much that you’re not necessarily focusing on or
worried about all the nerves that you may be feeling,” Shakur says.
Richard Thomas III is a graduate student in the School of Journalism and Mass
Communication at Texas State University.
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